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S Fuel Recipes

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Squares (THM S)

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These squares are so soft, chewy and moist.  I’ve made them a couple of times now and my kids clean them out in 2 days.  I’m happy to let them go to town with these treats, they’re sugar free, gluten free and so healthy for their growing bodies.

 

I went through a short lived 3.5 month time period that my daughter wasn’t enjoying any Trim Healthy Mama treats I made. (learn more about THM here)

She was going through a phase ….she only wanted real sugary treats.   I don’t make those  at home so she was out of luck.  Thankfully all of a sudden a switch flipped and she’s loving everything I make again.  Phew!

When I looked back on the situation her tastes changed when we were celebrating Canadian Thanksgiving, American Thanksgiving, Christmas parties, church functions, and family meals.  She was getting a tonne of sugary treats at those functions, and that fueled her desire for more.  I also have to admit I enjoyed some sugary treats as well.  T’was the season and all.  lol

It makes sense to me now.  She would eat those sugary treats then have no interest in my THM treats.  Sugar is a sneaky and unrelenting trickster, when you’re hooked there’s not much that will satisfy the cravings.

Thankfully now that those special events, and seasonal family gatherings have passed, I’ve been able to clear out the sugar from my family’s diet.  Now all my THM baking is loved, and requested again!  I couldn’t be happier.

I hope you love this recipe as much as we do.  It’s a huge hit every time I make it.

This recipe was inspired by a recipe called “Jenifer’s IP Tweaks for BAM Pumpkin Cake” (E fuel).  A variation of the popular THM recipe Bust-a-Myth Banana Bread located in the THM Cookbook pg 298.  You can see Jenifer C’s original recipe on  Trimhealthymembership.com membership site.

 

Ingredients:

  • Butter to prepare your 9 x 13 pan
  • 1 cup Pumpkin Puree
  • 1 cup Oat Flour
  • 1 cup Baking Blend (BUY HERE)
  • 1/2 cup Oat Fiber (BUY HERE)
  • 1/2 tsp Mineral Salt (BUY HERE)
  • 2 tsp Baking Powder (aluminum free preferably)
  • 1 tsp Baking Soda
  • 6 Tbsp Super Sweet Blend – OR – 3/4 cup Gentle Sweet Blend (BUY HERE)
  • 1 cup Fat free Greek Yogurt
  • 4 Whole Eggs
  • 2 tsp Vanilla Extract
  • 2 tsp Cinnamon
  • 1 tsp nutmeg
  • 1/2 tsp Ginger
  • 1/4 tsp Cloves
  • 2/3 cup Sugar Free Chocolate Chips (THM BRAND – Lily’s or Krisda Brand works well) (BUY HERE)

 

Instructions:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Prepare bottom and sides of a 9 x 13 baking pan with butter .
  3. In a large mixing bowl add all ingredients, except the chocolate chips.
  4. Blend ingredients well, scrape down sides of mixing bowl to ensure complete mixture of ingredients.
  5. Add chocolate chips and mix in by hand.
  6. Pour entire mixture into your prepared 9 x 13 pan, use a spatula to spread evenly in your pan.
  7.  Baked at 350 degrees for 45 to 50 minutes.  Check center with toothpick for doneness.
  8. Let cool completely, and cut into 15 equal squares

*Due to this recipe using oat flour, limit your serving size to 2 of the 15 equal squares to keep within an S setting (fat source), more will throw you into the Crossover setting (both fat, and carb source), which is known to stall weight loss.

 

With Love,

Chrissy ❤

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Main Dish

Smart Baking Company Review

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I was instantly interested in the Smart Baking Company when they came on the scene with their Smart Bun and their Smart Cakes.  I’d been looking for an excellent hamburger/miscellaneous bun for quite a while and was so happy to find one that was getting rave reviews within the Trim Health Mama/Low Carb community.

So when I got my box of samples to review from the Smart Baking Company I was delighted to put them to the test.  I kept it pretty simple to start.

I love that all the ingredients are great to use within the THM eating plan.  I love the Trim Healthy Mama plan, and it is so much easier to do when I can add the quick grab and go item that makes life easier for this busy mama.

