Looking for Holiday Eats?

There are some incredible receipts on the Susan maria website. I think I will even try some Here is the link: http://susanmariasreceipes.com

Ronna, I'm on their email list so I got a link in my email, but I can't get it to open on my computer. I'm in desparate need of sugar free cookies for the holidays. I made a pnut butter sf pie for Thanksgiving & everyone loved it. I never told them it was sugar free. I wish I could get those recipes... Kathy

Here, I copied them for you, cookies and deserts: It's holiday cookie baking time! Here are a few sugar free or low sugar low carb cookie recipes that have been reconfigured from family favorites to fit our new lifestyle. Some recipes use Splenda, and others use Nature Sweet; the two sugar replacers are not interchangeable so even think about trying it. Linda and I use specific ingredients for a reason; we want to make delicious cookies and confections that taste too good to be 'no' or 'low' sugar. No one wants to be punished with 'diet foods' that just aren't worth eating! Have fun and enjoy your magical season. These are perfect to take to the afternoon office party, or your mothers house, or the cookie exchange. They are that good! Sugar Free Chocolate Chip Cookie Crusted Mini Chocolate Chip Cheesecake All I have to say is WOW! Serve this after a special occasion dinner and blow everyone's mind. Serves 12 WLS portion, Calories 163, fat 12 gr, carbs 8 gr, protein 6gr Vegetable oil cooking spray 1 1/2 cups Joseph's sugar free Chocolate Chip cookies, available on this website 1 tablespoon butter, melted Three, 8-ounce packages, Philadelphia Reduced Fat Cream Cheese 1 cup Splenda granular 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/4 cup reduced fat sour cream 4 large eggs 8 ounces sugar-free mini chocolate chips , available on this website Preheat oven to 300ºF. Lightly spray a springform pan with vegetable cooking spray and place on baking sheet. Pulse the cookies in the large bowl of a food processor until they are finely ground. Add butter and blend until moistened. Press crumb mixture onto bottom and one half inch up side of prepared pan. Bake at 300°F for 7 minutes, until crust just begins to color and set on a rack to cool. Mix cream cheese, Splenda, vanilla, and sour cream with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Add eggs, 1 at a time, mixing on low speed after each addition just until blended. Fold in half the chocolate chips. Pour the batter into the prepared crust. Scatter the remaining chips over the surface of the batter. Bake at 300°F for 45-50 minutes until center is just set. Cool on rack at room temperature. Refrigerate 4 hours or overnight. Serve with shaved chocolate and Splenda sweetened whipped cream. Copyright © 2006 by Susan Maria Leach www.BariatricEating.com, HarperCollins Publishers Inc. all rights reserved. Sugar Free Spiced Pumpkin Roll with Creamy Vanilla Filling One day on the message board there was really long thread about holiday traditions and TeAnn brought up the whole discussion of a holiday pumpkin roll. I decided to create a sugar free version that the whole table would enjoy. Thanks for the inspiration, TeAnn! Makes twenty ½-inch slices, or ten 1-inch slices WLS serving of a ½-inch slice, calories 80, fat 5 gr, carbs 3.5 gr, protein 5 gr Vegetable oil cooking spray 3 large eggs, well beaten 2 cups Nature Sweet Powder, available on this website 2/3 cup canned solid pack pumpkin 3/4 cup all-purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves Pinch of table salt 8 ounces light cream cheese 6 tablespoons butter 1 teaspoon vanilla extract additional Nature Sweet Powder for dusting Preheat oven to 375º F. Spray 15x10 inch jellyroll pan with cooking spray, line with wax paper, spray again and set aside. In a large bowl, beat eggs with 1 cup Nature Sweet until thick. Beat in pumpkin. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, clove, and salt in a small bowl, and stir into pumpkin mixture. Pour batter into prepared pan and spread evenly. Bake 12 to 14 minutes, until center springs back when lightly touched. Turn cake out onto wire rack and carefully peel off wax paper. Invert cake onto clean tea towel that has been generously sprinkled with Nature Sweet powder, and gently roll up cake in towel from short edge jellyroll style. In a medium bowl combine cream cheese, remaining 1 cup Nature Sweet, and vanilla. Beat until smooth. Cover and chill. Unroll pumpkin cake when cool, spread with filling, and re-roll. Place cake on a long sheet of waxed paper, and dust with Nature Sweet Powder. Wrap cake in waxed paper, twist ends like a candy wrapper and chill. Just before serving, trim ends of cake and lightly dust with additional Nature Sweet Powder. Using a serrated knife, cut crosswise into ½-inch slices and serve. Copyright © 2006 by Susan Maria Leach www.BariatricEating.com, HarperCollins Pub. Inc. all rights reserved. Sugar Free Pumpkin Pie This sugar free dessert tastes like Thanksgiving! I like it best warm with a little Reddi Wip or spoonful of Breyer's No Sugar Added Vanilla to melt on the top. I often use two Pillsbury All Ready refrigerated pie