Recipe | Thin Mint Truffles (OMG)

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Last week, the Girl Scout Cookies came in at work. I swear to you,the afternoon was a solid 4 hours of the battle of self control. Somehow, I managed to make it home with a full box of Thin Mints. I knew they wouldn't last long if I left them out...

But then a tiny voice in my head whispered... truffles. Any sort of truffle or cake pop seems to be the way to go lately. Nothing pleases a crowd more than a truffle made using one of their favorite ingredients.

Don't believe me? Try Oreo Truffles, Pumpkin Cheesecake Truffles, Carrot Cake Pops, or 60 calorie cake pops.

Pumpkin Cheesecake Truffles

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I'm a huge fan of Oreo Truffles but, unfortunately, they're not the healthiest dessert (hello, Oreos!). That said, ever since the first batch of Oreo Truffles, my friends and family have asked begged for more. After my 12 Days of Pumpkin project, with my pumpkin obsession still lingering, I finally obliged them -- sort of -- by making Pumpkin Cheesecake Truffles. 

These treats are rich, creamy, and moist, but are surprisingly low calorie (YES, can we get a round of applause for the low-cal element?!). The base, a pumpkin cake, uses no eggs, no oil, and no butter -- just vanilla cake mix (you can use sugar free if you would like to make it even lower in calories) and either canned pumpkin or pumpkin puree. By mixing in low fat cream cheese, we end up with a flavor akin to pumpkin cheesecake, without the fat-saturated ingredients. A delicious but very thin outer layer of vanilla candy coating tops off these delicious Pumpkin Cheesecake Truffles. I brought them into work and they were gone within minutes! :) Enjoy!

Bake time: 25 minutes 
Total time: 1 hour (this number will vary, depending on how long you let your cake cool for)

Calories per serving: 80-100 Calories (depends on which cream cheese is used, which cake mix is used, and whether pumpkin puree or canned pumpkin is used as the butter/oil substitute)

Ingredients:

• 1 box Yellow Cake Mix
• 1 can Canned Pumpkin (or 8 oz Pumpkin Puree)
• 8 oz Low Fat Cream Cheese
• 1 package Almond Bark (Vanilla)
• 1 tablespoon Vegetable Oil

Directions:

1. Peaheat oven to 350.
2. Combine cake mix and pumpkin and beat on medium until well mixed.
3. Pour into greased glass dish and bake for 20-24 minutes (if cake box says otherwise, follow those instructions), or until a toothpick comes out clean.
4. Set the cake aside to cool (I covered mine and set it out overnight so that it was cooled the following day).
5. "Mash" the cake. Using clean hands or a fork, break the cake into crumbly pieces and add the cream cheese, mixing well with clean hands.
6. Once the cake and cream cheese are mixed well enough that no white cream cheese is visible, roll into small balls with your hands (about 1 inch in diameter). Set aside.
7. Melt almond bark in a deep bowl (this will make it easier to coat the truffles). Begin by heating for 90 seconds, then stir. Heat at 15 second intervals, stirring in between, until melted.
   (If you would like to drizzle an additional colorful layer of coating at the end, set aside 1/8 of the candy coating).*
8. Add 1 tablespoon Vegetable Oil and mix well.
9. Using two large spoons, carefully drop each truffle into the melted coating and toss around. Remove and place on parchment paper to dry. Continue this process with the rest of the truffle balls.
   *If you set aside candy coating for drizzling, melt the leftover coating after the initial coat has dried. Once it has melted, add a few drops of Vegetable Oil and stir in a few drops of coloring. I used Wilton's icing coloring, so I swirled 3 toothpicks in the coloring and then the icing. Once this is well stirred, either drizzle using a fork or use a piping bag (or plastic bag) with a very thin opening.

Carrot Cake Pops

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Starbucks has been featuring <200 calorie "Cake Pops."  Having already done the "Cake Balls" thing, I figured I'd whip up some of my own! By cutting out oil, eggs, and butter, these babies are under 150 calories a 'pop!'

Are you loving this? Check out some similar recipes. While the Carrot Cake Pops are in popsicle (or lollipop) form, feel free to use the recipes for any of the following truffles or cake balls. All of these would work quite well: Pumpkin Cheesecake Truffles, Thin Mint Truffles, Oreo Truffles, Low Cal Cake Balls.

For those of you who are on a more serious diet... don't cry! You don't have to feel left out of the truffle madness! Try these Cake Batter Truffles for only 100 calories... or these Chickpea Chocolate Chip Cookies (kid tested!) for a fiber-filled treat!

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What You Need:

• 1 box of Carrot Cake mix
• 2/3 box of low fat cream cheese
• 1 can of La Croix
• 1/2 cup of White Chocolate Chips
• Vanilla Candy Melts
• Popsicle/Sucker sticks

What You Do:

1. Mix cake mix and 1 can of La Croix

2. Pour into cake pan and fold in white chocolate chips 

3. Cook for 35 minutes (or according to package directions), then take out and let the cake cool (if you're impatient like me, you can put it in the freezer for an hour or two).

4. Once the cake is fully cooled, mash it up (this is fun). Add 2/3 of a package of low-fat cream cheese and combine until fully mixed.

5. Roll into small balls (appx 1-1.5 inch in diameter).

6. Add sticks and place aside.

7. Melt candy coating. Start with 1 minute in the microwave, then stir. Heat in 15 second intervals and stir in between. Don't over heat... but if you do, and the candy gets chunky, add 1 teaspoon of vegetable or canola oil and stir.

8. Using the stick as a handle, dip cake balls into the candy coating. Use a spoon to make sure you're getting the candy coating all the way to the popsicle (once the coating hardens, this will hold the cake ball onto the popsicle stick).

9. Set aside to cool!

P.S. I ran out of white melts so I made a few that were covered in Peanut Butter melts -- that's why there are a few brown ones.

Have a good one :)