Spoonful of Sugar Free

Registered Dietitian

healthy

Family

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I’m back from beautiful Colorado! Thanks to all of my Guest-Posters for filing in. I hope you enjoyed all of them.

The night skies were breathtaking:

 

 

{Looking out over the mountains at sunset}

{Denver, at night}

I enjoyed spending time with my family: playing football and tennis, cooking fajitas and cupcakes, running around with cousins at the park, and chatting until midnight.

It’s nice to be home and back in a regular routine, but I would love to spend another month together with my entire family-just enjoying their company. Looking back, I think this was one of my favorite trips of all time.

THOUGHT-PROVOKING, MIND-PRODDING QUESTION OF THE DAY:

When’s the last time you spent time with your entire family or had a family reunion? What did you do?

Do you see your family often? I wish I could see mine more than I do. We are all spread out: Colorado, Illinois, Arizona, Idaho, Florida, Iowa, Tennessee, California, everywhere!

 

 

Kat’s Chia Protein Pancakes-Guest Post

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Kathleen is going to show you how to make Protein Chia Pancakes! 

Hey My Spoonful of Sugar Free Readers!

My name is Kathleen and I blog over at KatsHealthCorner. I am so excited that Alex asked me to do a guest post for her today. I am going to share with you one of my favorite breakfast recipes.

When you think of Breakfast, what is one thing you think of?

The first thing I think of (after oatmeal of course) is Pancakes!

These pancakes are full of good-for-you ingredients that improve your health.

  • Oat bran in full of protein, fiber (both soluble AND insoluble), iron, reduces your total and LDL cholesterol s, helps prevent against diabetes, keeps you regular, and help you maintain your weight.
  • Chia seeds are like nutritional super-heroes! They contain calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, iron, manganese, zinc, all of the essential amino acids except taurine, antioxidants, fiber, and are like super soakers! They can turn a liquid into a pudding!
  • Bananas are rich sources of potassium (one VERY important electrolyte), vitamin B6, fiber, manganese, and vitamin C.
  • Cinnamon helps control your blood sugars, ups your metabolism, lowers cholesterol, and when combined with honey can help relieve arthritis pain.

And not only are these pancakes packed full of all of these health benefits, but they are also supah filling and easy to make!

Blend together the egg whites, oat bran, chia seeds, banana, vanilla, and cinnamon

until the batter is smooth.

Pour batter in a bowl and let stand for a minute or two (it will thicken) as you heat up your skillet.

Pour batter onto skillet in pancake shapes (you may have to spread them out a ‘lil). Cook for 1-2 minutes on each side. They don’t get bubbles – just check them and flip when firm and light golden brown.

Layer pancakes with sliced frozen blackberries and drizzle with a little maple syrup.

Ok, maybe a lot of it. 😉

The thawing berries make the syrup are red and pretty–Like a royal cloak! Hehe, the berries make the syrup royalty! 😀

Jam; Peanut Butter; Nut Buttah; Applesauce; Coconut Butter; Mashed Banana; thawed berries + packet of stevia = healthy berry syrup;

The possibilities are endless!

Protein Chia Pancakes

  • 4 egg whites
  • 1/3 cup oat bran or rolled oats
  • 1 Tbsp chia seeds (or ground flax)
  • ¼ tsp baking powder
  • ½ banana
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp cinnamon

Blend together the egg whites, oat bran, chia seeds, banana, vanilla, and cinnamon until the batter is smooth. Pour batter in a bowl and let stand for a minute or two (it will thicken) as you heat up your skillet.

Pour batter onto skillet in pancake shapes (you may have to spread them out a ‘lil). Cook for 1-2 minutes on each side. They don’t get bubbles – just check them and flip when firm and light golden brown.

Stack on a plate, layer with sliced frozen blackberries, and drizzle with a little maple syrup.

PANCAKES ARE THE BEST!!!!

Do you like Pancakes? I LOVE THEM!

Have you ever tried Chia Seeds? I recently got a bag from my friend, and I love them! They are kind of like flax, but in a super-hero way.

I’ve been thinking of how to make these Vegan and keep them protein pancakes. Some of my ideas – silken tofu in place of the egg whites; chia + water in place of eggs with a scoop of protein powder. Have any thoughts?

xoxox,

Kathleen

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–

Thanks so much, Kat! I am excited to try them out for myself. You all know how much I love chia!

Pluots

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I tried a new fruit! It came in last week’s organic produce bundle.

Looks like a plum, right? Well, it is a hybrid-cross of plums and apricots! They sell many different varieties of pluots, and I believe the ones I received were the “Dapple Dandy” variety.

It has a lighter complexion than your regular plum, and is more speckled. However, once you slice into it…

The color blossoms in a deep ruby-red. Absolutely gorgeous.

The skin is not as sour as a plum, which is nice, and the flavor is more intense than plums. I enjoyed them, and I bet they would taste great in place of the plums for my Plum Socca Tart with Rosemary.

They are also rich in Vitamin A.

THOUGHT-PROVOKING, MIND-PRODDING QUESTION OF THE DAY:

Have you ever tried a pluot? If so, did you like it?

Also, do you have any favorite strange hybrid fruits? I haven’t tried many of them, and I would love to explore them more. I would love to try a grapple (grape/apple), pineberry (pineapple/strawberry), or strasberry (strawberry/raspberry).

