Crustless Pumpkin Pie - Gluten and Dairy FreeSweetened By Dates, No Sugar!Make Fresh Pumpkin Puree In Your Instant Pot

Lighten up your Thanksgiving with only 135 calories of Yum.
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Guilt-Free Dessert
Having to give up gluten and dairy is really tough around the holidays, especially at dessert time. This recipe accommodates gluten-free, dairy-free, and sugar-free diets without compromising taste in the slightest. It does, however, contain eggs so it's not appropriate for your vegan guests. 

Besides being incredibly low in calories, (weighing in at only 135 calories per serving, less than half of traditional pumpkin pie), it's super easy to make. 

This recipe starts with home-grown pumpkin cooked in an instant pot, but you can also make it with a can of pumpkin.

We grew three types of pumpkins this year and lots of them (about 40 or more.)

We grew a few dozen Racer pumpkins (in the front) which are good for Halloween. Doug drove around with them in the back of his truck and gave them to the neighborhood kids.

This is a Jarrahdale pumpkin which makes great soup and pie

This is my favorite. It's a Musque de Provence. It's so beautiful.
 I also use this one for soup and pie.

Cook Fresh Pumpkin in your Instant Pot
When you use fresh pumpkin for your pies, the most important thing is to make sure it's not watery. So after cooking it, whether it be in your Instant Pot or steaming it on the stovetop, make sure it's well drained.

You're going to need 2 cups of mashed pumpkin, so start with a pumpkin big enough to do that - about 3 to 4 pounds. This will vary with the density of the pumpkin you are using. The pumpkins I use, pictured above, weigh over 10 pounds so I just cut out a wedge and save the rest for soup or more pie.

Peel and cube your pumpkin and put it in a steamer basket in your Instant Pot with a cup of water. Cook at high pressure for 5 minutes with a quick release. It should be fork tender. If not, continue to cook. 

Pumpkin in a steamer basket in the Instant Pot

Scoop the cooked pumpkin into a colander with fine holes. Let it drain until it's very dry. You can help it along by mashing it down gently with a fork or spoon.

Pumpkin draining in a colander over a bowl. 

When it stops draining, it's ready to use in the pie. Measure out 2 cups of mashed, drained pumpkin and set aside.

Roasting is Great Too!
You can easily roast your pumpkin by cutting it in half, putting it on a shallow roasting pan or on a baking sheet lined with parchment, and baking it at 375 degrees F until tender. I like to loosely tent it with aluminum foil. The time will vary with the size of the pumpkin but it cab take 1 to 2 hours or more. The advantage is that it results in a much drier pumpkin than one that is steamed but the disadvantage is the time it takes to cook. You will still have to drain it in a colander to remove any moisture.

Pumpkin Pie Spice
You can buy ready made pumpkin pie spice or make it with a combination of cinnamon, ground ginger, nutmeg, cloves and allspice. Different recipes call for different ratios of these spices and your personal tastes. I use:

5 teaspoons of cinnamon
2 teaspoons ginger
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoons cloves
1/4 teaspoon of allspice

 Most recipes call for more nutmeg and less ginger but I like ginger much more than I like nutmeg. So change the ratios to suite your taste. Mix them all up and store in a spice jar in a cool, dark cabinet. It will last a long time.

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Crustless Pumpkin Pie
Gluten and Dairy Free
[makes 8 servings]

Requirements
Round, 10-inch pie pan
Blender

Ingredients
Non-dairy margarine to grease the pan
4 medjool dates*
1 (13.5 oz) can light coconut milk
1 (15 oz) can cooked pumpkin or 2 cups drained and mashed freshly cooked pumpkin
1/4 teaspoon of stevia powder, or to taste
4 pasture raised, organic eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla
1/3 cup gluten-free flour**
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice

* Dates can be replaced with 1/2 cup sugar, but dates are healthier and contain dietary fiber and other nutrients. 
** If you are not sensitive to gluten, you can substitute all-purpose flour

Directions
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a 10-inch pie pan and set aside.

Pit the dates and coarsely chop. Pour the coconut milk in a small bowl with the chopped dates and let soak until they soften. If the dates are soft and fresh, this won't take long. If they are hard, it may take several hours. 

Place the coconut milk and soaked dates in a blender and blend until well incorporated.

Add the remaining ingredients and process until smooth, about 20 seconds.

Pour into the prepared pan. Gently tap the pan on the counter to remove air bubbles.

