Friday, November 15, 2013

MAPLE FLAVORED SYRUP AND ONE BIG FLUFFY PANCAKE

PIN: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/774124909749193/
I've been wanting to do a maple syrup recipe for quite a while now, and had one in my mind that I had tried before but it needed some tweaking.  A reader asked me if there was a maple syrup anywhere out there that didn't have sucralose or malitol in it but sweetened with erythritol and stevia.  I didn't know of any.  And most of those low carb syrups out there are way too expensive for me to want to ever have syrup with my pancakes anyway, if I did find one.  It gets pricey to eat this way sometimes!  You either pay the price or go without and eat boring food.

A boring food eater I'm not.  I like good taste.  This syrup turned out very rich and full of flavor.  It does not taste like a diet syrup.  I thought it was too thin at first but when I compared it with syrups from the store, it is the same consistency.  If you heat it, it will be thinner, if you serve it cooled, it is a bit thicker.  If you want thicker than what it is I'm thinking (though I have not tried it yet) that you could do 1/4 cup butter instead of 2 tbsp. and 2 tbsp. arrowroot instead of 1.  The arrowroot adds only a trace of carb per serving, as well as the blackstrap molasses in this recipe.  The carb count is very low per serving.  I didn't use xanthan gum because I don't really care for xanthan gum.  It takes away the flavor and sweetness.  This has all the flavor and sweetness.  Then there's the pancake...


This pancake was the cakiest pancake I've ever made! I was not going by any recipe, just started adding this and that and wow! This is one thick fluffy pancake. I realized I forgot to add any oil to the recipe when it was all done but I don't think it needed it.  Low carb flours tend to be so oily anyway.  But if you think you want it, by all means add a tsp or so of oil.  I'm trying to add more flax into my diet again.  I know some people think flax is bad and some think it's a miracle food.  I tend to go with what my body tells me.

 Digressing just a bit here, coconut oil is the big healthy oil for the day.  I gave it a good try. I really did.  I ate lots of coconut oil trying to see how it would help me.  It did not lower my blood sugar. It did not help me lose weight.  It did not give me energy.  I really gained nothing from using it except a few more pounds.  I do still use it but in moderation.  I cook with it, because I like to.  One thing I've always noticed about flax is that I get an immediate sense of energy and well-being whenever I use flaxmeal and/or flax oil.  I just do.  If you don't and you think it's bad, that's ok.  But I ALWAYS, when using it, feel wonderful and healthy.  When I'm run down, I go back to my flax! I've had nothing but health benefits from it and that immediately and noticeably.  I've seen wrong information posted on the oil being destroyed when baking with flaxseed, which according to the Flax Council of Canada, this is not true.  Here is an informative article about that: http://www.flaxcouncil.ca/english/pdf/stor.pdf  and more information: http://www.flaxcouncil.ca/english/index.jsp?p=sitemap
and many studies proving the health benefits:
https://www.webmd.com/diet/features/benefits-of-flaxseed#1

So I've begun kefir/flax oil smoothies again, and using flaxmeal in my baking again.  It was flax oil and flaxseed that lifted me out of my chronic fatigue bed and my brain fog years ago, after reading about Dr. Joanna Budwig's diet, and how she cured many of cancer and other debilitating diseases with it. Though I did not follow all of her diet I did incorporate the flax oil/cottage cheese or kefir into my diet as well as using flaxseed meal.  It's what cleared the lumps from my cystic breasts.  It's been nothing but good for me in so many ways.  No other omega 3 oil has done the same or given me the same results, and coconut oil has not either.  So to each his own! I believe we should all find what our bodies tell us works!  If all kinds of information on the internet tells me something different than my body is telling me, I listen to my body.

Ok, so I got that out of my system! Ha!  On to the recipes!

MAPLE SYRUP *Updated 6/22/2019
                 
2 tablespoons  butter
1 cup erythritol, or 1/2 cup Pyure + 1 Tbsp xylitol (or a similar sweetener equal to 1 cup sugar)
1 tablespoon  arrowroot
1/2 tsp. xanthan gum (optional, but will thicken a bit more)
1/8 tsp salt
1 teaspoon  blackstrap molasses
2 cups  water
1 teaspoon  maple flavoring

In medium pot (one that has room for this to boil up high), add butter, sweeteners, arrowroot, and blackstrap molasses.  Bring to a boil, stirring constantly.

VERY slowly add water, just a bit at a time and stir.  This will boil up fast as you add the water so it's important to add it very slowly as you stir.  When all the water is added boil stirring for about 30 seconds.

Remove from heat and add maple flavoring.  Cool completely. Store in the frig.  Stir before serving.

