Tag: THM:S

Blackberry Yogurt Snack Cake {THM:S}

I’ve brought you 2 frosting recipes…now I present to you……CAKE!

This recipe is my little sisters ABSOLUTE FAVORITE cake. If you were to ask her if she could choose just ONE dessert to have for the rest of her life her response would be this cake!

I came across the recipe for this in a Bon Appetit magazine several years ago. I would make it several times a summer with fresh picked, sun-ripened wild blackberries. So delicious. So refreshing and terribly hard to beat in the dog days of summer. (Which coincidentally, is when my little sisters birthday is!) So yes, this is the birthday cake of her choice EVERY year!

This is the first cake recipe I trimmified, just a few months after I started THM. I shared the recipe and everything on the groups…a few months later, after I had learned more about trimmifying recipes, I was ABSOLUTELY horrified to discover that I had used the SAME AMOUNT of gentle sweet as the sugar the recipe called for! I immediately went and found the posts where I’d shared the recipe and PROMPTLY fixed it!! I sure hope nobody made that recipe and I also have no idea how I didn’t think it was horrifyingly sweet!

The faint hint of citrus from the orange zest & the tangy sweetness from the yogurt and blackberries makes this a PERFECT accompaniment to your afternoon coffee. (Or tea, I love both but tend to drink tea in the afternoon and keep my coffee for the morning!) What’s your preference? Any favorite way to have your afternoon tea/coffee?

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Print Recipe

Blackberry Yogurt Snack Cake

Course: Dessert, Snack
Keyword: dessert
Servings: 18 pieces

Ingredients

  • 10 oz. fresh blackberries (2½ cups)
  • ⅓ cup erythritol (This is essential. It makes for a crispy, crunchy fruit top!)
  • 1 ¼ cups THM Baking Blend
  • ½ cup oat fiber
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ¾ teaspoon salt
  • ¾ cup butter, melted
  • ¾ cup Gentle Sweet (or equivalent of other approved on plan sweetener)
  • 3 eggs
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 12 drops orange essential oil (or 1 ½ teaspoons orange extract) see note below
  • 1½ teaspoons fresh orange zest (use the zest from 1 large orange. Peel orange and use for a nice E snack!)
  • 1 ⅓ cups nonfat plain greek yogurt

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350° Grease a 13×9 rectangular pan or a 10 inch round cake pan. Line with parchment paper, grease parchment paper and dust pan with oat fiber.
  • Arrange berries in single layer in bottom of pan. Sprinkle evenly with erythritol.
  • Whisk baking blend, oat fiber, baking powder, baking soda, & salt. Set aside.
  • Using a hand mixer on high, beat melted butter, gentle sweet, vanilla extract, and orange essential oil together until lightened in color, about 3 minutes.
  • Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition, scraping down as necessary.
  • Add half of dry ingredients and mix well. Add yogurt and orange zest. Mix well. Add remaining dry ingredients and mix together on high speed for 1 minute, scraping bowl down as necessary.
  • Spread batter evenly over prepared berries in pan, making sure to smooth out top.
  • Bake for 40-45 minutes or until top is golden brown and toothpick inserted in center comes out clean or with a few crumbs attached.
  • Place cutting board or desired serving dish immediately over top of cake and flip over. Immediately remove parchment paper, so bottom of cake doesn’t get soggy.
  • Let cool, and then serve!

Notes

Note: I have researched and am comfortable with using essential oils in my baking and cooking. Please do your own research and do what you’re comfortable with.
For extra flair you may lightly sprinkle with an on plan powdered sweetener or serve with lightly sweetened whipped cream.

Caramel Cashew Swiss Meringue Buttercream {THM:S}

This Swiss Buttercream Frosting is the perfect combo of sweet, salty, caramely-ness!

By this point you all are probably wondering if I even cook, and probably imagine I spend all day every day baking and eating said baked goods. No, I promise I do love to cook just as much (or even more) as I love baking, but baking is definitely my first love. After all, I got started in the kitchen when I was about 4, baking biscuits!

