Sugar Free Muesli

Inspired by a wonderful company in Australia that makes 97% Sugar Free Muesli which is packed full of nuts I had a go at making a version of my own.

It turned out to be such a delicious and wonderfully satisfying breakfast that I just had to share it with you.

I made a large quantity (3kg). If you want to make less then just adjust the amounts accordingly. It is basically 1/3 oats, 1/3 nuts and 1/3 seeds and coconut.

Chop chop chop....yummy nuts packed with good nutrition

Muesli Recipe

1kg mixed raw nuts chopped.
 (Equal amounts of Cashews, Brazil Nuts, Walnuts, Almonds and Hazelnuts)
1 kg rolled oats
200g sunflower seeds
200g pumpkin seeds
200g sesame seeds
200g linseeds
200g coconut flakes
Chop the nuts. Mix all the ingredients together and store in  airtight containers.

Hey Presto! Yummy Muesli

Now that I have 3kgs of the stuff I thought I might use some of it to make some Muesli Bars. Below is the result of my first attempt. They were very moorish and delicious tasting but ended up rock hard. I had cooked the caramel mix for too long. (I really think it's time to invest in a candy thermometer) To make matters worse I had made them twice as thick as regular muesli bars. I ended up hacking them in to bite size pieces  to ensure that no teeth were broken in the sampling of my fare.

 Mmmmmm..... Crunchy Muesli Bites. Not all bad.

My Crunchy Nutty Muesli Bars 

Inspired by the kind of Muesli Bars I used to feed my kids when they were young (thinking they were a healthy snack) I decided to add some puffed rice to my next batch. I was hoping that this would make them lighter and easier to eat.

Puffed Rice without all the added sugar and salt

  

I bought Puffed Rice in the health food section of my supermarket. It has 1.1% sugar per 100g. I carefully monitored the caramel  making stage and I ended up with Muesli bars to die for! 

My Very Yummy Chewy Nutty Muesli Bars

Maree's Muesli Bar Recipe

3 cups Muesli

2 cups Rice Puffs

1 cup dextrose

125g butter

1/2 cup water

1/2 cup Rice Malt Syrup or Liquid Glucose

Line a 25cm x 30cm baking tray with baking paper.
Lightly toast the Muesli.
Spread it out on a tray and put it under the grill. Pay close attention because the nuts burn easily (especially the coconut). You need to take the tray away from the heat several times and give it a stir around to enable even toasting.
Place toasted Muesli and Rice Puffs in a heatproof mixing bowl.
Place all the other ingredients into a medium saucepan and stir over heat until the butter and dextrose is dissolved.
Bring the mix to the boil and cook until (if you have a candy thermometer it reaches 248 degrees F) or if you don't until it reaches firm ball stage (when you drop a small amount of the mix into cold water and it forms a firm but pliable ball ) Cooking time varies due to size of pan and temperature of hotplate but it takes around 10 to 15 minutes. A good clue is that it's just about ready when the bubbling starts to slow down.
Carefully pour the hot caramel mix into the dry ingredients and stir to combine.
Place mix in lined tray and flatten it down with the back of a spoon.
Cut into bars when cool. Makes approx 24

A six pack to lovingly share with family and friends

Despite cooking and indulging in treats like this my weight continues to drop. I am happy to report that I have now lost 12kg. I still find it hard to believe that I have been able to feel and look so much better by simply reducing my Fructose intake.

My self esteem and confidence has also improved to the point that I now dare to share a profile photo of myself on this blog. In case you have not already noticed it is in the top right hand corner of my blog.

.....and here is another one!

A photo of me and the BBQ taken by me!

This photo is one of a series taken to go with my yet to be published interview with Body and Soul Magazine. Grrrrrr! The reporter initially told me that she would be sending a photographer to my house *thinking glamorous* but in reality I was asked to submit via email a few recent photos of my own. 

Enjoy this exclusive preview!

Fructose Free Chocolate

In my recent tell all interview I was asked whether there was anything I really missed eating now that I follow the Sweet Poison Quit Plan.

Hmmmm. *Thinking*

"No. I really don't crave for anything sweet".

Just hours after the interview the question was still tumbling around in my head.

In bed that night the question was keeping me awake.

Yes OK, I confess. When I first started my sugar detox I really missed chocolate (even more than snakes) and after a month or so I still had fond memories of the way it coats your tongue with its silky, seductive, creamy, chocolate flavour.
(refer to one of my earlier posts Goodbye My Precious)

Mmmmmmm. What's not to love about a chocolatey, sugary chunk of fat? *drool*

GRRRRRRRR!

