Category: Sugar Free

Tips for Making Sugar Free Ice Cream at Home

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National Ice Cream Day is the third Sunday in July. I don’t think I will ever forget this day several years ago because my daughter used to manage a Ben and Jerry’s ice cream store. She came home that night with ice cream from head to toes! She was exhausted and a bit sticky. She told us there were 8 people working that day and they gave away over 1000 ice cream cones. She also vowed that she would not work that day ever again.

Which reminds me of another time I was living in Danville, CA and we went out for ice cream… imagine a hot evening (it was over 100°F that day) and we had the brilliant idea of getting ice cream at the local shop. We step in the door angling for a good view of the tubs in the freezers and carefully chose the very best flavor, mine is usually butter pecan or chocolate. After being mesmerized and oblivious to anything but the creamy goodness before us we looked up to determine just how long it would take the two kids behind the counter to serve us. It was just a moment later, watching one young man scoop ice cream for the next customer, that we noticed he had ice cream up to his shoulders and all over his apron front from leaning into the cases. Initially it wasn’t an unpleasant thought but as we continued to wait and see more and more ice cream being scooped and more and more ice cream ending up all over this kid… it began to change our experience from one of excitement to one of thoughtfulness.

Instead of feeling excited about my flavor choice I started to wonder if getting ice cream was really necessary. Do I really want it that bad to wait this long for it and seeing it all over this poor oblivious kid helped me to step away and rethink my desire or need for a scoop. I also had a few pounds to lose and I knew ice cream probably wasn’t going to help me fit into that pair of jean shorts I’ve been hoping to wear that summer.

Boy do I wish every temptation had a kid like that to help me rethink my food choices! He was the perfect antidote for wanting a scoop. That was the first time I walked away from an ice cream store empty handed. Ever since then I had a new perspective on ice cream and it began my search for an alternative.

It’s not every day that I recommend eating ice cream but there are scenarios where it can be a wonderful dessert and it doesn’t have to make you feel guilty, unhealthy or derail your diet. There is no need to feel left out on National Ice Cream Day! However, finding sugar-free ice cream that tastes delicious in an ice cream store or even in the super market is not a reality. When you can find it, sadly, sucralose or Splenda is often used along with a lot of chemicals to make commercial ice cream shelf stable and palatable. Not a choice I recommend.

The good news…

Ice cream can be made dairy free, egg free, flavorful, probiotic (good for your belly) and as always sugar free. AND it is truly simple to make! Using simple ingredients and techniques you can have ice cream in a matter of minutes. Here are some simple tips to help you: Ice Cream Your Way

It is best to follow a tested recipe in order to make ingredient swaps. Please see my Special Desserts recipes for several recipes you can try.

Buttermilk-Sherbet-with-Peaches-and-Rum-Caramel

1.Collect ingredients:

  • Choice of milk. For traditional ice cream milk and heavy cream are used. Since we would like to make the ice cream low in sugar I recommend substituting out the milk for unsweetened coconut, almond or other nut milk. Do keep the heavy cream though as it provides the creamiest texture (full fat coconut milk can be substituted if you are dairy free).
  • Choice of sweetener. My typical sweeteners of choice are xylitol, erythritol and stevia. Erythritol cannot be used in ice cream. It will recrystallize and become grainy once frozen (not most people’s preferred texture in ice cream). Xylitol alone or in combination with stevia is the best choice. Stevia alone will not provide the necessary “solids” to make the ice cream taste good.
  • Choice of thickener. Eggs are typically used to thicken ice cream and to provide emulsification for the other ingredients which helps to give it a creamy texture. Gelatin can be used to replace eggs as well as xanthan or guar gum.
  • Optional flavors or mix-ins. These could be sugar-free caramel, sugar-free candies, frozen fruit or even essential oils.

2. Prepare Ice Cream Base:

  • Steep milk with dried flavorings. For example, if you want to make an earl grey tea ice cream it is best to steep your hot milk of choice for at least 20 minutes to infuse the flavor of the tea.
  • Make base according to directions in the recipe. This may require tempering eggs or adding rehydrated gelatin. Some recipes are so simple you just need to put them into your ice cream maker!
  • Cure your base by pre-chilling overnight. This important step allows the sweetener to absorb as much water as possible which creates the best texture. But if you are in a hurry it can be skipped.

