Have your cake and eat it too: Great heart health dessert recipes

The aim of healthy nutrition is a critical one, especially for those who want to achieve optimum heart health. But how necessary is it to do without the sweet things in life? As it turns out, it's not necessary at all. Just add a dash of resolve, a pinch of creativity, and stir. The results are a lot tastier than you might have imagined. Check out our suggestions for some truly amazing, impeccably flavorful heart healthy desserts and drinks.

Fresh Fruit Kebabs

Ingredients:

• Fat-free, sugar-free lemon yogurt: 4 ounces.
• Lime juice: 1 teaspoon
• Lime zest: 1 teaspoon
• Pineapple chunks: 4 to 6
• Whole strawberries: 4 to 6
• Peeled and diced kiwi: 1
• Banana slices: use approximately half a banana
• Red grapes: 4 to 6
• Skewers: 4

Instructions:

• Mix the yogurt, lime juice and lime zest in a bowl and refrigerate covered.
• Spear the individual fruit pieces onto the skewers.
• Serve, dipping the fruit pieces into the previously prepared yogurt, lime and lemon mix.

Strawberry Shortcake

Ingredients:

• Sliced strawberries: 6 cups
• Plain, fat-free yogurt: 3/4 cup
• Sifted whole wheat pastry flour: 1 3/4 cups
• Sifted plain flour: 1/4 cup
• Low-sodium baking powder: 2 1/2 teaspoons
• Sugar: 1 tablespoon
• Chilled trans-free margarine: 1/4 cup
• Chilled skim milk: 3/4 cup

Instructions:

• Mix flours, sugar, and baking powder in a large bowl.
• Cut the chilled margarine into the bowl, using a fork to break it into small chunks.
• Add the chilled skim milk.
• Stir into a moist dough.
• Knead the dough by hand and use a rolling pin to shape it into a 1/4 inch thick rectangle.
• Slice the dough into 8 squares.
• Bake at 450 degrees on a baking pan until golden.
• When ready to serve, simply add strawberries and yogurt and commence devouring.

Cranberry Spritzer (a great anytime drink for healthy nutrition)

Ingredients:

• Low-calorie cranberry juice: 1 quart
• Fresh lemon juice: 1/2 cup
• Carbonated water: 1 quart
• Sugar: 1/4 cup
• Raspberry sherbet: 1 cup
• Lemon or lime wedges: 10

Instructions:

• Refrigerate the juices and water until cold.
• Mix the juices, water, sugar and sherbet into a large pitcher.
• Serve by pouring into chilled glasses, with lemon or lime wedges.

Peaches A La Mode

Ingredients:

• Peeled, sliced peaches: 2
• Cinnamon: 1/8 teaspoon
• Low-fat granola: 1/3 cup
• Fat-free vanilla ice cream: 1 cup

Instructions:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Put peaches in a baking dish lightly coated with cooking spray.
• Bake 30 minutes.
• Sprinkle with granola and cinnamon.
• Bake another 30 minutes.
• Cool for 10 minutes.
• Serve the cooked peaches with fat-free vanilla ice cream.

If you're not already convinced that it's possible to eat a delicious dessert without ruining your diet or giving your cardiologist reason to worry, then you've probably never tried any of the above listed heart healthy dessert and drink recipes. Give it a shot. We guarantee you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Content Provided by Spot55.com