Now go to sleep and make sure to send an update email to the reporter confessing this important revelation.
We don't want you to lose anymore sleep!

My secret chocolate confession doesn't change the fact that 6 months in I REALLY don't crave sweets (not even chocolate) and the whole exercise led me to ponder that giving up chocolate as part of the Sweet Poison Quit Plan might be a deal breaker for some.

It actually was for my daughter Suzanne.

This got me to thinking.

There must be lots of people out there that don't consider the Quit Plan because they simply cannot imagine that life is worth living without chocolate.

David is often asked the chocolate question and he is consistently dishing out this dirt to his followers when they ecstatically share their "Sugarless" chocolate bar finds in the supermarket or health food shop. His standard response is to give them the bad news that the sugar alcohol in such bars is probably worse than sugar as far as your liver is concerned. He then refers them to this website in Germany.

http://www.frusano.com/Chocolate/chocolate-bars/Filita-Dextrose-chocolate::40.html

Where you can purchase this at a price that might put you off the idea of chocolate once and for all.

Fructose Free Chocolate

I have searched (and searched) the Internet unsuccessfully trying to find more fructose free chocolate and concluded that the only thing left to do was try to make some of my own. Then I would be able to share the idea with everyone and before you know it the whole world would be fructose free and I would be the next recipient of a Nobel Peace Prize........(jointly with David Gillespie of course)

Unfortunately my dream was shattered by the reality of my chocolate making experiment.

I found an online video on how to make chocolate. Too simple I thought. Just substitute the sugar for dextrose and the Nobel prize is mine!

This is the result of my first attempt.

Even I have to admit that it looks pretty good at first glance (especially for those still mourning the loss of chocolate) but I could tell when I was mixing it that it was not going to meet my high standards. The texture was all wrong. The dextrose did not dissolve and it had a grainy appearance and taste.

My husband, on the other hand, thought it was delicious and couldn't stop eating it. I encouraged him to indulge because it didn't appeal to me at all and after all I am the one who could do with losing some more weight.

In case you are still interested or desperate here is the recipe

Melt 125g of Copha in a saucepan over medium heat.

When melted add 3/4 cup dextrose, 6 tblspns cocoa, 4 tblspns full cream milk powder and a pinch of salt

(sift all the dry ingredients together before adding to the melted copha)

Spoon into moulds, a tin or just spread it out on a piece of foil and refrigerate till set.

Not all was lost though because my failure bought out the scientist in me and I started to experiment.

I tried substituting the dextrose for liquid glucose but I ended up with a disgusting glump of chocolate goo swimming in fat. FAIL. In the bin it went.

Next I tried dissolving the dextrose in some water on the stove and then adding the other ingredients. The result looked nothing like chocolate but it tasted so delicious. Here is what  I call my Chocolate Toffee Drops

My Chocolate Toffee Drops... delicious results of an experiment gone wrong

These taste amazing (just like Pascall Chocolate Chews but a bit harder). Suddenly I was feeling so inspired that I thought I might try to make a soft caramel toffee which (if it worked) would really impress both my caramel loving Daughter and Husband. I Googled "soft toffee" and found that it is made with cream rather than water and that it should be heated to 248% (blah blah) to get a soft chewy result. I don't have a candy thermometer but that didn't stop me from trying and I was blown away by my results and my husband is too busy chewing to comment.

I can't believe I made this chewy, buttery, creamy toffee!

Clearly, if I intend to document and reproduce these treats I will need to invest in a candy thermometer because my methods so far are pretty hit and miss. There's no use me telling you stuff like "Just keep cooking it until it looks right!" I also think I need to find something called Soy Lecithin which is an emulsifier found in chocolate. It helps the fat and liquids magically combine and contrary to my initial suspicions it is not a nasty food additive.

In the meantime, I am very proud to share the results of my experiments and vow to keep working toward my Nobel Peace Prize.

Spillin' my Guts (what's left of them) to the Media in a Tell All Interview

I am busting to tell you all that I am now officially Almost Famous and it's NOT because I live next door to the teenage boy that recently caused  worldwide havoc on Twitter.

Meet Pearce the boy that lives next door (on the right) as featured in  The Age

It IS because I have just been interviewed by a reporter from Body and Soul magazine who is doing an article about The Sweet Poison Quit Plan for their glossy edition due out in May.

The interview was like a cross between a chat with a girlfriend (where you are left feeling you might have divulged too much) and a job interview (where you are left thinking you should have said more).

In order to get a better understanding of how addicted I used to be to sugar the reporter started by asking what my weakness was prior to detox. 

