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Rich Dark Chocolate Fudge Brownies (Low Sugar!)

April 14, 2016 by Laura 13 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

These Dark Chocolate Fudge Brownies are low in sugar. Can you believe it?

Low Sugar Fudge Brownie

Sugar became my enemy about the time I turned 39. I feel absolutely awful – for hours or even days – if I eat sugary treats. Therefore I haven’t been able to eat a regular brownie for about three years.

Avoiding desserts hasn’t been hard for me because a cookie is not even worth a migraine. Sometimes just the smell of sweets turns my stomach, thinking of how terrible I’ll feel if I eat them. So will power? That has nothing to do with my “I’ll pass on the dessert, thanks.” Sweets literally make me sick. I really do not want them.

You know this is saying something since I’m the one who used to eat sugar with my sugar and wash it down with a fizzy glass full of sugar (and then have seconds).

Perhaps I consumed a lifetime quota of sugar by the time I was 39. More likely I think this is a result of some major cleansing and heavy metal detox I’ve been doing with my natural doctor during the past few years. My body is at a point of only wanting the good stuff. Okay then. This is probably the best side effect ever.

Having said all that, I do really appreciate a treat that is lightly sweetened. My body can handle these in moderation, and experimenting with recipes to drastically cut the sugar has been really fun. As you know from reading any of my recent low-sugar recipes – I’m learning that treats and dessert really do taste wonderful even when the sugar content has been cut in a huge way.

This, of course, has been greatly beneficial for our entire family (and now for yours!). I’ve wanted for so long to cut down on our sugar intake. It’s just hard since sugar tastes so doggone good.

Thorough research has taught me that high quality fats like coconut oil, butter, and palm oil are not our enemy when it comes to good health. SUGAR IS THE ENEMY. I should probably write an entire post about this. (Oh wait. I just did.) But go read it later because, my friends, I have a Low Sugar Brownie Recipe and I’m not afraid to eat it. This is my most exciting discovery in all my low-sugar recipe experimentation. We can cut the sugar in brownies!!!!

Someone hold me back. Not from eating too many. Just from SCREAMING TOO LOUDLY. This is just exciting. You’ll be screaming too. I support your decision to scream. (Outside. While we’re inside we use our inside voices.)

Rich Dark Chocolate Fudge BrowniesYum

5.0 from 1 reviews
Rich Dark Chocolate Fudge Brownies (Low Sugar!)
 
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Author: Laura
Serves: 12-15
Ingredients
  • 1 cup melted butter
  • ⅓ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • ½ cup sucanat or brown sugar (I use just under ½ cup, actually)
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1¼ cups whole wheat pastry flour
Instructions
  1. Mix together melted butter, cocoa, and sugar.
  2. Add eggs and vanilla, stirring well.
  3. Mix in flour until well combined.
  4. Spread into a 9x9 inch baking dish or a 9 inch pie dish.
  5. Bake in a 350° oven for 20 minutes.
  6. Allow brownies to cool before cutting them (good luck).
3.4.3177

Dark Chocolate Fudge Brownies {Low Sugar}

These bake up a little different from “full sugar” brownies. You may notice that the butter sizzles on the top of these while they’re baking. Don’t worry a bit. Take them out of the oven after 20 minutes of baking and let them sit for a few minutes. The butter settles in and turns your brownies fudgy and moist.

Because the sugar is cut down in this recipe, you’ll find that these taste more like dark chocolate. All of my kids ate them without complaint because these are still plenty sweet. (But not so sweet that I can’t have a small piece, so yay!)

Onward we go, testing out more low sugar recipes! How fun is this?!

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High Five Recipes: Easy Butterscotch Bars

March 15, 2016 by Laura 97 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

People can’t get enough of these butterscotch bars. They’re made with whole wheat flour but no one knows. They’re made with only five ingredients that you probably have on hand – so easy!

butterscotch_bars

I originally posted this recipe in 2010, but decided to post it again for you today. Why? Because butterscotch bars. And also because I have only been home 3 of the past 11 days so I’m behinder than ever. While I play catch up and work on new projects (wait till you see!), I wanted to bless you a recipe so you could bless others.

