My Fat Free Low Sugar Cherry Cobbler Cake Recipe will make you think that you’re eating 1,000 calories per slice, but I guarantee that if you serve this to your friends and family – they won’t have a clue that it’s actually good for them!

One of the challenges to losing weight is finding things that you love to eat that are actually good for you. If you happen to be diabetic, like so many of us are – that even throws an additional kink into the mix! I’ve created a recipe that actually tastes decadant, that the whole family will love – but you can eat it even if you’re counting calories on a diet or watching your blood sugar.

These are the ingredients you’ll need:

• 1 box low or reduced sugar cake mix
• 1 box sugar free instant vanilla pudding mix
• 1 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 2 cups skim milk
• 2/3 cup eggbeaters or imitation eggs
• 1 cup water
• 1 can no sugar added cherry pie filling

As you know the reason cakes are fattening are because of the eggs and oil that each recipe calls for. Many people believe that the only way to get a moist tasty cake is to have real eggs and oil, because that’s they’re function. But I CUT OUT the fat in this recipe by using imitation eggs, and I replace the oil by substituting a cup of unsweetened applesauce.

This recipe is as easy as beans and rice to make. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Get a large mixing bowl and put in the cake mix. Get a medium bowl and add 2 cups of skim milk, then mix in the pudding mix – whisking briskly for 60 seconds (then set aside). In the large bowl add 1 cup unsweetened applesauce, 1 cup water, 2/3 cup eggbeaters – and mix well. Add 1 cup of pudding from the other bowl (and eat the rest!), mix well again. In a 9×12 sheet cake pan, spray with non-stick spray, and evenly spread the batter out. Open the no sugar added cherry pie filling and evenly dump over the top of the cake. Then, with a knife pull from one end of the pan to the other in 1″ swaths, first horizontally, then vertically. This pulls the cherry filling inside the cake leaving some on top (and a nice design!).

Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until a knife pulls out clean from the center. *Please note, stick the knife in the actual “cake” part – don’t expect it to come out clean by sticking it into a spot with pie filling! When you serve this, you can add a dollop of sugar free whipped topping if you like! This is great served warm! I challenge you to serve this to your family and not tell them it’s fat free and low sugar! Then come back to this page and comment letting know what they said…

Here’s a pic of the cake after it’s baked:

If you’re looking for weight loss recipes, this Black Bean and Rice Salad recipe is a great place to start.  It feeds 4 depending on how many servings you’re going to eat.  A serving is typically listed as a cup, although I don’t know who would just each a cup of food for dinner.

We had 3 cups each for our dinner, and this dinner will produce 9 cups total.  I was skeptical that this recipe would be any good – because personally I hate brown rice (with a passion).  But I do love all the vegetables, and I’ve added corn and black beans to dishes (like Taco Salad) many times in the past to enhance the flavor.  For this recipe the black beans and the (steamed) corn are the highlight in every bite.  The cilantro, lime juice, peppers, and onion are awesome for crunch!  Even if you do not like spice or jalepeno peppers, you should try it once.  This dish was not spicy at all – even with a full chopped jalapeno.  I did not notice how bland brown rice usually is (to me) in this dish, which ended up exploding with flavor.  I did end up adding a teaspoon of fat free ranch and a teaspoon of light Italian dressing for my portion, but the dish was so flavorful it wasn’t really necessary.

Here’s what it looked like at serving time:

Ingredients for Black Bean and Rice Salad Recipe

2 cups brown rice (instant is fine)
1 cup cooked corn kernals (use the frozen “steamers” if you can)
1 diced green pepper
2 stalks celery chopped
2/3 cup of rinsed and drained black beans
1 whole red onion diced
1 med jalapeno pepper chopped
4 tablespoons cilantro chopped
4 tablespoons red wine vinegar
3 tablespoons lime juice
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt

Preparation is simple for this dish.  Just boil your brown minute rice on the stove, and get a “steamer” bag of corn in the frozen section at the store – microwave that on high for 5 minutes.  While the corn and rice are cooking, chop everything else up and toss into a dish, then add the corn and rice and mix well – and serve.

Total prep and cook time:  about 20 minutes