That was easy to answer.

Lollies!

 She wanted me to be more specific.

The Snakes and jellies that have no artificial colours or flavours and are 97% fat free. Practically a health food especially when followed by a half a block of dark chocolate!

Then she wanted to know how much of it I used to eat. 

I used to gobble down a whole packet of snakes in one go.

So would that be a 200g packet? 

Yes, but sometimes I got the packets that had 25% extra Free or the family size one if it was on special or the Party Sized packet that I had bought with the intention of making it last the rest of the week. *deep breath*

Here's the part where I really started to feel a bit sweaty and uncomfortable. She wanted me to put a figure on how much (as in grams or kilos) I went through in a week.

Ummm Errrrr OK. Lots. Several packets. Yeah. More than a kilo, probably closer to two. 

AAAArgghhhhhhhhhh! It's any wonder I was addicted to sugar and that reporter cleverly got me to spill the details of my secret addiction to her and she might possibly publish it for all the world (my husband included) to see.

So that's it.

I have done it.

Inspired by Oprah (and her recent secret sister situation) I thought I would get in first and confess to you, my loyal followers, the sordid details of my addiction before it makes 98th page news in a magazine.

People that are sceptical of David's Plan (mostly qualified Nutritionists) will no doubt conclude that I have lost weight simply because I have stopped eating lollies.

Lollies are high in calories and should be consumed in moderation as part of a healthy diet they would say. 

But here's the thing. When I feel like snacking now rather than eating lollies I now eat chips, nuts, popcorn, pretzels instead which are also high in calories and somehow I am able to do this and eat any other food that does not contain regular sugar and lose weight at the same time.

Good thing is that the facts about sugar is starting to get more attention in the press and I was so happy to read that Sarah is now on board.  http://www.sarahwilson.com.au/ 

Something tells me she might have a couple more people reading her blog than I do!

Bad news is that I have noticed that one of the big soft drink retailers is heavily promoting the fact that some of their fizzy drinks now don't contain any artificial colours or flavours.

Six months ago I would have been impressed and stocked up on the "healthy version" of soft drink. Lucky for me. I have seen the light (glaring as it was) and I am never going to fall for the old No Artificial Colours or Flavours trick again! 

I'll let you know about the interview if and when it is published.

Seven Meals I Have Actually Eaten (whilst still managing to lose weight)

Good thing about being on the Sweet Poison Quit Plan is that main meals are generally OK to indulge in freely. You just need to be wary of sauces and condiments. My husband is a vegetarian and 6 of these meal examples I prepared are vegetarian.  Just substitute or add real meat and enjoy!

Roast Pumpkin, Mushroom and Asparagus Risotto topped with Shaved Parmesan  (you can add chicken)

Vegetarian Sausages, Mashed Potatoes, Broccoli, Asparagus, Corn and Cauliflower
(I find the vegetarian sausages to be quite tasty and less fatty than the meat ones)

Vegetarian Sausages, Cous Cous and Salad
(I use the Ainsley Harriot brand cous cous. Just add hot water. Quick and easy only 2.5g sugar per 100g)

Vegetarian Burger with the lot.
Toasted wholegrain bun topped with lettuce, tomato, veggie burger, mushroom, fried onion, avocado, gherkin, egg and full fat mayonnaise

Chicken Schnitzel, Silverbeet, Potatoes, Carrots, Beans, Cauliflower and Broccoli

Fried Rice with Vegetarian  Mushroom, Beanshoot and Celery Omelette topped with a yummy sauce I made with Cornflour, Water, Chicken Stock Powder, Soy Sauce and Dextrose

My 10 Tips for success

I am 5 months in to Fructose free living and it is now so easy for me. Shopping is a breeze because (thanks to a lot of label reading and my new prescription glasses) I have come to know what foods to buy and what to avoid.

Unfortunately this is NOT a photo of me!

Since starting The Sweet Poison Quit Plan I have lost 11kg. The only goal I work toward is to become healthy and the incidental weight loss is definitely helping me to feel  much better than I have for a long time. I have noticed a definite improvement in both my physical and mental well being. I am losing weight from all the right places and I feel like I am turning back the ageing clock by shedding the bulk that had started to gather around my waist.

Fortunately this is NOT a photo of me!

So here are some of my tips for success if you are following the Sweet Poison Quit Plan.