Bake in the preheated oven for 45 to 50 minutes or until the pie barely jiggles in the middle, is set all the way through, and is brown around the edges.

Remove from the oven (test with a toothpick which should come out clean), and place on a wire rack until cooled completely. Place in the refrigerator to chill before serving.

Serve as is or with a tiny scoop of non-dairy vanilla ice cream.

Nutrition
Per serving: 135 calories, 6 g fat, 3 g saturated fat, 4 g protein, 18 g carbohydrates, 2 g dietary fiber, and 183 mg sodium.

10 Tips To Reduce Your Sugar Intake

Americans eat 76 times the sugar than their ancestors did!

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Make This Year the Healthiest Ever!
With the holidays are behind us, and like we do most Januaries, we want to get healthy, shed some pounds, feel better, and commit to doing something good for ourselves. Perhaps lowering our sugar intake would be an excellent start.

Lowering our Sugar Consumption is a Great Way to Start the New Year!
Today, the average American consumes an average of 152 pounds of sugar per year. That’s 6 cups of sugar a week or 14 tablespoons per day! At 48 calories per tablespoon, 14 tablespoons chews up 672 calories. These are calories that are displacing those that would contribute minerals, vitamins, and other important nutrients that would benefit, not detract, from your health. Or, they would be added calories that would lead to obesity, overall inflammation, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, cancer, and more. It would take you more than two hours of brisk walking to burn up 14 tablespoons of sugar. Not many of us have the time or commitment to do that.

To put this in prospective, two hundred years ago the average American only ate 2 pounds of sugar per year. When we wonder why diseases like cancer, heart attacks, Alzheimer’s, autism, various autoimmune conditions, and other degenerative disorders have skyrocketed over the past hundred or so years, it may very well be attributed, at least in part, to our drastic increase in sugar consumption. How did all that sugar end up in our diets and what can we do about it?  

Where is this Sugar Coming From?
Sugar finds its way into our food supply in many forms and with many names. It’s in jams and jellies, cakes, cookies, crackers, soft drinks, energy drinks, fruit drinks, specialty coffee drinks like lattes, specialty tea drinks, like chai, candy, breakfast cereals, ice cream, fruit yogurts, canned vegetables, prepared foods like canned soups, condiments, and more. 

It also has many names such as glucose, dextrose, fructose, maltose, sucrose, lactose, honey, sorghum syrup, corn syrup, high-fructose corn syrup, brown rice syrup, fruit juice concentrate, brown sugar, corn sweetener, sorbitol, evaporated cane juice, sucanat, barley malt, agave nectar, beet sugar, date sugar, molasses and more. 

Tips to Reduce our Sugar Consumption
Here are some easy and painless tips on how to reduce our sugar consumption:
#1: Read labels
Look for all the different names for sugar on the labels. New labels will now have “added sugars” in grams. Dietary guidelines suggest that no more than 10% of your daily calories come from added sugar. I personally think that’s too much as it’s still over 4 tablespoons of sugar per day given a 2,000 calorie diet.  
(Note: 1 tablespoon sugar = 12.5 grams = 48 calories.)

The new label has "added sugar"

#2: Eat PB&F instead of PB&J
Instead of smearing sugary jelly or jam on your peanut or almond butter sandwich, place slices of fresh fruit or berries on your sandwich. Sliced strawberries, apples, pears, persimmons, and bananas are some of my favorite additions to my nut butter sandwiches. One tablespoon of jelly contains 56 calories, almost no fiber, and 11 g of sugar (almost a tablespoon of sugar).  A third of a cup of sliced strawberries, on the other hand, would only have 18 calories, less than 3 grams of sugar, provide over a gram of dietary fiber, and important vitamins and minerals such as folate and manganese. 

Almond butter sandwich with fresh strawberries 

#3: Replace Soda
Instead of drinking soda, energy or other sugary drinks, have a cold glass of bubbly water with a splash of juice. My favorite is a glass of Pellegrino with a splash of unsweetened cranberry juice and a twist of lime. Or just add a slice of cucumber or strawberry to a cold glass of water. A 12-ounce cola beverage has 136 calories and contains 33 grams of sugar (over 2 ½ tablespoons of sugar), zero fiber and no significant nutrients. Just giving up one soda a day would be avoiding 60 cups of sugar per year and allow you to lose 14 pounds! Although drinking diet soda may avoid added sugar, the sugar substitute aspartame, used in most diet sodas, has been associated with a number of reported complaints such as headaches, dizziness, eye issues, mood changes, digestive issues, and more. 