High Five Recipes 2

You’ll be glad to know that this is a High Five Recipe! (High quality recipes + five ingredients or less = High Five Recipe)

This is not a Low Sugar Recipe, however. So make them to share with others, and saver them slowly (as opposed to gobbling down half the pan before you realize what happened).

 

Easy Butterscotch BarsYum

4.2 from 6 reviews
High Five Recipes: Easy Butterscotch Bars
 
Save Print
Author: Laura
Ingredients
  • 1 cup melted butter
  • 1¾ cups sucanat or brown sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1½ cups whole wheat flour
Instructions
  1. Stir melted butter and sucanat together.
  2. Add eggs and vanilla, mixing well.
  3. Stir in flour and mix until well combined.
  4. Pour batter into a 9x13 inch baking pan.
  5. Bake at 350° for 25 minutes.
3.4.3177

These bars are gooey, rich, and need I remind you to make them to share with friends?

Now that I’ve been making these butterscotch bars for so many years, I get frequent requests for them.

  • “Laura, would it be too much for me to ask you to make a batch of your butterscotch bars for me for my birthday? Like very year for the rest of my life?”
  • “Laura, my friends and I were talking about your butterscotch bars and now we want some. I told them I’d ask…can you make us a batch?”
  • “How much arm twisting would it take for you to make another pan of your butterscotch bars?”

These requests make my day, and since the bars are so easy to make, I almost always say yes! If you haven’t tried these bars yet, do it. They’re crazy easy, but beware: people will beg you to make more. You’ll have more friends than you ever had before and everyone will love you for providing the butterscotch bars. It’s hard, but you can handle it.

Easy Butterscotch Bars - Five Ingredients!

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The Real Food Ingredient I’ve Mostly Stopped Buying

January 13, 2016 by Laura 38 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

It was one of the first real food ingredients I wrote about when I started this blog. It made the top of the list on this post. I recommended it highly and always stocked up to keep it on hand. This goes to show that we can never stop learning and never stop changing what works best for our families.

The Real Food Ingredient I've Mostly Stopped Buying

Is it butter? Did I stop buying butter?

Girl, are you crazy? I did not stop buying butter.

But I have realized that I’m buying less and less sucanat.

Why am I buying less sucanat?

There are several reasons. Allow me to share:

1. Our grocery bill is a killer. Some things had to go.

As the boys have gotten older – our grocery bill has more than doubled with their teenage appetites. I’ve found that I had to make some compromises on what I consider to be “less important” items in order to make sure we’re still eating plenty of nourishing foods. It doesn’t make sense to me for hold out on the fruits and vegetables so that we can afford to buy sucanat for our brownies.

2. Sucanat is better for us, but it is still sugar.

While sucanat does have some nutritional value, our bodies still recognize it for exactly what it is: sugar.

There is a clear difference in sucanat and regular white sugar. I love that sucanat has many nutrients still intact – so when we eat sucanat, our bodies can utilize its nutrients. Great. But I’m not relying on sucanat as a main source of nourishment. Our primary sources of nourishment come from our meals, not our desserts. If we don’t eat sucanat, our bodies won’t be deprived of important vitamins and minerals. We’re getting those from other food sources.

Any sugar – even the natural sugars like sucanat, honey, and maple syrup – can effect our bodies negatively even if they do offer some nutrients here and there. Thus, making sucanat less of a priority only makes sense for our family right now.

3. We’re eating less sugar overall.

Well, at least I am. And Matt is. The kids…well. They still like their sweets and you can read more of my thoughts on this matter here.

