One of my favorite cookbook series is the Oxmoor House, “Low-Fat Ways to Cook…” When I want to make something easy, low in fat and delicious, I pull one of these books off the shelf and I have yet to be disappointed. This weekend, I was looking through the “Low-Fat Ways to Cook Desserts” book and discovered a recipe for Cranberry Coffee Cake.

Being in a creative mood, and not having any cranberries on hand, I pulled out my frozen cherries and quickly adapted this recipe. My family, always the guinea pigs, LOVED it!!! So here is my adaptation of this healthy low-fat cake that is sure to be a hit at your next coffee gathering.

1 /2 cup reduced-calorie stick margarine, softened 2/3 cup sugar
1 egg 1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1 /4 cup all purpose flour 2 tsp baking powder
1 /4 cup milk 2 egg whites
Vegetable cooking spray 1 cup frozen whole tart cherries
1 1 /2 Tbsp Fruit Fast Cherryflex Liquid 3 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp regular oats, uncooked 1 Tbsp brown sugar
3 /4 tsp ground allspice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Place the frozen tart cherries in a food processor and process until chopped into chunks. Put in a bowl add the FruitFast Cherryflex Liquid, and 3 Tbsp sugar, mix well; set aside.

Combine the oats, brown sugar and allspice in a separate bowl and set aside.

With a mixer at med speed beat the margarine until creamy, gradually add the sugar, egg, and vanilla, beat well. Combine the flour and baking powder and add to the margarine mixture, along with the milk. Begin and end with the flour mixture and mix after each addition.

Beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form, then gently fold into the batter. Spoon half of the batter into an 8-inch square pan, coated with cooking spray. Spoon 1 cup of the cherry mixture over the batter, then spoon remaining batter over the cherry mixture. Sprinkle with oat mixture and bake for 45 to 50 minutes or until wooden pick comes out clean. Let cool 10 minutes. Top each slice with remaining cherry mixture or drizzle with the FruitFast Cherryflex Liquid Fruit Supplement. Serve warm. Yield 9 servings.