I do intend to post savory recipes at some point, but I have more baking/sweets recipes than savory ready to go, so you’ll have to suffer through sweets recipes for a bit yet.

Savory recipes are much harder for me to write down, since I’m a add-a-pinch of-this, add-a-dash-of that, add-a-doonk-of-this, add-a-splash-of-the-other-thing type of cook, so it takes me a bit longer to get a savory recipe written out.

I’m very much looking forward to sharing those savory meals with you…but for now….here’s another frosting recipe, which is my personal favorite! I do have a few more flavor variations on the way, so stay tuned!

I first created this recipe a little over a year ago for one of my sisters birthday, whose taste buds run along same lines as mine, so it was a TREAT to create this one. (Pardon the picture size…when I made this a year ago, I didn’t have my camera with, so these are phone pictures. I hope to update them soon, but I haven’t had a chance to yet!)

It also the cake I chose for my first Trimmiversary, December 2018.

I created a layer cake with it by doing this:

I made the batter for the Magic Salted Caramel Cupcakes (Trim Healthy Table, page 379), but instead of turning it into cupcakes, I poured it into 3 greased, parchment lined, and floured (I used Oat Fiber) 6 inch cake pans. I then baked them for about 25 minutes. Let cool slightly and then run thin knife around edge of pan to make sure cake is completely separated from pan, and turn out onto a parchment covered cooling rack. Let cool completely. (I made this late in the evening so I didn’t have time to finish it, so once it cooled to room temperature, I stuck the layers in zip-lock bags and put them in the freezer until I was ready for them.

The drizzle and topping is the caramel sauce for the cupcakes.

Print Recipe

Caramel Cashew Swiss Meringue Buttercream

Ingredients

  • ⅔ cup swerve brown sugar (or other on plan brown sugar like this one from Gwen's-Nest.) See notes for measuring Swerve brown sugar.
  • 3 large egg whites
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup butter, softened and cut into 1-tablespoon pieces
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ¾ t. caramel extract (Feel free to swap out for another flavoring!)
  • 1 cup cashew butter (You may use any nut butter in this. Peanut butter is DELICIOUS!)

Instructions

  • Combine sweetener, egg whites, and salt in bowl of stand mixer; place bowl over pan of simmering water. Whisking gently but constantly, heat mixture until slightly thickened, foamy, and registers 150 degrees on instant-read thermometer, 2 to 3 minutes.
  • Place bowl in stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment. Beat mixture on medium speed until consistency of shaving cream and slightly cooled, 1 to 2 minutes.
  • Add butter, 1 piece at a time, until smooth and creamy. (Frosting may look curdled after half of butter has been added; it will smooth with additional butter.) Once all butter is added, add vanilla and cashew butter; mix until combined. Increase speed to medium-high and beat until light, fluffy, and thoroughly combined, about 30 seconds, scraping beater and sides of bowl with rubber spatula as necessary.
  • If final frosting seems too thick, warm mixer bowl briefly over pan of simmering water. Place bowl back on mixer and beat on medium-high speed until creamy.

Notes

If you don’t have Swerve brown sugar, just use the equivalent of sweetener of your choice, and add a small amount (1/4-1/2 t. of blackstrap molasses).
When measuring the brown sugar, crumble it into your measuring cup and then lightly level it off. If you pack it in it will be VERY sweet!
This frosting can be made up to 24 hours in advance and refrigerated in an airtight container. When ready to frost, place frosting in a microwave-safe container and warm briefly on high power until just slightly softened, 5 to 10 seconds. Once warmed, stir until creamy.

Making THM my own, part 2 {THM:FP w/S options}

What better way to stay warm & cozy while the snow keeps falling than with a cup of this Fuel Pull Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate!

No recipe this time, just another edition of my tweaks to approved THM recipes! (Check out my first edition here!)

