Spoonful of Sugar Free

Registered Dietitian

Snacks

2-Ingredient Macaroons

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I swooned when I created this Macaroon, an I hope you do, too!

2-Ingredient Coconut Macaroons

~These macaroons are vegan, gluten-free, grain-free, dairy-free, and, of course, sugar-free!

  • Dried, Unsweetened Coconut Shavings
  • butternut squash puree (or another mild-tasting squash puree)

Take a spoonful of squash in a bowl, and mix with a whole lot of coconut! Mix together with your hands, and roll into balls. Add more coconut to the batter if it isn’t “coconutty” enough or if it doesn’t stick together.

These little gems taste extremely good, even if it lacks ingredients.

Health Benefits:

  • Coconut: Coconut is widely misunderstood because of it’s high fat content; however, coconut’s saturated fat is made up of medium-chain fatty acids. These medium-chains are easy to absorb and digest, and are converted quickly into energy. This means that the body has no opportunity to store the medium-chain as fat. Coconut is also a great source of dietary fiber with a whopping 5 grams per oz.!
  • Butternut Squash: Butternut Squash, like most squashes, is a great source of Vitamin A. With 457% of your daily value per cup, the butternut squash will help you form and maintain healthy teeth and skin. Vitamin A will help you keep go sugar od eyesight, too!
  • Also, these Macaroons are the perfect alternative to the sugar-loaded, artery-clogging macaroons we usually eat. These are a lot easier to make, and they can be thrown into a bag for a healthy afternoon treat.

Thought-provoking, mind-prodding question of the day:

I’m a little stuck on what to write or make. What recipe would you like to see “healthifed?” Are there any foods that you would like me to make and share with you?

Do you have any questions for me? Any health questions, personal questions, athletics questions, school questions, art questions? A lot of these are off-topic, but I love answering questions!

Do you have any challenges for me? I love a challenge!

Banana Bread Bonanza!

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Yes, I did it again.

Many people have asked for more grain-free recipes after the Grain-Free Sugar-Free Pumpkin Spice Bread, so, of course, I had to get to work and create another recipe for all of you!

This recipe uses 3 over-ripe bananas, so it is the perfect go-to recipe when you have too many brown bananas to deal with.

Grain-Free Sugar-Free Banana Bread

~This recipe is gluten-free, grain-free, dairy-free, and of course, sugar-free!

Makes 1 loaf

Ingredients

  • 3 ripe bananas
  • 1/2 cup almond butter
  • 3 eggs
  • 3 Tablespoons Ground flax
  • 3 Tablespoons Chia Gel (For each tablespoon of chia, mix 2-3 tablespoons of water and let sit for 15-20 minutes. The chia seeds will puff into a gel)
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • Optional: 1/2 cup chopped walnuts or dried fruit

Preheat oven to 350*. First, mash the bananas. Then, mix all ingredients together in a bowl. Pour batter into a lightly greased bread pan-or even try a muffin tin! Bake for one hour, or until toothpick comes out clean.

The bread will rise while in the oven, but will sink when taken out. Let the bread cool for fifteen minutes in the pan (this is necessary for the bread to set since it has no flour in it), and then plop it onto a plate or cutting board and enjoy!

 

 

Thought-provoking, mind-prodding question of the day:

What are your favorite ways to use up all of those overripe bananas? Usually, I freeze them to make banana ice cream or smoothies, but this bread recipe is now my favorite!

I started collecting recipes for overripe bananas a couple years ago because I thought a book title, “101 Ways to Use Overripe Bananas” would be great! Because this happens to all chefs and non-chefs across America-what to do with all those brown bananas? What do you think? Would you read a recipe book like that? What recipes would you put in it?

****Also, are you sticking to the sugar-free New Year’s Resolution??

Raw Christmas Cookies

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Hello everybody! Christmas is only four days away, so that means it is time to bake Christmas cookies!

Or should I saw it is time to “unbake” Christmas cookies?

Raw Cookies and a glass of almond milk for Santa! Santa might be losing some of his belly this year...