crusts instead of crumb crusts. Sugar free pies and cakes do not contain sugar to preserve them and must be refrigerated or they will spoil. Makes 2 pies, each serving 8 WLS portion, Calories 113, fat 5gr, carbs 12gr, protein 3.5gr 2 cups Murray Sugar Free Gingersnaps or Vanilla Wafers 2 tablespoons salted butter, melted ¾ cup Splenda granular ½ teaspoon table salt 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon ½ teaspoon ground ginger ¼ teaspoon ground cloves 3 large eggs One 15 ounce can Libby's 100% Pure Pumpkin (not pre mixed pumpkin pie filling) One 12 ounce can low-fat evaporated milk (not sweetened condensed milk) Preheat oven to 325°F. Place the cookies in a food processor and pulse with the butter until you have moist, fine crumbs. Divide the mixture and press evenly into two 8-inch pie plates. Bake 10 to 12 minutes, until the crusts just start to color. Cool on a rack while preparing the filling. Leave the oven on at 325°F. Mix the Splenda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves in a small bowl. Beat eggs in a large bowl. Blend in the pumpkin and the spice mixture. Gradually blend in the evaporated milk. Divide the filling between the two pie shells. Bake 20 to 25 minutes, until the filling is set around the edges and the center is still a bit soft. Transfer to a rack to cook, then chill, Serve with a dollop of Splenda sweetened whipped cream or splooge of Reddi Whip. Copyright © 2006 by Susan Maria Leach www.BariatricEating.com, HarperCollins Pub. Inc. all rights reserved. Susan Maria's Amazing Pecan Pie Full serving: Calories 171, fat 14.5gr, carbs 7.5gr, protein 3gr Serves 10 The amazing thing about this pie is that it's sugar-free! The ingredient list is specific, and substitutions won't work. To make this pie you must have Steel's Country Maple Syrup, which can be ordered on my website. When I tried to make this recipe using other brands of sugar-free syrup, the custard became muddy and quite frankly, tasted awful. The Steel's syrup is very thick, and that makes a huge difference. Even though this pie is sweet, it doesn't have any sugar to act as a preservative and must be kept in the refrigerator, or it will spoil. 3 large eggs ¾ cup Splenda Granular Pinch of table salt 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 4 tablespoons salted butter, melted ¾ cup Steel's Sugar Free Maple Syrup, available on this website ½ cup chopped pecans, plus 10 halves One 9-inch homemade unbaked pie shell, not deep dish Whipped cream sweetened with Splenda Preheat the oven to 350˚F. Beat the eggs in a large bowl until well blended and stir in the Splenda, salt, vanilla, butter, and syrup. Mix in the chopped pecans and pour the filling into the pie crust. Arrange the pecan halves evenly on the custard and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the sides are set but the center is still a bit soft. Cool to room temperature and serve in small wedges with Splenda-sweetened whipped cream. Copyright © 2006 by Almond Cookies Chewy, moist and delicious... a wonderful Christmas cookie that happens to be sugar free. For a beautiful touch, I garnish with a thin slice of dried cranberry before baking. I have not tested this recipe with Splenda granular; I have only made it with Nature Sweet crystals. Make sure you use the parchment paper to line your baking sheet (or a Silpat) or you will have to pry the cookies from the surface. Another great cookie tip is to pick up a one inch 'ice cream scoop' from the kitchen gadget section of WalMart or your grocery store. It is made for measuring an even portion for perfect batches of cookies and is invaluable. These will become a family favorite as they are fabulously simple and taste superb. Makes 36 cookies Per Cookie, calories 36, Fat 3gr, Carbs 1.5gr, Protein 1.5gr 2 ¼ cups sliced unblanched almonds, about 10 ounces ¾ cup Nature Sweet Crystals, available on this website ¼ cup all purpose flour ½ stick butter, melted 1 egg white, slightly beaten ½ teaspoon vanilla extract Sliced dried cranberries, (called Craisins) Parchment paper (available in grocery stores near the plastic wrap) Lightly spray each of two baking sheets with nonstick vegetable cooking spray. Place a sheet of parchment paper on each (parchment wont slide if you use the cooking spray first). Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine almonds, Nature Sweet crystals, flour, butter, egg white, and vanilla in a large bowl, gently tossing to coat almonds and evenly moisten mixture. Mound tablespoonfuls on prepared cookie sheet. Gently press a slice of dried cranberry into each cookie. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until golden. Cool for 10 minutes and carefully remove to a wire rack. Store in an airtight container. Copyright © 2006 by Susan Maria Leach www.BariatricEating.com, HarperCollins Pub. Inc. all rights reserved. Beatrice's Apricot Cream Cheese Cookies These sugar free cookies are from my mother's repertoire of Italian Christmas cookie recipes. The dough is tender and flaky and the sweet tart apricot filling is perfect. Don't let the short ingredient list throw you, they taste out of this world. Last year Santa enjoyed a plate of them with a large mug of hot chocolate made with Elite Chocolate Mint that even had a sugar free marshmallow bobbing in the foam. Makes about 30 cookies Per cookie... calories 35 , fat 3, carbs 2 4 ounces cream cheese 1/2 cup butter 1 cup flour, plus additional for rolling 1/4 teaspoon salt Natures Hollow sugar free apricot preserves, available on this website Blend the cream cheese and butter. Add flour and salt then blend until flour is completely incorporated. Gather dough into a smooth ball, cover with plastic wrap and chill 1-2 hours. