Sugar, sugar, ahhhh honey honey!

I think I have more than one sweet tooth.

I mean, who named it that, anyway? We all know that the sweet taste buds are found on the tongue...

Right there, at the tip of your tongue.

I eat a pretty balanced diet, if I do say so myself. Although, in the last 9 months I started working at a cupcake shop (which lets me bring home leftovers at the end of the night), took two baking classes (in which we had to create and sample five or six delicious cakes per week), turned 21 (and now have one or two drinks a week)....yeah, it all adds up. No matter how many salads, whole grains, and fish I eat the rest of the time, my sweets intake has gone WAY up.

I'm going to try a challenge: no sugar. No time limit. One week minimum, but ideally I want to eliminate a new thing each week.

Week one: no added sugar. White, brown, raw, honey, syrup, etc. I would love to simply go sweetener-free and learn to appreciate the natural flavors and sweetness of foods, but that might be a little crazy for me. Instead I'm trying Stevia and Xylitol, both natural sweeteners, and allowing myself a teensy bit of agave nectar because although it has sugar, it is low-glycemic.

I'm keeping fruit, because it's blueberry season in my backyard.

I'll see how it goes, and in a week, decide what to eliminate next.

Here are the blueberry muffins I made this morning!

Recipe adapted from Stevia.com

Makes 14 muffins

• 6 oz. orange juice
• 1/2 cup rolled oats
• 
  
• 1/2 cup plain yogurt
• 2 oz. milk
• 1/4 cup oil
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 
  
• 1 3/4 cup white whole wheat flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon Trader Joe's pure Stevia extract
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• pinch of cinnamon or nutmeg
• 
  
• 1 cup blueberries (fresh or frozen, I used a mixture)

Pre heat the oven to 375°. Paper muffin pans.

Soak the oats in the orange juice for 15 minutes in a small bowl.

Whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, Stevia, and salt.

Use the same whisk to thin the yogurt with the milk and beat in the oil, egg, and vanilla. Stir in the soaked oats with a large rubber spatula.

Fold the dry ingredients into the wet, stirring until the flour is mostly combined, but you can still see it. Fold in the blueberries very gently. Spoon the batter into the muffin pans and bake for 20-25 minutes. The muffins should be golden brown, firm and springy to the touch, and a toothpick inserted in the center should come out nearly clean.

Serve hot, with butter. Eat three and don't feel bad, because they are sugar free low sugar (forgot about the orange juice and blueberries!) and whole wheat. :)

Do you know anybody who eats absolutely no sugar? How do they do it??

Cookies for sale!!

I just made 4 dozen 3.5 inch diameter, chocolate chunk, white whole wheat cookies. They are crispy-chewy and still warm...I will sell them for $10 a dozen if anybody is interested! You can pick them up or I can deliver!

Here is the recipe I used, and seriously, they look just like the pictures! 

Just pick up your shoes and go

I recently saw pictures of an acquaintance's backyard in Montana. Bare trees, snowy fields, and a lovely, looming, blue mountain in the not-so-distant view. The mountain filled the whole photo. Wouldn't it be wonderful to fill your eyes with gorgeousness each time you looked out your window?

Sometimes, the suburbs are so dreary.

On a brighter, whiter note, I am now in possession of knowledge which makes me suspensefully excited for Valentine's day to roll around! (and I am obsessed with the song that plays! Does anyone know who it could be? I found it! The full version is even prettier.)

No, it's not a date with my fiance. But it does bring me a little closer to seeing him.

Ah, l'amour, l'amour. How it does get you down...and how it does pick you back up again!

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