"Dessert" is hardly a word in the vocabulary of those interested in weight loss - or so we'd tend to believe, if we're among those people who imagine being on a diet as some sort of draconian punishment, about as difficult as spending an eternity with little food or water, walking through the Sahara desert. Apparently, we'd be wrong to believe such a thing, particularly if we're not talking about a crash diet but rather about a change in lifestyle that's set to make us slimmer and fitter while keeping us healthy and in good shape. As a result, I decided to embark on a slightly more pleasant journey and bring you ideas on how to treat yourself with delicious desserts without upping your fat or calorie intake.

So, without further ado, here's a classic recipe for twice-baked almond and apricot biscotti. These cookies can be enjoyed with coffee or tea and they provide an excellent source of manganese (a mineral that helps bone formation) and selenium (an antioxidant that impacts thyroid hormone function) due to their high content of whole-wheat and nuts.

What you need:

1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 cup whole-wheat flour
3/4 cup plain flour
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1/4 cup low-fat milk
2 1/2 tablespoons canola oil
2 tablespoons honey
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
2/3 cup dried apricots (chopped)
1/4 cup almonds (chopped coarsely)

How you do it:

Start by preheating the oven to 350 F.

Blend together the flours, sugar and baking powder in one large bowl. Add the eggs, milk, canola oil, honey and almond extract. Use a wooden spoon to stir until the dough begins to come together, then add apricots and almonds. Mix the dough using your hands (don't forget to dip them in flower occasionally) and make sure that it is well blended.

Place the dough on a sheet of plastic and give it the shape of a log 12 inches long, 3 inches wide and 1 inch high. Transfer the dough on a nonstick baking sheet and bake for between 25 and 30 minutes, until the dough gets slightly brown. Allow it to cool for about ten minutes, with the oven still set at 350 F, then place the log on a cutting board and using a serrated knife, cut crosswise on the diagonal into 24 slices 1/2-inch wide. Put the slices back on the baking sheet, making sure to place the freshly cut face down, and place the baking sheet back in the oven for another 15 or 20 minutes. Allow the biscotti to cool completely before serving. One serving of biscotti is made up of three cookies and has the following parameters:

Calories - 79
Cholesterol - 18 mg
Protein - 2 g
Sodium - 37 mg
Carbohydrate - 12 g
Total fat - 3 g
Saturated fat - 0 g
Calcium - 25 mg