So I finally broke down and bought a cute dropper bottle of my favorite stuff... I have finally got liquid Stevia! I'm very excited. It probably amounts to being more expensive, but I wanted to see what would happen if I used this in my tea instead of the powder- and save the powder for cooking.
I'm pleased so far; I have bought the "NOW" brand, from my favorite LOCAL health food store... (support local businesses!) which is Simple Enough Natural Foods in Westborough. Anyway there is no unpleasant after taste (they do claim this on the bottle, which I will say swayed my opinion) and it works quite well. The serving suggestion is 1 to 4 drops per cup of tea, but I guess I have big mugs because I require 6 drops. I went slow- literally drop by drop!- until my threshold was reached.
I wonder if I have developed a higher tolerance for the taste anyway? I can generally tolerate more than folks who I have newly introduced to it. It is an acquired taste- you have to WANT to like it; have to WANT to not be eating sugar enough to adapt to this amazing herb.
So yes- this will be my new tea regimen. I am still searching for unsweetened Almond milk and have yet to be successful. I do tolerate the one with Barley malt but I'd prefer just the straight stuff, and am too lazy to make it myself. Next on my shelf is Oat milk, which is unsweetened. Yay!
Happy tea hour!
12.09.2006
12.06.2006
Lara bars
I will be hitting clinics soon, and one of my worries is the comment in the handbook:
"You will be experiencing lack of sleep and a suboptimal plane of nutrition..."
So it's openly acknowledged by the school that we will be eating like crap, becoming vending machine hunter/gatherers... ugh. So many people get skinny and grey fourth year.
Most students keep stashes in their pockets and lockers- granola bars, candy, crackers, trail mix. You may have noticed, if you are on this sugar free journey, that these things are full of sugar. Granola bars look like health food, but they're really candy in disguise. (Raw rolled oats give me gas anyway- I can't do it...)
What's a sugar free girl to do?
You may have seen these new health food bars on the market, "lara bars" or "maya bars" etc. They are truly wonderful, with straightforward ingredients and so on. But horribly terribly expensive. They range from $1.25 to $2.00 a pop! That's an expensive way to keep from becoming braindead on a busy day in the clinic.
Either way I bought some to try them out, and I like them a lot. They're very calorie dense, but that will be fine if they are a rescue measure- most likely not something I will nibble as a 10:00 snack on a regular basis. But how to get them cheaper? How?
Well- I'm savvy... why not make some? I could invent a recipe, but I went online to see who has beat me to it, who's been clever and figured it out already.
check it out:
http://bunnyfoot.blogspot.com/2006/02/homemade-lara-type-bars.html
I will be experimenting today or tomorrow and let you all know what happens.
I'm very excited- especially since I can chocolate them out to my heart's content.
"You will be experiencing lack of sleep and a suboptimal plane of nutrition..."
So it's openly acknowledged by the school that we will be eating like crap, becoming vending machine hunter/gatherers... ugh. So many people get skinny and grey fourth year.
Most students keep stashes in their pockets and lockers- granola bars, candy, crackers, trail mix. You may have noticed, if you are on this sugar free journey, that these things are full of sugar. Granola bars look like health food, but they're really candy in disguise. (Raw rolled oats give me gas anyway- I can't do it...)
What's a sugar free girl to do?
You may have seen these new health food bars on the market, "lara bars" or "maya bars" etc. They are truly wonderful, with straightforward ingredients and so on. But horribly terribly expensive. They range from $1.25 to $2.00 a pop! That's an expensive way to keep from becoming braindead on a busy day in the clinic.
Either way I bought some to try them out, and I like them a lot. They're very calorie dense, but that will be fine if they are a rescue measure- most likely not something I will nibble as a 10:00 snack on a regular basis. But how to get them cheaper? How?
Well- I'm savvy... why not make some? I could invent a recipe, but I went online to see who has beat me to it, who's been clever and figured it out already.
check it out:
http://bunnyfoot.blogspot.com/2006/02/homemade-lara-type-bars.html
I will be experimenting today or tomorrow and let you all know what happens.
I'm very excited- especially since I can chocolate them out to my heart's content.
11.26.2006
Holiday challenges
This time of year is the toughest time for staying sugar free. There's a lot of pressure to consume treats made by the family, and to partake in them as part of the ritual of tradition associated with all the holidays in general. If I'm going to backslide- even on purpose- it's going to be now.