3.Choose freezing method:

  • Old Fashioned Method. A big plastic or wooden outer bucket with a metal inner bucket. Rock salt and ice are added to the outer bucket and the mixture to the inner bucket. The dasher (whips air into the mix as it freezes) is inserted and it is either cranked by hand or electronically creating the ice cream. Works very well but takes time and effort.
  • Ice-Cube Tray Method (ready in minutes!) Ice cream base is poured into ice cube trays and place in the freezer until frozen. Once frozen blend the cubes at 30-second intervals with additional milk of choice (just a small amount if needed) until smooth then store in a container in the freezer until ready to eat.
  • Milk Shake Method. No need to wait. Simply add your chilled ice cream base (I like to stick it in the freezer about 45 minutes) and ice to a blender and enjoy!
  • Nesting Bowl Method. Nest a small bowl with your ice cream base inside of a larger bowl filled about halfway with ice and lots of rock salt. Using a hand mixer blend the ice cream base until it becomes cold (about 10 minutes) then cover with a towel and place both bowls in the freezer for 45 minutes. Remove from the freezer and blend again for 2-4 minutes, pour into a small container and freeze for at least 2 hours or until ready to serve. This is also accomplished with equipment such as for the KitchenAid mixer where a specialty freezer bowl is pre-frozen and can be used directly with your machine.
  • Self-Contained Freezer or Ice Cream Maker Method. Essentially, the mix is added and a button is pushed and off it goes for about 20 minutes or so. This is the easiest and makes the best texture of ice cream but can be an expensive purchase and the unit is very heavy and bulky (takes up a lot of counter space) and is often difficult to clean.

However you decide to make your ice cream, eat it within a few months if it lasts that long! Freezers are notoriously changing temperature and your ice cream may be perfect the first time you eat it but the longer it sits the more likely it will absorb odors from other foods and change texture as the temperature fluctuates and it thaws slightly then refreezes every time you open the door.

In the meantime… enjoy your ice cream! Let it drip down your face too.

Kastl-Ice-Cream

Summer Bodies Take Shape in the Winter

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We’ve all heard it a million times. The way to weight loss and a healthy life is through diet and exercise. Here’s my recommendations for a healthy diet and here’s two great articles (check out the book in the Oprah article, I picked up a copy and you may want to as well).

  1. The Simple, No-Equipment Workout You Can Do at Home from Oprah
  2. Article 2: 14 short at-home workouts from Women’s Health Mag

 

How to start a healthy diet and stick with it, after all, Summer Bodies Take Shape in the Winter.

1.  Eat Breakfast with Protein Every Day
Most American breakfasts have been based on carbohydrates such as bagels, pancakes, even granola (which is considered as healthy by most). What is often missing at breakfast is protein, unless you eat eggs or breakfast meat. Protein helps maintain your blood sugar levels. boosts metabolism and controls hunger.

2. Eat slowly and chew thoroughly
It takes 20 minutes for our brain to register that we have eaten something. We eat food and it must go all the way down to our digestive track and begin digesting before it can signal our brain that we have eaten. Give your body a chance to let your brain know!

3. Eat Away From Your Phone, Computer or TV
If it takes 20 minutes for your brain to know it has eaten… how long does it take for you to notice you have eaten more than one serving of your food? It is too easy to overeat when our brains are distracted. Our brains are amazing organs but as humans when we eat while multi-tasking our brains are fixated and we do not multitask well – meaning we overeat. To make matters worse we will not feel satiated because our brains have been too busy to realize we actually ate something. This is a simple way to enjoy your food more and allow your brain to focus on your body and not be distracted.

4. Keep A Food Journal
Arggg… not the dreaded food journal. YES. But keep the journal for a week and think of it as research or detective work. After eating a food, simply write down how much of it you ate (number of servings) and then from the label write down the number of grams of sugar you consumed (don’t forget to multiply this number by the amount you ate – if you ate 2 servings you would double the sugar amount). Then quickly scan the ingredient list and make a note of where sugar shows up in the ingredient list. If it is listed as one of the first 5 ingredients make a note of that. Awareness is the key here and the amount of sugar you consume may surprise you. Ideally, strive for less than 25g of sugar per day or if you choose a processed food consume only those that have less than 5g per serving.

5. Choose Foods That Do Not Have A Label
After you have done your food journal for a week hopefully you noticed there is no food label on fresh produce or unprocessed whole foods. If there were labels on fresh produce it would not have any sugar grams to record. This is because the “sugar” is a natural part of the food and has not been added into the ingredients. Catsup, cereal, crackers, dairy products, salad dressings, snack foods and many other products have added sugars in them. Don’t deny yourself but choose wisely – the healthiest snacks do not have nutritional labels on them and have a short shelf life.

