Chocolate Chip Cookies

If there's one thing I can't resist...it's a warm chocolate chip cookie. Although chocolate chips aren't technically allowed, I used a small amount of mini chips to give a glimpse of that taste.  These are a family hit and won't be sitting on the counter for long. :)

Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 1/2 cups blanched almond flour
6 Tbsp coconut flour
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
2 sticks butter cut into Tbsp sized chunks
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup coconut palm sugar (or just use 1/2 cup honey or agave and add 2 more Tbsp coconut flour)
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 cup mini chocolate chips

Combine flours, soda, salt and palm sugar (if using) in the mixer.  Add the chunks of butter and mix until blended.  Add honey, vanilla, eggs, and chocolate chips.  Mix until blended.  Bake on parchment in 1 Tbsp sized dollops (small cookie scoop) at 350 for 10-11 minutes or until golden.  Let cool.

Peach Pie

Fall is putting me in the mood for pie, but I wanted a nice crisp crust.  So I used the idea of a graham cracker crust to make a yummy crunchy almond cookie as the base.  Top with your favorite fruit filling that you cook on the stove.  Enjoy...

Peach Pie

Crust:
2 cups almond flour
4 Tbsp butter
1/2 cup your choice of sugar (regular, honey, brown sugar, maple syrup....)
dash of salt

Filling:
5 cups of your favorite fruit (peeled and sliced if necessary)
1/2 cup sugar
and I use a 1/2 tsp fresh nutmeg for my peaches (cinnamon for apples)
1 pack of unflavored gelatin to thicken


For the crust, cut the butter into the flour, sugar, and salt.  Pat into the base of your pan.  Bake at 350 until just starting to golden (about 12-15 minutes). Let cool.

Meanwhile cook your fruit, sugar, and spices on the stove until fruit is softened.  Soften gelatin in warm water then mix into the hot fruit mixture.  Remove from heat, let cool to room temp then pour over crust and serve. 

Coconut Sugar

So I've tried to do some reading on coconut sugar.  There are not a lot of studies, and it is a very new product on the market.  My findings have found the following:

1. It is not as good for you as honey
2. The creation of coconut palm sugar has cut down the growth of regular coconuts driving up the price and limiting regular coconut products
3. It would be similar to maple syrup since it is a sap (which is not allowed on SCD)
4. It does contain a lot of prebiotic fiber called inulin which feeds good probiotics in the gut

I guess coconut sugar is out of the diet....Sad.....It was tasty....Back to honey. :)

Here is a response I found online:

http://paleohacks.com/questions/18798/i-am-on-the-specific-carbohydrate-diet-is-coconut-nectar-a-bad-sugar#axzz27L5cEfdc

I contacted the company Coconut Secrets directly to know more about the sugar composition of coconut nectar/sugar to see if it contained mostly sucrose (like the SCD illegal maple syrup and white sugar), or mostly free glucose and fructose (like the SCD legal honey).
Here are the answer they provided:The sugar breakdown of the fresh coconut sap directly out of the tree is 0.5% glucose, 1.5% fructose, and 16% sucrose. However, when the excess liquid is evaporated from the fresh sap to make our Coconut Nectar or Crystals, the naturally occurring sugars become more concentrated (more so in the Crystals than the Nectar), which causes the percentage of glucose to increase to approximately 8-10%, the fructose 10-12%, and the sucrose increases to nearly 74%. The good news is that the presence of inulin and FOS (soluble fiber) are the key factors that maintain the glycemic index at an average of 35 GI.
My opinion: Sucrose is the main type of sugar, which is not appropriate for either the SCD or GAPS diet. Coconut sugar/nectar would also be contained a high-fructose, or high-FODMAP sweetener. On top of that, the inulin and FOS (FODMAPs) found in this sugar can cause a lot of GI issues for people with IBS, SIBO or fructose malabsorption.
Bottom line: Stay away from it. In any case, sugar should be avoided with SIBO

Caramel Dip

I'm finding lots of good uses for coconut sugar as it will crystallize unlike honey.  It also has a nice brown sugar flavor if you are using the unrefined organic variety.  After buying some local apples, I quickly got the craving for a good caramel dip.  It's one of the best things I've made in a long time.  Enjoy.

Caramel Dip

2/3 cup coconut sugar
6 Tbsp butter
3 Tbsp homemade yogurt
1 Tbsp pure vanilla extract
a dash of salt
a dash of cinnamon (optional)

Simmer in a sauce pan on medium low heat, just enough to keep it bubbling.  Stir constantly until it just about reaches "soft ball" stage, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla. Enjoy over ice cream or as a great apple dip. Refrigerate leftover.  It might need to be warmed up a bit before using the next time.

Soft Ball Stage:
I just have a cup of water handy.  Drizzle in a little caramel periodically and see if it will stay together.  That's when it's done.  Also, it will start to separate from the bottom of the pan.

Cinnamon Caramel Apples

 

So I was ordering my bulk almond and coconut flour from amazon.com when I came across coconut sugar.  It is low glycemic and full of vitamins and minerals.  I don't know if it is technically in the SCD diet since I can't find much info on it.  If you know any more about this product, I'd love to hear from you.  I got the unrefined organic kind.  It is YUMMY!  You can use it in this recipe or use honey. 

Cinnamon Caramel Apples

4 Gala apples, peeled and sliced 1/4 in thick
1/3 cup coconut sugar (or honey)
1 tsp cinnamon
3 Tbsp butter

Let all the ingredients simmer in a pot on the stove until the apples start to soften.  Serve plain or with a scoop of homemade ice cream or a dollop of sweetened vanilla homemade yogurt. 

Here is the link to the coconut sugar I bought on Amazon.com

http://www.amazon.com/Navitas-Naturals-Coconut-16-Ounce-Pouches/dp/B004KPFUCO/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1348260060&sr=8-2&keywords=coconut+sugar+organic

Peach Cobbler

I am not sure whether to call this a cobbler or a crisp...Either way it fits in the SCD diet. I was skeptical if it was going to turn out, but we've gobbled it up already. I do freeze my own peaches so they have great flavor. We enjoyed ours with a scoop of vanilla ice cream but I was sneaking it plain by the spoonful too. :)

Peach Cobbler

Filling:

7-9 peaches peeled, pitted, and cut into 1/2 in wedges
1/4 cup honey
1 tsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 package unflavored gelatin

Topping:

1 1/2 cup blanched almond flour
1/4 cup honey
4 Tbsp softened butter
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg

Heat oven to 375. Start with the filling and place peaches in a large mixing bowl. Heat honey for 20 seconds in the microwave and whisk in the gelatin. Add honey and spices to the peaches and pour into a baking dish (I used a glass or stoneware pie pan). Mix all the topping ingredients together and put small dollops across the top. Bake for 40 minutes or until the filling is nice and bubbly. Broil the top for just a minute to brown it nicely if need be. Enjoy with a scoop of SCD ice cream from http://www.ccccibs.com/.