My mother makes amazing cheesecakes- award winners, in fact. Aunt Judy makes lovely fudge. These things come out around this time of year, and I do in fact indulge in them. I figure it this way- once a year is appropriate to consume sugar, as a rare treat, the way sugar should be treated. At first I felt pretty guilty about it- how can I keep my status as a hardcore non-sugar freak if I sit here eating this amazing cheesecake?
Then I got to thinking. If it doesn't lead to the slippery slope (like smokers taking back up butts at parties... and then it's all downhill from there) and I stay conscious of what I am doing, then no harm done. I can stay aware, and make the choice to eat what my mother made, and go back to eating normally after the fact.
So this year I made the cheesecake. Pumpkin cheesecake, in fact. I used sucanat instead of straight white sugar- sucanat being the very stuff they strip out of the sugar when it's being processed. It still behaves as sugar in the body- eliciting a glycemic reaction, insulin release, etc... but at least it has some nutritional value (minerals). And it's just damn good cheesecake. Everyone enjoyed it, and to prevent myself from eating it every day since I brought it home, I instead brought it to a friend's house and unleashed it on a bunch of stoned grad students. Ha! A perfect way to get rid of the evidence!
Tonight, to remind myself that I can return to my basic healthy way of eating, I made stevia chocolate pudding (it came out runny- sigh; it is an endless battle, this pudding, it never comes out the same way). When Yule passes and Christmas rolls around again, I will be challenged once more- but I will simply try some of my family's treats and let it go again.
When I 'fell off the wagon' a couple of years ago (as I stated in a previous post) I never figured out how to get back on. I surrendered to the urge, to the addiction of sugar, and submerged myself into the depths of it. Since I have worked so hard to climb back out, I am unwilling to jump back in, to slide down that slope once more. This is how I want to live my life.
However- until I experiment and come up with a cheesecake recipe that doesn't involve sugar (or sucanat), I will save the once-a-year indulgement and go with it. I can return to normal, as I have proved to myself.
On that note- it's hard to convert recipes! Some things are forgiving, like ice cream, pudding and PB cups... but other things, such as baked goods, are far more difficult. Removing an entire cup of dry ingredient is a true challenge- it changes the chemistry of the product, and it isn't easy. Stevia does not behave the same as sugar chemically, nor is it one for one anyway. Sugar has a wonderous set of properties that lend it to baking- melting, carmelizing, making things sticky. Stevia has none of these properties, being a powdered concentrated herb. It remains a challenge.
So- if you are on this journey with me this season, good luck! Try to stay sugar free but don't beat yourself up if a slide happens- just get back onto your path after, and be kind to yourself. Honestly, it is kindness to my mother that I do backslide- I know it's hurtful to turn it down, and it means more to me that she feel that her efforts are not wasted. I can only educate and convert so many people.
blessings...
My mother makes amazing cheesecakes- award winners, in fact. Aunt Judy makes lovely fudge. These things come out around this time of year, and I do in fact indulge in them. I figure it this way- once a year is appropriate to consume sugar, as a rare treat, the way sugar should be treated. At first I felt pretty guilty about it- how can I keep my status as a hardcore non-sugar freak if I sit here eating this amazing cheesecake?
Then I got to thinking. If it doesn't lead to the slippery slope (like smokers taking back up butts at parties... and then it's all downhill from there) and I stay conscious of what I am doing, then no harm done. I can stay aware, and make the choice to eat what my mother made, and go back to eating normally after the fact.
So this year I made the cheesecake. Pumpkin cheesecake, in fact. I used sucanat instead of straight white sugar- sucanat being the very stuff they strip out of the sugar when it's being processed. It still behaves as sugar in the body- eliciting a glycemic reaction, insulin release, etc... but at least it has some nutritional value (minerals). And it's just damn good cheesecake. Everyone enjoyed it, and to prevent myself from eating it every day since I brought it home, I instead brought it to a friend's house and unleashed it on a bunch of stoned grad students. Ha! A perfect way to get rid of the evidence!
Tonight, to remind myself that I can return to my basic healthy way of eating, I made stevia chocolate pudding (it came out runny- sigh; it is an endless battle, this pudding, it never comes out the same way). When Yule passes and Christmas rolls around again, I will be challenged once more- but I will simply try some of my family's treats and let it go again.