Over processed foods create hunger. Synthetic vitamins are often added in to replace what was stripped out during processing these also include added chemicals used in the manufacture of some of the ingredients. These are unrecognizable by our bodies. Once eaten our bodies naturally see them as being foreign we go into attack mode which promotes inflammation and ultimately shuts down digestion. If your body is not digesting your food it sets you up for disease and stomach problems. Additionally, because your body is not digesting the food you eat it is not getting the nutrients it needs so your brain will continue to get the signal that you are hungry. It quickly sets up a pattern of cravings and overeating.

6. Don’t Over Eat Fruit
Fruit in small quantities can step in as a low sugar snack but larger amounts can set you up for cravings. Fruit is mostly made up of fructose and fiber. Fructose is metabolized in the liver so it bypasses the digestive system. Fruit is not very satisfying on its own. Because it bypasses digestion our brain doesn’t get a chance to recognize that you have eaten food. The best type of fruit to eat are berries because they are high in fiber (due to the seeds), adding in a protein source such as nuts, or dairy such as cheese or Greek yogurt can help balance it out nutritionally.

Fruits and Veggies

 

7. Don’t Buy In Bulk
When we buy food in bulk we give ourselves permission to eat more of that food. A good rule of thumb is that if the food comes in large quantities it is meant for a large number of people – not meant for a small family to consume in one meal. Buying in bulk is great for parties but if the food has a long shelf life which it would have to have if you buy it in bulk and don’t use it quickly then it isn’t meant to sit around for long. It simply encourages eating more. Limiting processed foods is always a good idea. Buying in bulk only works if you can freeze it or use it quickly for a large number of people.

8. Eat Snacks That Contain Protein, Fiber, and Fat
Protein and fat are the main nutrients our bodies need in order to survive. Some may argue that to survive a long time we also need fiber! Protein is necessary to build and maintain muscle, it is essential. Fat helps to create satiety and is also essential for good health. Fiber adds bulk to our food which also can help with decreasing hunger but it also plays the role of helping to sweep out the colon keeping our gut healthy. Seeds are a great source of fiber – both chia and flax seeds are high in fiber and essential fat. Add in protein and you have the perfect combination! See my recipe for Coconut Granola and Coconut Yogurt.

9. Only Cheat 10% Of The Time
There are always situations where someone offers you a sugar-full treat and you cannot say no. Even the best of us have our moments of peer pressure or simple desire. It’s ok don’t beat yourself up about it. Simply say thank you, ENJOY it and then don’t make it a habit. We all grew up with sugar. The problem occurs with repetition. Our taste buds get accustomed to sugar – it sends signals of pleasure to our brains, when we keep repeating these brain signals by eating sugar our brains light up and since it is pleasurable our brains send back the signal to keep it coming! The problem is that sugar is pro-inflammatory which has been linked to cancer, dementia, diabetes, heart disease, metabolic syndrome and obesity among others. Essentially it helps to promote disease and aging!

10. Try Sugar-Free Options
There are many new products on the market which incorporate sweeteners that are not synthetic and are derived from natural sources. Most are non-caloric, do not affect blood sugar and when properly combined taste great!

Sign up here for a downloadable PDF of Which Are the Best Sugar Substitutes.

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11. Add Bitter Or Sour Foods To Your Diet
Another way to reset your taste buds away from sugar is to be sure all your taste buds are all getting attention. This is important to keep your interest in food and acts as a pattern interrupt for sweet cravings to help your brain recognize more variety. Add in 85% dark chocolate, fermented foods such as yogurt or kefir, green tea, lemon juice, apple cider vinegar or dark leafy greens such as kale or arugula. When you reset your taste buds to enjoy a variety of foods you will no longer crave sweets and you won’t feel like you are missing out – this makes cheating only 10% of the time so much easier. In fact, when a sugar craving hits try eating a few tablespoons of sauerkraut you will be amazed that your craving may just simply vanish!

 

6 Simple Tips to Decrease Sugar During the Holidays

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I love the holidays because I like to bake.  I used to bake every year – tins full of decorated cookies and treats.  Everyone would be so excited to receive them because they were not only beautiful but also absolutely delicious!

