A Little Less Sugar Please

As you all know I wage and on going battle with my voluptuous rear end...... It is a war which sadly I am not the VICTOR! I just love eating too much! I run three times a week so that I can 'apply to mouth' when ever I want to, which is often. I really try to eat well and tell myself that I really can do without the delicious looking chocolate chip muffin........However I always lose the battle! Now please,  please don't get me wrong I do not want to be a stick insect.... NEVER!! I feel so very sorry for  ramp models when I see them on Fashiontv -  those poor girls need a burger or a good hearty meal,  I honest believe that is why they all look so sad and cross!

 

Why am I carrying on so much.... Wellllll, I recently returned from London armed with a very interesting book. I first saw this book on my friend Ashley Brooker's  Blog - Quintessentially Me. Ash is a clean eating girl and I admire her so much for leading this life style, everything she puts in her mouth is 'clean' organic and healthy.....She blogs about food, travel and her life in London! Here is the Link. So the book was reviewed on her blog and she raved about it, now being that I am in no way a clean eating girl, I never though this book would appeal to me..... Until I saw it on our recent trip to the UK.
 

 

It is called I QUIT SUGAR It is A great read! It is really well written  and she is in no way pushy or forceful about her life style. Its about her journey when she gave up sugar. Some very interesting facts are thrown in, facts that will really make you sit back and  think  about exactly what  you are 'applying to mouth'
 

I have read and reread some of the chapters and although I am not sure that I can entirely give up sugar, I have decided to try and eat cleaner and think about what was actually going into my mouth..... Soooooo I have bought the necessary ingredients and quietly begun to try and convert not only myself but my family! Poor LSO!!! The first test was when I made Pancakes a few days ago.... I exchanged the sugar (5 tablespoons), for a pinch of Stevia powder. I never told anyone I was going to do it and waited with bated breath to see if the family (in particular my fussy eating little Madame) would notice. They ate every single one with no bad comment!  Whew! A little success!

 

Healthy Stuff

A  few of the recipes really caught my eye, in particular Fluffy Pumpkin and Chia Muffins and Coco Nutty Granola. So over the next few day I got down to baking and making.

The Batter

So the muffins were really easy to make, came together really quickly and the batter looked lovely. Golden, thick and cakey in consistency! The main ingredients, were,  the pumpkin of course,which you grate and chickpea flour. after I had finished the batter I dipped my finger in, now I am a girl who loves batter usually.... this batter however was not great! In my humble opinion, if a batter doesn't taste good the end product might not be great......   

They Looked Great.....

However, once in the oven baking, the smell was really good. They certainly looked great when they came out. Golden with emerald green sunflower seeds on top. True to the batter when broken open they were cake like in texture! These muffins looked really yummy..... Alas they were not yummy. They weren't bad but they did not deliver on taste. These were indeed bitter. I cannot figure out whether it was the Chickpea flour or the Stevia powder? I checked the recipe and I had not done anything wrong.  The odd thing was, that a few minutes after I had finished eating them, I realised they had left a really good after taste.... Go figure? I will try them again with less Stevia.

Coconut and Nuts!

 

 

The granola was a great success. I might be a bit bias here because it contains COCONUT, which I LOVE! And loads and LOADS of nuts! Oats, chai seeds, coconut oil and rice syrup are the rest of the delightful ingredients.  Once again the recipe was easy peasy lemon squeezy! It tasted great before it went into the oven, as a matter of fact it tasted REALLY GOOD, I had eaten half the mixture before it even went into the oven. It tasted like a crunchie batter(think you UK peeps call our crunchies - flapjacks?) The granola was golden brown and crispy when it came out, I could not wait for it to be breakfast the next morning! This was a winner!   

 

Waiting To Be Baked

Breakfast!

 

I have already bought her next recipe book and tried out a few other bits and bobs - some great and some an acquired taste...... So am converted?...... I am so not sure! I cannot imagine life with out a great big piece of Chocolate Cake or a slab of Chocolate while I am reading a good trashy romance novel(Yes I love a good trashy romance novel) I will however try and be a little more selective in my sugar intake, I am a great believer in moderation, everything in moderation is ok, isn't it?  .......xxx

PS:: I have discover a great little Chocolate thingy in the next book -will share soon.....