Many people–myself included–are legitimately concerned about limiting sugar intake. If I have a candy bar or a soda, I can expect a harsh sugar crash within an hour or so, at which point I’ll feel tired and very crabby. Plus sugar calories are empty calories.
But we all know sweet things are tasty and can be energizing.
Paradoxially, the best way consume a reasonable amount of sugar is to buy plenty of sugar and honey and use both. The same could be said for fat and salt. Of course, some people would say that there’s no such thing as a reasonable amount of these, but how much fun is that?
I recently made Jonathan a cup of green tea when his digestive system was acting up. How to you get a four year-old to drink green tea? Stir in a scant teaspoon of honey, about 1/5 the sweetener you’ll find in pop. He drank almost all of it and was sad when I mistakenly didn’t save the few sips he had left. Sarah has pointed out that a teaspoon of sugar is all that’s needed for iced tea at a restaurant, which is about 5 t. less than you’ll get from pop or sweetened tea.
Homemade applesauce can also benefit from the addition of a small amount of added sugar, and is exceedingly easy to make:
1) Add coarsely chopped apples (a variety is best) with 1/2 inch of water to covered saucepan.
2) Heat saucepan; uncover when water boils.
3) Cook until apples disintegrate
4) Put mixture in food mill or press through course mesh sieve.
This is summarized from Mark Bittman, who says sugar is usually not necessary. However, after adding a scant teaspoon of sugar to 3–4 apples worth of sauce, I noticed a clear difference in flavor intensity. You might be lucky enough, though, to get the perfect sweetness and flavor from the apples you have around.
Many of you are probably thinking that using a cup of store-bought sugar is more common than using a teaspoon. Still, even if you’re making rich baked goods, your final product will taste better with less sugar than if you get them from the store. I made Mark Lebovitz’s Chocolate-Cherry Fruitcake lately, and am going through it pretty quickly.
Like most of you, I typically don’t like fruitcake, but this one tastes great. The combination of chocolate chips, cherries, pecans and bourbon makes for a very chocolatey and moist cake. It’s really good for breakfast. Click here for the recipe. Even with a cup of sugar and 5 TB. butter per loaf, this is still lower in sugar and significantly lower in fat than most commercial muffins. Plus you’re getting the added nutrition of fruit and nuts. It’s a bit decadent, but it’s a lot tastier and better for you than sweets from a store which are typically packed with high fructose corn syrup and bleached flour.
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