From Chocolate Covered Katie... I’m often asked how to bake with stevia, how to substitute liquid stevia for powdered, or how many packets of stevia are equal to 1 tsp of powder. The answer is that it depends greatly on the brand of stevia you are using. The chart above pertains only to NuNaturals stevia, the brand I recommend above all others, as it’s the only one I’ve found to not have a weird aftertaste. Stevia conversion chart amounts are based on my personal experience with the brand as well as some help from Ron (vice president, sales and marketing at NuNaturals). Once again, the chart pertains only to NuNaturals stevia, as different brands contain different amounts of powder. Also if one of my recipes calls for sugar, that doesn’t mean I am saying it’s okay to substitute stevia for the sugar (unless I’ve specifically listed stevia as an option in the ingredients, which is oftentimes the case). When the chart says 1 packet is equal to 1 tbsp, that is referring to sweetness. You still must take other factors into account when subbing, such as how the change will affect the bulk of a recipe or its cooking time.
How To Make Overnight Oats Ingredients 1/2 cup rolled oats or quick oats 1/2 cup milk of choice 1/2 cup yogurt or additional milk of choice sweetener of choice, as desired 1/8 tsp salt optional 1/2 cup fruit of choice optional 1-2 tbsp nut butter optional 1 tbsp chia seeds, or add-ins of choice Instructions This recipe is easily vegan if you choose nondairy yogurt and milk. Options include almond, cashew, soy, rice, oat, or coconut. Combine all ingredients in a lidded container or mason jar. Shake well, then refrigerate overnight. The next morning, simply stir and enjoy! Can You Make Overnight Steel Cut Oats? You can! The results will have a chewy texture that some might even prefer to a version made with quick or rolled oats. They’re less chewy if you make them more than a day in advance. Can You Make Vegan Overnight Oats? Yes, they make a great vegan breakfast. Feel free to try out different plant-based milks in the recipe – almond milk, coconut milk, ricemilk, cashewmilk, soy milk, or even oat milk – to find your favorites. Technically, you could use water instead of milk, but the results will be much less creamy. Most regular grocery stores will sell at least one brand of nondairy yogurt, and some even have vegan Greek yogurt. Or you can skip the yogurt and just add more milk in its place. (Another 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup?) Overnight Oatmeal Flavors Peanut Butter Overnight Oats: Add 2 tbsp peanut butter to the recipe. Throw in a handful of mini chocolate chips if desired. Chocolate Chip Cookie: Use vanilla yogurt or add 1/8 tsp pure vanilla extract. Stir in 3-4 tsp chocolate chips, optional crushed walnuts, and a dash of cinnamon. Nutella: Use your favorite brand of chocolate hazelnut spread or my recipe for Healthy Nutella as the nut butter. Add 1 tbsp regular and 1/2 tbsp dutch or additional regular cocoa powder. Top with toasted hazelnuts if you want. Blueberry Overnight Oats: Use fresh or frozen blueberries as the fruit. You can also use blueberry yogurt if you wish. Monkey Oats: Substitute mashed banana for the yogurt. Add 1-2 tbsp peanut butter and a handful of mini chocolate chips. Banana Bread: Add 1/4 tsp cinnamon and 1-2 tbsp crushed walnuts or pecans with the dry ingredients. Use sliced banana as your fruit of choice. Cinnamon Apple: Add 1/4 tsp cinnamon or apple pie spice. Use diced apple as your fruit of choice, and add 1-2 tbsp raisins and some crushed walnuts if desired. Mint Chocolate Chip: Add 1/8 to 1/4 tsp pure peppermint extract, depending on desired strength. Stir in 2-4 tsp mini chocolate chips. If you wish, you can also add a little spirulina powder for color and added nutrition. High Protein Overnight Oats: Stir 1 scoop of your favorite protein powder into the base recipe. Add extra milk if needed. Pumpkin Pie: Substitute canned pumpkin for the yogurt. Add 1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice or cinnamon and a few drops of pure vanilla extract. Carrot Cake: Add 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 2-3 tbsp shredded carrot, and optional 1 tbsp almond or coconut butter. You can also stir in a handful of raisins, shredded coconut, or chopped walnuts. Piña Colada: Use coconut yogurt and coconut milk. Add a few drops pure vanilla extract, and use diced pineapple as your fruit of choice (or skip the pineapple for plain coconut oatmeal). Creamy Coffee: Add 1 tsp instant coffee to the recipe. For an even creamier result, substitute nondairy creamer for half the milk of choice. You can also add 1/8 tsp pure vanilla extract if desired. Strawberry Shortcake: Use strawberry yogurt, and replace the milk of choice with either canned coconut milk or nondairy creamer. Use strawberries as your fruit of choice, and stir in some strawberry jam at the end if desired. The same idea can be applied to raspberries, blackberries, peaches, or cherries. Chocolate Overnight Oats Ingredients 1/2 cup rolled oats 1 1/2 tbsp cocoa powder 2 tsp chia seeds, optional 1/8 tsp salt 1/2 cup plain yogurt, such as coconutmilk yogurt 1 tbsp nut butter or melted coconut oil, optional for richer flavor 1/2 cup milk of choice 2-4 tsp chocolate chips or mini chocolate chips sweetener of choice, to taste Instructions Stir together the first three ingredients (and chia, if using) in a mason jar or lidded container. Top with the remaining ingredients, then seal the lid tightly. Shake to evenly combine all ingredients. Transfer to the fridge, and let sit overnight. The next day, simply take off the lid and breakfast is ready! (If you’d prefer, you can also heat it up at this time.) Sweeten as desired, either before or after letting it sit.