#4: Reduce Sugar in Recipes
I find that I can easily reduce sugar in recipes without adversely affecting its taste. For example, in baking I replace a cup of sugar with ¼ to ½ cup of sugar plus some stevia to make up for the loss of sweetness. No one has ever noticed!

#5: Don’t buy Fruit Yogurt
Fruit yogurt sounds healthy but it’s loaded with sugar. For example, a container of Kite Hill Peach dairy-free yogurt has 180 calories and 15 grams of sugar, much of which comes from cane sugar. That same container of the plain, unsweetened yogurt has 140 calories with zero sugar. So it’s always best to find unsweetened yogurt and add your own chopped fresh fruit. 

Select unsweetened yogurt and add your own fresh fruit

#6: Ditch the Donuts
An Original Glazed Krispy Kreme donut has 190 calories and 10 grams of sugar. Or if you are opting for a Dunkin Frosted Sugar Cookie Donut, you are signing up for 420 calories and a whopping 30 grams of sugar. Although bagels contain far less sugar (zero to 6 grams), they can be high in calories, especially if they are covered with full fat cream cheese. In any case, swapping out one or two donuts with a single bagel, smeared with slices of avocado, would be a better choice.

Eat an avocado bagel with seeds instead of a donut

#7: Sugary Cereals, Oh My!
There is so much sugar in some breakfast cereals, that they should be carried in the candy isle. Kellogg’s Honey Smacks are 56% sugar, weighing in at 15 grams per serving. Kellogg’s Froot Loops, Marshmallow are 48% sugar and also contain 15 grams of sugar per serving. No need to go on – there are far too many examples of bad cereals that are heavily marketed to young children.  

Always read the labels on boxes of cereal

There are, however, some better choices, like Ezekiel 4:9 Almond Sprouted Whole Grain Cereal that has nutrient-rich ingredients and less than a single gram of sugar. 

A much better choice of cereal

But my favorite cereal alternative is homemade oatmeal sprinkled with omega-3 walnuts and a dollop of dairy-free, unsweetened yogurt.

#8: Reduce Sugar in Coffee and Tea
Coffee and tea are healthy beverages. But somehow Starbucks has turned them into high calorie, high fat, and high sugar drinks. A grande Coffee Frappuccion has 240 calories and 50 grams (4 tablespoons) of sugar. And a grande Green Tea Crème Frappuccino has 430 calories with 65 grams (5 tablespoons) of sugar. So stick to your regular coffee or tea with a touch of stevia and enjoy the many benefits of these drinks. 

If you want to enjoy a fancy latte, get a frother and make a green tea latte with unsweetened non-dairy milk and a bit of stevia. 

Homemade latte with no sugar

#9: Afternoon Pick-Me-Up
When I was a CEO, I had a continual battle with the vending machine company trying to get them to offer healthy snacks to my employees. Other than a few offerings of nuts and trail mixes, the rest consisted of sugar-filled candy bars or salty chips. When you work in an office and start to get hungry around 4:00, your food choices may not be great. One Snickers bar has 30 grams of sugar, a bag of Skittles has 47 grams, a Hershey’s milk chocolate bar has 31 grams, a York Peppermint Pattie has 25 grams, and a Milky Way has 35 grams. So make sure you bring a piece of fruit to work or keep a little fruit bowl on your desk with tangerines, apples, and bananas. And take an ounce of raw nuts along with you too, like almonds, walnuts, pistachios, and pecans. 

Fresh fruit is a great pick-me-up

#10: Canned Vegetables
Canned vegetables often contain added sugar. You will find sugar listed in the ingredients of many popular brands of canned vegetables. Whether they do this for preservation or just to cater to the American palate, is a mystery. So if you are not able to buy fresh vegetables, always buy them frozen as they generally do not contain added sugar. 

Ingredients: Peas, Water, Sugar, Salt

Ingredients: Garden Peas

If you make these simple changes to reduce the sugar in your diet, you can significantly improve your health. You may miss sugar at first as our taste buds get attuned to too much fat, salt, and sugar - manufacturers count on this. But as we transition to a healthier lifestyle by reducing these ingredients in our diet, we lose our cravings for them and once again appreciate the natural delicious flavors of undoctored foods. 

Refreshingly Raw 20-Calorie Strawberry Popsicles - Gluten, Dairy And Sugar Free!