Overall, I’m baking fewer sweet treats to have on hand. Also, I’ve learned to cut down the sugar in the treats I do make. In summary, we go through less sucanat because I’m not stirring two cups of it into a batch of brownies every other day. Good grief, I used to. I was such a sugaraholic!!

I love only using 1/2 cup of sugar in a recipe that originally called for 2 cups – and turning out a product that still tastes amazing. Why, Betty Crocker? Why??

Low Sugar Super Moist Chocolate Cake

What I Am Using Instead of Sucanat

More and more, I’m learning to use Stevia to sweeten our treats. It has taken some trial and error to find the correct amount to use so that our smoothies, frostings, and custards will be sweet enough but not bitter. We’ve gotten the hang of it now. I love it!

I’ve tried my hand at making Homemade Stevia Extract, but I’m not confident enough in my efforts to share the recipe with you yet. I stick with NuNaturals brand, which I have found to be the best tasting with ingredients I trust.

For baked goods, I frequently use regular ol’ brown sugar from the store. It saves us money, and that is important right now.

I also still use real maple syrup and our wonderful local raw honey. But I’ve cut back on the quantity of those too now that I’ve learned that I can still turn out delicious treats with a lesser amount of sweetener!

sucanat

I Haven’t Stopped Buying Sucanat Completely

I really like the taste of sucanat in certain items. I haven’t stopped buying it altogether. I’ve just stopped making it a grocery priority. I watch for online sales on sucanat at Olive Nation or Amazon and I grab it if the price is right. But I’ve definitely stopped buying 25 pound bags every few months. Whoa, Nellie. The grocery budget says “no way” right now.

So how about you?

Are you a fan of sucanat? Have you found a good source to keep the cost down? Have you found that you compromise on certain items in order to stay within your real food grocery budget?

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Low Sugar Sunshine Cake

July 2, 2015 by Laura 8 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

Of course I named this “sunshine cake.”

sunshine cake 12

I don’t know if you know this about me or not since I hardly ever mention it or at the very least I haven’t said it in the past five minutes – but here it is: I LOVE SUNSHINE!!! I have decided that I need large doses of vitamin D in order to avoid all kinds of conditions and disorders. Bring on the hot, bright, beautiful days of summer!

My love of sunshine along with my love for this cake led me to call this recipe Sunshine Cake. Indeed, that’s exactly what this tastes like: a delicious drop of sunshine.

What does sunshine taste like, you ask? Well, it tastes like this cake. Do I need to keep explaining this?

If you can possibly believe it, I think I like this cake even better than the Low Sugar Super Moist Chocolate Cake – and we all know that I love that cake almost as much as I love sunshine.

Just like the chocolate cake, two key players in this recipe are whole wheat pastry flour and sour cream. The pastry flour helps this cake remain light, and the sour cream keeps it moist. But let’s not forget the Cream Cheese Frosting. It goes without saying that Cream Cheese Frosting makes everything in life better. Even cloudy days with no sunshine.

Low Sugar Sunshine CakeYum

Low Sugar Sunshine Cake
 
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Author: Laura
Ingredients
  • 2⅔ cups whole wheat pastry flour
  • ½ cup sucanat or sugar
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 cup milk
  • ½ cup sour cream
  • ½ cup melted butter
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
  1. Combine dry ingredients in a bowl.
  2. Add milk, sour cream, melted butter, eggs, and vanilla.
  3. Mix with beaters until smooth.
  4. Pour into a buttered 9x13 cake pan.
  5. Bake in a 350° oven for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
3.4.3177

Stevia-Sweetened Cream Cheese Frosting

2 cups heavy whipping cream
2 Tablespoons softened butter
8 ounces softened cream cheese
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Liquid stevia to taste (I use about 20 drops)

In a large bowl, whip cream until soft peaks form. Add softened butter, cream cheese, vanilla, and stevia – whipping until well combined and smooth. Spread over cooled cake. Store in refrigerator.