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly dust counter with flour and roll out 1/2 of the dough to 1/8 inch thickness and carefully cut into 2-inch squares, saving scraps to re-roll. Blend jar of preserves with a spoon so it is a smooth consistency. Place a 1/4 teaspoon dab of preserves in the center of each square. Fold over two opposite corners of square to the middle, overlapping slightly and pressing so they stick together and jam squishes out a bit. After folding each cookie, transfer to an ungreased cookie sheet, about 1 inch apart. Bake each batch for 10-12 minutes, until bottoms are just golden brown. Gently press any overlapped corners down that have opened while baking. Transfer to a wire rack. Repeat with remaining dough. When cookies are cool, place an additional small dab of apricot preserves on each side of the folded cookie. Copyright © 2006 by Susan Maria Leach www.BariatricEating.com, HarperCollins Pub. Inc. all rights reserved. Gingerbread Cookies Bake these as small puffy powdered 'sugar' dusted rounds, or as traditional gingerbread men... either way these are a winner. ¼ cup butter ½ cup Nature Sweet, powder or crystals ¼ cup dark molasses (3 tablespoons adds essential molasses flavor) ¼ cup Steels Country Syrup or Honey Sweet (makes a great replacement for Karo syrup or half the molasses in a recipe) 2 cups all purpose flour ½ teaspoon baking soda ¾ teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon ground ginger 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon ¼ teaspoon ground cloves ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg Cream the butter and Nature Sweet. Stir in the molasses, Country Syrup, and ¼ cup water. Mix the flour, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg in a small bowl, and add to the wet ingredients. Blend until soft dough forms. Using a 1 ½ teaspoon metal 'ice cream' type scoop, or teaspoon place small round portions 1 inch apart on a lined or well greased cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees until, when touched lightly with finger, almost no imprint remains. Leave on baking sheet 2-3 minutes, then remove to cooling rack. Toss in a bowl containing 1 cup of Nature Sweet Powder, to lightly dust and place in airtight container. Or chill dough several hours or overnight. Roll out ¼ inch thick. Cut into circles, trees, or gingerbread men using cookie cutters. Place on well greased baking sheet. And bake as described above. Copyright © 2006 by Susan Maria Leach www.BariatricEating.com, HarperCollins Pub. Inc. all rights reserved. Sugar Free Peanut Brittle Nature Sweet is an amazing sugar replacer with the properties of sugar that allow for this delicious sugar free buttery golden mouthwatering Peanut Brittle. If you have tasted any of the new sugar free hard candy now on the market, this is the product responsible for the amazing taste and texture. ½ cup butter 1 cup Nature Sweet Crystals, available on this website(see NOTE) ½ teaspoon vanilla extract 1 1/2 cups roasted salted peanuts Lightly coat a cookie sheet with nonstick cooking spray and set aside. Melt butter in a large nonstick skillet. Stir in Nature Sweet Crystals and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly. Mixture will first stay separate and appear grainy, then blend together smoothly. Coo****il syrup darkens to a golden caramel color, about the same color as the peanuts, 15-18 minutes (hard crack stage in a cup of icewater), then remove from heat. Working quickly, first stir in vanilla extract,then fold in nuts. Transfer onto prepared baking sheet, and using the cooking spoon, pat nuts and candy into single layer. Allow mixture to harden at room temperature. When brittle has cooled completely break into bite sized pieces and store in an airtight container. NOTE: Do NOT substitute Splenda or Nutrasweet for the Nature Sweet Crystal in this recipe as the properties of these sweeteners are completely different. Copyright © 2006 by Susan Maria Leach www.BariatricEating.com, HarperCollins Pub. Inc. all rights reserved. Peanut Butter Cookies Nature Sweet Crystals make an incredible cookie as this product adds texture and volume to the cookie dough that you just cannot get using Splenda. You can't tell these chewy and delicious cookies from a full sugar peanut butter cookie. I have a small 1 tablespoon 'ice cream' scoop that makes perfectly portioned cookies for this recipe. I know that there are good tasting sugar free cookies on the market, even the kind you get to bake yourself, but check out the long list of chemicals and preservatives; nothing beats the wholesomeness of a homemade, 5 ingredient recipe. Makes 32 cookies Calories 62, fat 6gr, carbs 1.5gr, protein 3gr 1 cup peanut butter 1 large egg 1 cup Nature Sweet Crystals, available on this website (see NOTE) 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 cup California blanched almond flour, available on this website Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream together peanut butter, egg, Nature Sweet Crystals, salt, and almond flour until well blended. Scoop mixture by tablespoon and roll into balls. Arrange on two ungreased cookie sheets allowing 1 inch for dough to spread slightly as it bakes. Press down with a fork to flatten, first in one direction and then in another. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until just slightly firm when touched with fingertip. Allow to cool for 4-5 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling. NOTE: You cannot substitute Splenda or Nutrasweet for the Nature Sweet Crystals in this recipe as the properties of these sweeteners are completely different. Nature Sweet is made from corn, it doesn't raise your blood sugar as it's not digested and is moved through our body similar to fiber. Copyright © 2006 by Susan Maria Leach www.BariatricEating.com, HarperCollins Pub. Inc. all rights reserved. Rum Balls Makes 2 dozen cookies I remember my mother making Bourbon Balls for her holiday parties in the 60's. This sugar free version is really delicious and simple as there is no baking involved! You can make several flavors by using different kinds of sugar free cookies. I made a delicious version using Joseph's Pecan Shortbread, Coconut Rum, and omitting the cocoa; more of a Coconut Pecan Rum Ball. NOTE: I carry the Steel's brand sugar free syrups on my website because they are very thick and do not have an aftertaste. These properties makes them the perfect substitute for corn syrup. (The sugar free Pecan Pie recipe on my website is amazing) You can't use the watery supermarket brands of sugar free syrup; the recipes will not work. The Steel's syrups are worth the trouble it takes to order online. 2 ½ cups Joseph's sugar free cookies, Chocolate Walnut or Pecan Shortbread, available on our website 1 ½ cups chopped pecans 1 cup Splenda granular 2 tablespoons Dutch processed cocoa powder 2 tablespoons Steel's SF Honey Sweet or Steel's Sugar Free Maple Syrup, available on this website ¼ cup dark rum Process the cookies in the food processor until finely ground (you should have 1½ cups of fine crumbs) add the pecans and 3/4 cup Splenda; pulse a few times to mix. Add the syrup and rum and blend until well combined. Shape into 1-inch balls. (I use a one tablespoon mini 'ice cream' scoop). Place the remaining ¼ cup Splenda into a small bowl and roll the rum balls until lightly coated. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. These are best if made several days in advance of serving to allow the flavors to mingle. Serve at room temperature. Copyright © 2006 by Susan Maria Leach www.BariatricEating.com, HarperCollins Pub. Inc. all rights reserved. Spritz Cookies These are buttery, tender shortbread cookies; the ultimate Christmas cookie! I use a cookie press, which is a chef's version of the Play-Doh press we used as kids. I use this gadget just once a year, but it makes me think of my mother. I brought a big tin of Spritz to my brother's house last year at Christmas and he got all choked up when he saw the familiar shapes Mommy used to make. For me, this is what holidays are all about! 1 cup butter softened 2/3 cup Nature Sweet Crystals, available on this website 3 egg yolks 1 teaspoon vanilla 2 1/2 cups flour Sanding sugar (I use multicolored for the trees, and tiny silver dragees for the pink wreaths Food coloring (if desired to tint dough) Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cream together the butter, Nature Sweet, egg yolks, and vanilla until fluffy either using a mixer or a food processor. Add a single drop of food coloring if tinted dough is desired. Add the flour, pulse to incorporate and collect into a smooth ball. If you are using a cookie press, fill the cookie press, insert the desired die and force the dough onto an ungreased baking sheet. If you arent using a press, roll the dough into 1 inch balls, arrange on an ungreased baking sheet and flatten with a fork in a criss-cross pattern like you would with peanut butter cookies. Sprinkle each cookie with a pinch of colored sugar. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until set, and light golden brown around the very edges... do not overbake. Remove to a wire rack and cool.

Oh my Goodness!!!!!!!!! Ronna, you are such a sweetheart!!! Thank you soooooo much. I'm gonna have goodies for the holidays now! Kathy

Thank you so much for sharing. I can't wait to try some of these.

These are good recipes. I made the SF pumpkin pie. It tasted just like regular to me. I used Murray's brand SF gingersnaps instead of Joseph's. The Steel's country SF syrup is great to have. I have probably gone thru 4 bottles since surgery. It's thick and tastes good. The Nature Sweet Crystals is good for baking, too. I make my SF frosted pecans w/ it. Karla