Delicious, raw vegan,strawberry popsicles - only 20 calories!

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Getting Ready for Summer Fun
My grandson is coming this summer to visit, as he does every summer. We have a folder called "10 days of fun" which we have been filling with ideas of things to do while he is here. He has recently taken an interest in cooking, so I thought one of the "fun" ideas would be to make popsicles. I will put this recipe in the folder but I'm hoping he will invent his own favorite concoction. 

My 10-year-old grandson, Xavier, loves to cook!

Ice Pop Maker
You don't need a mold but they are very inexpensive and make the process pretty fool proof. The results also a lot more professional looking.

 I bought a Norpro Ice Pop Maker for under $13 on Amazon and an extra bag of popsicle sticks for another few dollars. Some people just freeze the fruit mixture in a tall shot glass or ice cube tray and place a popsicle stick in it when it starts to freeze. But using a mold is a lot easier.

This frozen pop maker produces a nice looking popsicle! 

  
Here's a recipe, but like all recipes, it is just a suggestion.
Use any fruit or juice. Use your favorite sweetener or none at all. I love stevia because it's safe and calorie free. You can also blend fruit with non-diary milk or yogurt. The combinations are endless! 

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Sugar-Free Strawberry Popsicles
Raw Vegan, Gluten Free
[makes 6 popsicles]

1 pint strawberries
4 packets stevia
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 cup water

Wash strawberries, remove tops and thinly slice.
Place in a bowl and sprinkle with stevia. Let sit for 10 minutes.

Slice strawberries and add stevia.

Placed in a food processor with an S-blade. Add lemon juice and process until it reaches the consistency of tomato sauce.

Processs until almost smooth.

Pour into molds but leave about 1/4 inch at the top to allow for expansion. This recipe will make about 6 popsicles.  

Fill popsicle mold with strawberry mixture.

Place the lid over the filled molds and insert sticks.

Place lid and insert sticks.

Pop in the freezer unit frozen, about 4 or more hours, or overnight.

Place in the freezer.

To remove the frozen popsicles from the mold, briefly submerge the popsicle maker in a large, deep bowl - the depth of the popsicles. Leave in for 20 to 30 seconds, until the popsicles slide out.

Dip in a large, deep container filled with warm water.

You can eat them right away, although you might want to return them to the freezer for another hour, wrapped in wax paper, to harden up a little.

You can store these in the freezer, wrapped, for a few weeks.

Enjoy!

* Per popsicle: 20 calories, 0.2 g total fat, 0 g saturated fat, 39 mg omega-3 and 54 mg omega-6 fatty acids, 0 mg cholesterol, 5 g carbohydrates, 1 g dietary fiber and 1 mg sodium.

Vegan, Sugar Free, Gluten Free, Palisades Peach Crisp. Or Make It With Nectarines To Avoid Peeling!

This warm and delicious peach crisp makes the perfect dessert! And it's less than 150 calories per serving!

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My Visit to Grand Junction, Colorado
My good friend, Dr. Christine Gallagher, who is a Natural Health Practitioner at Journey4Wellness, invited us to visit her and her family in Grand Junction, Colorado. Doug and I had never been there so we were excited to visit. They live right at the base of the Colorado National Monument which is one of the most beautiful sites I've ever seen. 
Christine practices a modality that is quite interesting and amazing. It's called Acutonics® which is similar to acupuncture but instead of using needles, she uses special tuning forks! It's very cool. 

Me (left) and Dr. Christine Gallagher during my Colorado visit

"Coke Ovens" - dome-shaped sandstone monoliths in the Colorado National Monument in Grand Junction, Colorado

Colorado Grows Amazing Peaches!

Christine introduced me to Palisades peaches, one of the best tasting peaches I've ever had! Since she had a big box of them, and Doug and I LOVE crisp, we made the family Palisades peach crisp several times during our visit. Her son is allergic to sugar (a mixed blessing) so we made a sugar free version using stevia. We realized that peaches, like most fruit, is so sweet, sugar is entirely unnecessary!

When we got home, we made it again only this time we used nectarines, instead of peaches, and gluten free flour. Since nectarines have such thin skin, we decided not to peel them. It came out great! So if you aren't in the mood to peel peaches, try making nectarine crisp! The gluten free flour also worked very well so this makes a good gluten free dessert if you buy gluten free oats. Oats are naturally gluten free but sometimes they can get contaminated in the processing plant. If you have celiac or are especially intolerant to gluten or wheat, buy "certified" gluten free oats. 