These are both Fuel Pulls, which star as way to either round off your meal or to have as a light snack.

#1 Instant Cookie Dough Protein Bars (FP), Trim Healthy Table, page 428 (follow recipe directions).

I multiply the recipe by 8. I figure if I already have the ingredients out, I may as well make it worth my while!

Here’s what I do to tweak it:

1. Replace the pressed peanut flour with an equal amount of powdered almond butter. (Find it here or at your local grocery/health food store.)

2. Replace the gentle sweet with an equal amount of Swerve confectioners style sweetener. This will make the bars smooth, with no graininess from the gentle sweet.

3. Use the amount of water called for in the recipe, replacing 2 teaspoons of it with 3/4 teaspoon caramel flavoring, 3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract, and 1/2 teaspoon butter flavoring.

4. Replace 1/2 of the chocolate chips with an equal amount of finely chopped nuts of your choice.

5. If making the 8x recipe, increase the salt to 1/4 teaspoon TOTAL.

For dividing these up, I have used a silicone bar pan like this or else I press it evenly into a 8 or 9 inch square pan lined with parchment paper baking or plastic wrap. Pop it into the fridge to chill, then remove from pan and cut it into 8 pieces.

If you want to turn these into a S, simply increase the butter by 1/2, or double the chocolate chips or nuts!

#2 THM Chocolate Whey Protein (find it here, check at your local health food store, or use another on plan chocolate whey protein!)

I debated even sharing this, as it is SO extremely simple, it’s not even a recipe!

I’m not even sure if people need this, but considering this is one my favorite ways to get a little extra protein and my favorite bedtime snack, here goes!

Salted Caramel Protein Hot Chocolate -16 oz.

Fill your 16 oz. mug with 1/2 water and 1/2 cashew milk (or other nondairy milk of your choice).

Pour all but about 1/3 cup of it into small pan and heat to just below boiling. (It’s important it’s not boiling. Read why below!)

Add 1 scoop (1/4 cup) chocolate whey protein powder, 1/2 teaspoon caramel flavoring, & a pinch of salt to milk in mug and blend well until smooth, using a battery operated whisk (or pour cold milk into blender and add whey protein.. blend on low until smooth).

It’s very important to dissolve the whey protein powder in COLD liquid. If you add straight hot liquid to the whey, it’ll curdle & who wants to eat curds and whey unless you’re Little Miss Muffet?!?

Add hot milk to cold milk mixture and blend just until completely mixed and all protein powder is dissolved.

Enjoy!

If you’re wanting to turn the hot chocolate into an S instead of a FP, there are a few options:

1. Add a few Tablespoons of 1/2 & 1/2 to your milk/water mixture.

2. Top finished hot chocolate generously with homemade whipped cream.

3. Add a Tablespoon of butter, coconut oil, or ghee when blending in the last step. If you do this option, it’ll fit in the Deep S category which concentrates only on the most pure and healthiest fats.

Feel free to switch out the caramel flavor for other flavors/extracts. I haven’t tried many, but I’d imagine any berry flavorings would be delicious, as would be mint! Leave out the salt if you’re switching out for other flavors.

Aunt Mary Jo’s Sour Cream Cookies {THM:S}

The Sour Cream Cookie recipe this is based off of, is probably the first cookie I REALLY remember helping to make. My favorite part was running my finger under the cooling rack and picking up all the glaze that had landed on the newspaper underneath it. Ahhh……I probably didn’t even NEED to eat a cookie by the time I was done doing that! At least now I can do that without getting a major blood sugar spike-and-crash. 🙂

This recipe was inspired by a good old classic family favorite recipe, given to my mom by one of my aunts. The original was misplaced, and we made a few variations through the years, never finding the original, stained, & much-loved index card of the original recipe. I did finally come across one that was just as good as hers, so I’ve stuck with that one…until now!

I’ve trimmified this favorite family recipe and named it in honor of my aunt, because without her, I wouldn’t have this recipe to share with you all!