1. Keep the book handy. I found that re reading parts of the book helped me through some of the earlier and more challenging moments.
2. Have a mantra that you repeat over and over in your head. Mine is simply the title of my blog. SUGAR IS POISON
3. Ignore the scales when you start out. Despite feeling thinner I did not lose any weight in the first month then I all of a sudden lost 3kgs and after that have maintained a steady, gradual weight loss. Some people become disheartened when they don't get immediate results.
4. Embrace fat laden foods. Do not be afraid of the fat content of foods. I really enjoy a full cream latte now. I find that having full cream version makes up for the lack of sugar and is a satisfying treat.
5. Eat your veggies! The fibre in vegetables is a must have in your diet. When I reduced the amount of fruit I consumed I made sure to compensate by eating more veggies. I do not even consider the fructose content of veggies given that they are full of fibre.
6. Drink lots of water. Very cheap drink when you have it on tap. If I am feeling decadent I will have a sparkling mineral water or a nice glass of wine (or two!)
7. Stock up on Dextrose and buy an ice cream maker. Especially if you have children or an ice cream loving husband like mine. 
8. When invited out to a BBQ or dinner party then insist that you will only come if you can bring a dessert to share. This is my way of avoiding the problems that might be associated with refusing to eat a sugar laden treat that the host might have spent hours preparing.
9. Search the internet for information, forums and articles that will reinforce the anti sugar message. (Good for you. You already have done this because you are reading this!)
10. If anyone challenges what you are doing in a negative way then challenge them to read the book. That (and the fact that you are looking fabulous) should shut them up! 

In my next blog I am going to share with you some of the typical meals I eat. 

Until then. Have fun and take care.

Maree

My Post Christmas Post

Well Christmas and the New Year Celebrations have been and gone and I am happy to report that I have made it through with incredible ease. None of the customary weight gain for me this time round. I easily resisted all the sugar laden fare and was not at all tempted by the handful of toffees that a stalking Santa slipped into my handbag while I was innocently shopping.

I like to give out candy. I want people to love me!

We had 30 food loving people at our place to feed on Christmas Day. For mains I served a perfectly cooked whole Beef Eye Fillet accompanied by a Red Wine Jus and Horseradish cream. We cooked a huge piece of pork on the rotisserie of the BBQ. My sister took on the crazy challenge of boning and stuffing a turkey and bought it to my place still steaming hot and ready to carve. We had scalloped potatoes and baby potatoes covered in garlic and parsley butter along with several magnificent salads that were provided by other members of the family. (Oh! and of course I also made sure there was a chunk of non animal protein for my Vegetarian husband)

For dessert I served the fructose free Brandy Baskets that I shared with you in an earlier post. I made a mountain of icecream with my dwindling supply of dextrose. They were a real hit. I experimented a bit with the ice cream and made several different flavours including chocolate, peppermint choc chip and  pistachio. I filled the baskets with a couple of scoops of icecream and then topped it off with a spoonful of macerated fresh berries with chopped basil. Unfortunately I did not have time to take a photo to share with you but it was very much enjoyed by all. The ice cream was especially popular and most guests came back for seconds.

The whole Christmas thing has made me much  more aware of how much crap we are exposed to as part of our so called celebrations. I couldn't help but notice the Hot Cross Buns are already on the shelves in the supermarket today and that means that Easter Eggs will soon follow. It's any wonder that we have an Obesity Crisis in our Western World and I feel that it is a ploy of big business to target mainly the young and socially disadvantaged so that they become addicted to the lethal white stuff.

Usually at this time of year I would be scouring the stores for Post Christmas bargains and part of that exercise would include stocking up on a heap of confectionery that has been reduced to clear.

But  this year I was on the lookout for something else altogether. 

This year I bought myself some very nice new clothes that show off my increasingly pleasing form. Even I have to admit that my body is slowly transforming from flabby frump style to comfortably curvy. My husband even noted that I have lost weight in all the right places. Given that he is a boob loving guy I am guessing that you don't need me to elaborate!

I also bought 12 bottles of cream.

 Not the sort of thing you would expect a person who is losing weight to purchase but I have a store that is within walking distance to where I live that is called Not Quite Right or NQR. They sell groceries that are close to the use by date or end of line or surplus stock for a fraction of what they charge at the supermarket. I bought all this for $3.96. Much to the delight of my husband I will be re stocking the freezer with several batches of home made ice cream over the next week or so. I love making my own Fructose Free Ice Cream and my husband loves eating it.
 A perfect partnership!

Since I have been Fructose free my intake of fat in the form of cream and butter has greatly increased yet my weight has been dropping consistently. I am living proof that David Gillespie's Sweet Poison Quit Plan does work.

Hooray and Happy New Year to all of you.

Fructose Free Happy Birthday to me

Recently had a wonderful Birthday celebration and I am happy to tell you all that this year I felt about 10 years younger than the same time last year. 