Palisades peaches are amazing!

Try making the crisp with sliced nectarines. If they have a thin skin, there is no need to peel them. A real time saver!

Another wonderful peach recipe is Raw Vegan Peach and Blueberry Crisp 

Peach (or Nectarine) Crisp

Vegan, Sugar Free, Gluten Free

[makes 8 servings]

For the topping

3/4 cup (gluten free) rolled oats

1/2 cup (gluten free) all purpose flour

3 packets Sweet Leaf stevia

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

3 tablespoons Earth Balance buttery spread

For the fruit

7 cups thinly sliced, (about 9) peeled peaches or un-peeled nectarines

1 - 2 teaspoons fresh fruit protector or 1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 packet Sweet Leaf stevia

1/4 t cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees C and take out a 7" x 11" or 8" x 8" baking pan. 

Make the topping by mixing all topping ingredients with a fork until well blended and crumbly. Set aside.

Place all fruit in baking pan and stir in fruit protector (or lemon juice), stevia and cinnamon.

Spread the topping evenly over the fruit and bake for 45 to 55 minutes or until bubbly and golden brown.

Remove from oven, let sit for 15 minutes and serve. Top with dairy free, vanilla ice cream or just eat as is!

Per serving: 132.2 calories, 4.1 g fat, 1.0 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 2.7 g protein, 24.1 g carbohydrates, 3.3 g dietary fiber and 26.7 mg sodium.

Oatmeal with Walnuts, Bananas and Raisins - A Warm, Healthy, Vegan Breakfast

It Needs No Added Sugar
When traveling, the healthiest breakfast you can order is usually oatmeal but I'm always surprised to see it served with massive amounts of brown sugar, cream, and raisins. You really don't need all this. In today's recipe, the oatmeal needs no added sugar and is flavored with vanilla and cinnamon and sweetened with fresh banana slices and a modest amount of raisins. A bit of added oat bran adds more fiber and raw English walnuts allow each serving to provide over 1 gram of omega 3 and 5 1/2 grams of omega 6 essential fatty acids. Each serving also provides over 10 grams of protein and 9 grams of fiber (over 1/3 your daily requirement).

Why Oats are Important in Your Diet
Oats and Oat bran contain the fiber "beta-glucan" which has been shown to lower bad cholesterol which in turns reduces the risk of stroke and cardiovascular disease. Years ago, my husband Doug lowered his cholesterol from 240 to 179 in three months by eating this recipe every morning (sometimes he substituted diced apple for the banana for variety), exercising at least 30 minutes a day and taking 500 mg of time released niacin at dinner and again at bed time. His doctor, who was insisting that he take statin drugs (which carry their own risk and have numerous side effects), was shocked to see him lower his own cholesterol so quickly. Before taking this much niacin for this long a time frame, however, you need to talk to your doctor. They may monitor your liver enzymes.
Beta-glucan also has a stabilizing effect on blood sugar and helps lower the risk of type 2 diabetes - one, because of the effect of the fiber and two, because oats are very high in manganese. Manganese is a co-factor for hundreds of enzymes including those involved in the secretion of insulin. Manganese is also important in the metabolism of carbohydrates and amino acids and supports bone health and energy production.

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Oatmeal with Walnuts, Bananas and Raisins [serves 2 - 3]
2 2/3 cups water
1/2 teaspoon vanilla (or to taste)
1 cup rolled oats (5 minute oats)
1/3 cup oat bran
1/4 teaspoon sea salt (or to taste)
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (or to taste)
1 small banana, thinly sliced
3 tablespoons raw English walnuts, chopped
2 tablespoons seedless raisins

Boil water and vanilla. Add oatmeal, oat bran, salt and cinnamon, (stirring constantly while adding). Cook uncovered for 5 minutes until it thickens. Add banana slices and raisins and stir while cooking another 30 seconds. Turn off the heat and cover. Let sit for 2 minutes. Stir in the raw walnuts and serve. Adding the raw walnuts at the end helps preserve their omega 3 content.
Serve with a little soy milk if desired.

Per serving (2 servings): 339.5 calories, 10.8 g fat, 1.3 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 10.7 g protein, 59.5 g carbohydrates, 9 g fiber, 1.1g omega 3 and 5.5 g omega 6 fatty acids.

