Tag Archives: phyllo

Pear and Brie Strudel

Posted on February 4, 2011 | 2 comments

When it comes to strudel pastry I totally cheat. My grandmother was always a very practical woman. When something can be bought to help that dessert be successful she had no qualms about doing so. Phyllo dough is one of these short cuts my grandmother supported. Why go through the trouble of making it when the ingredient is right there? Now you can concentrate on the more important things…like the filling. Oh wait, that isn’t hard either? Well…score! Seriously, whipping up a strudel like this as a weeknight dessert isn’t all that hard. That’s exactly what this one was.

  • 2 pears, cored, sliced
  • 4 sheets phyllo dough
  • 2 tsp brown sugar
  • 2 tsp splenda
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 30 grams brie, sliced thinly
  • butter flavoured cooking spray
  1. Lay your first sheet of phyllo dough on a baking sheet. Spray with cooking spray. Layer another sheet on top. Repeat until all sheets have been stacked.
  2. Lay the cheese slices on the strudel sheets horizontally, not quite center. I usually go for about an inch off center towards me.
  3. Layer the pear slices on top. Sprinkle with cinnamon and splenda.
  4. Fold in the sides of the dough, then the bottom. Flip away from you to wrap. That moves the seam of your folding underneath the pastry.
  5. Spray the pastry. Cut four slits into the top and sprinkle with brown sugar.
  6. Cover with foil. Bake at 375F for 15 minutes, remove the foil and bake for an additional 15 minutes.

Serves 4 generously. Each serving contains 141 calories, 3.9 grams of fat and 2.7 grams of fibre. I love pears and brie so creamy and sweet, apples would work with this too. If you don’t want the brie each serving will contain 116 calories, 1.8 grams of fat and 2.7 grams of fibre. Nothing wrong with a simple fruit strudel, I just like to get a little fancy sometimes hehe.

2 Comments

Posted in Comfort Foods, Craving Buster, Dessert

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Hardcore Hobbit: Mushroom Pie

Posted on January 24, 2011 | 4 comments

Yesterday, I logged on and found out it was national pie day. Well, being the obedient gamer that I am I have to make pie. The first thing that leaps to mind when I think pie is definitely a dessert, and I’ve made one of those too. Since today is hardcore hobbit day though I figured I should post what I think is a most hobbit of hobbit pies, the mushroom pie ofcourse. In the game the pie is made simply with mushrooms and pie crust. Pie crust for this pie was a phyllo dough, I had some leftover from a strudel craving…don’t worry I’ll post that another day. I made my pies as tarts but you can make a full on pie using the same method. I just like the portion control and epic cuteness of a hobbit tart.

  • 8 oz crimini mushrooms (any kind will do, this is the type I used), sliced
  • 4 sheets phyllo dough
  • 1 can reduced fat cream of mushroom soup
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 egg white
  • 1 sprig rosemary
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • cooking spray
  1. Lay out a sheet of phyllo dough. Spray with cooking spray and top with another layer of phyllo dough. Repeat until all layers have been sprayed.
  2. Carefully cut the phyllo dough with a knife into 12 squares. Spray a muffin tin, place each layered square into a muffin cup forming a crust.
  3. Heat a pan to medium and saute garlic and mushrooms. Pour into blender. Add mushroom soup, rosemary, egg white, salt and pepper. Blend to desired consistency.
  4. Divide the mixture into the 12 phyllo cups. Bake at 400F for 20-25 minutes.

Serves 12. Each mushroom tart contains 37 calories, 1 gram of fat, and .5 gram of fibre. If you have extra calories and fat to spend that day I highly recommend topping the pies with a bit of cheese in the last 5 minutes of cooking. My husband said his mozzarella topped one were nummy. I recommend goat cheese…but then I just love goat cheese on everything. These would be great to serve at a party or keep to yourself omnomnom. If you are making this as a pie all you do is fit the sheets into a pie pan instead of cutting them up, the cooking time is increased by 5 minutes. Pair this with a salad and you have dinner!!

4 Comments

Posted in Comfort Foods, Dinner, Lunch, Snack, The Hardcore Hobbit

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