If you prefer, here’s a slightly sweeter but still not too sugary frosting option:

Maple Cream Cheese Frosting

8 ounces softened cream cheese
¼ cup softened butter
3-4 Tablespoons real maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

With a hand mixer (or in your blender), whip together all ingredients until smooth. Spread over cooled cake.

Low Sugar Sunshine Cake

Tell me which Low Sugar recipes you’ve tried so far. Which are your favorite? Are you a chocolate or a vanilla kinda friend?

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Low Sugar Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake

June 10, 2015 by Laura 13 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

chocolate peanut butter cake 2

Happiness is taking part of one recipe and part of another recipe and putting them together to make Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake recipe. Happiness is having your cake and eating it too because of the low sugar content. Happiness is a cup of coffee with this cake. Really, this whole post and all that is included is really very happy.

Unless you can’t have dairy or gluten or nuts. Then this post really just stinks.

But for the wheaty, milky, nutty (you know who you are) people out there, we shall enjoy this cake on behalf of our dairy free, gluten free, and nut free friends. We’ll feel just a little bit bad that you can’t eat this with us, but we trust that you can take this idea and run with it. You’re good at adapting, right?

So Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake. This is amazing, and it only has 1/2 cup of sugar in it so if you want to eat it for breakfast, by all means, do it.

Here’s what I did:

I made this Chocolate Cake. When it cooled, I topped it with this Peanut Butter Cream Frosting. Everyone at our house loved this cake! (except for Malachi, who hates peanut butter – what is the matter with this child?)

Now, you can also bake this Peanut Butter Cake and top it with this Honey Sweetened, Low Sugar Chocolate Frosting for a variation of Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake. Again, happiness is taking part of one recipe and putting it with part of another recipe. (This concept does not apply to everything. Do not mix and match my Alfredo Sauce with Pasta recipe with Apple Butter or Barbeque Sauce. I should not have to explain this.)

Low Sugar Chocolate CakeYum

1 cup melted coconut oil
1 cup water
4 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup sucanat
dash of sea salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup sour cream
2 eggs

In a large mixing bowl, stir together flour, sucanat, salt, and baking soda. Set aside. In a saucepan, bring oil, water, and cocoa to a boil. Pour liquid mixture into the bowl with the dry ingredient mixture. Stir well. Add sour cream and eggs, mixing well. Pour batter into a 9×13 inch baking pan. Bake in a 350° oven for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Allow cake to cool completely before frosting.

Peanut Butter Cream Frosting

1/4 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup natural peanut butter, softened
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Liquid stevia

Whip together all ingredients until thick and smooth, sweetening with stevia to taste. Spread over cooled cake.

Low Sugar Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake

Mixing and matching rocks. Who’s a fan of chocolate and peanut butter? What’s the weirdest food combination you like to eat? I have no idea why I’m asking that.

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Low Sugar Lemon Loaf ~ a knock off of a Starbucks knock off

May 19, 2015 by Laura 9 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

Ever had the Starbucks Lemon Loaf? Me neither. But I’ve seen it in their display case and it looks divine.

Recently I came across a recipe knock-off for the famous loaf. Therefore, I decided to make a knock-off of the knock-off. I’m guessing that by now, this recipe barely even resembles the Starbucks variety – except for the part about it being a loaf and being lemony. But yay for recipe inspiration! My family agrees that this recipe is a keeper.

Pucker up, by the way. This bread packs a wonderful, lemony punch. I don’t recommend that you eat this Lemon Bread with Lemon Water unless you want to make funny faces at your family all through breakfast. Come to think of it – definitely do eat the lemon bread with the lemon water. Take selfies. Report back to me.

Or you could just have this bread with coffee or milk. But that would just be sooooo normal.