Sugar Free Miniature Whole Grain Corn Muffins with Stevia - Vegetarian and Vegan Recipes

This recipe makes 9 to 12 large or 24 miniature muffins.

Stevia is a natural herb and a safe replacement for sugar.

This recipe fills 2 miniature muffin pans.

Perfect size to accompany a large Thanksgiving feast.


How to Save Calories on Thanksgiving or Other Multi-Course Meals
Although no one needs bread on Thanksgiving with all of other dishes, we often feel compelled to serve it. One way to prevent over-eating these treasured carbs is to serve them in a "miniature" package. In this recipe, I use miniature muffin tins which allows me to get 24 muffins out of same amount of batter than yields only 9 to 12 regular sized muffins. If you put a large muffin on your plate you'll probably eat it even if you're busting at the seams. If you put a miniature muffin on your plate, you'll get the joy of having some extra carbs with only a fraction of the damage. Most likely, you won't go back for more.

Making Sugar Free Muffins with Stevia Instead of Sugar
Stevia is an herb which has been used to sweeten beverages in Paraguay and Brazil since pre-Columbian times. It's popular in many parts of the world but has been kept a "secret" in this country, in my opinion, by the artificial sweetener and sugar lobbyists. It wasn't until recently that the FDA granted GRAS approval to stevia so that it can be used in "food and beverages" and not just as a "supplement" for which it was previously approved. With its popularity around the world, it has been used in large quantities for many years and has been shown to be completely non-toxic unlike many artificial sweeteners on the market.
When baking with stevia, you do not have the "volume" that you get when using sugar. In this recipe, I replace 1/4 cup of sugar with 6 (1 gram) packets of stevia, 2 tablespoons of applesauce and 2 tablespoons of oat bran. The applesauce and oat bran make up the missing volume nicely.

Fiber Fiber Fiber
As my blog readers know, I think fiber consumption is one of the most important things you can do for health and longevity. This recipe is made with "King Arthur White Whole Wheat Flour" which gives you the delicate mild flavor and light color of white flour but all of the fiber and nutrition of whole wheat. I also use whole grain cornmeal which, I must admit, gives you a very grainy texture. If you don't like the texture of whole grain cornmeal, you can substitute degermed cornmeal but you will not get as much fiber. Try the whole grain cornmeal and see what you think.

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Sugar Free Vegetarian Miniature Whole Grain Corn Muffins
[makes 24 miniature muffins]
1 cup white whole wheat flour (or all purpose flour)
1 cup whole grain cornmeal (or degermed cornmeal)
3 teaspoons aluminum free baking powder
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
6 (1 gram) packets stevia extract
2 tablespoons oat bran
2 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce
4 tablespoons virgin olive oil
1 organic, cage free, omega 3 egg, beaten
1 cup 1% organic low fat milk

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Grease 2 miniature muffin pans that hold 12 muffins each. Place all ingredients in a mixing bowl and blend. Divide batter into 24 miniature muffin tins and bake for 9 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. You can also make 9 to 12 large muffins but they will have to cook a little longer, about 12 to 15 minutes. You can also put the batter into an 8 inch square pan and bake 20 to 25 minutes.

Per miniature muffin: 63.9 calories, 2.8 g fat, 0.5 g saturated fat, 9.3 mg cholesterol, 1.8 g protein, 7.9 g carbohydrates and 1 g of fiber.

Sugar Free Vegan Miniature Whole Grain Corn Muffins
[makes 24 miniature muffins]
1 cup white whole wheat flour (or all purpose flour)
1 cup whole grain cornmeal (or degermed cornmeal)
3 teaspoons aluminum free baking powder
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
6 (1 gram) packets stevia extract
2 tablespoons oat bran
2 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce
4 tablespoons virgin olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons EnerG mixed thoroughly in 2 tablespoons warm water
1 cup organic soy milk

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Grease 2 miniature muffin pans that hold 12 muffins each. Place all ingredients in a mixing bowl and blend. Divide batter into 24 miniature muffin tins and bake for 9 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. You can also make 9 to 12 large muffins but they will have to cook a little longer, about 12 to 15 minutes. You can also put the batter into an 8 inch square pan and bake 20 to 25 minutes. When using EnerG egg replacement, bake the muffins immediately after preparing the batter. If they sit around a while, they may not rise properly.

Per miniature muffin: 60.5 calories, 2.7 g fat, 0.4 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 1.5 g protein, 7.5 g carbohydrates and 1 g of fiber.