 |
| chefintrainingwallpaper.blogspot.com |
Those who subscribe here and know me well know that I have said that I would not become a recipe blog. There are lots of people, some of them friends who are excellent cooks and I think the recipes should be left to them. This said, a lot of the things we discuss here, are, shall I say, "off-putting". A lot of the news lately is discouraging, and this means that you at home, and I should find ways of diverting ourselves on occasion, and considering even just for a moment, more pleasant subjects.
As many of you know, one of my adult children has been a juvenile diabetic since age nine, and so we work hard to have at least some sugarless food here for her visits. In addition, I have found that well made sugarless food can be quite pleasant for me as well. Sugared foods can cause your own beta cells of your pancreas to unleash insulin, driving appetite, and leaving you seeking the same amount of sugar the following day. I just keep refined sugars to a minimum because I feel better, when I do.
Yesterday, I modified a cake mix recipe in order to make some sugar free mini cupcakes. The addition of the chocolate chips to the top, in lieu of icing, does make them very slightly sugared, but they are still very low sugar.
The reason this is important is that store bought sugar free baked goods are extremely expensive. Making your own and freezing them not only saves you money but it makes it more likely that you will eat properly, treat yourself when appropriate, and then be in the best weight and condition for hiking and the world's emergencies
 | ||
| These can also be iced, but I would not glop too much icing, even if sugar free type. | (Photo: somemoreplease.wordpress.com) |
Low Sugar Cupcakes/Mini muffins
Required:
Box Pillsbury Moist
Supreme Sugar Free Premium Cake Mix (Either Devil's Food or White
Cake)
(Sweetened with
Splenda)
¼ cup oil
2 small eggs
cup of water
Hershey's semi sweet
chocolate chips (I used ones that are 70 calories a tablespoon)
Mini cupcake cases
(which I placed in mini cupcake tins)
Yields: About 43 mini
cupcakes
- You will need to divide the cake mix in half. I did this using two bowls and a quarter cup measure, dividing a quarter cup at a time in one bowl and then in another and so on. Save one half of the mix in a freezer bag for next time, and mark it, as such.
- Place your cupcake cases in your tin.
- Then take your powdered mix into a bowl, add one quarter cup oil, then 2 small eggs. Then add first a half a cup of water and then an eighth of a cup of water. Mix on a medium speed for two minutes. It will become creamy.
- Now, heat your oven.
- Then fill each cupcake case with the batter, to about one half full using a small cereal spoon.
- Then, place three chocolate chips in each cupcake pushing them into the batter slightly. This is time consuming on numerous small cupcakes and this is why I had you set your oven later than we would normally.
- Place them into the oven for about nine or ten minutes. Check them often at the end of baking as they will over bake easily.
Made as directed here,
each cupcake will be about thirty calories by itself and the three
chocolate chips have added an additional seven calories.
A serving would be two
cupcakes.
Each serving of two
cupcakes 74 calories very little sugar, sodium and saturated
fat in this sized serving.
I recommend that you
make these periodically and freeze and label them as reduced sugar
and with calorie counts. This way, you will have them available when
you want one. It is possible to skip the mini cupcake cases if
you have the mini tins and spray them with Baker's Secret or other
low calorie spray. I think it's a bit neater to use the mini cupcake
cases which are available at Wal-Mart.
Don't forget to make
the remaining half a mix as mini cupcakes to freeze later. You may
also ice these with a moderate amount of Pillsbury's frosting, and
freeze them for later use. Don't forget to revise the calorie count
if icing them.
I keep a “Mini
Cupcake Kit” assembled which has the half mix of Pillsbury Sugar
Free cake mix, the Hershey's semi sweet chocolate chips, and mini cup
cake cases.
You can experiment with
the two different batters by Pillsbury and different types of chips.
The Hershey's chips are 70 calories per tablespoon so just be careful
to buy some that are similar in total calories.
If placed in a tin
these can be a wonderful birthday or Christmas gift to diabetics, or
those watching weight, especially if you include a card with the
calorie counts and specifics.
