Treat Petite Round Up January 2015

My goodness! We are one month into 2015 already – where does time go?! January is a bit of a naff month don’t you think? It’s cold, we are all trying to be a bit heathier post-Christmas festivities. It’s still dark in the mornings when you leave for work and dark by the time you get back (well, for me anyway).

Anyway, enough of my grumbles! Treat Petite for this January was all about being a bit healthier like I said above. And you guys did not disappoint – who needs to be bad when being good can be so good?!

 To kick things off we have Luck, the Baking Queen, who gave us these delightful, swirly mini strawberry meringues. They only have 50 calories each and no fat! Great entry Lucy!

Secondly, it was me! I made cookies with no dairy-fats, no eggs, no sugar and lots of flavour. They contained low-fat peanut butter, cacao powder and a banana. They were very light and crisp and perfect for a nibble with a cuppa.

Laura at I’d Much Rather Bake Than made very tempting White Chocolate and Green Tea Shortbread Cookies. She ground up some tea leaves she was reviewing, and added them to her shortbread mix. They turned out a lovely subtle green hue and sounded delicious.

Elizabeth at Elizabeth’s Kitchen Diary has been getting all fit, and as part of her new routine she made these extremely healthy chocolate covered peanut protein bars, made with peanut flour. The chocolate on top is healthy too – cocoa powder with some coconut oil and maple syrup. They sound scrummy and virtuous at the same time.

Our antipodean pal Johanna, from the Green Gourmet Giraffe, who lives in Melbourne (where my in-laws are at the moment!) decided to make cashew cheese stuffed into dates. I have never heard of cashew cheese before and was intrigued. The cheese contains cashews, obviously, but I won’t spoil the surprise of the rest of the ingredients. Pop over and have a look yourself!

Claire at ‘What Claire Baked’ is getting all healthy for 2015 too and made healthy flapjacks with fruit and seeds. She said they aren’t as sweet as regular flapjacks, but you could always adjust the amount of honey used to sweeten things up. They look great.

Helen at ‘Family Food Friend’ made muesli cookies. She was recently given a couple of big bags of muesli and decided to incorporate some into these fab looking cookies. She did forget to add spices she says, but was quite happy without them!

My co-host Kat at The Baking Explorer made chocolate and peanut butter granola bars. I love chocolate and peanut butter together so these are right up my street! The no-bake bars contain lots of seeds and oats, organic peanut butter, and way less chocolate than you would find in a ‘candy bar’ so plenty of goodness packed in there!

It is amazing how many of us are now using coconut oil in our bakes – it really is very popular as well as being healthier. Kerry at ‘Kerry Cooks’ made healthier blueberry bran muffins. These contain, aside from the coconut oil, Greek yoghurt and oat bran. I would love these any day of the week for breakfast!

Corina at Searching for Spice made these Coconut, Apricot and Sultana Snack Balls, also with coconut oil. She used some leftover fruits from Christmas and voila – her balls were born. They look like they would provide tons of energy.

Camilla at ‘Fab Food 4 All’ made something akin to a crème brulee, but much healthier. It was a Fat Free Greek Yoghurt Fruit Brulee. Her son, who doesn’t like yoghurt, was surprised how much he loved it. Full of oranges and grapes, plus the yoghurt, it is a quick and tasty healthy treat to knock up.

Ness at Jibber Jabber UK was making me feel all festive with her Treat Petite entry. Her mincemeat and cranberry flapjacks were made using some leftover ingredients, plus mincemeat which the supermarket were selling at a bargain price. With oats and fruit, they provide lots of energy (and a touch of Christmas for those of us that are still missing it!).

Sarah Jane from ‘Takes from the Kitchen Shed’ made healthy digestive biscuits. With only maple syrup acting as the sweetener, plus spelt flour and oatmeal, these are really quite a heathy option, perfect with a cuppa.

There we have it - some healthier inspiration for us all. Thanks to everyone for taking part and stay tuned for February's Treat Petite over at The Baking Explorer.