If you can't beat 'em, try harder!

I am struggling to be funny today - so I shall simply post an excellent 'equivalent' chart for sugar substitutes. Thank you Melissa for finding this!! I will use it often in the days to come, I am sure.

Sweetener Equivalents for 1/2 Cup of Sugar
Barley Malt: 1 1/2 cup
Date Sugar: 1 cup
Fruit Juice Concentrate: equal to sugar
Granular Fruit Sweeteners: equal to sugar
Honey: 1/3 cup
Maltose (from sprouted grains): 1 1/4 cup
Maple Syrup: equal to sugar
Molasses: 1/3 cup
Rice Syrup: 1 1/4 cup
Sorghum Syrup: 1/3 cup
Sucanat: Same as sugar
Organic sugar: Same as sugar
Tips for the Tradeoff: When a recipe doesn’t call for any liquid, such as for cookies, choose a dry, granular sweetener such as date sugar, or the cookies will be too bread-like from the additional flour needed for proper consistency. When you substitute liquid sweeteners for dry, you will need to reduce or eliminate the liquid content of the recipe, and increase the flour. For breads and pies, flavorful fruit juice concentrates and other liquid sweeteners work wonderfully well. For cakes and cupcakes that need to resemble as closely as possible “the real thing,” for flavor, choose sorghum syrup or Sucanat." (http://www.care2.com/greenliving/directory-of-natural-sweeteners.html#)

Wow - This is Getting to be Fun!

I am amazed at the awesome discoveries that have been unearthed by my friends and supporters. I know there are 'sugar-free' folks out there that advocate making everything from scratch, and using only organic ingredients, and all that jazz. . . . while I applaud their tenacity, I do not have the energy to live in such a manner. I need short-cuts in my life.

I got a text last night from Carole who had discovered No Sugar Added Alfredo Sauce - The Cheesy Ragu 'Light Parmesan Alfredo'. Melissa discovered No Sugar Added Bread - the New England brand 'Brown Bread'. Therese discovered that Mission brand tortillas now makes a 'Jalapeno Cheddar Wrap' in addition to their 'Spinach Herb Wraps' which are free of added sugar. Heather found 'Organicville Ketchup' which is sweetened with Agave Nectar instead of sugar. While searching for these items at the grocery store tonight, I also found a brand that I am pretty sure I am going to love - World Classics Trading Company - I picked up a jar of their Marinara Sauce and their San Francisco Style Cioppino Sauce (I'm not really sure what this last one is, but it looks spicy, so I am pretty sure I will love it).

I feel like a super-sleuth!! Each discovery is more exciting than the last! We CAN eliminate the 'inGREEDient' from our daily life - without suffering!

I made baked pork chops (using MomK's breadcrumb recipe) and a chopped salad for dinner tonight. What did you make for dinner tonight?

High on Life - Not Sugar:)

JamiK

Sriracha Sauce

This recipe is courtesy of www.hotsauceblog.com

Fill a container half full with peeled garlic cloves.
Fill the rest of the way with 2 (at least) habaneros and a mix of dried serrano and cayenne pods that have been stemmed but not seeded.
Add 1 tablespoon of non-iodized salt
Fill the container (to cover chile pods and garlic) with 5% strength white vinegar.
Cider vinegar or wine vinegar will work but will give you a different flavour.
As the chile pods re-hydrate top up the liquid with water or vinegar.
After a few days to a week of steeping in the vinegar dump the whole mess into the food processor or blender and puree until a smooth, thick consistency is reached.
If the mixture is too thick it may be thinned with vinegar or water. The resulting sauce is tangy, quite garlicky and very tasty.
Mixed 50/50 with tomato sauce (American catsup) it makes a very nice seafood coctail sauce. Or ir can serve as a salsa on tortilla chips. It’s very versatile.

Resources & Random Commentary

A friend of mine suggested the following website as a resouce for salad dressing recipes: www.epicurious.com I have decided to try the lemon garlic dressing first. Thanks Kristy!

I also discovered The "I can't believe this has no sugar" cookbook By Deborah E. Buhr . . . . I will double check the items used as sweeteners before I purchase it . . . . seems too good to be true.

Triscuits do not have added sugar! Neither does Bible Bread Gourmet Crispbread (I like the garlic kind). Beef Jerky is safe, if you choose the plain or pepper varieties (but double check the ingredient list of your favorite brand just to be safe).

I will be returning my 'Stevia In The Raw' brand Stevia to the grocery store tomorrow. . . . it lists Dextrose as the primary ingreedient. The 'Sweet Leaf' brand is just stevia.