When I 'fell off the wagon' a couple of years ago (as I stated in a previous post) I never figured out how to get back on. I surrendered to the urge, to the addiction of sugar, and submerged myself into the depths of it. Since I have worked so hard to climb back out, I am unwilling to jump back in, to slide down that slope once more. This is how I want to live my life.
However- until I experiment and come up with a cheesecake recipe that doesn't involve sugar (or sucanat), I will save the once-a-year indulgement and go with it. I can return to normal, as I have proved to myself.
On that note- it's hard to convert recipes! Some things are forgiving, like ice cream, pudding and PB cups... but other things, such as baked goods, are far more difficult. Removing an entire cup of dry ingredient is a true challenge- it changes the chemistry of the product, and it isn't easy. Stevia does not behave the same as sugar chemically, nor is it one for one anyway. Sugar has a wonderous set of properties that lend it to baking- melting, carmelizing, making things sticky. Stevia has none of these properties, being a powdered concentrated herb. It remains a challenge.
So- if you are on this journey with me this season, good luck! Try to stay sugar free but don't beat yourself up if a slide happens- just get back onto your path after, and be kind to yourself. Honestly, it is kindness to my mother that I do backslide- I know it's hurtful to turn it down, and it means more to me that she feel that her efforts are not wasted. I can only educate and convert so many people.
blessings...
11.13.2006
Tea
Over the past few months I have been weaning off the last of what sugar I was consuming- honey. I love honey in my tea. I prefer it over sugar anyway, and have for years; but I recognize that in terms of affect on the body, honey behaves the same as table sugar- it spikes you immediately and gives a hefty glycemic response. In August I began using Agave nectar instead of honey. Agave is pretty neat; it has a very subtle flavor, and a much lower glycemic response to it.
So why the heck haven't I been using Stevia in my tea? I guess because like eveyone else using Stevia, I am timid in my experimentation because Stevia in the wrong amount can be horrible. Exquisitely disgusting, no joke!
This fall however, I finally decided to try it. After all I am pretty nearly sugar free at this point, fruit excepted. Why bend in my morning cup of tea? Starting the day with a sugar rush- albeit a small one- is strange if you plan on not having anything else besides that the rest of the day.
I went slowly as I do with all other things Stevia, and through experimentation have discovered that the little scoop inside the bottle is plenty for a regular sized mug. When I am using a tall travel mug, I make it a heaping scoop. It seems to work well and I'm happy with the results. I get my tea (yes, it's caffiene, that I'm not giving up) but not the sugar crash from the honey.
It's a grand experiment, and I feel much healthier and happier months later now that I have committed to the lifestyle once again. It's not always easy, because sugar is such a part of our culture... but each day is a new day, and each cup of tea reminds me that I have the power to choose health over momentary taste enjoyment. Not that I am deprived of taste, no! I think my tea tastes fabulous, having adjusted to the taste of Stevia over time; tea with honey, when I drink it now and then (such as at a restaurant) hasn't got the luster that Stevia does. Perhaps I ought to carry some with me, now that I think of it.
If you are reading this and experimenting, share your thoughts! Any ideas should be shared, because Stevia is still underground and the entire idea that sugar sickens people is still not recognized... the only way to educate is to talk and share.
Gotta go... it's time for tea.
So why the heck haven't I been using Stevia in my tea? I guess because like eveyone else using Stevia, I am timid in my experimentation because Stevia in the wrong amount can be horrible. Exquisitely disgusting, no joke!
This fall however, I finally decided to try it. After all I am pretty nearly sugar free at this point, fruit excepted. Why bend in my morning cup of tea? Starting the day with a sugar rush- albeit a small one- is strange if you plan on not having anything else besides that the rest of the day.
I went slowly as I do with all other things Stevia, and through experimentation have discovered that the little scoop inside the bottle is plenty for a regular sized mug. When I am using a tall travel mug, I make it a heaping scoop. It seems to work well and I'm happy with the results. I get my tea (yes, it's caffiene, that I'm not giving up) but not the sugar crash from the honey.
