mmmmmm....Candy Shop!!!

I found this really cool website with gum, mints, candy, chocolate etc made with xylitol instead of sugar.  Obviously it's a little more expensive then normal candy.  But I'm serious about making the change of limiting sugar big time in my house.  My boys are very keen on treats and being rewarded that way, so I'm going to buy some gum and lollipops from this website so I can have those on hand as a bridge for the transition of much healthier eating for my kids.  Anyways I thought you would like it, check it out.

https://www.drjohns.com/candystore/c-1-simplyxylitol-candies-drink-mixes-chocolates-sweetener-more.aspx?pagenum=2

http://diabeticfriendly.com/xylitol-candy-sugarless-sugarfree.html

Listen up Sisters!

I was doing some research on the bad effects of sugar (especially processed sugar) and healthy subsitutes. I have used agave and stevia as the major ones but I had never heard of xylitol..... I'll copy and paste the section of the article that talks about it.  Give it a read! 

The best one to use is Stevia (Stevia rebaudiana) from the Asteraceae family, which was rediscovered by Dr. M. S. Bertoni in 1888. Stevia is a herb that has been used as a sweetener in South America for hundreds of years. It is calorie-free, which means it has no effect on our bodies' production of insulin. Stevia, in its powdered concentrate, is 300 times sweeter than sugar, so only tiny amounts are needed for sweetening. Stevia is widely used all over the world. In Japan, for example, it claims 41% of the sweetener market, including sugar, and was used in Japanese Diet Coke until the company replaced it with aspartame (to "standardize" worldwide).

There have not been any reports of toxicity with stevia, which is consumed by millions of people daily. However, in the US, the FDA, and in Australia, the FSANZ, do not allow stevia to be used as a food additive. But in China, Japan, Taiwan and Korea, stevia is fully approved and has proven to be safe, with no toxicity reported from its use to date. In Australia stevia is sold as a supplement and it is readily available from various distributors. A wonderful article that puts the whole sugar industry in perspective is published by the Herb Research Foundation: Stevia Leaf - Too Good To Be Legal? by Rob McCaleb (http://www.dorway.com/stevia2.html) .

The only thing that deters people using stevia is that it can taste a little bitter in drinks and in some recipes, but this can be overcome by using another wonderful sweetener, called xylitol, in combination with stevia for ideal sugar replacement.

Xylitol is a natural substance found in fibrous vegetables and fruit, as well as in corn cobs and various hardwood trees, like birch. It is a natural, intermediate product that regularly occurs in the glucose metabolism of humans and animals, as well as in the metabolism of several plants.

Xylitol is so natural that our bodies produce up to 15 grams of it daily during normal metabolism. Xylitol has been known to organic chemistry since the 1890's. Studies on both humans and rodents have shown that xylitol, when administered orally, is well tolerated and safe to levels of at least 40g per day (which equates to some 10-12 teaspoons of sugar) with no subjective or objective adverse findings. Importantly, much less insulin is released into the blood during xylitol administration than during glucose administration. This is obviously a very good thing for insulin-sensitive individuals or for anyone concerned with weight loss, as insulin (apart from driving the glucose into the cells) also tells the body to store even slight excess carbohydrates as fat, rather than to use them as energy.

Relatively high quantities of xylitol are found in plums, raspberries and cauliflower (0.3 to 0.9 g per 100 g dry matter; the quantities vary depending on plant varieties). Even though xylitol is derived from fruits and vegetables, it is not the same as fructose. Xylitol is a five-carbon sugar, which means that it is anti-microbial (prevents the growth of bacteria), whereas all other forms of sugar are six-carbon sugars, which cause bacterial and fungi overgrowth.

Xylitol looks, feels and tastes exactly like sugar - though that is where the similarity ends! While sugar wreaks havoc on the body, xylitol heals and repairs. It also builds immunity.

There are many benefits of using xylitol as a sugar substitute:

* Glycemic index of 7 (sucrose is 60)

* Minimal effect on blood sugar and insulin levels

* Inhibits yeast, including Candida Albicans (It actually helps fight candida)

* Inhibits plaque and dental cavities by 80% (Dentists use it and recommend xylitol toothpaste)

* Retards demineralization, and promotes re-mineralization, of tooth enamel

Based on scientific and public health evaluations, xylitol has been approved in virtually all industrialized countries to be used in oral hygiene products and in other products to promote oral health.

In its crystalline form, it can replace sugar in cooking, baking, and as a sweetener for beverages. Xylitol is used in chewing gum, mints and hygiene products, such as nasal and mouth washes, because it inhibits bacteria. Unlike many artificial sweeteners, it leaves no unpleasant aftertaste.
Xylitol is formally approved in over 50 countries worldwide. Xylitol has no known toxic levels (Except that quantities over 90 gm/day may have a laxative effect).

The amount tolerated varies with individual susceptibility and body weight. Most adults can tolerate at least 40 gm/day. The only problem with xylitol is that it costs more than sugar, however, if we combine it with stevia in the ratio of 12:1 (12 parts of xylitol to 1 part of stevia), it becomes more cost effective and is a healthy way to sweeten our taste buds and satisfy our brain! Imagine eating cakes and chocolates that not only taste good but are also good for our teeth? You can literally have your cake and enjoy it without the guilt or empty detrimental sugar calories!

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/022692_sugar_xylitol_stevia.html#ixzz27nJFAHQj

I think I"ll give it a try and let you know where you can find it and how it worked for me :)

Healthy Gluten Free Pancakes

(picture to come later)

-1 cup oat flower (I used my vitamix to blend the oats into flour)

-1/2 cup spelt flour

-1/4 cup raw shredded coconut

-1/4 cup flax seed

-1 cup finely shredded zucchini (I peel the zucchini before so my kids don't see the green flecks in     them)

-1/4 cup agave or stevia

-1/2 teaspoon salt

-1 teaspoon vanilla

-1 tablespoon olive oil

-1 egg

-1 to 2 cups of almond milk depending on how thin or thick you like your pancakes ( you can use normal milk, or soy milk etc)

There are a few ways you can do this, I have a vita mix, here is the link, (https://secure.vitamix.com/5200-Getting-Started.aspx) and I am in love with it. I use it multiple times a day and have grown to depend on it. Anyways, how I do it with my vitamix is to combine the oats, spelt flour, coconut, and flax seed in and blend all of them together until it makes a fine powder (about 20 seconds) Then add everything else and pulverize it into a beautiful creamy liquid.  Pour it onto a hot pan and let cook on each side how you would normally cook pancakes.  

If you don't have a vitamix or a very strong blender, don't be dismayed, there are other ways to do this. You do need some type of small blender however to blend up the oats and flax seed into a powder. So do this, then combine everything else in a large bowl, and mix by hand or with hand mixer) 

****Most importantly**** to top off this recipe I use PURE maple syrup (I get mine from Costco) instead of the other stuff they call syrup that has been jammed with as much sugar as legally possible (although it shouldn't be legal). 

Extra side story.......

I have to say I was so proud when the other day my boys grandpa made "normal" Bisquick pancakes for them, and they were so used to eating my pancakes that they wouldn't eat the Bisquick ones because they didn't liked them! I was so proud in that moment :) and felt like all my hard work of changing the way we eat started to pay off.

Welcome Welcome!

Alright Marcie and Shelley. It is done. I gave myself a pat on the back. We can certainly spice it up later on. Right now, I am just figuring things out again, as far as how to run a blog goes. But hooray! If you have any ideas let me know, until than I will be working, as I can, on making it look decent. Love you all!