Raspberry-Almond Bar Cookies 

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Serves: 24 person(s)

Preparation Time: 8 mins
Cooking Time: 22 mins

Yield: 24 x 1 bar servings

Great for the lunchbox or for an afternoon snack - a 31% calorie reduction from a traditional recipe.
Per serving: 106 calories, 4.7 g fat and 6 g total sugars
Saves: 63 calories, 2.1 g fat and 11 g sugars

Ingredients:

This recipe makeover cuts down on calories, fat and total sugars by reducing the measure of butter and sweetener. Switching from regular jam to fruitable spread further decreases the sugar without losing the flavor.

To learn more about recipe makeovers see CalorieKing's library article "Smart Substitutes: Your Guide to Low-Calorie Cooking Alternatives".

Recipe Makeover
2 cup all-purpose flour 1/2 cup Equal® Spoonful * 1/8 tsp salt 8 Tbsp cold stick unsalted butter or margarine, cut into pieces 1 egg 2 Tbsp water 1 tsp grated lemon peel 1 jar (10 oz) seedless raspberry spreadable fruit 3 Tbsp toasted sliced almonds

Traditional Recipe
2 1/4 cup all-purpose flour 1 cup firmly packed brown sugar 1 tsp salt 3/4 cup butter or margarine 1 egg 1/2 tsp baking soda 1 jar (10 oz) raspberry jam 1/3 cup slivered almonds, toasted

Directions:

Combine flour, Equal® and salt in medium bowl. Cut in butter with pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in egg, water and lemon peel. Mixture will be crumbly.

Press mixture evenly onto bottom of well-sprayed 8 x 8-inch square baking pan. Bake in preheated 350°F oven 12 to 15 minutes or until edges of crust are lightly browned.

Remove pan from oven and spread raspberry fruit over top. Sprinkle with almonds. Return to oven, and bake an additional 10 to 12 minutes or until raspberry fruit is bubbly. Cool completely on wire rack. Cut into bars.

Store in airtight containers at room temperature.

Variations:

* NOTE: If desired, 1/2 cup Equal® Spoonful can be replaced by one of the following:

1) 12 packets Equal® sweetener, or
2) 1/2 cup sugar (sugar is not included in the nutritional analysis)

Author:

Merisant/Equal®
Equal®