Bitter Chocolate Waffles

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Sorry to leave you all hanging with that delicious stack of…

Chocolate Waffles!

Pure torture to live another day without these.

If you don’t have a waffle iron, you have two options:

  1. Make these into pancakes.
  2. Go buy a waffle iron.

Print
Bitter Chocolate Waffles

Bitter Chocolate Waffles

~These waffles have no added sweetener, so they are bitter. If you are not a fan of bitter chocolate, top your waffles with lots of fresh fruit! Gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, and, of course, sugar-free!

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups oat flour (simply blend oats in blender until smooth)
  • 3 Tablespoons cocoa powder
  • 1 cup water or milk substitute
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 2 eggs
  • 3 tablespoons oil or applesauce
  • Optional: Add a few tablespoons of ground flax for extra fiber and omega's. Substitute 1/2 of oat flour for protein powder of choice. Add a handful of chopped unsweetened chocolate for an extra boost of flavor!

Instructions

  1. First, combine the dry ingredients.
  2. Then, add wet and mix until smooth.
  3. Follow your waffle iron's instructions to cook. Make sure you cook it thoroughly. I made the mistake of taking them out too soon, and I ended up with a bowl-full of waffle pieces!
  4. Top with any combination of nut, fruit, coconut, peanut butter, chocolate shavings, or anything else you can imagine!
https://www.spoonfulofsugarfree.com/2011/08/11/bitter-chocolate-waffles/

They freeze well, so you can make a big batch to save for later. Simply throw them in your toaster to warm. Much better for you (and tastier!) than Eggo’s frozen waffles.
This batch is topped with a dollop of Peanut Butter Frosting, Banana Slices, and Shaved Unsweetened Chocolate.
You could probably make my One Size Fits all Pancakes made with brown rice flour in a waffle iron, too, if you are feeling adventurous.
If you haven’t tried the Peanut Butter, Banana, Chocolate combo yet, do it. It’s worth it. I have so many recipes with that delectable combo.
Click HERE for nutrition information on Oats and HERE for nutrition information about chocolate. They both boast plenty of good properties.
Try not to drool all over your computer.
In other news, I have finally hopped on the Twitter bandwagon. Hopefully I’ll be able to figure the whole thing out. My Twitter name is SugarFreeAlex, so make sure to follow me!

THOUGHT-PROVOKING, MIND-PRODDING QUESTION OF THE DAY:

Do you have a twitter account? If so, any tips or tricks?

Also, what is your favorite waffle topping? You already know mine!

Kodak Photobook Cookbook

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FoodBuzz partnered with Kodak Gallery and gave me a free Medium Hardcover book to design whatever I wanted! Thank you Kodak!

I decided to make a cookbook of my favorite recipes on my site.  Enjoy!

It was very easy to use. I simply downloaded my pictures and designed it however I wanted. I could crop, rotate, move, resize, and overlay the pictures with text. There were lots of fun designs and layouts to choose from, and the book turned out great. it would be a great tool to use to make professional-looking scrapbooks for birthdays, baby books, weddings, vacations, or favorite recipes.

Kodak also provided me with a special offer for you! You can receive 40% off any Medium Hardcover or Large Photobook at this link only: www.kodakgallery.com/creativity Offer valid until 8/31/11.

THOUGHT-PROVOKING, MIND-PRODDING QUESTION OF THE DAY:

What would you make with a photobook?

P.S. Chocolate Covered Katie is having a fabulous giveaway (included is a 100% dark chocolate bar!).


Plum Socca Tart with Rosemary

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Sometimes the simpler the dish, the better the taste.

Not everything has to take 3 hours to prep, 1 hour to cook, overnight to chill, and another hour to cut and serve.

 

Although sometimes the journey is better than the end result, more time enjoying the company of others with a great dish is never a bad thing.

This dish takes 10 minutes to prep, 20 minutes to cook, five minutes to cool, and less than a minute to devour!

Plum and rosemary might sound like a strange combination, but it works. It captures the sweet, the savory, and the sour all in one delicious bite.

 

 

Socca is a chickpea flatbread. It can be made in a variety of ways, but for this particular recipe it is best thoroughly-cooked with crispy edges and no custard center. Check out Pure2Raw for more ideas, or my recipe for Pesto Socca Pizza with Grilled Veggies and Chicken Sausages.

 

Plum Socca Tart with Rosemary

~Dairy-free, gluten-free, grain-free, vegan, nut-free, corn-free, soy-free, and, of course, sugar-free! 

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup chickpea flour
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon coconut oil (olive oil would work fine, too)
  • 4 plums
  • 1 teaspoon rosemary, dried or fresh

Preheat oven to 425*. Mix together the chickpea flour, salt, and water in a small bowl. Batter will be thin. Spread the oil on a 10-12 inch round pan and then pour the batter in the pan. Bake for 5-10 minutes or until the socca is slightly set but still soft on top.

In the meantime, thinly slice the plums. Take the socca out of the oven and layer the plums on top of the socca in a circular formation (or just throw ’em on top if you don’t care about the look!). Sprinkle with rosemary and place back in oven. Bake for another ten minutes or until the socca’s edges are brown and crispy and the plums are soft.

Let cool for five minutes before slicing. You may either slice the socca in the pan and serve or carefully lift it out of the pan and slice and serve on your favorite plate.

The leftovers taste great, too. It made for a wonderful post-workout snack.

Enjoy.

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

If you could bottle and save time, what would you do with it?