Low Sugar Lemon Bread2

Low Sugar Lemon LoafYum

Low Sugar Lemon Loaf ~ a knock off of a Starbucks knock off
 
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Author: Laura
Ingredients
  • 1½ cups whole wheat pastry flour
  • ⅓ cup sucanat or brown sugar
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon sea salt
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ⅓ cup lemon juice
  • 2 Tablespoons melted butter
  • ½ cup melted coconut oil
  • Lemon Glaze
  • 3 Tablespoons honey
  • ⅓ cup lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • Stir ingredients together in a small saucepan over low heat until well combined. Pour over warm bread.
Instructions
  1. Stir together dry ingredients.
  2. Add eggs, vanilla, lemon juice, melted butter, and melted coconut oil.
  3. Mix well and pour into a buttered loaf pan.
  4. Bake in a 350° for about 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Poke hot loaf of bread with said toothpick several times, then pour lemon glaze over the top to coat completely.
  5. Allow the loaf to sit in the pan for 10-15 minutes before removing. Cool on a plate.
3.4.3177

Low Sugar Lemon BreadEver tried the Starbucks Lemon Loaf? (P.S. I don’t even like the taste of Starbucks coffee. Is it just me?)

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Low Sugar Carrot Cake With Maple Cream Cheese Frosting

May 8, 2015 by Laura 11 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

This Carrot Cake might be my family’s favorite low sugar treat so far!

I cut the sugar from the original recipe from 5 1/2 cups to just under 3/4 cups total. Not too shabby, eh? And just look at this plate of deliciousness!

Low Sugar Carrot Cake with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting

I personally like the Stevia Sweetened Cream Cheese Frosting recipe you’ll find with this Super Moist Chocolate Cake recipe. But my boys were asking if maybe I could make the frosting just a little bit sweeter this time. Why not? I simply added 3 Tablespoons of real maple syrup to the frosting and they LOVED it. How’s that for a healthier alternative to 4 cups of powdered sugar? Oh yes.

Low Sugar Carrot CakeYum

Low Sugar Carrot Cake With Maple Cream Cheese Frosting
 
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Author: Laura
Ingredients
  • 2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
  • ½ cup sucanat
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 3 cups finely shredded carrot (about 6 carrots)
  • 1 cup melted coconut oil
  • 4 eggs
Instructions
  1. Stir together flour, sucanat, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon.
  2. Mix in shredded carrots, melted oil, and eggs.
  3. Pour batter into a buttered 9x13 inch baking dish.
  4. Bake in a 350° for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean.
  5. Allow cake to cool completely before spreading on frosting.
3.4.3177

Maple Cream Cheese Frosting

8 ounces softened cream cheese
¼ cup softened butter
3-4 Tablespoons real maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

With a hand mixer (or in your blender), whip together all ingredients until smooth. Spread over cooled cake.

Go forth and pin this recipe. Or print it and pin it to your shirt so you can make it this weekend. This is an order, or at the very least, it is a very sweet suggestion.

Looking for more Low Sugar Recipes?

  • Easy {Low} Sugar Cookies
  • Low Sugar Lemon Melt-Away Cookies
  • Low Sugar Almond Melt-Away Cookies
  • Low Sugar Orange Melt-Away Cookies
  • Low Sugar Lime Melt-Away Cookies
  • Low Sugar Strawberry Cheesecake Parfaits
  • Low Sugar Chocolate Fudge Cookies
  • Low Sugar Chocolate Cheesecake Parfaits
  • Low Sugar Pumpkin Cheesecake Cups
  • Low Sugar Sunshine Cake
  • Low Sugar Super Moist Chocolate Cake
  • Coconut Fudge Bars
  • Low Sugar Lemon Loaf
  • Low Sugar Oatmeal Cookies
  • Low Sugar Peanut Butter Cake with Peanut Butter Frosting
Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

So You Wanted a Low Sugar Chocolate Frosting for your Low Sugar Chocolate Cake?

April 30, 2015 by Laura 3 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

When I shared this Low Sugar Super Moist Chocolate Cake recipe and told you that I’d adapted it from a Texas Sheet Cake recipe, several asked if I could come up with a low sugar chocolate frosting to go with it. I mean, the Cream Cheese Frosting is great, but sometimes we just need some chocolate with our chocolate, yes?