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Smart Cakes Review

I like simple things, so for the Smart Cakes I tried them plain, straight up, no fancy toppings or additions.  To get different opinions I shared with my hubby and my kids.  I did add a variable in our tasting experiment though,  I placed half of each package of Smart Cakes in the fridge to chill before trying, and left the other half at room temp.  Why did I put them in the fridge?  With lots of low-carb baked goodies once they have time to chill in the fridge something magical happens, the flavors, sweetness and textures improve (in my humble opinion of course).  So upon comparing the un-chilled against the chilled Smart Cakes we all unanimously agreed the chilled ones tasted sweeter and the texture was more dense and cakey, which we all preferred.  However, the un-chilled Smart Cakes were still very good, just not as sweet and a bit more crumbly.  Our ‘over all favorite flavor’ among the three flavors (Chocolate, Coconut, and Cinnamon) was again, unanimously Cinnamon followed by a close second of Chocolate,  and Coconut finished very strong as our third favorite, and was still a yummy tasty treat.

We really enjoyed them all though, I’ve made it a point to order some to have on hand as they are an excellent snack to go to, especially with how high in fiber they are!  I don’t know about you but I love to have lots of grab and go options on hand.  It makes a difference whether I succeed or fail.  I generally have a well laid out food plan, but a wrench can get thrown in there from time to time making it hard to succeed otherwise.  I’m so glad to have these scrumptious little Smart Cakes as a quick, delicious option.

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Smart Bun Review

In reviewing the Smart bun, I wanted to use them in a recipe.  I love creating recipes, so coming up with two simple, tasty ones was a delicious task to have! You can order the Smart Bun two different ways, with sesame seeds and/or without sesame seeds.  I was given one bag of “without” sesame seed, and two of “with” sesame seeds to play with.

Before I share my recipes, I want to talk more about the buns.  They are soft and squishy, they hold up to whatever you’re eating without falling apart or crumbling to bits like other gluten free buns on the market.  They have a nice soft texture to bite into and are without a doubt the best gluten free hamburger bun I’ve ever tried…..and I’ve tried A WHOLE BUNCH!  These are truly a dream come true, low carb burgers will never be the same!!  These are becoming a staple in the Benoit household from now on.  Thank you Smart Baking Company for 2 excellent products that make me and my taste buds happy!!

Folks these buns are just the best thing since….

So for my first recipe I kept it very simple and just made a simple breakfast sandwich.  There’s nothing like being able to enjoy a hearty breakfast sandwich.  It’s a great meal at anytime of day and is so easy to make with simple whole ingredients.

I made two recipes to try these Smart Buns out.  Scroll down to get a sneak peek at those recipes….To view the full recipes click on the links shared.

Chrissy’s Breakfast Sandwich

See Recipe Here

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Easily make these for the whole family just increase the recipe by the number of people you’re looking to feed.  I made these for my whole family and we loved it.  Such as great morning meal.

 

 

See Recipe for Chrissy’s Breakfast Sandwich Here (THM S, E or FP)

 

Try something else…..

Chrissy’s Better Burgers (THM S)

See Recipe Here

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See Recipe for Chrissy’s Burgers (THM S) Here

 

So when it’s all said and done, I’ve loved trying out the goodies from The Smart Baking Company.  I recommend them to you and your household without issue.  I know they’ll be a constant in mine.

 

With love,

Chrissy  ❤

 

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Breads, Muffins & Cookies

Spice Cake Cupcakes with Maple Brown Sugar Cream Cheese Icing (THM S)

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It’s fall here in beautiful Nova Scotia, and the days are definitely getting cooler, the leaves are starting to turn, and most importantly baking season is back on baby!  Although I do admit whenever I’d find a cool enough day during the summer the oven would come on and we’d suffer but we’d eat yummy low-carb baked goodies.   Sadly that didn’t happen often enough.  I really missed being in the kitchen creating and smelling the aromas that wrap around you, coaxing you to salivate as you await the finished product.  Then finally just when you think you can’t wait a minute longer you finally get to bite into that yum yum……. AHHHHHH catharsis!!!! ❤ ❤ ❤

Fall always inspires me to create warm sweet spicy numbers.  You know exactly what I mean don’t you?  How about some…pumpkin, apple, pear something or other… to name a few.  However today I’m keeping it super simple with a recipe I know you’ll love as much as I do.