It really is a family favorite, because once upon a time several years ago, I made a triple batch, I believe of these cookie (white flour & sugar filled ones!) which yielded about 12 dozen LARGE cookies….they were GONE within 2 days.

Print Recipe

Aunt Mary Jo’s Sour Cream Cookies

Course: Dessert
Keyword: cookies, family favorite
Servings: 60 cookies

Ingredients

DRY INGREDIENTS

  • 1 ½ cups THM baking blend
  • ½ cup Oat Fiber (the THM brand is the best one I've used.)
  • 1½ teaspoons baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 12 grates whole nutmeg (grated using a microplane zester) or 1/2 t. ground nutmeg

WET INGREDIENTS & SWEETENER

  • 1 cup butter, melted
  • 1 cup Gentle Sweet (or other approved on-plan sweetener)
  • 2 whole eggs
  • 2 egg yolks
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 cup sour cream or greek yogurt

GLAZE, Optional

  • 1 ⅔ cups Swerve confectioners style sugar (or other approved on plan sweetener, powdered in blender or coffee grinder)
  • ½ cup water
  • ¾ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 pinch salt

CINNAMON "SUGAR", Optional

  • 2 Tablespoons ground cinnamon
  • ⅔ cup Gentle Sweet (or other approved, on plan sweetener)

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350°.
  • Line cookie sheet with parchment paper or grease well using butter or grease of your choice.
  • Whisk together dry ingredients and set aside.
  • Melt butter. Add remaining ingredients.
  • Using stand mixer fitted with paddle, beat mixture on medium speed for 1 minute.
    Add dry ingredients and mix for 1 minute, scraping bowl down as needed.
  • Using a #30 cookie scoop (or a 1 Tablespoon measuring spoon), scoop dough onto parchment lined sheet pans, 15 to a sheet.
  • If using cinnamon "sugar", sprinkle over tops of cookies before baking. If using glaze, proceed to the next step.
  • Bake for 11 minutes, rotating pans halfway through baking time.
  • Remove from sheet pan to cooling rack and let cool.

If using Glaze option:

  • Whisk together glaze ingredients until smooth.
  • Once cookies are completely cool, dip top of cookies in glaze, and place back on cooling rack (with parchment paper or newspaper placed under rack to catch the drip of glaze), until glaze is dried.
  • Once dry, place in container and store covered.

If using Cinnamon "Sugar" option:

  • Whisk together ground cinnamon & gentle sweet. Sprinkle over tops of cookies BEFORE baking.

Notes

You may add food coloring to your glaze if you’re wanting a colored glaze. I use India Tree food coloring, it had no artificial coloring in it. I find it at my local health food store.
A hand mixer works well for this recipe too, just use it on high speed (5 on mine), for both mixing steps.
 

Raspberry Cheesecake {THM:S}

I somehow, over the last 10 years, have become the unoffical “offical” dessert maker in my family. Actually, not just family…Church. Work. Friends. And pretty much everything/everybody else!! The question always is: “SO what dessert are you making/did you bring?”  In all honesty, I don’t mind. I love making desserts for the simple joy of seeing people enjoy it!

And yes, my job consists of making desserts. All day. Every day! I’m guesstimating I’ve made somewhere in the neighborhood of 3000 cheesecakes in my life, so cheesecake kind of is my specialty. (Amongst other things such as cream pie, cupcakes,etc.!)

So, when I asked my mom what dessert she wanted for her birthday and “Cheesecake!” was her response, I inwardly thought ” Oh. man! I was hoping for a challenge!” But I”ll do anything to make my momma happy! 🙂

So now, I bring to you a tried and true recipe which I have Trimmified. It’s
perfectly creamy, sweet, & fruity. And 100% not complicated! 🙂

As far as crust options go..I’ve done it 2 ways.

