Apple Cider Pie (when you just NEED dessert).

I've been refined-sugar-free for six days now and feeling really, really good.  But now that we're into October, I have been craving one thing in particular.  Apple pie.  The epitome of autumn!  The problem with pie is that there is typically a lot of sugar involved in the making of it.  However, I think I circumvented the issue quite nicely.

Introducing...

Apple Cider Pie.

The key to this pie is the type of apple you use.  This time of year McIntosh apples abound.  They also happen to be the best baking apple (in my humble opinion).  They're sweet and tart, and their buttery texture makes them perfect for sugar-free baking.  The apple cider is a great way to add a little more natural sweetness and sauciness to this fall-favorite.


The McIntosh Apple.

Are you one of those people who avoids making pies because you're terrified of screwing up the crust?  It's true that a bad crust ruins the pie, but fear not.  I've found a fool-proof recipe for flaky pastry that uses butter in lieu of lard and guarantees to surround the contents of your pie with nothing but love.

You're going to want to allot about an hour for the pastry part.  While it may be easy, it is a little time consuming.  Don't forget your rolling pin!  Don't have one?  Neither did I.  I used a wine bottle!  Also, parchment paper makes rolling a little easier and less sticky.

The Crust.  (I used this recipe but changed a few things).

• 2 1/2 cups organic, whole wheat flour
• 2 1/2 cups salted butter
• 2/3 cup ice water

Leave your butter out until it reaches room temperature. Using two butter knives, cut the butter into the flour until you achieve crumbly lumps of dough.  Now, using your freshly washed hands, begin to knead the dough and add a little bit of water at a time.  Eventually you'll want to be able to roll the dough into balls that don't crumble when you flatten them out, but you also don't want it to be too wet and sticky either. 

Separate your dough into roughly two equal parts (one ball for the base and one for the top!).  Spread a large piece of parchment paper onto the counter.  Place your dough onto the paper and using your wine bottle or rolling pin, begin to flatten the dough into a large circle so that it will fall slightly over the edges of your pie plate.  You don't want it too thick - about 1/4 inch should do.  Carefully place your dough slab into a 9 inch pie plate.  Repeat with the second ball and set aside while you prepare the sweet gooey guts of your pie.

The Guts.

• 5-6 McIntosh Apples, peeled and sliced
• 3 tbsp unsweetened, organic apple cider
• 3 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp nutmeg
• 2 tbsp coconut oil

Now is the time you want to preheat your oven to 400 F.

When it comes to slicing your apples, you can go thick or thin.  The magical thing about McIntosh apples is that they cook quickly due to their soft texture. 

So, slice your apples any way you like and place them in a mixing bowl.  Sprinkle your spices, add your cider and coconut oil and mix thoroughly with your hands (I'm a big fan of using my hands!). 

Scoop your apple mixture into your prepared pie crust until it's a little higher than the depth of the pie plate and top it off with the other slab of dough.  If your dough is hanging over the edge of your pie plate, you can even out the edges using a sharp knife.  Flute the edges using a fork and make a few slits in the top to let the vapor escape while baking.

Bake your pie for about 35 minutes then check to make sure your crust doesn't get too brown.  You'll want to remove your pie when the crust is a warm golden color (about 35-40 minutes).

Allow your pie to cool for a good hour or so before digging in!


Can't you see the love?

Breakfast for Champions!

Hey all!  I'm Day 3 into my refined-sugar-free week and feeling good.  How about you?  I can't say it's been all that difficult.  Sure, I miss digging out fudge chunks from my Ben & Jerry's ice cream container after dinner, but for the most part I've found a way to cope by eating soul satisfying whole foods and baking.

Honestly, the hardest meal of the day for me is breakfast.  Upon waking my stomach gurgles and I crave my sweet cinnamon crunch cereal.  Over the last few days I've come to realize how refined sugar has sneakily woven it's way into my day to day life.  It hides in my favorite cereals, sauces, yogurts, jams and jellies, breads, and myriad other seemingly healthy foods.  It's been tough finding refined-sugar-free foods in my refrigerator and cupboard so I decided to make my own.

Since I'm cutting out refined sugar for the week I've tweaked a classic bread recipe that I'll look forward to scarfing down upon waking.  Paired with a hot cup of coffee this breakfast is sure to satisfy your morning hunger monster and it's sweet tooth.

Who doesn't love baking with spotty bananas? As someone avoiding refined sugar, bananas are a great source of the sweetness we all crave in life.  Now pair those mushy wonders with some cinnamon, butter and flaxmeal and you've got yourself a starchy, satisfying breakfast that will deliver energy all morning long.

In lieu of brown sugar I've added Stevia powder.  If you're hardcore you can omit this sugar alternative.  Honestly, I'm not sure how healthy Stevia is. There is a lot of back and forth about this natural sweetener.  It's still a refined food and should not be relied upon heavily by refined-sugar-free people.

Morning Monkey Bread

What you'll need:

• 3 ripe bananas (preferably organic, but use what you've got)
• 3 large eggs
• 2 tbsp sour cream or plain Greek yogurt
• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 1 cup organic gluten-free flour or unbleached whole wheat if you're not into GF 
• 2/3 cup flaxmeal
• 1 cup chopped walnuts
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• Stevia to taste

Preheat your oven to 350 F.  In a large bowl, mash your bananas with a fork (I like to leave mine a little lumpy for added texture). Add in sour cream/yogurt, butter, and Stevia if you choose to use it.  In a small bowl whisk your eggs until fluffy.  Add to the banana mixture once the butter has cooled so the (eggs don't cook).

