Sugar Free Mocha Cafe Pudding using Nectresse™

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Nectresse™ Sweetener for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.
I've tried a lot of  sweetners in making sugar free desserts for loved ones on sugar restricted diets.  This new sweetener by the same people who make Splenda is a new favorite.
NECTRESSE™Sweetener-
It's the only no-sugar, no-calorie 100% natural sweetener made from monk fruit, it's available very reasonably priced at your local supermarket. 1 packet is the equivalent of 2 tsps of sugar in sweetness.
I tried it first in a cup of coffee to see how it tasted. I was pleasantly surprised. There is no bitterness to it, and tastes natural. The rest of my family also tried it, and my husband and daughter both really liked it.
So after talking it over with my daughter, we decided to try making pudding. I asked her if it should be a chocolate or vanilla pudding, then realized what a very silly question that was right after asking. She thinks the world should be chocolate flavored.


Sugar Free Cafe Mocha Pudding-
Ingredients:

• 2 cups milk
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
• 2 Tbsp instant espress
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 Tbsp corn starch
• 7 packets NECTRESSE™Sweetener

Supplies:

• Large sauce pan
• whisk
• spoon
• bowl

Measure 1 1/2 cups of milk, the espresso, cocoa powder, vanilla and salt into a pan. In a the bowl, mix the half cup of milk, the sweetener and the corn starch, mixing well until the corn starch is dissolved. Set that close by.
Bring the milk and cocoa mix to a simmer over a low heat, whisking as you cook to mix in the cocoa and other flavorings well. When it's bubbling and everything is mixed in, pour in the milk and corn starch mix, whisking constantly. Keep whisking, it will soon come back up to a bubble.
Keep whisking, and it starts to thicken. Homemade cooked puddings are so good. This is the point my daughter told me "It smells good!"
When it's nice, thick and glossy, take it off the heat and put it in the fridge with plastic wrap over it to keep it from forming a skin. Makes 4 half cup servings. Serve after it's chilled.
I recommend topping with whipped cream. Unsweetened and lightly flavored with vanilla.
Click here to try a  FREE sample of NECTRESSE™Sweetener
I liked cooking with this, the pudding turned out good and my family who aren't on sugar restricted diets all enjoyed it. One of the things I liked best about it was that it doesn't foam up like some sweeteners do.
Check out what Lisa Ling has to say about it!

Sugar Free Chocolate Orange Cake Treats

One of my newer family traditions is to come up with a new recipe every year on my birthday for my Uncle Lamar. He was diagnosed a few years ago with diabetes.  Last year it was Banana Chocolate Bread which he doled out to himself a sliver at a time. 

This year, it's chocolate orange cake filled with a coffee cream cheese icing. If you want to substitute sugar you can. 

I made the cake in my sandwich maker because my oven still isn't fixed. Mike's just started a new job a couple weeks ago and just hasn't had the time. 

Baking cake in a sandwich maker? It's like Easy Bake but for grown-ups. 

For the cake:

Chocolate Orange Cake-

Dust off the sandwich maker you never use. Wipe it out very clean. Make sure the non-stick surface is intact.

Dry ingredients- 

1 cup Splenda or similar measures like sugar sweetener

1 cup flour- I used my usual whole wheat pastry flour

1/2 cup cocoa

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

Mix dry ingredients well

Wet ingredients-

1 egg or equivalent egg substitute

1/4 cup melted butter (you could use oil, but I like the richness butter gives sugar free recipes), I used salted so didn't add salt to the dry ingredients

1 cup buttermilk

1 tsp. orange peel or orange zest. Adjust to taste. I used dried orange peel because it's convenient

1 tsp vanilla (everything is better with vanilla)

Mix wet ingredients well

Make a well in the dry ingredients, and pour in the wet ingredients. Mix well. The batter is fluffier with Splenda. it's sort of weird to work with. Just trust it will all work out okay.

Heat up your sandwich maker and put a 1/4 cup of batter in each well. Close it. Because it's non-stick it doesn't need to be buttered or greased.

Check after 3 minutes with a toothpick, if the tooth pick comes out clean, it's done. Otherwise check about every minute. It doesn't take long at all to bake cake in a sandwich maker.

Keep making cakes until you've used all the batter.

Frosting/filling

1 8 oz package of cream cheese

1 cup Splenda

1/3 cup of coffee

The Splenda might foam a bit. Mine did. This stuff is so weird to work with. 

Beat well until it's fairly smooth and fluffy. 

Cut each triangle cake in half, spoon in some frosting to make a sandwich. Wrap in plastic wrap individually and chill.

My daughter and husband both tried it and declared it a success, and in fact didn't hesitate to lick the frosting beaters.

I'll let you know what my Uncle Lamar thinks of them!

Cottage Cheese Pancakes

I made pancakes for breakfast using a slight modification of the classic cottage cheese pancake recipe and.. YUM. If you've not had cottage cheese pancakes, they are rich and moist and amazing with fruit. Or if you're lazy like me, still pretty good with maple syrup!

Cottage Cheese Pancakes
Serves 4
These are super rich and creamy tasting but can be a little sticky to flip. Be patient!

4 eggs or 1 cup egg substitute
1 cup cottage cheese
1/2 cup milk
2 Tbls vanilla (I use homemade double strength vanilla because I really love vanilla, your mileage may vary, adjust to taste)
2 Tbls canola oil
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup sugar or sugar substitute
1 tsp. cinnamon (again, adjust for taste, and I'm guesstimating. I let Emily sprinkle in the cinnamon and she likes a lot)

1 cup Whole Wheat Pastry Flour (my preference, I'm sure white would work, or buckwheat would probably be amazing)

Mix everything except the flour, whisk it together with fork, then mix in the flour until it's incorporated.
Oil a non-stick skillet and heat at a high medium setting, when the skillet is hot, pour the batter in by the quarter cup full, and let it cook for a few minutes, check edge with a spatula, and turn when browned on one side, brown on the other side. These are SOO good, and the only pancake I've *ever* had I didn't think needed butter. They are really rich without it. It's a natural for a fruit topping. If you can't have sugar, I recommend a no-sugar jam. Yum yum!
I actually didn't measure my batter because I use a 3.5 quart melamine batter bowl from Lehman's to mix my batter in, and then I just pour it into my pan. This made 12 4 inch pancakes for me. Like I said, they are really rich. Only E could eat more then 4. I ate 3, and when I asked if anyone wanted my last one, she said yes. Since they are pretty low fat/carb, I didn't mind letting her have extras. Also, lots of calcium! And for the record? E HATES cottage cheese, she thinks it's just gross. And she loved these pancakes.

I also made up some chocolate banana bread for my uncle using Splenda, so I'll let you know what he thinks of it and post the recipe modifications I made to it when I get home tonight. I also asked if he'd be willing to try vanilla infused Splenda in his coffee. Since he uses it regularly, he's a better judge then I am about how it turns out. I mixed 1 vanilla bean, with about half the caviar in it with about a half cup of Splenda. I'll let you know next week what he thinks of it.