Classic Graham Cracker Style: For this one, mix up a 1/2 batch of this graham cracker crumb recipe from THM Coach Becky at A Better Life. Just mix up a 1/2 batch of the recipe and press it FIRMLY into your pan and bake for 10 minutes at 350°. Cool completely before filling.

Shortbread-ish style: Use the crust recipe from my Lemon Cheesecake Crumb Bars, once again mixing up a 1/2 batch and pressing it FIRMLY into the bottom and partway up the sides of your cheesecake pan and bake for 8 minutes 350°.

Print Recipe

Raspberry Cheesecake

Course: Dessert
Keyword: birthday dessert, cheesecake, Low carb, raspberry, sugar free, THM-S
Servings: 10

Ingredients

Cheesecake

  • 3 8 oz. pkgs. neufchâtel or cream cheese, softened
  • ½ cup gentle sweet,
  • 2 doonks stevia (1/16 teaspoon)
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup nonfat plain greek yogurt or sour cream
  • 2 tsp. vanilla
  • 3 eggs

Raspberry Topping

  • 1 10 oz package frozen raspberries
  • 1/8 tsp. salt
  • 1 T. lemon juice
  • 3 T. gentle sweet,
  • 1/8 tsp. glucomannan

WHIPPED CREAM TOPPING, optional

  • 2 oz. neufchâtel or cream cheese, softened
  • 3 Tablespoons swerve confectioners style sweetener, or equivalent of other on plan powdered sweetener
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 cup heavy whipping cream

Instructions

CRUST

  • Preheat oven to 350° Bake desired crust in a 8 or 9 in cheesecake or springform pan for 8 minutes.
    Remove from oven and let cool while mixing batter

CHEESECAKE

  • Blend neufchâtel cheese and gentle sweet together until smooth, using either a food processor or a stand mixer on low speed. Scrape down sides of bowl VERY well to ensure there are no lumps of neufchâtel cheese.
  • Add sour cream and vanilla. Mix until combined. Scrape down bowl again.
  • Add eggs slowly, mixing just until completely mixed in.
  • Scrape into prepared crust.

Place in oven and turn down to 250°. (Yes, 250° degrees is correct!)

  • Bake 1 hour or until thermometer inserted into center reads 160 degrees. If you don’t have a thermometer, if a quarter size in the center is still jiggly, it’s done.
  • Let cool for an hour on the counter and then refrigerate until cold, at least 3 hours or overnight.

RASPBERRY TOPPING

  • Combine raspberries, salt, gentle sweet, & lemon juice in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook until saucy and then bring to a boil.
  • Whisk in glucomannan and bring back to a boil, whisking constantly. Once it starts to thicken, remove from heat and refrigerate until needed.

WHIPPED CREAM TOPPING

  • Using either a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with a whisk, beat neufchâtel cheese, vanilla extract & sweetener together until smooth and completely lump free, scraping down bowl as needed.
  • Add heavy cream slowly, mixing constantly. Scrape down bowl and then whip on medium speed until medium peaks form.

ASSEMBLY

  • Remove cheesecake from pan. Spread raspberry filling evenly on top. If you're using the whipped cream topping, leave a 1/2 -1 inch border. It not, just spread topping to the edges. Pipe a border of whipped cream around edges. Top with fresh raspberries if desired.
  • Keep refrigerated.

Notes

To remove cheesecake from pan: Warm pan up slightly by dipping in a bowl of hot water for about 20 seconds. Run thin knife between the cheesecake and the pan to loosen. 
You may also warm it up by placing on a LOW flame for 30 seconds or a warm hot plate. 
The VERY BEST stevia powder I’ve found is the THM brand. It’s the first stevia powder that I have ever liked. Find it in their online store here or check at your local health food store. (Sadly mine doesn’t carry it, so I do have to buy it online!)

Lemon Cheesecake Crumb Bars {THM:S}

Perfectly lemony cheesecake bars to brighten up your gloomy winter doldrums!