In a separate bowl combine the flour, flaxmeal, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.  Mix the wet and dry ingredients until just blended.  Fold in walnuts.  If your batter is too thick you can add a little water or hemp/almond/coconut milk.  The batter should be thick but not not impossible to stir.  Pour the batter into a greased bread pan or cupcake pan for muffins.

Bake bread loaf for 50 minutes to an hour.  Insert a toothpick into the center of the loaf until it comes out clean.  If you're making muffins, bake for 20-25 minutes. Times may vary according to your oven so keep testing with a toothpick.

Now you have a weekly stash of grab-and-go breakfast that will keep you going until lunch!  I like to toast my bread slices and add a little butter.  Mmm-mmm!

Happy baking!

I hope everyone is enjoying themselves during this week without refined sugar.  Next Up: some tips for lunch and dinner.  Plus, what to eat when you just need dessert.

Refined Sugar - Get Out of My LIFE!

Hey, I'm back!  Been a while.  I was busy being a heretic. 

Did anyone else read that National Geographic article about sugar?  Pretty sobering stuff.  We sure do eat a lot of sugar.  Too much.  It's in absolutely everything.  I've done a little research on the subject of sugar - high fructose corn syrup, honey, agave, artificial sweeteners, non-sugar options, how they all affect the body, etc.  There is a lot of information out there on the subject but how much of it is true?

The Basics  There is no one kind of sugar.  When we think of "sugar" most of us imagine the pure white sweet powder we add to our coffee in the morning.  Allow me to introduce "sucrose", a disaccharide.  But I'm getting ahead of myself.  It gets pretty messy, and I don't want to bore you with the details, but...

Carbohydrates!  "Carbs" are organic compounds comprised of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen, typically with a hydrogen:oxygen atom ratio of 2 to 1. They are often referred to as "saccharides" and are divided into four groups: monosaccharides, disaccharides, oligosaccharides and polysaccharides.  Yay!

Generally speaking, the mono- and disaccharides are what we know as "sugar" and end in the suffix "-ose".  You know, glucose, sucrose, lactose, fructose, galactose.  Fun fact - lactose is actually derived from galactose and glucose AND monosaccharide units join together using glycosidic bonds to make polysaccharides.   Blah dee blah dee blah.  Still with me?  No?  It's okay.  I'm not a fan of chemistry.  But it is important to understand what sugar is made of.

Interestingly there isn't much difference between high fructose corn syrup and honey.  Chemically speaking, they have similar ratios of glucose to fructose.  And both foods perform similarly inside you.  While honey is a much more natural source of sugar, too much fructose could induce toxic effects on the liver, lead to coronary heart disease, and make us fat (more on that in a bit).  I also found a lot of sources spewing that lowering your intake of refined sugars can lower your risk of certain types of cancer but after reading these articles (JHU Gazette and Mount Sinai Hospital), it seems to be very overblown and I can't find much truth to the rumors.

So, in light of all the seemingly accurate information out there, I've decided to go cold turkey and stop eating refined sugar.  Just for a week.  See how I do.  I'm talking white and brown sugars, honey, molasses (does anyone still eat molasses?), maple syrup, and agave nectar. 

Why?  I'm a generally healthy lady.  But eating refined anything and too much of it to boot isn't smart. Obviously it is impossible to eliminate all sugar from your diet - and silly.  We actually need sugar to live long, healthy lives. Starches and carbohydrates such as wheat, oats, beans, etc. are broken down in your body and end up as simple sugars (remember those monosaccharides?).  But it takes a lot longer. Our bodies need glucose to perform some very important functions, but eating evaporated cane juice straight from the bag isn't a good idea. The simple stuff is roughly half glucose and half fructose.  Our bodies don't use fructose and it is processed directly by our livers and turned into fat.  Big deal.  BUT too much fructose means too much fat in the liver which means liver disease (here's a clarifying article) among other ailments that could arise over time.

So, yes, cutting back on the simple stuff.   Here's what I'm eating instead -

Day One  Breakfast.  A tough one.  I want my organic cinnamon crunch cereal, but it has 8 grams of sugar per 3/4 cup serving.  Skip!  Instead I opt for the complex carbs and straight-up fat - two slices of organic sprouted wheat toast with butter!  I pour my coffee for the road and typically I'd stir in copious amounts of cream and sugar.  But not this morning. I add unsweetened hemp milk and pure vanilla extract.  Sure it's lumpy, but it tastes okay.

Five hours later, after wandering around the desert in search of bird-life, I'm home.  And starving.  I make bean and cheese burritos smothered in salsa and a small dollop of sour cream.  As usual I want something sweet to top off my meal.  I know there's Ben & Jerry's in the freezer.  It calls to me!!  Buuuuut I ignore it.  I opt for an orange instead. A little fruit each day is good, so long as you don't live off of it.  Remember, moderation in all things is the key to a healthy lifestyle.

I should also mention that I live a pretty active lifestyle. I hike, I run, I cycle.  My body is using up a lot of energy and burning a lot of calories.  I don't want this no refined sugar thing to be about weight loss, but about striking a healthy balance. 

How About You? If you want to make a change then why not give this a try?  Let's see how we feel at the end of the week, yeah?  Feel free to comment and let me know how you're doing, what you're feeling, tips, advice, whatever!  I'll do my part and let you know what I'm eating (including recipes), how it's tasting, whether or not I'm going crazy, and if this is actually a lifestyle change worth making.

Coming up next:  baking sans refined sugar and wheat.