experiment with erythritol
So I TRIED to make a batch of cashew brittle tonight with the erythritol crystals. Nope. Definitely doesn't caramelize. What a mess! Cleaned it up and made a "real" batch with maltitol. Much happier now.
The erythritol works really nicely with baking and such, though - i guess just not so much for candy.
The research continues. Next up will be xylitol. :-) But not tonight.
Karen
The erythritol works really nicely with baking and such, though - i guess just not so much for candy.
The research continues. Next up will be xylitol. :-) But not tonight.
Karen
Karen, I love hearing about your experiments!
I baked my first cake using maltitol this week and took it to a party last night. It was great - looked, smelled, and tasted wonderful! I will probably stick with using maltitol for my baking adventures (which I don't think will be all that frequent) - hubby is able to get me sample packs from his company, so that's easy!
I baked my first cake using maltitol this week and took it to a party last night. It was great - looked, smelled, and tasted wonderful! I will probably stick with using maltitol for my baking adventures (which I don't think will be all that frequent) - hubby is able to get me sample packs from his company, so that's easy!
As I understand it, it's the closest chemically to sugar... BUT, it also has a significantly higher glycemic index and calorie count than erithrytol and xylitol, which is why I'm investigating them, too... and supposedly the others don't come with the "may cause diarrhea and gas" side effect.
But I'll keep y'all posted. :-)
K.
But I'll keep y'all posted. :-)
K.
Thanks for the post on this, Karen. I've been thinking about trying to make a SF version of my mother's no-bake cookies, which are a family favorite. That's sort of an understatement, my brother claims there's a secret addictive ingredient in there.
Your post about candy-making reminded me of them, they rely on the cooked sugar/milk combo to set up properly, and I've always figured I'd end up with a runny mess. You have to boil the sugar/milk/cocoa/butter mixture for 1-2 minutes, and while I've never gotten my candy thermometer out to test it, I'm assuming that's about a soft-ball stage. Now that I'm thinking this through (forgive me for typing out loud), I'm thinking that whatever substance you'd use to make SF fudge, if that's possible, would be the right thing, since the consistency is about the same for the cookies.
Any thoughts on this? (If you can find any coherence in the rambling, that is)
Elizabeth
Your post about candy-making reminded me of them, they rely on the cooked sugar/milk combo to set up properly, and I've always figured I'd end up with a runny mess. You have to boil the sugar/milk/cocoa/butter mixture for 1-2 minutes, and while I've never gotten my candy thermometer out to test it, I'm assuming that's about a soft-ball stage. Now that I'm thinking this through (forgive me for typing out loud), I'm thinking that whatever substance you'd use to make SF fudge, if that's possible, would be the right thing, since the consistency is about the same for the cookies.
Any thoughts on this? (If you can find any coherence in the rambling, that is)
Elizabeth
Surgery Weight (1/25/10) 265 - Current Weight - 184 1/1/12 - Goal ????
It makes total sense, actually... and I think it depends on the proportions of the ingredients. If the milk and butter are the main "bulk" and are acting as emulsifiers to keep the mixture "together" and stabilize its consistency, you very well might be able to make it with erythritol or xylitol. However, if the consistency depends on a ton of sugar, then I'd go with maltitol. There's likely a reason that most of the SF candies out there are using maltitol, and I'd say this is probably why.
K.
K.
Elizabeth,
By all means listen to your body. And also recognize that as a pre-op, you're eating AND digesting very differently than you will post-op. Even post-op, you're not going to be eating "treats" like sf candy for at least a few months, hopefully! And then, you'll still be doing "nibbles" - when you're eating no more than 1/2c of food total per meal, you can't fit in a handful of cookies and still meet your protein goals and will likely feel pretty bad.
You'll also be metabolizing the sugar subs in a different part of your body after the RNY, which can make a big difference in how you react to them. So you'll be testing the waters slowly as you adapt to your new digestive tract.
Karen
By all means listen to your body. And also recognize that as a pre-op, you're eating AND digesting very differently than you will post-op. Even post-op, you're not going to be eating "treats" like sf candy for at least a few months, hopefully! And then, you'll still be doing "nibbles" - when you're eating no more than 1/2c of food total per meal, you can't fit in a handful of cookies and still meet your protein goals and will likely feel pretty bad.
You'll also be metabolizing the sugar subs in a different part of your body after the RNY, which can make a big difference in how you react to them. So you'll be testing the waters slowly as you adapt to your new digestive tract.
Karen
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