I was looking for a sugar-free dessert recipe the other day. I have been trying to lower my sugar and carb intake (plus the fact that I ran out of sugar), hoping that might help me shed some extra UNWANTED pounds...as if extra pounds are ever REALLY wanted in the first place! My dad was a diabetic so I should have learned a long time ago to watch the sweets, but I'll be honest...they taste so GOOOOOOD!
After doing some searching, I found the SPLENDA® site and I must say, they have lots of YUMMY l@@king treats on there. (insert drooly face here) I found the recipe for these Peanut Butter Cookie Bites and just had to give them a try. I know quite a few people with diabetes so these really were a must.
I was really surprised that even My Skippy Man liked them....and he is NOT a SPLENDA® lover at all!
For this recipe, you will need the following:
- ¼ cup margarine, softened
- 1 cup creamy style peanut butter
- ¼ cup egg substitute
- 2 tablespoons honey
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
- 1 cup SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener, Granulated
- 1½ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
Beat margarine and peanut butter in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer until creamy, approximately 1 minute.
Add egg substitute, honey and vanilla. Beat on high speed for approximately 1½ minutes.
Add SPLENDA® Granulated Sweetener and beat on medium speed until well blended, approximately 30 seconds.
Combine flour, baking soda and salt in a small mixing bowl. Slowly add flour mixture to peanut butter mixture, beating on low speed until well-blended, about 1½ minutes. Mixture may be crumbly.
Roll level tablespoons of dough into balls and drop onto a lightly oiled or parchment lined sheet pan, two inches apart. Flatten each ball with a fork, pressing a crisscross pattern into each cookie. Bake 7-9 minutes or until light brown around the edges. Cool on wire rack.
Hi, Laura.
ReplyDeleteI wanted to just caution you on substituting splenda. I keep saying I need to post about this but just haven't ever had the time to get around to it.
As you know, I have always been a natural foods advocate and a health freak when it comes to eating right, exercising and feeling great. In 2005 when I was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes, I began substituting Splenda as a was to have my cake and eat it too. Knowing that artificial sweeteners still were just that, artificial, I limited myself to one serving of sweet tea with splenda or a dessert a day. And many days, I would have none.
In 2007, I started suffering from unbearable joint pain and other odd health problems. I brushed them off as being pregnant and having a new born and went on. Although, I noted great frustration at the fact that I was watching every bite I ate and exercising at least 1 hour a day 6 days a week and could not lose my baby pounds. Until early 2008. At that point, I gained 15 pounds in less than a months time with no explainable reason. Again, I figured it was some lark. I was in the middle of a lot of stuff and thought perhaps I had slacked off on my very strict diabetic diet. (At that point I still kept a daily journal of my diet and reviewing it a few months later with my health care provider showed that in fact, I should have been losing the remaining weight from Ellie's birth.)
I mentioned it to my health care provider at my annual checkup. She asked me some questions and came up with a list of symptoms including terrible joint pain that had plagued me for some time. At that point I was taking medication every day just to be able to get through the pain to exercise. She suspected that I had developed either a thyroid issue or an auto immune disorder such as rheumatoid arthritis or lupus. She ordered tests and we were all shocked that they all came back negative.
Fast forward a few more months. The pain continued so bad that by the summer after a life time of faithfully exercising almost everyday, I had to give it up completely. I also started suffering migraines, which I had been free of for years.
I started doing own research into the what might be the cause, looking from a more natural perspective.
In October, I went to my allergy and asthma specialist for my annual check up. She noted that my lymph nodes were unusually enlarged with no other signs of sickness that should have caused it. She sent me to my GP for more testing. They were know thinking lymphoma and other scary sounding stuff. Again, all the test came back negative.
Posting my comment in two parts... wouldn't fit in one. ☺
ReplyDeleteA little more time passed and I was suffering from exhaustion in addition to everything else I mentioned. My lymph nodes were not improving, in fact, they were getting worse. And another odd thing happened. within a month or six weeks time, I dropped 40 pounds without even trying.
By Christmas, my husband was seriously concerned and dragged me back to the doctor. The doctor again said it looked like lymphoma. I insisted they had already tested for that and it was negative. He said a lot can change in a few months and retest. So we retested. And guess what... it was negative again.
In fact, my blood pressure, glucose, iron... everything was perfect. And yet, here I was in less than the perfect health I should have been at 37 years old.
As I continued in my research, I happened upon a book. The author described her own struggle with sudden and unexplained symptoms and weight gain that she could not control, no matter what. And her visits to the doctor who could find nothing wrong with her. Also, a health fanatic, she began digging into her diet and exercise and could find just one thing that wasn't pristine. She drank diet coke on a daily basis.
And guess what, of the 10 symptoms she suffered, I had nine of them also. I immediately gave up my Splenda and stopped taking my two allergy medicines. These were the only two things I could find that didn't not meet the ideal profile of a healthy lifestyle.
And guess what? In no time, I was feeling like myself again. Out in the yard running with the kids, gardening, dancing, walking, exercising... doing all the things I loved, without pain. My lymph nodes returned to normal. I haven't had a migraine since February of 2010. Until I got pregnant, my weight returned to its ideal with no effort at all. I sleep great. (Well, not right now since I get up to go to the ladies room 5 times a night but you get the idea).
So, I have found that I would rather eat a little less of the real stuff and feel great than have two cookies made with splenda. And actually, I find myself far more satisfied if I just eat the real stuff anyway. I just make sure I work it into my diabetic meal plan and take my walk afterward to burn off any extra carbs.
I highly recommend Master Your Metabolism by Jillian Michaels. My girl friend who was taking all kinds of medicine and like me went from always being slender to struggling with her weight read it and started applying the principles she talks about. She, too, found it got her back to where she should have been with her health and weight.
So while I commend you for your efforts to try to decrease your chances of developing diabetes by changing your eating habits, I would ask you to consider the best way to do it.
Hugs,
Kat
Hi, Kat~
ReplyDeleteI am so sorry you have experienced so much pain and had gone through so much, and your health care providers not being able to figure out what was wrong. That must have been a very difficult time in your life. Thank you for sharing your story.
I have heard many things about using sugar substitutes on a regular basis. That is why I hardly ever use them. I don't care for the after taste of any of them either. However, my friends who are diabetic do. I want to be able to have something for them that they can eat when they stop over to visit.
I have been trying to limit my sugar and my carbs recently, as I have heard and read that is going to be my best bet for losing the weight I want. I have to admit, I am a carb JUNKIE, so this will certainly be a test of my will-power. Reducing my sugar, I think, will be a lot easier!
I appreciate your friendship, sweet Kat, and thank you so very much for your concern! You are such a precious friend!
Love and ((((hugs))))~
Laura
Thanks for the recipe,,,I'm gonna try it.
ReplyDelete