With winter upon us here in the North-woods of Wisconsin, we sometimes need some cheering up and a boost of Vitamin C! What better way than to combine the answer to both needs in a deliciously lemony cheesecake bar!?

One day I had a TON of egg yolks I needed to use PRONTO, so I made lemon curd, which I then stuck in the freezer until I could think of ways to use it besides Lemon Meringue Pie.

Enter these bars…years ago at the bakery where I work we had a cheesecake crumb bar. It wasn’t extremely popular so it was discontinued. I’d completely forgotten about those bars until I was discussing with a coworker about items that we had made in the past and this memory floating to the front of my mind.

As soon as possible I got into my kitchen and made these. It’s one of the few recipes I’ve created that was perfect from the first shot….now if only I could get that to happen more often! 🙂

For zesting lemons, I highly recommend this zester. I use it pretty much on a daily basis between work and home. In fact, I own 2 or 3 of them myself! You need to garnish your pie, whipped cream topped hot cocoa, with beautiful chocolate shavings, etc? You need to pile the Parmesan cheese on your pizza? Your rice pudding needs a bit of fresh nutmeg? You need fresh lemon zest for this recipe? Then this is the right tool for you!! 🙂

Print Recipe

Lemon Cheesecake Crumb Bars

Course: Dessert
Keyword: bars, cheesecake, dessert, lemon, Low carb, sugar free
Servings: 18

Ingredients

Crust & Crumb Topping

  • 1 ½ cups THM Baking Blend
  • ¾ cup oat fiber
  • 1 cup THM Gentle Sweet or desired alternative sweetener of your choice
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 fresh lemon, zested
  • 1 cup butter, melted

Filling

  • 1 – 8 oz. package Neufchâtel cheese, softened
  • 2 cups lemon curd (I recommend this one from Joy & Simplicity.)
  • ½ cup sour cream or nonfat greek yogurt
  • 1 egg

Glaze

  • 1 cup Swerve Confectioners Style sweetener, or other powdered sweetener of your choice
  • 1 pinch salt
  • 1 fresh lemon, juiced

Instructions

Crust:

  • Preheat oven to 350°. Lightly grease a 13×9 pan and line with parchment paper and then lightly grease parchment paper.
  • Whisk all crust ingredients in a medium bowl except for melted butter.
  • Add melted butter and mix using a hand mixer on low or a wooden spoon until butter is completely mixed in with no dry spots remaining.
  • Place ½ of crumb mixture in prepared pan and press down firmly. ( I like to use a measuring cup or a tamper to get it pressed down evenly.) Set remaining ½ of crumbs aside
  • Place in oven and bake for 8 minutes.

Filling:

  • Whisk Neufchâtel cheese until smooth.
  • Add lemon curd and sour cream and whisk until smooth and evenly mixed, scraping down bowl as needed.
  • Whisk in egg until smooth.
  • Spread Neufchâtel cheese mixture evenly over baked crust. (There’s no need to let the crust cool completely.)
  • Sprinkle remaining crumb mixture evenly over top of cheesecake batter and LIGHTLY pat down.
  • Place in oven and turn oven temperature down to 325°. Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until lightly browned and instant read thermometer inserted in center of bars reads 160°.
  • Set aside to cool.

Glaze & finishing:

  • Whisk together glaze ingredients until smooth.
  • Once bars are cooled, drizzle glaze over top of bars.
  • Place in refrigerator until chilled.
  • You may cut and serve in pan as-is, or using excess parchment paper as handles, remove chilled bars from pan to cutting board and cut into desired size.
  • Store covered in refrigerator.

Notes

After zesting lemon, juice lemon and set the juice aside to use in the glaze.
If you don’t have parchment paper you can make these without it, it just greatly aids in removal of the bars without sticking and makes the pan MUCH easier to clean.
If you don’t have a fresh lemon available: omit zest from crust. Use 3-4 Tablespoons bottled lemon juice in the glaze.