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It’s so sweet and spicy, with the playful flavors of cinnamon, nutmeg, clove and allspice marrying together so delicately and perfectly.   Deciding to top this with a Maple Brown Sugar Cream Cheese Icing made perfect sense to me, and it matches the warm spicy flavors so perfectly that you’ll be so glad you got yourself into the kitchen to make these beauties.

These Spice Cake Cupcakes truly are the quintessential “flavors of Fall” all on their own….warm, spicy, and sweet, but when you top them off with Maple Brown Sugar Cream Cheese Icing….you’re automatically transported to thoughts of Thanks-giving, fall foliage, and big warm sweaters.  Delightful! ❤ ❤ ❤

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Ingredients:

For the Cupcakes-

1 cup Almond Milk (at room temperature)

2 tsp white vinegar

2/3 cup Gentle Sweet  – OR – 1/3 cup Super Sweet (buy here) Or sweetener of choice…here’s a handy sweetener conversion chart

1 cup Butter softened (Or Coconut oil for dairy free)

5 large Eggs

1 3/4 cup Baking Blend (buy here) – OR – 1 3/4 cup Nili’s Baking Mix (see here)

1 1/2 tsp Baking Soda

1 1/2 tsp Baking Powder

2 tsp Cinnamon ground

1 tsp Nutmeg ground

1/2 tsp  Allspice ground

1/2 tsp Cloves ground

1/4 tsp Mineral Salt (buy here)

For the Icing-

1/2 cup Butter softened

8 oz Cream Cheese softened

1 1/2 tsp Maple Extract

2 Tbsp of Gwen’s Nest Brown Sugar (find recipe here) *important info see notes!!!

Instructions:

For the Cupcakes-

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F, prepare muffin tin with butter or if using cupcake liners spray liners with coconut oil.
  2. Add white vinegar to Almond Milk and set aside
  3. Cream together sweetener and butter in a large bowl stand mixer or with a hand held mixer.
  4. One by one add eggs and blend well for each egg.
  5. Add remaining dry ingredients and mix until well blended, wiping down sides of bowl as you go.
  6. While mixing slowly add the almond milk/white vinegar mixture.  Blend well
  7. Scoop batter into prepared muffin tin by the 1/4 cup size scoop.
  8. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 mins (while cupcakes are baking make icing)
  9. Let cool completely before icing.

For the Icing-

  1. Whip together softened butter and softened cream cheese in medium sized bowl stand mixer or hand mixer until fluffy
  2. Add sweeteners and extract and whip well wiping down sides of bowl as you go.
  3. Set aside to ice the cupcakes until they are fully cooled.

*I make Gwen’s Brown Sugar recipe with Super Sweet Blend but in the same amounts. She recommends you use Xylitol or Erythritol, so if you do indeed use Erythritol or Xylitol to make her brown sugar use 2/3 cup instead of 2 Tbsp as noted.

With Love,

Chrissy ❤

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S Fuel Recipes

Blueberry Grunt (THM S)

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Growing up in the East Coast of Canada we Maritimers enjoy this dessert on a regular basis during blueberry season.  I wouldn’t be surprised if you haven’t heard of it, it’s quite specific to this neck of the woods and it’s really one of our best kept secrets.  If you’ve ever traveled to our beautiful coast than you may have heard or tried this delicious dessert.  If not you need not wait any longer, it’s so easy to make and tastes soooo good. ❤

What’s with the silly name though?  Well that’s what speculation is all about.  Some people say it’s the grunting sound the blueberries make as the dessert bakes and others say it’s the grunting you make when you taste just how fantastic this dessert is.  I tend to lean toward the latter reason.  I personally grunt every time I take a bite of this amazing Maritime treat. ❤

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This dessert is as lovely to make as it is to eat as it comes together quickly.  Topping this dessert are sweet fluffy mounds of biscuit and under those yummy biscuity clouds you’ll find loads of wild blueberries that make you smile blue and fill your belly with pure joy.  So you can see why I needed to convert this with my way of eating on Trim Healthy Mama to make this a great S fuel type dessert. (Learn more about THM here)

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I have been making an effort to convert the recipes I’ve enjoyed throughout my life to be carb smart.  I’m looking to enjoy these dishes without spiking my insulin and sending my body into fat storage mode.  Surprisingly this dish was easy to convert, and I’m happy to share it with you now.