Low Sugar Super Moist Chocolate Cake

Creating a chocolate frosting for this cake was a little bit tricky. See, low sugar chocolate can turn out quite bitter if you’re not a dark chocolate fan (um, or even if you are). Plus, powdered sugar is typically what gives frosting its bulk. That’s why I’ve been using cream cheese frosting. The cream cheese and whipped cream provided the bulk, then the stevia provided the sweetness and we were good to go. (More about stevia here.)

Here’s what I learned through this trial and error process: Making chocolate frosting with stevia is not so good. Spread on top of the cake it was so-so, but wow, the bitterness had too much of a bite, even for me – the one who loves dark-dark chocolate.

So here’s the solution I came up with: I used honey. This frosting is really more of a glaze, because there’s not much in it to make it thick and creamy. But a thin chocolate glaze on a chocolate cake like this? Just right.

Find the Super Moist Chocolate Cake recipe here.

Low Sugar Chocolate FrostingYum

1/2 cup butter
4 Tablespoons cocoa powder
2 Tablespoons milk
2-4 Tablespoons honey (sweeten this to your taste)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a small saucepan combine butter, cocoa, milk, and honey. Cook and stir over low heat until ingredients are well combined and mixture begins to thicken slightly. Removed from heat. Stir in vanilla. Spread over cooled cake.

Honey Sweetened Chocolate Frosting

We really liked this cake with whipped cream on top. I simply whipped the cream, then added a few drops of stevia.

Low Sugar Chocolate Cake with Honey Sweetened Frosting

I continue to be fascinated by the fact that we can take so much of the sugar out of recipes and still turn out a delicious treat.

And guess what??!! Coming up next week…Low Sugar Carrot Cake with Maple Frosting recipe. YES!! I played with a recipe and my family loved it! I’ll get it typed up to share with you soon.

Do you have any low sugar treat requests for me to play with? I won’t make any promises on being able to create what you want, but I bet I’ll have fun trying. :)

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Low Sugar {Real Food} Oatmeal Cookie Recipe

April 23, 2015 by Laura 6 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

Taking the Super Moist Chocolate Cake from 6 cups of sugar to just 1/2 cup of sugar worked great. I figured why not play with other cake and cookie recipes to make them lower in sugar? And all the people said, “Amen.”

Low Sugar Chocolate Cake

If you haven’t tried this Low Sugar Super Moist Chocolate Cake yet, I have to ask:
Why?
Go make this. For the love of chocolate, people.

Now here’s another low-sugar treat I experimented with. I took my oatmeal cookie from 1 1/2 cups of sugar down to just 1/2 cup. I thought they were great. My kids ate them fine, but were sure to let me know that they would have been much better had I included chocolate chips.

Well duh. Everything is better with chocolate chips. But we’re going for low sugar here. So the boys suggested that maybe next time I could add chocolate chips to half the batch (for them) and leave the other half plain (for me). Apparently I’m the only one who needs to cut back on sugar and the boys still need plenty of it? And I’m not sure where Matt fits into this equation. Does Dad get any cookies, boys?

I’m sure they’d be happy to let me share my plain half with him. They are very nice.

Give these a try – with or without chocolate chips. Hey, you could even add raisins. Or dried cranberries.

Low Sugar Oatmeal CookiesYum

1 cup melted butter
1/2 cup sucanat
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups whole oats
1 1/2-2 cups whole wheat flour (I use freshly ground hard white wheat)

Stir together melted butter and sucanat. Add eggs, baking soda, salt, and vanilla. Stir in oats and flour until you reach desired cookie dough consistency. (If you’re using store-bought whole wheat flour, you may need less than 2 cups. Freshly ground may require the full 2 cups.)

Scoop cookie dough onto baking sheet leaving about 2 inches in between. Bake in a 350° oven for 10-12 minutes or until cookies are golden brown.

