Strawberry Cheesecake Cookies

Pretty and tasty, make strawberry cheesecake cookies for a sweet treat

Last week, I decided to make these cookies, using the half package of cream cheese (8-ounce package) left over from frosting I had made for cinnamon rolls. (I only put a dollop of frosting on cinnamon rolls.) 

I hurriedly mixed the cookie batter, just before I was planning to leave the house, and only had time to bake one dozen. I used a teaspoon to drop the cookies onto the baking sheet. Of course, I had to try one immediately out of the oven, and it was very tasty. I put the remaining batter into the fridge.

Two days later, I baked another dozen cookies from the refrigerated batter. The previous dozen had all disappeared. My daughter told me she liked these even better than my lemon cookies. That's saying something, because sometimes all seven dozen from my lemon cookies recipe will disappear a in a week. (The recipe for the lemon cookies can be found on my Sweets and Treats page.)

On the third day, I took the remaining batter and baked another dozen cookies. Some of the cookies in this batch were a little larger than the other two batches I had previously baked. I decided I liked the cookies a little larger. 

When I bake these cookies again, I plan to double the recipe and drop the batter with a tablespoon for a slightly larger cookies. These cookies are so good with coffee. 

Hint: I had frozen strawberries on hand, and that's what I used. The berries are so much easier to chop while frozen or slightly frozen. I let them thaw just a bit. If using fresh strawberries, I would suggest washing and capping them, and then putting them into the freezer until firm. Otherwise, the berries may be watery and messy from chopping/slicing.

Ingredients:

4 ounces cream cheese, softened

8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter, softened (Do not melt butter. Let soften at room temperature.)

2/3 cup sugar

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 and 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 cup strawberries, sliced into small pieces

 (I filled a cup with small/medium strawberries and then sliced them.)

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, mix together cream cheese, butter and sugar. Add egg and vanilla extract; beat until creamy. In a separate bowl, combine flour and baking powder, blending well. Add flour mixture to the wet ingredients and stir together. Fold in strawberries. With a tablespoon or teaspoon, drop dough onto baking sheet, lined with parchment paper. Bake for about 14 minutes or until edges of cookies are slightly brown. Yield: 24 cookies dropped from a tablespoon and 36 cookies dropped from a teaspoon.

Nutrition info for batch of 24 cookies: one cookie, 97 calories; total fat, 5.7g: saturated fat, 3.5g; cholesterol, 23.5 mg; sodium, 21 mg; total carbs, 10.8g; fiber, 0.1g; sugar, 5.7g; protein, 1.5g.

Nutrition info for batch of 36 cookies: one cookie, 65 calories; total fat, 3.8g; saturated fat, 2.3g; cholesterol, 15.6 mg; sodium, 14 mg; total carbs, 7.2g; fiber, 0.1g; sugars, 3.8g; protein, 1g.

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Scones and soup

When I began making these scones

Top right photo shows scones baked, using Method 1.

Bottom right scones were baked, using Method 2.

last fall, I thought they would add a hearty side to a bowl of soup, especially to one of the thinner soups.

Since most soups are usually under 200 calories per serving, these scones, at around 130 calories each, won't break the lunch or supper budget in calories.

Depending upon the method of baking, each scone will also provide around 100-150 mg. of calcium. There are two methods of baking the scones, and I like them both. My family prefers the crispy and thin scones from Method 2. 

From each batch, I serve half the recipe and freeze the other half. Either way the scones are baked, they freeze well. I reheat them in the oven at 300 degrees to keep them crispy.

Spinach Scones with Feta Cheese

 Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups self-rising flour

1 teaspoon sugar

1/3 cup butter

1 cup chopped frozen spinach, thawed

3/4 cup feta cheese

3/4 cup whole milk

2 tablespoons whole milk

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. 

In a large bowl, cut butter into flour until mixture is crumbly. Stir in feta cheese and spinach. Add 3/4 cup milk and stir until all the ingredients are moistened. Next, proceed to either Method 1 or 2. 

Method 1

Turn dough onto lightly floured wax paper. Pat dough down and shape into two rounds about eight-inches each. Place each round on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Cut each round into eight wedges and slightly separate the wedges . Brush tops with the 2 tablespoons milk. Bake 15-18 minutes or until golden. 

Method 2

Turn dough onto lightly floured wax paper. Pat dough with flour and shape into two rounds. With a rolling pin, roll out each round of dough and cut with a biscuit or cookie cutter. Each round will yield 10-12 scones, depending on the size of the cutter used. (I use a diamond-shape cookie cutter.) Place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Brush tops with the 2 tablespoons milk. Bake 12-15 minutes or until golden. These scones will be thinner and crispier.

Nutritional info for Method 1 with 16 servings: Each serving, 128 calories; total fat, 5.7g: saturated fat, 3.7g: cholesterol, 18 mg: sodium, 324.6 mg: total carbs, 15.4 g: fiber, 0.8g: sugars, 1.1g: protein, 3.5g.

Nutritional info for Method 2 with 24 servings: Each serving, 85 calories: total fat, 3.8g: saturated fat, 2.5g: cholesterol, 12 mg: sodium, 216.4 mg: total carbs, 10.2g: fiber, 0.5g: sugars, 0.7g: protein, 2.4g.

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One more thing ..... I don't feel guilty           about ANYTHING I eat

From time to time, I come across recipes with a lure, "eat this without guilt," or something similar to that.

I don't feel guilty about anything I eat...not even if I go over my daily calorie allowance. That doesn't happen often, but it does occasionally. First of all, when that happens, I know when and how much I'm over. Daily tracking keeps me on track. At the end of the day, I know how many calories I'm over or under and that the adjustment will come from the days I'm under my daily allowance.

I don't feel guilty over my indulgences, because I've learned to plan for them. Usually, I know when I'm going to eat out, and I will "save up" for the calories. If I plan to have dessert with the meal, I will abstain from added sugar at home that day. When it comes to sweets, I watch the "added sugar" even more closely than the calories. If I eat out and order dessert, I enjoy it without any guilt. And if I go over the recommended daily amount of added sugar on a particular day, I don't get upset over it. It's still much, much better than it was before I started tracking.

It's the same for sodium. Most days, my sodium intake is well within the guidelines. But the days I eat out, it does go over. In fact, one meal eaten out may contain more than the day's allowance for sodium, Since my sodium intake is no longer unbridled on a daily basis, the few days it goes over are not a great concern.

Although I don't eat white bread as much now and have cut back on using white flour, I still make biscuits and breads a few times a month and enjoy them very much. I do eat whole wheat or whole grain bread every day.

For me, consistent tracking on a daily basis just takes care of the "off days" and eliminates any guilt.

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