KIDNEY-Friendly DESSERT Recipes
Hello, Merry Christmas and happy holidays everyone! Welcome to this very special Christmas video!
What I have for you today is not just 1 but 3 very healthy and incredibly tasty Christmas dessert recipes!
Yes, eating healthy really is the cornerstone to a better kidney health, but sometimes I really wish we didn’t have to avoid everything containing sugar!
Especially during the holidays!
Well, today I’m going to show you that there’s a solution!
And, maybe, from now on, celebrating the holidays won’t be a choice between your health and the foods you like most!
Is this even possible?
Let’s see! Let’s start immediately with our first recipe!
Gingerbread cookies!
It’s not really Christmas without Gingerbread cookies! And I worked very hard to turn this cookie into an healthy recipe!
It wasn’t easy! you know, The classic gingerbread cookie recipe is full of sugar, butter and other unhealthy ingredients.
My recipe is totally different!
This is a no sugar, low GI and low potassium version of the gingerbread cookie recipe!
I can tell you it was not easy to get this result! This is not a recipe you can find on the internet!
I had to replace
First, Sugar with sweetener
Sugar is what makes biscuits unhealthy. In this recipe, there’s going to be basically no sugar!
What I’m using in this special recipe is a stevia based sweetener made for baking.
We’re also not going to use butter in this recipe. Butter is not healthy. First, it’s dairy, so it’s full of phosphorus. Then, it’s full of saturated fats.
What can we use, then?
Well, No-Trans-Fat Margarine.
Margarine tops butter when it comes to heart health.
This is soy based, actually,
So, I can’t believe this is not… unhealthy
Also, margarine is low in phosphorus and potassium. Very good.
The other important substitution that will make our recipe healthy is applesauce instead of molasses.
I know, this will alter the taste a bit, but molasses is… potassium-rich sugar.
Now, let’s start this recipe.
First, we need
1 AND 2/3 cups all-purpose flour, or 200 grams
2/3 cup of whole wheat flour, or 85 grams
1 Tbsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 or 125 grams of margarine
2/3 cup 200 grams apple sauce, unsweetened
1 egg
Now guys, the original recipe calls for half cup or 100 grams of sugar.
We will use a stevia based sweetener! A lot healthier!
Consider that If you use a sweetener, you will use a smaller amount of product.
According to the package of the sweetener I’m using, the right amount is 40 grams of sweetener every 100 grams of sugar, as you can see here.
Double check the label of the sweetener you use. It has to be safe for baking and it has to tell you how much sweetener you need to replace the sugar.
Now, stevia alone won’t cut it when it comes to baking, because you also need volume, not just sweetness.
This sweetener I am using today contains erythritol and stevia. I don’t know if you have watched my video about sweeteners, but erythritol is a sugar alcohol.
Actually, erythritol is supposed to be the most gentle of the sugar alcohols out there. It typically doesn’t cause the gastrointestinal upset that other sugar alcohols do.
Studies have shown that erythritol is typically well-tolerated, even in large amounts.
Now, this sweetener can be baked up to 160? Celsius, which is 320 Fahrenheit.
It’s a lower temperature than what you usually bake at. Which is also better when using margarine.
So I’m going to use 30 grams of sweetener. This is two and half tablespoons.
You can find the complete ingredient list and the nutritional values in description.
Now Let’s make it!
Preheat the oven to 320?F (160?C).
Combine flours, spices and baking soda in a medium bowl; set aside.
Beat the margarine, sweetener, egg and apple sauce in large bowl with electric mixer until blended.
Beat in flour mixture gradually until well combined.
Shape into 2 balls. Flatten each ball into a disc, then cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour.
Flour dough lightly, then roll between 2 sheets of baking paper to 0.5 cm thickness.
Use a cookie cutter to cut out shapes.
Bake until firm to the touch, about 15 minutes.
And let the cookies cool.
Now for the icing we’re going to use dark chocolate. You know how much I love dark chocolate, it’s a healthy food that really feels like a treat.
Especially healthy if you use 85% dark chocolate.
So I’m going to use a pan of simmering water (a bain marie) and allow the chocolate to melt.
Then, I’m using a sac a poche to decorate the cookies!
Ta-daaa done!
Ok, I’ve also made gingerbread cookies with a more traditional recipe. With sugar and butter.
Do they look the same? What do you guys think?
Let me know in comment section! And also let me know if you’re going to try this recipe!
Also, I know that there is a lot of misconceptions surrounding artificial sweeteners. I’ve made a video to explain why many sweeteners are, indeed, healthy and safe.