Low Sugar Oatmeal Cookies

These are great dipped in milk, and of course, I’ll be having a cup of coffee with my half of the cookies. Not that I’ll eat the entire half-batch at once. That would be a bit counter-productive, wouldn’t you say?

Are you a plain oatmeal cookie fan – or do you prefer them with raisins or chocolate chips?

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Low Sugar Peanut Butter Cake with Peanut Butter Cream Frosting

January 9, 2015 by Laura 23 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

Hallelujah, this peanut butter cake has less sugar than most breakfast muffins! This isn’t difficult, of course, because who decided it was a good idea to stir a bunch of sugar, corn syrup, and white flour together and call it “breakfast?” My apologies to all the donuts, poptarts, and poofy-puffs out there who just got their feelings hurt. It’s really not your fault.

Peanut Butter Cake

Indeed, not only do I serve this for desserts or snacks, I have been known to serve it for breakfast.

Now I know what you’re thinking. “This girl makes cake for breakfast all the time!” Okay fine. You caught me. (Other breakfast cake recipes: My Original Breakfast Cake and Pumpkin Breakfast Cake)

We do quite a few breakfast cakes around here, and I keep inventing more ideas. This is because breakfast cakes are easy and filling. My current favorite way to make breakfast is to bake a cake the night before, frost it with stevia sweetened frosting, then wake up to a ready-made meal. Pull out applesauce and fresh berries, and breakfast is served.

Here’s a little known secret about muffin and quick bread recipes: The batter can usually be spread into a 9×13 inch pan and baked into a cake. If you sub out white flour with whole wheat, replace the large amount of white sugar for a smaller amount of sucanat or honey, you have yourself a delicious and fun breakfast.

Serve meat or eggs with your cake if you need additional protein to start your day. Always serve fruit with your breakfast. (Sometimes I’m bossy.)

Low Sugar Peanut Butter CakeYum

Low Sugar Peanut Butter Cake with Peanut Butter Cream Frosting
 
Save Print
Author: Laura
Ingredients
  • ¼ cup butter
  • ¼ cup peanut butter
  • ½ cup sucanat
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup buttermilk
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1½ cups whole wheat flour
Instructions
  1. In a small saucepan, melt together the butter and peanut butter.
  2. Stir melted mixture into the sucanat.
  3. Add eggs, buttermilk, baking soda, baking powder, and vanilla.
  4. Mix well, then stir in flour and mix until smooth.
  5. Pour batter into a 9x13 inch baking dish.
  6. Bake in a 350° oven for about 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
  7. Allow cake to cool before frosting.
3.4.3177

Peanut Butter Cream Frosting

1/4 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup natural peanut butter, softened
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Liquid stevia

Whip together all ingredients until thick and smooth, sweetening with stevia to taste. Spread over cooled cake.

Low Sugar Peanut Butter Cake with Peanut Butter Cream Frosting

Before anyone else can say it, I’m going to. “Did you see how much fat is in that frosting?!?!”

Mm-hmm. If it isn’t obvious to you by now by reading posts from this butter and coconut oil loving girl, it should be very clear to you how important I believe it is to eat plenty of healthy, real fats. Our brains need fat to thrive! (Why yes I have researched this for hours and hours.) It just so happens I’m nourishing my brain by eating this cake with a thick layer of frosting.

The low amount of sugar in this cake (which I cut into 24 pieces, by the way) combined with whole grains and healthy fats makes for a very nourishing treat. In case you’re wondering, the reason I use cream cheese and cream in my stevia sweetened frosting recipes is because when whipped together, those cream products provide bulk (taking the place of three cups of powdered sugar). Also – it’s cream cheese and cream! Does life get any yummier?

So there you go. If you haven’t served cake for breakfast yet, do this. Tell your kids I said, “You’re welcome.”

What’s your breakfast cake status? Tried it yet?

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