In fact last year I felt so bad that my GP (unable to diagnose any illness) apart from mild depression had sent me off to a specialist armed with my blood tests (which were mostly within the normal range) and after a thorough assessment I was given a clean bill of health despite being very overweight. 

This exercise left me even more depressed. Technically, I was not ill but my body was aching, my mind was foggy and I was just going through the motions and not really embracing life at all.

Since I have stopped scoffing down sugar I am delighted to tell you that apart from losing 9kgs so far, I have also noticed a marked improvement in the health of my body and mind.

Enough about me. 

Lets talk about food!

My beautiful daughter Suzanne made me  the most magnificent birthday cake. 

A  Strawberry Crepe Layer Cake

The good news is that she cleverly managed to convert the recipe into a Fructose Free one (apart from whats in the strawberries) and is happy to share the recipe with you.

Ingredients

Crepes 

2 cups (300g) plain flour, 1 tsp baking powder, 2 tbs dextrose powder,
 4 eggs, 450ml milk, 250 ml thickened cream, 1/2 tsp vanilla essence

Filling

600ml thickened cream, 1 cup dextrose powder, 2 tsp grated orange zest,
1tsp vanilla essence,1 punnet of strawberries (thinly sliced)

Crepes

Process all ingredients in a food processor until smooth, pour into a jug and stand for 30 minutes at room temperature. Heat a 20cm crepe pan over medium heat and spray with oil. Add 1/4 cup of the crepe batter and swirl to coat the pan. Cook for 2 minutes on each side until just golden. Repeat with remaining batter spraying the pan with a little oil each time. Crepes can be frozen for up to 3 months.

Filling

Place the cream, dextrose powder, orange zest and vanilla in a bowl. Beat with electric beaters until stiff peaks form.

Assembly

Cut each of the crepes using a circle template as a guide (eg. saucepan lid). Layer the crepes spreading each with a thin layer of cream. Select a couple of layers to place some strawberries inside. Once assembled, spread the remaining cream over the entire cake and cover with sliced strawberries. Cover and chill for at least 4 hours. Serve dusted with a little dextrose powder.

The finished product was delicious but Suzanne mentioned that next time she makes it she would use more layers of strawberries (so that would mean you need to buy 2 punnets of strawberries) and that she would be a little more generous with the amount of cream in the layers. As it was assembled in the photos above she had cream leftover.

My creative Sister in law Geyle and her daughter Essie also made me (and my 18 year old nephew James who is (un)lucky enough to share my birthdate) a magnificent chocolate cake for the second and bigger Birthday celebration I had. Sadly for me, it was made with sugar and though it looked scrumptious I was not tempted to have a piece. I have a large extended family so that cake was enjoyed and appreciated by many.

I took along a version of "Franks Strawberry Ricotta Cake"
 for those of us on The Plan

http://www.howmuchsugar.com/resources/Documents/Franks%20ricotta%20cake.pdf

I was inspired by the silicone muffin trays that I was given as a present to make Muffin sized cakes. I had too much mixture for the 12 standard size muffin tray so I used the rest in a smaller bite sized version.

These were a real hit. I was told that one of Donna Hays' tips is to present things in individual serves because it looks better and is more practical when it comes to serving. Donna was right on the money!

I would not make these in regular muffin trays because they might be very difficult to remove from the tray but they were easy to manage in the silicone version. I adjusted the cooking time according to size and the small ones took about 20 minutes and the larger ones 30 minutes. They are moist and moorish and would make an ideal Christmas sweet.

I have also been busy making icecream and gelato using recipes from
The Sweet Poison Quit Plan.

 Pistachio Icecream!
I used the egg yolk only Vanilla Ice cream recipe and added (at the custard making stage) 3/4 cup of pistachios that I had soaked in water and removed the skins then pulverised with a stick mixer. Then added 1/2 cup chopped pistachios at the end of the churning stage.
I am thinking of serving this icecream in brandy baskets (see previous post for recipe) topped with a fresh raspberry sauce for my family on Christmas day.
 (All 30 or so of them!)
I better get churning fast!

Chocolate Gelato
A simple and inexpensive way to have a chocolate hit!

A word of caution for those of you who are trying to lose weight or have just started the plan. Remember not to eat these goodies until you have beaten your sugar addiction.

Once you are no longer addicted to sugar you will not crave sweet things as much and these treats should be eaten occasionally and not all the time. I cook a lot of things but I don't eat them all because my skinny husband Ed is a big help in the eating department.

Thanks Ed for your love and support.