As most of you know from some previous posts, I’m going through a program to detox heavy metals and rebuild my body’s very depleted mineral stores. This is not a “Lindsey-ordered” experiment that I’m trying; it’s a doctor-recommended program and I’ve been following it religiously for almost three months. I have zero cravings for sweets of any kind, which is amazing and a first for me. But there are foods that I *miss*. I’m not craving chocolate, but I do miss having a nibble of something after the kids go to bed.
I spoke with my dr. today, and he’s fine with me having dessert, provided it meets some pretty strict criteria.
Here’s what I can’t have:
Gluten
Gluten-free baking flours such as tapioca, potato starch, rice flour, or bean flours
Nuts or peanuts
Sugar in any form, including raw honey, maple syrup, sucanat, etc.
Vegetable oils
Fruit (yes, really)
Here’s what I can have:
Stevia or xylitol (I have not had xylitol in a long time, and don’t know what effect it might have on my digestion at this point, so I would really like to avoid it and stick with stevia.)
Cocoa or cacao powder
Eggs
Raw dairy, plain yogurt
Coconut products, including oil, shredded, and flour
Avocados and butter
Lemons and ginger
Blueberries in very small amounts
Ok, I really don’t care for fruit-based desserts anyway, so I’m fine with not having fruit. Really, I just want something warm and baked or cold like a mousse or pudding, but sweetened with stevia. And my kids are slowly transitioning to this way of eating too, and I’m not going to deprive them of desserts. I haven’t had a dessert in 3 months!
I’m having a hard time finding low-carb, Paleo-ish recipes that fit my criteria. Many are made with coconut flour, but are sweetened with honey. Or they’re made with butter and cocoa but with an almond flour base or something like that. I’m not finding anything that really meets the criteria enough for me to consider. And I have no time or desire to try and figure out how to replace honey with stevia and still make up for the liquid and bulk of the recipe.
Lindsey, we are making a flavored whipped cream for a nice treat! Whip your cream w/ stevia and cocoa don’t know if you can have real vanilla but I add that as well. Done! Easy Peasy and sooo yummy! You could also try a lemon flavored one..but we always stick to chocolate because we are addicted! LOL I make a big batch and put it in the frig it thickens up like an ice cream! HTH
Lemon, stevia and greek yogurt. Blend it, chill it. Call it Lemon Mousse.
Unsweetened baking cocoa, mixed with stevia and coconut oil. Mix it real good and freeze it. Great chocolate! 🙂
Can you have flax seeds? If you can, you can crack an egg in a cup, mix it well, add 3 or 4 TBS. of ground flax, a TBS. of coconut oil, stevia to taste, a TBS. of cocoa and a teaspoon of baking powder. Mix it well and microwave it it for one minute. Pour some cream over it. Very good! (Sometimes I leave out the cocoa and add blueberries. 🙂 )
I tried a stevia-sweetened chocolate whipped cream, and it was just so-so. I didn’t care for it, so my kids finished it off. I am trying the NuNaturals brand of stevia, which has less of a bitter taste w/ chocolate, so maybe I need to give the whipped cream a try again.
Yes, I can have gluten-free vanilla and flax seeds every once in a while. Should have included those in my list!
The thing about sweetening with stevia is that I don’t know how much to add. I tried an egg custard w/ stevia a few weeks ago. It wasn’t even the least bit sweet, even though I tasted it before I put it in the oven. Does something happen to the sweetness of stevia during baking??
Honestly, I don’t care for yogurt. I never have. I’ll give your yogurt recipes a try, and if all else fails for me, I know my kids will gobble them up!
If you are on FB, there is a THM allergy group. Many of the dessert items shared on there fit the criteria of your current diet.
As far as stevia amounts go, 1 T of stevia is equal to about 1 cup of sugar. Go from that ratio to move up or down on the measurement scale to get the right amounts.
Annie’s experience with pure stevia extract is closer to what I am used to.
Here’s an estimate chart that might work. The old NuNaturals pure stevia extract was pretty much equal with the strength of the THM stevia extract. The current NuNatural pure extract I think needs at least twice as much as the old if I am remembering correctly.
Yes, I have the pure liquid stevia extract. I’m a label-reading junkie, so there’s not a grain of maltodextrin in my house. 😉
I am not on fb, so if you can post or pm any good recipes (especially chocolate ones) that would be great!
I tried the lemon/yogurt/stevia thing, and it was delicious!! I’m having it with breakfast again tomorrow! Thanks for that!
I just don’t understand how you make up for the bulk of the ingredients when subbing stevia for other sweeteners. Like, in a brownie recipe that calls for 1/2 a cup of honey, how do you make up for that 1/2 cup of bulk with just 1/2 tsp stevia? That’s what I’m having trouble with. I could adjust favorite recipes if I just knew how to do that!