I'm back! This won't be a traditional WIAW post. I have taken virtually no foodie pics in the last week or so and since I have been getting ready to go to my parents' house for a few days, I didn't want to go grocery shopping. The problem was, I underestimated my ability to clean out the fridge and this is what it looked like when I still had 24 hours to survive in my house.
It was a pretty dire situation. I even had to go to the campus cafeteria for lunch yesterday because I didn't have much more than a can of tuna and a bottle of ketchup.
Don't even ask me what's in here, I just hit the salad bar and went nuts (it was right after the gym and I was hungry). There are tons of good vegetables in there though, so it can count as my "Love Your Veggies" pic :)
So instead of the usual WIAW stuff, I will show you something that I have been eating a lot of lately, share the recipe and review one of the ingredients.
I have been shoving many of these down my gullet lately thanks to the lack of real food in my house. No shame ;)
The secret ingredient? Xylitol!
I was recently contacted to review some products by Xyla, a company that makes xylitol-based sweeteners and candies. Xylitol is a plant-derived natural sweetener that has fewer calories and carbs than refined sugar, doesn't cause tooth decay and is suitable for diabetics. It is a sugar alcohol, so it doesn't work well with everyone's digestion, but I personally prefer it to most alternative sweeteners.
It doesn't have the harsh aftertaste that some stevia extracts do and it can be used in place of sugar in almost anything. You can learn more about xylitol here.
I was lucky to try a few different xylitol products, including:
Lemon Lime Candies:
These were sweet, zesty and so good! I'm not usually a big lemon fan in desserts, but I do like lemon candies. The only problem, they are quite addictive...
I also love the inspirational quotes they have on the lid of every box!
Watermelon Candies:
These were great too, although not quite as good as the lemon lime kind. They were really tangy and almost tasted like SweeTarts. However, it is important to remember that just because they have no added sugar, does not mean it is okay to eat half a box in one sitting. I'll remember that for next time...
Cocoa Mints:
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| So true! |
These little guys were a little softer than the other two candies, which were more like hard candies. The chocolate flavour really came through and I enjoyed them. I have to say that I did not taste the mint. Don't worry, I still managed to eat an embarrassing amount of these in a short amount of time.
Cinnamon Chewing Gum:
This was the only product I was a little disappointed with. I love cinnamon and the flavour is great, but it only lasts about 15 seconds. Gum is a bit of a trade-off. This stuff is much better for your teeth than sugar gum and it is healthier than the aspartame-laden gum you find in most stores, but I would almost rather chew the occasional piece of delicious artificial gum that won't lose its flavour and turn to stone in my mouth after 10 chews...
Finally, we get to my baking experiment!
I had been wanting to experiment with some cookies for a long time and this seemed like the perfect opportunity.
Their granulated xylitol has a great taste and can be used in baking in place of sugar. It is also great mixed with cinnamon and sprinkled on top of... well, anything!
Anyway, I managed to finish off a jar of almond butter, try out a product and test a recipe all in one go!
Nut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
(These cookies are dairy-free, gluten-free, mostly clean, fairly low carb and so decadent-tasting!)
Ingredients:
(Makes about 3 dozen cookies)
1 cup nut butter
3/4 cup Xyla
1/4 cup egg whites
1/2 tsp baking powder
3/4 dark chocolate chips
Pinch of salt
Preparation:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
2. Mix together all ingredient, stirring in chocolate chips last
3. Drop by the teaspoonful onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper
4. Bake for 12-13 minutes, or until cookies have browned slightly
5. Let cool fully before eating (you may need to leave them on the baking sheet for a while, as they fall apart easily)
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| I love a good cookieporn close-up :) |
These turned out beautifully! I used smooth almond butter, but I have made a version of these with crunchy peanut butter before and they were just as delicious. Any nut butter would work well. Also, even though I demonstrated these with xylitol, you could just as easily use brown sugar or a baking substitute. I would be happy to hear of other suggestions for sweeteners too if someone wants to play with the recipe!
Just a last tip, these are quite soft and have the tendency to fall apart. My fix? I froze them and they turned to the perfect chewy consistency to eat straight out of the freezer! I actually just put them right into the freezer on the baking sheets once they had cooled down and then removed them once they were frozen and stuck them into a container.
Now I have perfect, chewy, decadent treats waiting for me in the freezer that melt into soft almond-buttery goodness as soon as they start to defrost.
Have a wonderful Wednesday!
Have you ever tried baking with Xylitol?
Do you have any suggestions or modifications to put a new twist on my cookies?
