Spoonful of Sugar Free

Registered Dietitian

recipes

Day 1: November Sugar Free Challenge

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Hello Everyone! Today is officially the first day of the Sugar Free Challenge.

I am so happy for the number of participants! Check out the list:

  • 91% Chocolate Lover
  • Abby
  • Absie
  • Adrianna
  • Aileen P
  • Alexis
  • Allison @ Fitblaster
  • Amanda
  • AnAppleADay
  • Angela F
  • Anne
  • Annie @ Naturally Sweet Recipes
  • Ashley
  • Ashley
  • Ashley Hope
  • Ashley R
  • Brandi B
  • Brenda
  • Carla McCloskey
  • Cassandra
  • Christina
  • Christine
  • Dawn @ This Life Worth Living
  • Diana
  • Emily
  • Erica
  • Erin
  • fourdreamsJools
  • Francesca Holland
  • Frannie @ Frannie and Sarah
  • Hailey
  • Haley @ Climb Run Lift Mom
  • Haylee
  • Health Freak College
  • Heatherfeather
  • Hope Buck
  • Isabelle@cheesymiteapples
  • Jane @ The Healthy Beehive
  • Jane Wolf
  • Janice
  • Jen @ Runner’s Shoe
  • Jenn
  • Jennie @ The gf-gf
  • Jennifer Doyle
  • Jensine Crandall
  • Jessica
  • Jessica T
  • Jessie Ann James
  • Jinny
  • Kalie @ Kalie’s Thoughts
  • Kathleen
  • Kathryn Ross
  • Kathy @ Getting in Shape for the Summer
  • Katie @KatiekDid
  • Kerri Randall @ HotFunFitness
  • Kim Frederickson
  • Kiran
  • Knikknok @ Run Run Gingerbreadman
  • Kris
  • Kristi
  • Laura
  • Laura
  • Lauren G
  • Leah
  • Linda Romer
  • Lissa
  • Liza
  • Lora
  • Lou
  • Lucy
  • Maija
  • Marie Sophie
  • Mariel
  • Maureen Vita
  • Megan
  • Megan
  • Melissa
  • Mia Madsen
  • Michelle
  • Mimi @ Damn the Freshman 15
  • Molly
  • Momma Kiki
  • Mortah
  • Nicole
  • Nicole
  • Nikki
  • Organic Food Girl
  • Peanut Butter Lover
  • Rachel @ Healthy Sexy You
  • Reid @ Growing Ideas
  • Roni
  • Sara
  • Shannon
  • Shea
  • Sista Juj
  • Steffi
  • Suman Maan
  • Suzanne
  • Tanya
  • Tara
  • Taryn
  • Taya @ This Girl Thrives
  • Teabagginit
  • Tracy
  • Val @ Baking the Worries Away
  • Valerie @ Hybrid Health and Fitness
  • Waseem Sufi
  • Yvette
That is a list of 109 participants! Thank you all for signing up. I know it will be a lot of fun.

Here is a sample menu for today:

Breakfast: Green Omelet (Spinach, green peppers, capers, oregano) with a side of banana. Vegan Option: Breakfast Oat Cakes.

Lunch: Sweet Potato with Artisana Pecan Butter and Cinnamon. Thank you, Artisana, for these samples. I adore them all! Pecan butter is definitely a new favorite of mine. Remember, one of you challenge participants will win some Artisana for yourself!

Snack: Fresh apple, cucumber, carrot, and bar of Baker’s unsweetened chocolate

Dinner: Slow-Cooker chicken breast with olives and artichoke hearts. Recipe coming soon! Vegan Option: Homemade Spring Rolls.

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

How was your first day of sugar-free? Do you have a menu planned? What did you eat?

An Apple a Day

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An apple a day keeps the doctor away.

We all know this saying. Apples are full of fiber, vitamins, and minerals, not to mention versatile and tasty for recipes and snacking. Fall is known for colorful leaves, colder days, and apples! One of my favorite memories is of picking my own apples from an orchard and bringing barrels of them home to enjoy over the next month.

As soon as Foodbuzz called bloggers to submit their meal ideas for 24×24, I thought of apples. They’re comforting. They’re healthy.

A few friends gathered to share this spontaneous meal, and we gathered on my back porch that looks out over a small lake. We lit a few candles, and the chatting and eating began.

P.S. Ping Pong tables make great buffet-tables. Simply lay a tablecloth over it and serve.