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Ingredients

3 cups of blueberries, (fresh are best but frozen will work)

½ tsp Nutmeg

½ tsp Cinnamon, ground

1 tbsp Lemon Juice

6 Tbsp Gentle Sweet Blend – OR – 3 Tbsp Super Sweet Blend – OR – 1 cup Erythritol (BUY HERE)

Biscuit Ingredients:

2 Tbsp Butter softened (or Coconut oil)

3 Tbsp + 1 tsp Gentle Sweet Blend – OR – 1 Tbsp + 2 tsp of Super Sweet Blend – OR – 1/2 cup Erythritol (BUY HERE)

1 Egg

1 cup of Unsweetened Almond Milk (or Coconut Milk)

3/4 cup Baking Blend (BUY HERE)

1/2 cup Coconut Flour

1/4 cup Almond Flour

2 tsp Baking Powder – aluminum free

Pinch of Mineral Salt (BUY HERE)

 

Instructions:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
  2. In a medium-sized bowl mix blueberries, nutmeg, cinnamon, lemon juice and sweetener until berries are well coated
  3. Place blueberries in the bottom of a greased (with butter or coconut oil) 9 x 13 casserole dish.
  4. Cream together the butter, sweetener, and egg. Add the unsweetened almond milk, baking blend, and other flours, baking powder, and salt. Beat until evenly combined.
  5. Drop by Tbsp spoonfuls on top of the blueberry mixture.
  6. Bake in preheated oven until golden brown, about 1 hour.
  7. Let cool for half an hour, serve and enjoy

Notes

1/6th of this recipe is one serving size to fit into an S setting as blueberries are limited to 1/2 cup serving size. 3 / 6 = .5

 

Enjoy!

With Love,

Chrissy  ❤

 

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Recent Posts

Chrissy’s Caesar Salad Dressing/ Dip

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This is not your mama’s regular ‘ol Caesar Dressing ladies and gents.   My tasty take on the classic Caesar recipe yields a flavorful,  slightly zippy, distinguished dressing!! If you’re not a fan of blue cheese you can omit it entirely if you have to.  Though, I’d suggest giving it a go.  There’s not enough of the blue cheese flavor to overpower this recipe.  It’s just a slight flavoring that helps make this dressing super creamy.

You don’t have to buy that bottle of dressing anymore.  Instead you can forgo the preservatives and additives and just get 100% full flavor.

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S Fuel Recipes

No Bake Mud Pies (THM S)

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I grew up with a mama who was in the kitchen, making the yummiest of treats on a very regular basis.  Mud pies where my absolute favorite of all her loving creations!!!

She used the standard mud pie recipe from decades ago that everyone used and still uses today.  I crave those little monsters regularly however they have 2 cups of sugar and 3 cups of instant oats.   WOW!!!!! Definitely NOT Trim Healthy Mama approved. (learn more about THM here) I set my mind to make them last night as I was discussing them with my challenge group leaders from my Facebook group (learn more about The Challenge Group here).  We were all talking about how we could get them THMified, so much of the thanks for this recipe goes to girls Sarah and Melissa…gotta love a good brainstorming session huh ladies? lol ♥

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You can really make this recipe your own by changing up the nuts and seeds I’ve used and replacing them with what you’d love in there.  Just keep the same measured amounts.

I chose to use almond slivers, pepitas & sunflower seeds as I love them, and they’re really affordable, nutritious and easily accessible.  So play away and come up with your perfect mud pie!

** As these have oats in them limit your serving size to no more than 1 of a 12,  or 2 of a 24 batch to fit within the Satisfying Fuel (S Fuel – high fat, lower carb) of Trim Healthy Mama.

