Donate Your Diet Books to Goodwill and Eat Cupcakes

June 23, 2014 11 Comments

Snack Girl knows how hard it is to lose weight because she has struggled.

Not only have I worked hard to get slimmer, I wrote a book about it because I had a lot to share. No, it isn’t easy to lose weight but it can be done if you take the long view and EAT HEALTHY instead of simply focusing on the scale.

I lost weight and I ate cupcakes. I did my best to stay away from bakery cupcakes (can be 300-500 calories each!) and ate cupcakes that I made from the recipe below. And, yes, I limited the amount of cupcakes that I inhaled.

A few days ago, someone named “Shallin” posted a review on Amazon of Snack Girl to The Rescue! that made me proud. I don’t know her but I wish I could give her a hug.

From Shallin on Amazon review titled The ONLY book you need to get healthy!:

The title to this book is fitting. I bought it just as I was feeling the most confused about what is "healthy" (organic? low fat? low calorie? butter or margarine? coconut or olive oil? etc.!) and how to be healthy and stay within our budget simultaneously. Snack Girl's approach is practical and affordable.

In the past, when I've attempted to lose weight, I've filled my refrigerator with low-calorie packaged products that taste disgusting. You can imagine how long that lasted. Snack Girl teaches you how to eat REAL food that tastes DELICIOUS. For example, I don't love raw vegetables, so I never stuck with eating them in the past, but I've discovered that I do love roasted vegetables, and now I eat broccoli, plus other veggies, nearly every day (for the past several months!).

I've lost about 15 pounds since I bought the book, but that is completely irrelevant compared to how I FEEL. I feel healthier, and I feel like I can trust myself around food. Also, Snack Girl convinced me that it's OKAY to start small when it comes to exercise, and I did that, and I was nice to myself about it for a change. Before long, I was running instead of walking and finishing level 2 of Jillian Michaels' 30-Day Shred. I love that this book helps me to love myself.

My favorite recipes (I'm a sweet-toothed kind of girl) from the book are the brownie bites (that taste just like brownie batter!) and homemade kettle corn, but I honestly haven't found a recipe that I don't like. I've told several friends about the book, and I just got on Amazon to order a copy for a close friend.

My other "diet" books are being donated to Goodwill :) I use this one so often (several times a day) that I don't even bother putting it away; fortunately, I was given a cute, decorative cookbook holder for my kitchen, and I just leave it sitting there.

I have been lusting after a cookbook holder! I use cans to hold my cookbooks open.

My book can be found in all the major bookstores in the USA and Canada as well as in a Hy-Vee in Kansas City. It has a frosting recipe in it for these cupcakes!

I find cake mix to be a great short-cut when I am in a hurry. These are moist and chocolatey. When I have time, I do bake them from scratch but I’m not sure of when that was – 1987?

Revamped Chocolate Cake Mix Cupcakes

1.6 from 24 reviews

reprinted with permission from Snack Girl To The Rescue!

Makes 18 cupcakes, 1 per serving

Print Pin

Ingredients

1 box chocolate cake mix such as Betty Crocker Super Moist Chocolate Fudge
8 ounces 2% or 0% fat Greek yogurt
1 large egg

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 325°F. Line a 12-cup and a 6-cup muffin tin with foil liners. If you only have 12-cup tins, place 1tablespoon water in the empty wells to keep the tin from burning or warping.

In a large bowl, beat the cake mix, yogurt, egg, and ½ cup water with a fork until well blended. There will still be lumps in the batter. Fill each muffin cup halfway with batter and bake for 18 to 23 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cupcake comes out clean.

Nutrition Facts

One cupcake is 99 calories, 1.4 g fat, 0.6 g saturated fat, 21.5 g carbohydrates, 11.3 g sugar, 2.8 g protein, 0.6 g fiber, 232 mg sodium, 3 Points+

Points values are calculated by Snack Girl and are provided for information only. See all Snack Girl Recipes

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11 Comments:

I make cupcakes using.....
1 box cake mix
1cup % fat free Greek yogurt
1cup water
Mix all together and makes 24 cupcakes
It's really yummy and moist. Not sure of the W.W. Points.

Sue

1 chocolate cake mix, one can of pumpkin. that's all you need. delicious and the pumpkin is super healthy for you.

Kris

What would you recommend for a healthy icing?

Connie

Hi love your site. Have been reading for a while. For those cupcakes what can I use that doesn't come from a box. Not to be mean but was going to buy your book. But if it is a bunch of recipes with " box" plus recipe I really don't want to. Those boxes contain way to many added ingredients that are simply un necessary. Once again love your site have read you for a while! Thanks!

Natascha

@Natascha - I have three box recipes out of 100 (so not very many). I chose to feature this one today because it helped me a lot. My book is in bookstores so you can go take a look at it before you buy it. Thanks for your question!
@Connie - I do a coconut oil icing that is very tasty and is easy to make. You can find it in my book. Otherwise, why not powdered sugar? Or put some cute flags on toothpicks on them?

Snack Girl

Nice post thanks for posting

Rakesh

Natasha - I've a feeling that Snack Girl's Chocolate Chip Butter Cake would make great cupcakes!

Robin

Jillian Michaels' 30-Day Shred is my FAVE!
Sometimes her workouts make me feel fat because of all the muscle I put on :)
Feeling the after burn/ ache from a workout is one of the greatest feelings in the world. Go all out or go home is my motto. Easy exercises don't do squat (yes pun was intended)!

Bethany Shoemaker

Thank you! I appreciate the reply! I have gotten burned. I did order your book from amazon. Looking forward to reading it!

Natascha

Hi Lisa!
Not to repeat Natascha's request, but do you have a scratch cupcake/cake recipe?
Like both yourself and your readers, the busyness of my life sometimes presents challenges to my baking, but I like baking from scratch and appreciate knowing/controlling what ingredients I put into my baked goods. Plus, when I bake for when my guys are home, I don't feel super guilty about grabbing some of those sweets because I know I did my best to keep them reasonable.
Btw, I have your book and appreciate its 'use your good sense' tone. Thinking of making your 'Birthday Carrot Cake' today because I have 2 seriously overripe bananas sitting on the kitchen shelf.
Thanks in advance,
Joan

Joan

Just made these tonite they turned out great and so easy. They taste light and chocolatey, I wasn't sure how they would be but they are a winner. I made half of them in my mini muffin tin. They won't last long.. Yummy!
Thanks for this great low fat and calorie treat.
I am getting your book tomorrow. I can't wait to try some more of your wonderful recipes.

Stephanie