Santa Clause will love these little gems, and so will all of your friends and family members! I am making a huge batch to give to close friends.

This picture is stolen from Katie...Sorry, Katie, but your picture is just too cute! Also, I ate all of my cookies before pictures were taken, and then I ran out of almonds to make more 🙁

Raw Gingerbread Men or Ginger Snaps

  • 5 dates
  • 1 cup almonds
  • 1/4 tsp ground or minced ginger (fresh or powdered)
  • 1/4 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/8 tsp nutmeg
  • pinch of salt

Place all in a food processor or strong blender and blend until smooth. I usually don’t measure the ingredients and just taste test until I find the right flavor, so feel free to add more or less of what I stated above. Shape the dough into cookies or roll out on parchment paper and stamp gingerbread men out. I find that it is easier to work with the dough when it is chilled, so you may want to refrigerate the dough for ten minutes before shaping it. I also think it tastes better chilled, too 🙂

Remember Girl Scouts cookies? My favorite was the thin mint! Well, these taste just like raw thin mints!

Raw Mint Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

  • 5 dates
  • 1 cup walnuts
  • 1/4 cup cocoa powder
  • 1/8-1/4 tsp peppermint extract
  • pinch of salt

Place all ingredients in a food processor or strong blender and process until smooth. I like the walnuts to stay a bit chunky, but this is up to you. SHape the dough into balls or cookies and enjoy!

Thought-provoking, mind-prodding question of the day:

What is your favorite Christmas cookie? I don’t necessarily have a favorite, but I do like making sugar cookies to decorate. I love making cookies, just not eating them.

Also, did you set out cookies for Santa when you were a kid? We always did (do!). We make set out cookies, milk, and a note for Santa. Then we sprinkle oatmeal, sparkles, and carrots in the front yard for the reindeer.

Personal Note: I am going to spend Christmas with my grandparents in Arizona! I am leaving the 23rd and will be there for a week. Therefore, I might not be able to reply to my comments until I get back (I will be having too much fun to sit on a computer!). However, please comment away! I will get to them when I come back home. Also, I have posts set up throughout the week for you all to read! There will be a couple of recipes, and Christmas story (remixed).


Crazy for Agar Agar

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I finally found it! I have been on a quest to find agar agar flakes/powder ever since Katie wrote about the wonderful pudding and creams you can make.

While I was playing in a tournament over Thanksgiving, I came across a wonderful Hong Kong Market. They sold anything imaginable there: spiky fruits, seafood, dried seafood, chopsticks, and even purple sweet potatoes (we’ll talk more about this one later)!!!

I scoured the aisles for agar, and I found it for a good price. At the health food store they were going to charge me $20 for a package of agar agar, but at the Hong Kong market I bought it for $1.50. Yeah, I definitely bought more than one pack!

Agar Agar Base

~This is the base you use to make any of the treats listed below!

Ingredients

  • 1 teaspoon agar agar powder (if you are using agar agar flakes, use 1 Tablespoon)
  • 2 cups of liquid (juice or milk substitute)
  • Optional: add ins like vanilla extract, cocoa powder, chocolate chips, fruit chunks, nuts, be creative!

In a saucepan, heat up the liquid (not boiling), then add the agar agar. Stir well and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, and simmer, stirring often, for about 5 minutes or until the agar has dissolved.

Next, pour the liquid into a container and place in the refrigerator. Let the agar base set for about 20 minutes until jelly-like.

Note: It does not thicken while heated. The mix only thickens if chilled. The first time I made this I expected it to thicken like regular pudding, so I kept adding more and more agar agar. When I put it in the fridge, it was rick-solid!

You can make Vegan Fruit-Sweetened Jello…

Orange Jello with fresh citrus. I made this by using orange juice as the liquid and adding fresh clementine chunks.

You can make Pudding…

Chocolate pudding. Made by making a vanilla-base and blending in cocoa powder after it was set.

You can make Whipped Cream…

Strawberry Cream atop Bitter Chocolate Cake for One. I made this cream by blending frozen strawberries into the agar base.

