Almond Chess Squares

Yields: 36 squares | 2 pts per square

My rating:

I've never had a *real* chess pie before, but they must be suberb, because this low-fat rendition is fantastic! Chess pie (also known as chess cake, chess tart, & sugar pie) belongs to a long Southern American tradition of sweet egg-rich custard pies. Popular culinary folklore offers several interesting explanations for the name of this recipe. The most plausible is the connection between it and 17th century English cheeseless cheesecakes. "Chess" is probably derived from the word "cheese," although various other theories have arisen about the origin of the name.

Be careful though... this recipe yields 36 squares! It's probably best to make this one for a party or something... not just you & your hubby! Ha ha!

Ingredients:

1 (18.25-oz) package yellow cake mix
2½ cups sifted powdered sugar
½ cup reduced-calorie margarine, melted
1 tablespoon water
1½ teaspoons almond extract
1 tsp imitation butter flavoring (or substitute with 1 tsp vanilla extract)
3 egg whites
¼ cup Eggbeaters (equivalent of 1 whole egg)
1 (8-oz) package nonfat cream cheese, softened
Vegetable cooking spray
2 teaspoons powdered sugar

Directions:

Combine first 9 ingredients in a large mixing bowl; beat at medium speed of a mixer until smooth. Pour batter into a 13 x 9-inch baking pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 45 minutes or until golden. Let cool completely in pan on a wire rack. Sprinkle with 2 teaspoons powdered sugar.

Yields: 36 squares (2 points per square)

Nutritional Info: (per square): 105 calories, 1.6 g. fat, 0 g. fiber (2 points)

Source: Cooking Light, NOVEMBER 1995 (I altered it a little bit)