It's a grand experiment, and I feel much healthier and happier months later now that I have committed to the lifestyle once again. It's not always easy, because sugar is such a part of our culture... but each day is a new day, and each cup of tea reminds me that I have the power to choose health over momentary taste enjoyment. Not that I am deprived of taste, no! I think my tea tastes fabulous, having adjusted to the taste of Stevia over time; tea with honey, when I drink it now and then (such as at a restaurant) hasn't got the luster that Stevia does. Perhaps I ought to carry some with me, now that I think of it.
If you are reading this and experimenting, share your thoughts! Any ideas should be shared, because Stevia is still underground and the entire idea that sugar sickens people is still not recognized... the only way to educate is to talk and share.
Gotta go... it's time for tea.
9.17.2006
Stevia Ice Cream
One of the hardest things for me to have to give up in my journey was ice cream. I don't enjoy suffering, no matter the cause; and so for years I was making 'alternative' ice cream in my cute little Cuisnart ice cream tumbler. Alternative meaning not cane sugar but substitutes I felt were healthier such as maple syrup, brown rice syrup, barley malt and so forth.
I always recognized that these are still sugars though!
Ice cream is not an exact science and is in fact very forgiving with experimentation, so here is what I have come up with in a bold stroke of genius if I do say so myself...
(Don't forget, milk is still a sugar! But one I'm willing to live with for now)
I use a Cuisinart gel tumbler ice cream maker, you can get them for $50 these days at many stores that sell kitchen goodies.
Ingredients:
2 eggs
*2 cups (light) cream (you can use heavy; I prefer to make Light)
*1 cup (skim) milk (again, use what you like)
1/2 tsp Stevia
1-2 tsp extracts (optional)
4 oz unsweetened (baking) chocolate (optional)
nuts, berries, whatever...
*you can substitute soy milk or nut milks- they have enough fat that it's ok if there's no cream. There is also a great book called Vice Cream that uses Stevia, and is vegan if that's what you're after.*
Beat the eggs.... beat in the cream, then the milk... beat in the stevia. Remember to mix the stevia well, it gets funny with fatty ingredients.
I like Mint Chocolate Chip myself, so here I add 1 tsp vanilla and 2 tsp peppermint extract.
Pour the mix into the machine, follow the manufacturer's instructions.
I wait to add nuts or berries (best if prefrozen) into the mix when it's nearly ice cream (when it's churned up to the top lip of the blade and cover).
For 'chocolate chips':
Melt the chocolate before the ice cream reaches the lip. Add 1/4 tsp stevia, stir well. Add to the ice cream when it's reached the top; the chocolate should be warm enough to flow and make little blebs, but not so hot that it's turning it all back to milk- melt, wait 5 minutes, add. It takes a little finesse, and is tough to explain, sorry... I cook like my granny did...
Freeze, and enjoy!!!
I always recognized that these are still sugars though!
Ice cream is not an exact science and is in fact very forgiving with experimentation, so here is what I have come up with in a bold stroke of genius if I do say so myself...
(Don't forget, milk is still a sugar! But one I'm willing to live with for now)
I use a Cuisinart gel tumbler ice cream maker, you can get them for $50 these days at many stores that sell kitchen goodies.
Ingredients:
2 eggs
*2 cups (light) cream (you can use heavy; I prefer to make Light)
*1 cup (skim) milk (again, use what you like)
1/2 tsp Stevia
1-2 tsp extracts (optional)
4 oz unsweetened (baking) chocolate (optional)
nuts, berries, whatever...
*you can substitute soy milk or nut milks- they have enough fat that it's ok if there's no cream. There is also a great book called Vice Cream that uses Stevia, and is vegan if that's what you're after.*
Beat the eggs.... beat in the cream, then the milk... beat in the stevia. Remember to mix the stevia well, it gets funny with fatty ingredients.
I like Mint Chocolate Chip myself, so here I add 1 tsp vanilla and 2 tsp peppermint extract.
Pour the mix into the machine, follow the manufacturer's instructions.
I wait to add nuts or berries (best if prefrozen) into the mix when it's nearly ice cream (when it's churned up to the top lip of the blade and cover).
For 'chocolate chips':
Melt the chocolate before the ice cream reaches the lip. Add 1/4 tsp stevia, stir well. Add to the ice cream when it's reached the top; the chocolate should be warm enough to flow and make little blebs, but not so hot that it's turning it all back to milk- melt, wait 5 minutes, add. It takes a little finesse, and is tough to explain, sorry... I cook like my granny did...