 

You can make Vegan Yogurt…

Meg made this wonderful vegan yogurt by mixing a probiotic capsule into the agar base. Brilliant, Meg! Can’t wait to try this!

You can make some yourself…

I am going to giveaway one of my packets of agar agar powder to one lucky winner, so you don’t have to score the aisles of every grocery store. Each packet contains  25 servings of agar. This will make about 13 cups of jello, pudding, yogurt, or whipped cream. Think of this as a Christmas giveaway 🙂

To enter:

  1. Leave a comment telling me what you would make first with the agar agar powder
  2. Become a fan of Spoonful of Sugar Free on Facebook, and leave a comment back here telling me.
  3. Subscribe to me by email by entering your email address in the box to the right. Leave a comment here telling me you did.
  4. Answer these questions for fun and more entries!
    1. What is your favorite holiday treat?
    2. How are you spending the Holidays?

The Giveaway ends this Friday the 17th. Good Luck! THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED.

Test Time! Are You Ready?

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End of the year.

Time to take final exams.

ACT.

SAT.

Midterms.

(Insert test of choice here)

You’ve studied all you can (hopefully!) and now the test day arrives.

Are you ready?

Get Plenty of Sleep
Dress in Layers
Bring lots and lots of #2 pencils (and erasers because everyone makes mistakes 😉 )
Wear a Watch!
Be hydrated! (But not too hydrated, you don’t want to have to go to the bathroom in the middle of the test!)

Eat Brain Food!

 

Cacao Nibs
Eggs

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Salmon
Almonds

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now relax, breathe and ace that test!

Thought-provoking, mind-prodding question of the day:

What are your favorite test-taking tips? Do you have any “brain foods” you like to eat?

 

Raw Coconut-Iced Bark

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I’m a genius.

One day while making some homemade coconut butter, I had a flash of genius…

“Coconut oil solidifies at cold temperatures. If I mix it with nuts and fruit I can make my own ‘bark.’ “

As soon as I realized this, I did blurt out, “I’m a genius!”

Yes, I am extremely humble.

 

Raw Coconut-Iced Bark

~This bark recipe does not have to be raw. It can be anything you like!

Ingredients

  • Coconut Oil (Raw, unprocessed coconut oil tastes the most coconut-ty. However, you can use a non-raw coconut oil if you do not like the taste of coconut)
  • Filling-Choose any combination listed below, or be creative and add more!
    • Nuts or Seeds (peanuts, almonds, cashews, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds)
    • Fruit (dates, raisins, cherries, cranberries, blueberries, goji berries)
    • Extravagant Extras (coconut shavings, cacao nibs, dark chocolate pieces)
    • Grains (The first time I made this I did not add any grains, but if you would like to add puffed rice, puffed millet, or oats, go ahead! The puffed millet tastes great in the bark, and it fills up spaces for those counting calories)
    • Extracts (I have not yet tried adding any extracts, but I think it would taste great! Peppermint extract, vanilla, almond, chocolate, or even orange extract!)

Mix your fillings in a bowl. Then, drizzle coconut oil over the top. Mix this around until the bark’s fillings are evenly coated in oil. The oil will be the binder, so make sure there is enough of it. If you don’t add enough the bark will simply crumble.

Next, lay a piece of wax paper on a baking sheet. Spread the bark mixture across the paper in an even layer. Place the bark in the freezer, and wait for about ten minutes. This should be enough time for the coconut oil to solidify.

In the freezer...

Break pieces off of your bark to enjoy!

I adore this recipe! It is very versatile, and can be made into anything you might crave. I am dying to try a peppermint bark…first I have to buy some peppermint extract!

Thought-provoking, mind-prodding question of the day:

What is one of your favorite holiday traditions?

I love my family’s advent calender. Ours is a big cloth with a Christmas tree on it. Every day we get to reach inside a pocket and pull out an ornament to hang on the tree. Today is the first of December, so I wonder what the first ornament is going to be!