My own rule for the feast: every dish must contain apples. And, yes, I did make all the food without a kitchen. I used the outside table as a prepping station, the laundry room’s sink as a washing station, and a brand-new oven we just plugged in.

Menu

Appetizers: 

Apple Crisps with Peanut Butter Hummus Dip

Antipasto Skewer of Chicken Apple Sausage, Roasted Tomato, Artichoke Heart, and olive

Main Course:

Beer-Braised Apple Cider Pork Chops with Sauteed Onions

Sides:

Homemade Cinnamon Applesauce

Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Apples and Pecans

Roasted Brussel Sprouts with Apples and Bacon

Spinach Salad with Balsamic Dressing

Dessert: 

Fresh Apple Pie with Whipped Cinnamon Cream

Drink:

Sparkling Apple Cider


Sparkling Apple Cider. Mix Equal Parts sparkling water (unsweetened) with apple cider (preferably organic). Serve with cinnamon stick.

Recipes will be coming soon, and all of them were sugar-free, dairy-free, and grain and gluten-free. Consider this coming week a week of apple recipes!

Apple Benefits: a flavanoid called phloridzin that is found only in apples may protect post-menopausal women from osteoporosis and may also increase bone density. Boron, another ingredient in apples, also strengthens bones. The pectin in apples lowers LDL (“bad”) cholesterol, and it supplies galacturonic acid to the body which lowers the body’s need for insulin and may help in the management of diabetes.

Thanks to FoodBuzz for sponsoring this meal, and allowing me to share it with others.

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

Do you have a favorite apple recipe to share?

Also, don’t forget to sign up for the Sugar-Free Challenge! Each participant is entered to win some Artisana nutbutters.

Announcing the 2nd Challenge!

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By popular request, I am hosting a second Sugar-Free Challenge in November!

I’m giving you plenty of time to prepare and sign-up. It’s before Thanksgiving, Christmas, and all the winter holidays, so it will be a great final sugar-detox before the holiday snacking begins.

I hope you all sign up!

Click Here to go to the Challenge Homepage and Sign-up! 

Still questioning whether to sign up?

Check out these helpful posts:

Look at a sample day of a sugar-free challenge HERE. 

And because each post isn’t complete without a picture, here’s a teaser for a recipe coming up:

Operation Beautiful Food

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Looking back through my recipes, I found that some of my older food photos were, well, pretty darn ugly. 

Ever since a couple of my photos were accepted to FoodGawker and Finding Vegan, I’ve been eager to submit more of my food photos. When I first started this site, though, I  really didn’t care if my photos were pretty or not. I just took a picture of it, and posted. I’m a little embarrassed now. 

Take for example my Five Minute Burgers: 

I swear, the recipe is delicious. Looking at this photo, though, makes it seem a bit unappetizing. 

I’m by no means an expert at taking stunning food photos like the wonderful Leanne, but I am going to at least try to make the photos better. Something more like this: 

Pumpkin Spice Latte Granola

Not every post is going to be a re-make of recipes, but I will throw a few in there every once in a while. 

Please bear with me while I try and teach myself photography! 

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

Are you interested in photography? If so, have any tips to share? 

National Peanut Day

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Did you know today, September 13th, is National Peanut Day?!

"PB&J" Oatmeal

My favorite food has its own holiday. For good reason, too, because peanuts are:

  • Full of protein with 7 grams per ounce.
  • Contains Monounsaturated fats that help your heart and brain stay healthy.
  • Food source of Coenzyme Q10 which protects the heart during periods of lack of oxygen. For example, high altitudes and clogged arteries.
  • High antioxidant and high niacin content that helps in the recovery of cell damage and provides protection against Alzheimer’s disease and age-related cognitive problem.
  • Not to mention tasty!

Celebrate today by snacking on peanuts, grabbing spoonfuls of peanut butter, and making tasty, peanut-filled recipes!

Chocolate Cake with Peanut Butter Cream
Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups
Chocolate Banana Cream Pie with Chocolate Peanut Butter Crust
Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Frosting
Chocolate-Peanut Truffles
Bitter Chocolate Waffles topped with Peanut Butter and Banana
High Protein Cookies
High Protein Cookie Dough

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

What’s your favorite way to eat peanuts? Are you going to join me in celebrating?

P.S. Tomorrow is the last day to sign up for the stevia giveaway. 

P.P.S I was featured on the Fitblogger yesterday. Check it out HERE.

 

 

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!).