But, if you still have any doubt about the use of sweeteners, feel free to ask in comment section!
Anyway, I haven’t tasted this recipe yet, I’m going to taste everything at the end of the video!
I’ve never tried so many substitutions in a single recipe and I can’t wait to see how these cookies taste!
Now it’s time for our second recipe! Another classic Christmas recipe made healthy! Do you want to see it?
Let’s see it!
Oh, what do we have here! Healthy brownies?!? It can’t be!
Well, actually, this is my recipe for oatmeal brownies!
Let’s do it!
this is a very easy recipe. We need
2 & 1/2 cups rolled oats, that’s about 220 grams
3/4 cup all-purpose flour, 100 grams
This recipe calls for 3/4 cup of brown sugar. We’re going to replace it with 45 grams or a 1/4 cup of this stevia and erythrol sweetener.
Then
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup or 180 grams of margarine, softened
1/3 cup water, about 80 ml.
1/3 cup olive oil
2 eggs
1/2 cup chopped nuts, that’s about 75 grams.
3/4 CUP COCOA POWDER, 75 grams
And 1/2 TABLEESPOON CINNAMON
Grease the bottom of rectangular pan
The oven is already preheated to 320 degrees.
Let’s mix everything up and put it in the oven!
It will take about one hour.
To know if the brownies are ready, toothpick inserted 2 inches from side of pan comes out clean or almost clean. Cool completely for easier cutting.
Now, while we wait, there’s another recipe I want to show you!
And it is…
Hot chocolate!
Ok, what do we have here. This one is going to be a lot easier to make than gingerbread biscuits, I promise!
Also, this is a heart healthy snack! This hot chocolate is made from 85% dark chocolate, very low in sugar and very healthy for your heart and kidneys!
Also, we’re not going to use milk.
We will use coconut milk instead! Coconut milk will give a creamy taste to our chocolate and it’s also rich in nutrients!
If you don’t like the taste of coconut milk you can also use water or experiment with soy milk or almond milk.
I also like adding some powdered spices to my hot chocolate.
what we have here:
cinnamon
ginger
nutmeg
turmeric
half teaspoon cornstarch
again, experiment with these and find a combination you like.
They all have health benefits: cinnamon can help lower blood sugar levels, ginger and turmeric fight inflammation.
Let’s see how to do it!
Start by bringing the coconut milk to boil.
Put in a cup a tablespoon of cocoa powder. This is about 7.5 grams of powder.
Add the spices you want.
Add the coconut milk slowly, and stir.
Now, let’s add some dark chocolate and for last the cornstarch. We’re not going to use a lot of it because it still contains some sugar.
But if you can find 85% dark chocolate the sugar content is going to be very low.
So, we now have this steaming hot cup of chocolate, but I bet it’s going to taste bitter!
You know that I’m not going to use sugar here. The best replacement in my opinion is standard stevia.
Yes, a lot of sweeteners today, but remember that they are way healthier than sugar! Especially, but not just, for people with diabetes!
Ok, time to taste everything! I can’t believe all these sweets you see here are actually healthy!
Now, I want to try the oatmeal brownies first!
These look amazing, don’t you think?
mmm… I like it!
It tastes a bit less sweet than regular brownies. But I can really taste the hazelnuts.
I like it, especially knowing that all the ingredients in this one are healthy!
Ok, time for some hot chocolate!
Mmm
I make this one fairly often and I can tell you it tastes great.
It’s creamy and tasty, just like it like it.
Ok, time for the gingerbread cookies! You know, I was bit worried about this one because of all those substitutions that I’ve made!
But they turned out pretty well, I think.
So, this one is the healthy version and the darker ones are the classic recipe.
What I’m going to do now to test the flavor and consistency against the classic recipe!
I make regular gingerbread men every Christmas, it’s like a family tradition!
So let’s try the regular ones.
And they taste just like… regular gingerbread men.
You know, when I bring these to family gatherings, I never see leftovers, so I can tell you they’re good.
But maybe this year I’ll bring the healthy version?
Let’s try it!
Mmmm
It’s a bit drier than the regular one but… well knowing that there is no sugar here is really great!
But I like the texture and I really like the flavor!
And well, these recipes are healthy not just for your body, they are also comfort food! I mean, it’s great knowing that you can have something sweet, once in a while, without compromising your health.
So guys, let me know if you have tried these recipes, let me know what you think!
Thank you for watching and merry Christmas!
See you next Tuesday!
About the Author
Katherine My name is Katherine and I've been working with people suffering from kidney disease and other kidney issues for almost 10 years now. If there's one thing I learned is that you should never give up!
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