 

Ingredients:

6 Tbsp Super Sweet Blend – OR – 3/4 cup Gentle Sweet Blend  – OR – 2 cups of Erythritol (Buy here)

1/2 cup Unsweetened Almond Milk

1/2 cup Butter – OR – Coconut Oil (I use coconut oil)

5 Tbsp Cocoa Powder

1/2 tsp Caramel Extract – OR – Vanilla Extract (I used Caramel)

1/2 tsp Mineral Salt (Pink Himalayan Salt) (Buy here)

1 cup Unsweetened Coconut Flakes (finely grated)

1 cup Old Fashioned Oats (Large Flake oats) Find Gluten Free Oats in the USA here  –  Find Gluten Free Oats in Canada here

** If you’re very carb sensitive you can reduce the oats to 1/2 cup.

3/4 cup Almond Slivers

1/2 cup Pepitas (the green insides of a pumpkin seed)(USA Buy here – CAD Buy here)

1/2 cup Sunflower Seeds

Instructions:

  1. Add sweetener, almond milk, butter or coconut oil, cocoa powder, extract, and salt to a medium sized pot.
  2. Stir ingredients well and bring to a boil over high heat.
  3. Let the sauce boil for a close to 1 minute, stir well the whole time. (this will burn very easily if left unattended)
  4. Remove from heat once sauce has thickened a bit.
  5. Add the remaining ingredients: coconut flakes, oats, almond slivers, pepitas, and sunflower seeds.
  6. Stir really well to make sure everything is well coated.
  7. Line a baking sheet with parchment (or foil)
  8. Scoop 1/4 cup amounts (I used this Large scoop) onto your lined pan. (Canadian Link here)
  9. You can flatten them if you’d like.
  10. You can let them set up on your counter or your freezer.  I’ve done both and they both work brilliantly.  Counter takes about 45 mins to set, the freezer takes 15 mins to set.
  11. Serve & Enjoy

With Love,Chrissy ♥

 

 

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Drinks

Blueberry Lemon Creamsicle Shake (THM FP)

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So this is totally reminiscent of an orange creamsicle.  Don’t believe me?  You should make it and see for yourself.  It’s a blueberry blend of creamy citrusiness (yeah I made up a word, so what? lol)…..IT’S TOTALLY YUM!  It may not have the traditional orange flavor of a creamsicle, but it’s a nice berry-citrus infusion that’s a welcome treat.

During the last 2 week challenge in my Challenge Group (my Facebook group, learn more here), one of the guidelines was to have more smoothies.     I was looking for some new Fuel Pull shakes to enjoy and I came up with this one. (Fuel Pull is a Trim Healthy Mama term meaning low-carb, and low-fat)   I really enjoy being able to have a giant smoothie entirely on its own as a meal.  So they need to be protein packed and hearty enough to carry me those 3 hours THM suggests you wait between your meals.  This Blueberry Lemon Creamsicle Shake, is delicious, filling and protein packed and it’s a giant of a glass full …..I can easily fill a 32 oz (1 quart) glass jar with this recipe.  I’m not joking, it’s gonna fill you up good.  ♥

Really any excuse to use my super-duper fantastic OmniBlend blender is good enough for me.  My OmniBlend blender makes up the best smoothies I’ve ever had, I just ♥ ♥ ♥ it.

(Check OmniBlend out, you won’t be sorry US link / CAD link)

So just throw all the ingredients into your blender and let it whir.  Than let me know what you think about it by commenting below!  Oh, and follow my blog so you don’t miss any of my recipes.  ♥

 

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S Fuel Recipes

Peanut Butter Cup Frosting

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This frosting is so so delicious.  I made this up, scooped up a large spoonful, walked through my house to find my husband.  As he saw me coming with a spoon I told him to close his eyes and open his mouth.  I had him taste this frosting ….he opened his eyes and they widened, he smiled largely swallowing than he blurted “Wow!  That tastes better than a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup”.    Yes!!!  I love making food, the person I love making it for the most is my husband, when he loves it I do a little victory dance.  If you like this frosting as much as my hubby and kids do than I’ll do another victory dance just for you too!! <3

I’ve had a couple of people tell me that when they’ve made this it’s been too runny, this NEVER happens when I make this recipes.  The only thing I can think is that they are using a different cocoa powder and Peanut flour which aren’t as absorbent as the brand I use.

Let me suggest a way around getting a runny outcome as opposed to a  nice thick frosting.  Only add the almond milk if needed after all ingredients have been added.  Add a TBSP at a time, and use your best judgement with how thick you want it to turn out. 🙂

This is still one of my favorite frosting to add to a cake, it always comes out exactly the way I want it to and the flavor is perfect for my tastes.  Like everything when using natural sweeteners personal tastes vary, so taste test to achieve your perfect sweetness level and flavor.

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