Bread and Trim Healthy Mama

     One thing that many mama's including myself do is to shy away from bread products. It is quite confusing to know which brands, styles and types of bread are on plan and in which meal setting.

     In our house I am the one who has issues with eating off plan bread products. Some E meals really mess with my blood sugar. The recommended brand of store bought bread is Ezekiel 4:9. While I am sure this product is enjoyed by many it doesn't work in our house for a couple of reasons:

• It is stored in the freezer
• The texture
• The cost

     I have always loved bread making, it relaxes me and is therapeutic. My family was really missing homemade bread so I started looking in the book to see which recipes would work for us.

     The Chewy Sprouted Mini Loaves on page 422 was the first recipe that I tried. And boy did that not go well. My wheat berries sprouted with no problem see aren't they great ...

But the finished loaves came out with the density of hockey pucks, they were not edible... expensive ingredients in the trash once more...

     I continued reading and found a sour dough recipe on page 420. It's a rye and spelt recipe that makes 6 loaves. That's not going to work in our house.

     So off to the internet to search for an acceptable recipe ... I found many. I am still working on this and will post more when I find some that work on plan.

     Until then one of the other ladies who is also on plan, posted a reasonable 2 loaf recipe using sprouted flours that can be made in a bread machine. I made it using my  Kitchen aid.

Sugar Free Gum Drops

     When I first started my THM journey I found that I was missing gum drop style candy you know like sour patch kids... gummy bears and worms...

     So I challenged myself to making some at home, my kids always loved Jigglers so I have a bunch of molds from when they were at home. I was hoping they would curb my urge to snack without tandem fueling.

     The first batch I made was a little squishy when I used 3 packets of gelatin which is equal to about 2 tablespoons. So I went searching some more and experimenting.

     Gelatin is a wonderful ingredient that adds a protein boost as well as collagen and other nutrients that help with healthy hair, nail and skin growth.

     Recently, I wanted to try the recipe that was available in the Trim Healthy Living, ezine but it wasn't available due to technical issues. So searching again I ran across this version that includes sugar...

  Part of the issue with using a sweetener like Pyure Organic Stevia is that they are mixed with erythritol and when that is concentrated it causes a weird cooling sensation, at least to me. This time I opted to use the sweet juice concentrate that I made. It worked beautifully!!!

     I adapted the above recipe to make it sugar free and it fits within Fuel Pull guidelines for Trim Healthy Mama.

 Here is the adapted recipe that I used:

Sugar Free Gum Drops

Printable Recipe

 4 Tbsp gelatin (that’s about 6 envelopes)
 1 cup cold sweet juice concentrate
 1  cup boiling water
  1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
 1/4 cup lemon juice
 1/4 tsp flavored extract like lemon or peppermint (I used strawberry)
 1-2 drops food coloring
  extra sweetener for coating or a combination of sweetener and citric acid for sour gummies

• In a large pot, soften gelatin in cold sweet juice concentrate for five minutes.
• Stir in boiling water until gelatin dissolves
• Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and boil for 25 minutes. Stir constantly.
• Pour mixture into 4 – 3X5 pans.
• Add 1/4 tsp extract and 1-2 drops food color to each pan.
• Stir until thoroughly combined.
• Cover pan and chill overnight in the fridge.
• Cut gelatin mixture into 3/4 inch cubes using a knife dipped in hot water.
• The gelatin may pull, but continue cutting.
• Separate cubes and roll in sweetener until coated on all sides.
• Place gumdrops on wax paper and leave at room temperature for two days to crystallize.

Store in an airtight container.
Makes about 8 dozen 3/4 inch gumdrops or 3 trays of jiggler molds.

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A Kombucha SCOBY From Store Bought Kombucha

     I started my adventure into growing a SCOBY from store bought Kombucha in this post.  Fast forward to today, 8 days later. I not only have a SCOBY but I had to find a brewing vessel. I got this 3.5-liter Locking Clamp Beverage Dispenser.

 

     I've fed the baby SCOBY twice since I began this adventure and now it needs to move to the bigger container ... look isn't it cute... it needs a name, so please leave me a comment with your suggestions...

I need a name!!

This post contains affiliate links, while it is no extra cost to you, if you happen to make a purchase than we make a small profit. This helps keep the content of the blog free