© Ginny's Low Carb Kitchen
                                    - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Per Serving: 31 Calories; 3g Fat (81.8% calories from fat); trace Protein; 1g Carbohydrate; trace Dietary Fiber

If using xylitol:  35 Calories; 3g Fat (69.8% calories from fat); trace Protein; 3g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber

NOTES : 8 - 1/4 cup servings approximately

ONE BIG FLUFFY PANCAKE

1/4 cup  flaxseed meal, golden -- (2 tbsp of seed ground in a coffee grinder)
1 tablespoons  Biochem Whey Protein Isolate -- or whatever brand you have.(edited from 2 tbsp. after making it again-11/23/13) (I now use Isopure whey protein Isolate which has zero carbs per serving - 6/22/2019)
1 teaspoon  psyllium seed husk powder -- (freshly ground husk is best)
1/4 teaspoon  baking powder
1/4 teaspoon  baking soda
1/8 tsp salt
1 egg
2 tablespoon  kefir -- (or yogurt or buttermilk or sour cream will do) (I now use unsweetened almond milk, vanilla flavored 6/22/2019)
2 tbsp Pyure granulated sweetener (equal to 1/4 cup sugar) (edited 6/22/2019)

In small bowl combine flaxseed meal, whey protein isolate, psyllium powder, baking powder, and baking soda.  Whisk together well.  Add egg, kefir, and sweetener. Whisk together until it is a smooth batter. If need add enough liquid to bring to consistency you prefer. The thicker the batter, the thicker the pancake.  If you wish you can add a tsp. of oil.  I made it exactly as written above and it was a very cake-like pancake.

Cook on a griddle on one side until bubbly and drying on the edges.  Flip, cook other side until done.

Copyright:
  "© Ginny's low carb kitchen"
                                    - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

1 Serving: 276 Calories; 17g Fat (55.5% calories from fat); 15g Protein; 15g Carbohydrate; 14g Dietary Fiber

NOTES : 1g net carb




12 comments:

  1. Thanks for posting this, Ginny. I am very alarmed at the constant sensationalism of health news these days. Something will become the absolute DARLING of the health world for a while and then become utterly vilified. It's just silly. I've seen it happen with soy, with flax, with olive oil, and now it's being said about almonds and other nuts. I've also heard whispers of things about coconut oil and I am certain chia is next. NOTHING is good for you if it's all you eat. And what happens when people start spouting off about how good something is, is that everyone eats it to excess. Personally, I vary all of my oils, my flours and even my fruit and veggies (and my meats). So yay for flax. I eat it... I don't eat flax every day but I consider it a part of a healthy diet, like so many other foods!

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    1. Well said Carolyn! It's silly to ignore your own body for what someone on the internet says about something. If it works for you use it! Moderation in all things! :) Thanks for sharing.

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  2. Thanks Ginny! I've been needing a syrup recipe with xylitol since that's my choice of sweetener and the bottled stuff made with xylitol is WAY to expensive! I'll be making this soon. Interesting thoughts on coconut oil... it's all I've been using with mixed results. However, I may now be paying closer attention. Got any advice for someone (me) who gets a stomach ache and bloating with everything she eats? I'm off grain, dairy, sugar, and legumes. I take probiotics and have started taking Aloe Vera and bone broth hoping to heal myself.. very frustrating.

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    1. Not sure what your issue is Anita, with the bloating, and I'm not a health expert by any means, but just to share with you what worked for me when I was having stomach issues, I made fermented cabbage juice by placing shredded cabbage in a blender until full, adding 2/3 filtered water (not distilled), or whey... faster if you use whey from kefir or yogurt... and blend until smooth. Let it sit on your counter for about 3 days covered tightly, and then drain and drink about 4 oz. of the juice before each meal. It works wonderfully to help digest your food and is very healing to the gut. Otherwise you may have to have tests done from a dr. to see what else could be causing the bloating issue. I'm glad the syrup recipe is one that will be a help to you! :) Thanks for stopping by!

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  3. I get migraines - even from a little bit of flax oil, so it's out for me. Everyone is different and has to decide for themselves what is good and what isn't. I am wary of coconut oil thanks to Dr. Su's warnings. :P I agree with Carolyn and you...everything in moderation, if one is not sure. Your syrup sounds interesting, Ginny.

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    1. Thanks Jennifer! It's good that you know your own body and what you are sensitive to! That's what matters. It would be silly for you to keep using something because someone else said it is good for you even while you know you are getting migraines from it! Yes I read Dr. Su's warnings. Interesting.

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  4. Personally, I feel LOADS better when I incorporate flax into my diet. I'm sooo trying this recipe. I'm a pancake eating fool!

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    1. LOL! Glad this hits the spot for you! Thanks!

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  5. Please call your recipe what it really is. Maple flavored syrup. NOT maple syrup. It is illegal to label a product as maple syrup when it contains ingredients other than pure maple. Labeling it as such is a major insult to people of the maple industry who work extremely hard to produce the real thing. It takes 40 gallons of maple sap to make one gallon of maple syrup! Thank you for understanding.

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    1. I'm sorry. No insult intended. Edited to say "Maple flavored". I would never have expected anyone would think a syrup that is sugar free to be true Maple syrup. Most people know that isn't possible, I would assume. If I could consume the real thing without it affecting my blood sugar, I surely would. Glad for all the hard work you Maple syrup producers do to put out the real thing for those who are privileged to enjoy it.

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  6. Did I miss something. After mixing the pancake, it doesn't actually say what to do with it. Do you put it on a griddle like regular pancakes or do you bake it?

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    Replies
    1. Sorry Sandi, yes, just cook on a griddle like you do any pancakes.

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