At Lazy Acres Market, 8 oz. of Kite Hill Original Almond Milk Cream Cheese Spread was $7.99. But there was another cream cheese made out of cashews that was only $5.99—Miyoko’s Cultured Vegan Plainly Classic Cream Cheese. So, I opted to give it a try instead. 12 oz. of Swerve was $8.99, but Lakanto Monkfruit Sweetener with Erythriitol was only $5.29 for 8.29 oz. (with a one-to-one correspondence with granulated sugar). That comes out to 75¢ per ounce compared to 64¢ per ounce, so Lakanto was the better deal by price. However, a box of Truvia containing 40 packets of stevia was just $4.99. But, I opted to purchase Stevia in the Raw, which was just $4.79 for 50 packets. This was a mistake however because when I looked at the ingredients in the store, my brain didn’t really process the fact that the main ingredient was dextrose, which I am not going to consume. I will therefore need to call the store to find out what their exchange policy is. Otherwise, this purchase will have just been a waste of money.
It is always important to have fitness goals, which will not only help in keeping fit but also will train your brain to constantly achieve more in terms of overall goals too.
Lazy Acres will not resume refunding purchases until after this Coronavirus pandemic thing is over, so while I was in the neighborhood, I walked over to Target today to see what kind of artificial sweeteners they might have. There, a box of Truvia containing 40 packets of stevia (i.e., erythritol, stevia leaf extract, natural flavors) was just $2.99 instead of the $4.99 Lazy Arcres price. However, Target also had their own in-house brand (Market Pantry) with 80 packets (i.e., erythritol, stevia leaf extract, natural flavors) for just $3.39, so that's what I purchased. (One packet equals two teaspoons of sugar.) I plan to make one last attempt at cooking up a batch of microwave cookies tomorrow so I can ice them with a variation of the recipes from Posts #79 and/or #80 to find out what the sweetener tastes like.
Have you considered weaning yourself off of sweeteners altogether? After a couple of weeks or so, you won't have a hankering for everything to be sweetened. You'll actually better appreciate the flavor of the underlying.
I used to drink HOT TEA with sugar. actually 2 teaspoons in a 16oz cup. Looking back now My teeth chatter at the thought of all that sugar. All I did was cut back every two weeks, 2 to 1 3/4 then to 1.5 T a cup than 1.25 and so on and so on. Now never ever use sugar. ONCE in a blue moon may put a teaspoon of honey in it in winter if throat is raspy.
Yes, I've already done this. And there might come a day when I leave the taste of something sweet behind forever. However, I'm not there yet, and I've learned not to behave in ways that give me a feeling of being deprived, or else I end up binging, so this is what I'm choosing to do for the time being.
Yeah, I have completely cut out liquids with sugar as well. I don't even drink 100% fruit juice anymore. If I want the vitamins, I'll just eat the actual fruit itself.
ACCEPTABLE MICROWAVE COOKIE RECIPE: ⅜ cup whole wheat flour 2 Medjool dates (pitted) 1 egg ⅛ tsp vanilla extract ¼ tsp unsweetened cacao 4 "shakes" of Ceylon cinnamon 2 tsp chopped nuts 2 boxes (1⅓ oz. each) of raisins ⅛ cup flaked unsweetened coconut ¼ cup old fashioned 100% whole grain oats Microwave for one minute. Then flip them over and microwave another minute. Makes about seven medium-sized cookies. (The consistency of these "cookies" one hour out of the oven is closer to that of a soft, chewy granola bar rather than that of a genuine “galleta.”)