Good news is you can have your sugar, eat it too, and not totally blow your low carb Plan Z Diet existence. You don't have to fee. deprived, either.
Chief Dieter
Plan Z Diet
Even if you never touch dessert it’s still easy to get too much sugar. We know sugar is virtually everywhere in our food system. Low carb people know to stay away from things like bread, pasta, pancakes, baked goods, sodas, fruit drinks, and virtually every processed food. When you include HFCS (high fructose corn syrup) it seems like sugar is everywhere. Look around. Read labels.
Good news is you can have your sugar, eat it too, and not totally blow a low carb existence. You don’t have to feel deprived, either.
One trick is to concentrate on NATURAL sugar sources. Leave the chemistry involved in processed table sugar and artificial sweeteners by the wayside. Diet soda is NOT your friend. Research has proven it never really made you skinnier, and some new research even links it to overeating.
So what are better sources of sugar? I’m going to give you 6 options. You’ll have to keep them in check but I’ll give you ideas on how to use them.
1. Stevia.
Stevia’s not perfect but at least it’s natural; it has vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, ZERO calories, and for the most part it can get the job done. For the best flavor, use it to sweeten anything you’re not going to cook. A good breakfast is plain, unsweetened yogurt with a little stevia and vanilla stirred in. Add berries and nuts on top and you’ve got a healthy breakfast that will keep you full until lunch.
There are liquid stevia drops in all kinds of flavors now, too. You can make your own diet soda by adding a few stevia drops to sparkling water. My husband Chris and I do it on the Plan Z Diet all the time. You can make grape soda, orange, strawberry, cherry, lemon-lime; even cream soda. They have cola flavored drops, too. Toffee and vanilla flavored stevia drops make a delightful cup of flavored coffee. Save the money on those fancy blends you stand in line for and make your own in 2 extra seconds. You can stevia and liquid stevia drops in the baking supply section of your grocery store, usually on the bottom shelf.
2. Raw Honey.
I recommend you get your natural sweetener from the closest source possible. So the beekeeper at your local farmer’s market is a prime guy/gal to know. Raw honey is delicious and contains vitamins and minerals, too. The glycemic index of honey is 35, which is reasonable. Any food with a Glycemic index of 50 or below is good especially on the Plan Z Diet; but you’ll still have to watch your intake. A little drizzle goes a long way.
3. Erythritol.
This is found naturally in fruits and vegetables. Erythritol has some real bonuses. Zero on the glycemic index. Zero calories. This one is a sugar alcohol.
Best news: it caramelizes. That means if you bake cookies with it for one of my Plan Z Diet recipes they will get the lovely crunch around the edges you’re striving for. My favorite brands are ZSweet and Swerve but there are other brands you can look into, too. I have never seen this in a store, so you’ll likely have to order online. You can make frosting with the powdered version. A cream cheese frosting made with this is about as close to dessert-healthy as you can get. Make a low carb cake and you have the makings of a healthy version of a birthday party! Erythritol is slightly less sweet than sugar but in truth, I cut the amount necessary for a recipe by about 1/3 to half and I’m satisfied that the end product is sweet enough. You’ll find your own sweet spot.
4. Coconut Sugar.
Good news about coconut sugar is it contains potassium, magnesium, zinc, vitamin B1 and vitamin C. Table sugar has no redeeming value. At least coconut sugar has some vitamins and minerals.
You’ve never heard of it? Let’s fix that. Coconut sugar is also called coconut palm sugar. It comes from coconut blossoms before the coconuts form. The glycemic index of coconut sugar is almost half of regular table sugar, so that’s a plus. That means it won’t jack up your insulin as much as regular sugar will. Coconut sugar is a light brown color. Some people put a little in coffee if they have to have sugar. That’s the only reason I keep it around. If I have a guest who has to have sugar in coffee, this is a better alternative. If you want baked goods you will find plenty of low carb recipes that use coconut sugar. Again, cut it back from what the recipe says if you dare to stay even more low carb.
5. Pure Maple Syrup.
Occasionally, I’ll use a little drizzle of maple syrup in a dressing or in a sauce. Don’t worry! It doesn’t make a sauce taste like syrup. Be sure to get the real stuff though; not that sugar-water flavored with maple. When I make pancakes now I’m more likely to top them with chopped up fruit sweetened with stevia or even whipped cream flavored with stevia but a little drizzle (and I’m talking 2 tsp or less) of real syrup can go a long way, too. Here’s my low carb Plan Z Diet Pumpkin Pancake recipe.
These pancakes are low carb and much healthier. Choose your own topping. I’d even give a nod to a little of the whipped cream with a drizzle of the maple syrup on top. Wink, wink. And don’t forget the butter!
6. Blackstrap molasses.
This sweet option also has plenty of vitamins and minerals. The folks living on the prairie in the olden days knew about this and used it as a sweetener. Molasses were a cheap sweetener when the refined stuff we are familiar with today was very expensive. Regular people ate blackstrap molasses. Try to find an unsulphured version. That’s the healthiest. Use a drizzle in a dressing. Or make a poultry glaze with it in place of sugar. Barbecue sauce is another option. Like I said before, cut it back. Use mostly stevia in a barbecue sauce and just put in a tidbit of this for extra flavor.
No type of sugar is good in major quantities. We will teach you why on the Plan Z Diet. The average American now consumes over 150 pounds of sugar a year. At the turn of 1900, that number was 7.5 pounds. No wonder there’s an obesity crisis. We have come a long way…but it’s not a good way to be.
Do yourself a favor and try to stay off the sugar.
When in “need” consider incorporating these.
Cheers,
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