Freeze, and enjoy!!!
Not all Stevias are created equal...
A word of caution for you new stevia users out there....
When I began my journey to be sugar free, I got great advice and guidance from a good friend who has been fighting Candida for years. She had been cooking without sugar then for some time. She advised me to buy the Kal brand of Stevia, because it has no aftertaste.
And so I did.
I think I became spoiled, complascent; people would talk about Stevia having a bitter taste and whatnot, and I would think: huh, I haven't experienced that; maybe I can't taste that?
Then people who never eat stevia would eat my peanut butter cups and exclaim that they were wonderful, they were fooled, they'd never suspect it wasn't sugar... so I guessed I wasn't crazy, Kal really is that good.
So recently, I bought a cheaper version of stevia from Trader Joe's. Let me state here that I love TJ's, love their selection and service, etc; but the stevia they got is TERRIBLE. I ruined a batch of PB cups because it was the nastiest, most bitter gross thing EVER. At least they have a good return policy! So Kal it is and shall remain.
So be careful, if you are new to it and experimenting; don't let a bad stevia experience turn you off. It takes finesse to work with it. It takes patience, adding a little at a time, tasting and tasting until it's right. There's not a lot of resources out there yet promoting it as a sweetener because of the FDA b.s., but hopefully one day we will be free of that nonsense and able to eat safe sweets.
Until then, happy cooking!
When I began my journey to be sugar free, I got great advice and guidance from a good friend who has been fighting Candida for years. She had been cooking without sugar then for some time. She advised me to buy the Kal brand of Stevia, because it has no aftertaste.
And so I did.
I think I became spoiled, complascent; people would talk about Stevia having a bitter taste and whatnot, and I would think: huh, I haven't experienced that; maybe I can't taste that?
Then people who never eat stevia would eat my peanut butter cups and exclaim that they were wonderful, they were fooled, they'd never suspect it wasn't sugar... so I guessed I wasn't crazy, Kal really is that good.
So recently, I bought a cheaper version of stevia from Trader Joe's. Let me state here that I love TJ's, love their selection and service, etc; but the stevia they got is TERRIBLE. I ruined a batch of PB cups because it was the nastiest, most bitter gross thing EVER. At least they have a good return policy! So Kal it is and shall remain.
So be careful, if you are new to it and experimenting; don't let a bad stevia experience turn you off. It takes finesse to work with it. It takes patience, adding a little at a time, tasting and tasting until it's right. There's not a lot of resources out there yet promoting it as a sweetener because of the FDA b.s., but hopefully one day we will be free of that nonsense and able to eat safe sweets.
Until then, happy cooking!
8.12.2006
beautiful
That is the word I will use to describe how I have been feeling all summer, since I have stuck to my guns and lived sugar free. I am remembering the ways to work around what is offered me, what other people are doing and eating...
Truly though, I have been feeling cleaner and rested, healthy and happy. I feel my body is more streamlined and whole. My skin feels good, I feel balanced and strong.
The challange will be when school starts again, and this will take some work; the sugar flows free here, as people use it to combat stress... not knowing how much it contributes to stress in the end. I will work hard, because my challange this year is to remain myself and rooted in my ideals: not eating sugar, being true to who I am and what I want. That is my beauty and I wish to keep it so. I will work hard! I no longer want the old ways, habits and addictions to be a part of my Self and my Psyche... so this I will do. I will be prepared and if I stumble, I will be gentle but steer back into my own Way. This is the only way I know to stay healthy and sane.
Truly though, I have been feeling cleaner and rested, healthy and happy. I feel my body is more streamlined and whole. My skin feels good, I feel balanced and strong.
The challange will be when school starts again, and this will take some work; the sugar flows free here, as people use it to combat stress... not knowing how much it contributes to stress in the end. I will work hard, because my challange this year is to remain myself and rooted in my ideals: not eating sugar, being true to who I am and what I want. That is my beauty and I wish to keep it so. I will work hard! I no longer want the old ways, habits and addictions to be a part of my Self and my Psyche... so this I will do. I will be prepared and if I stumble, I will be gentle but steer back into my own Way. This is the only way I know to stay healthy and sane.
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