Until one year, I sent my favorite uncle a tin and he called to say he it was not a good idea to send him cookies because he was diabetic.  I was so saddened… here I thought I was sending him pure love in the form of cookies.  Instead, for him it was an insult of sorts.  The thought was there but instead of enjoying it he felt left out.  The experience really hit home for me.  I myself do not eat sugar or gluten but I was more than happy to serve the ingredients to others that I myself would not eat.

Something didn’t match up.

Over Indulgence

Sugar is easy to over-indulge on during the holiday season because it is literally everywhere you turn.  When hosting or attending a party treats are always included, at the office people will bring in sweets they have made at home or to simply share in the spirit of the season.  Since treats are everywhere is a fact that causes a lot of stress for people who try to diligently avoid sweets or have specific problems with blood sugar.

Type II diabetes is a growing epidemic.  It is the seventh leading cause of death in the US.  Of course complications from diabetes cannot be ignored – as if death weren’t enough.  Diabetes affects almost 24 million people in the US alone.  Most people are already aware that increased sugar consumption is an issue that causes health problems – whether that be increase in cavities, weight gain or more subtle nutritional issues such as skin problems and the health complications associated with diabetes.  If you do not have diabetes at this time this does not enable you to freely overindulge in sweets regardless of the time of year.

Will Power Alone

So what is a person to do?  Sweets are everywhere and oh so tempting?  Can will power alone help me?  It can’t hurt… but there is a lot of guilt associated with will power (or lack thereof in regards to food and cravings).  Plop all of that onto your shoulders at a party where you feel either at ease with friends or uncomfortably emotionally charged and it is a recipe for self-sabotage.

Tips to Decrease Sugar

Here are a few tips to help you manage cravings for sweets around the holidays and help to lower your sugar intake.  Holidays are, after all, about having fun and celebration with family and friends.  Keep the traditions but supplement them with less sugar and you will feel better about your whole holiday experience!

1. Make a decision before you go to a party to enjoy one treat.

What is your favorite treat?  Turtles are my favorite because that was the tradition for me growing up – pecans topped with caramel and chocolate.  When I go home to my parents’ house over the holidays I decide before I go that I will have one and only one turtle.  And I usually wait until I am walking out the door or nearly so before eating it – that way I will savor it knowing that I am unable to grab a few more while waiting to open presents or while talking with family after dinner.

2. Be a discriminating treat eater…

If you know the item is store bought or perhaps not your favorite – skip it. You aren’t missing out and you’ll be disappointed when you notice something more appealing.

3. Eat a small snack before going to a party – include protein, fat and fiber.

A protein, fat and fiber – packed snack will satiate you and fill your stomach to the extent that party foods may not be as interesting and your ability to moderate what you eat is much easier.  Nuts are a great snack or a piece of cheese with a few celery sticks.

4. Festive drinks can be full of hidden sugars.

A lot of mixers and cordials such as Kahlua®, Irish crème, and peppermint schnapps that make drinks festive have a lot of sugar. When imbibing, do so slowly alternating with a full glass of water.  Sometimes simply asking for a soda with a squeeze of lemon is all you need to feel like you are taking part in traditions.  Also, alcohol can lower inhibitions and induce cravings for foods you may not consciously choose if not drinking, drinking water along with your alcohol keeps you hydrated and full.

Try my sugar-free coconut eggnog recipe if you are in the mood for something festive.  Add a little rum for a low-carb sipper.  Or try my Low-Carb Kahlua recipe!

5. Replace sugar or simple syrup in your 16oz coffee with 8-12 drops of flavored liquid stevia.

Would you believe that a Starbuck’s Pumpkin Spice Latte has 50g of sugar?  That is the same as eating more than 4 tablespoons of sugar!   I like to use unsweetened coconut milk and green tea to make a latte sweetened with stevia and a touch of vanilla.

My favorite brand of liquid stevia is Sweet Leaf®.  My favorite flavors are:

  • Vanilla Crème
  • English Toffee
  • Cinnamon

6. Ever tried essential oils in your food or drinks?

Pure certified essential oils can pack a lot of flavor in just one drop.  Try peppermint in 16 oz of water to freshen your day or lemon to curb sweet cravings.  A lemon drop martini can be made with 1 oz vodka, stevia to taste and a single drop of pure lemon essential oil.

Don’t under estimate the power of essential oils to add benefit to your life.  Pure essential oils are magical in their ability to add a pop of flavor and intensity to your food or beverages with many natural health benefits!  To read more about essential oils go check out my latest post on how to make foods healthier and more enjoyable with essential oils!