Secret Ingredient to Subtract Calories in Your Favorite Treat

I visited my parent's house this past weekend, and one again, my mom had another health saavy recipe.  She discovered a clever substitute to make a tasty treat not so sinful.  If you plan on making a cake or cupcake, there is one ingredient that can substitute eggs, milk and oil that you normally mix with box cake mix.  That special trick is a can of pure pumpkin! 


 


My mom used a box of Yellow Butter Cake Mix and one can of pumpkin.  After mixing the two ingredients, adding a dash of cinnamon and following the cooking directions of the back of the cake mix box.  Not only are you subtracting calories by using canned pumpkin, but it also involves less ingredients!


  

I considered the result a muffin because my mom and I ate them with whipped cream cheese; but they could easily be made into a cupcake by simply adding your favorite cake icing.  If you want to make it a cupcake with less fat, try sprinkling powdered sugar on top.


The pumpkin/cupcake was delicious and after letting my friend have a taste she stated, "It's really moist! The cinnamon brings out the pumpkin flavor and the cream cheese is a perfect addition."  I love this recipe, but it made me want to try more recipes with a pumpkin substitute...something chocolaty.  I did some research and found Double Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cookies.


You will need...
1 box of chocolate cake mix
15 oz can of pumpkin
1 cup of chocolate chips


Then you...
Set your oven to 350
Mix the the cake mix and pumpkin together
Fold in the chocolate chips
Grease pan
Drop spoonfuls of batter on to pan
Bake for 10-15 minutes 


The cookies were yummy! The chocolate chips made it more added extra chocolaty goodness.    There was only a hint of pumpkin flavor which gave the double chocolate cookies a unique twist.  Each cookie has about 80 calories, so heres to another treat I could enjoy without all the extra calories!