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Baking and Cooking

The very best thing is to get rid of "sweet" as a flavouring completely.
After a couple of weeks you'll find you don't miss it at all.
 
galadriel said:
please could someone help

what's the best sugar substitute to use in baking and cooking, i'm type 2 and love baking and cooking
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I sympathise, I'm very new too, only diagnosed around two weeks weeks ago. The thought of not being able to bake at the weekend is depressing. I've bought some coconut flour and will be trying the pancake recipe on dietdoctor.com. I just hope over the long term I might be able to 'bake' something. I also have some almond flour to try scones with this but not just yet. I'm trying to get my weight down and minimse carbs.
When you do figure out the baking thing please do post about your experience, I'm keen to learn from others.
Thanks
 
I love to bake
Each weekend I bake a big Victoria sponge with buttercream and jam
This week I filled it with lemon curd
Last week it was chocolate filled with biscoff spread
I am type 2 on 30/70 mix insulin
I still have my cake and eat a slice every weekend
This is my treat being a diabetic does not mean you can't eat cake
I am day 134 doing the one meal a day
My eating window is 7 pm to 8 pm
I eat take away , roast , fish and chips pizza no food is off limits
But I just eat one meal and at weekends I eat cake for desert
Since 1/2/20 when I started I have lost 33 lb
So you can still enjoy baking
And still eat cake
 
Lilylala said:
I love to bake
Each weekend I bake a big Victoria sponge with buttercream and jam
This week I filled it with lemon curd
Last week it was chocolate filled with biscoff spread
I am type 2 on 30/70 mix insulin
I still have my cake and eat a slice every weekend
This is my treat being a diabetic does not mean you can't eat cake
I am day 134 doing the one meal a day
My eating window is 7 pm to 8 pm
I eat take away , roast , fish and chips pizza no food is off limits
But I just eat one meal and at weekends I eat cake for desert
Since 1/2/20 when I started I have lost 33 lb
So you can still enjoy baking
And still eat cake
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@galadriel doesn't say if she is on medication. Is she isn't then reducing blood sugar is not going to work with a high carb diet like your's.
 
Mr_Pot said:
@galadriel doesn't say if she is on medication. Is she isn't then reducing blood sugar is not going to work with a high carb diet like your's.
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I didn't say I eat junk every day , just quoting that you still can
I would not of lost weight of I did
also just quoting you can still enjoy baking and eat the cake you have made
it's all about moderation , and seeing that being diabetic is not the be all and end all in what you enjoy !
 
I do Zen baking - I have all the ingredients but am always going to do it next day or next week.
Somehow the thought of being able to do it, but not yet, keeps me on track.
I have a big ring folder and write all sorts of recipes in it, to do another day.
I do not require medication for my diabetes, and hope to keep it so, and so I'll do baking another time.
 
galadriel said:
love baking and cooking
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there are loads of recipes for low carb bakers, I'd say pick something you like to bake and then google it with "low carb" or "keto" in the search e.g. "cheesecake low carb". Almond flour and coconut flour are good for sweet desserts. There are a lot of different no sugar sweeteners and some threads on this forum about those. You might like to look at "sugarfree mom" and "low carb maven" to see if either of their cooking styles suit you. Good news - as a person who likes to bake you are really in control of this and can relish the challenge :-)
 
I'll admit that I'm a girl that just can't say no to a second, 3rd or 4th piece of cake if I've made it, and I love baking.
Yes, I seem to have lost the underlying urge for sweet things...until I see or smell one, then it's back to square one. That's why I'm trying to avoid sweetners too. Once a junkie always a junkie.
While I'm losing weight and trying to get into remission I am restricting baking to only savoury and no wheat flour, and anything sweet is for a purpose and immediately given away (neighbours birthday for example)
I'm hoping this strategy works and that I can ease back into baking a bit when my goals have been met, but I really think that I must find another hobby. My meter tells me I must ☹
 
Hi @galadriel ,

personally I use erythritol, it's not quite as sweet as sugar but does give you similar bulk which helps when translating recipes for Low Carb Healthy Fat eating (which is the way I control my type 2 diabetes ).

For an additional boost of sweetness when I bake for others I also add in a small amount of truvia which I find smells sweet ;)
 
bulkbiker said:
The very best thing is to get rid of "sweet" as a flavouring completely.
After a couple of weeks you'll find you don't miss it at all.
Click to expand...
Alas, I dumped all sweet stuff for a good few months when I was first diagnosed and I DID miss it. I didn’t crave it as I might carbs, but I do love a bit of cake.

Eventually I decided to experiment with baking (erythritol/stevia blend for me) and found that I can make very acceptable low carb substitutes which don’t mess up my BG and make me happy. This is the rest of my life after all, that’s a long time with no cake!

But yes, I make them significantly less sweet than previously, my tastes have changed to some, maybe even a large, extent. :cat:
 
Google keto muffins and think portion control. Also, keto chocolate mug cake makes enough for two portions, serve with double cream and made in 90 seconds.
 
Like @geefull im another type 2 diabetic who controls her condition but loves cooking and baking. I’ve now managed to eat low carb at keto levels for almost three years and keep my hbaca1 at normal level but still have sweet treats. I also use erythritol for baking and making treats such as lc lemon curd etc.
Good source for recipes is:
Www.dietdoctor.com
Or just add keto to a search for a sweet favourite. We are all different and for me having a few sweet non bg raising treats keeps me on the straight and narrow path!
Good luck and enjoy your baking.
 
shelley262 said:
Like @geefull im another type 2 diabetic who controls her condition but loves cooking and baking. I’ve now managed to eat low carb at keto levels for almost three years and keep my hbaca1 at normal level but still have sweet treats. I also use erythritol for baking and making treats such as lc lemon curd etc.
Good source for recipes is:
Www.dietdoctor.com
Or just add keto to a search for a sweet favourite. We are all different and for me having a few sweet non bg raising treats keeps me on the straight and narrow path!
Good luck and enjoy your baking.
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I also find that having low carb baked goods helps keep me in the straight and narrow. Lots of low carb recipes around as quoted but you can translate ordinary recipes. If substituting almond flour reduce flour part of recipe by 10% and include baking powder- 1 teaspoon for each 100g of flour. Also reduce fat by a whacking 25%. Works a treat! Sarah Flowers does a lovely lemon drizzle cake.
 
ChristieM said:
I also find that having low carb baked goods helps keep me in the straight and narrow. Lots of low carb recipes around as quoted but you can translate ordinary recipes. If substituting almond flour reduce flour part of recipe by 10% and include baking powder- 1 teaspoon for each 100g of flour. Also reduce fat by a whacking 25%. Works a treat! Sarah Flowers does a lovely lemon drizzle cake.
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I forgot to say - I use erythritol as I have a dog. It’s not as sweet as sugar but I use the same weight as the recipe as my tooth is not as sweet as it was!
 
My favourite sugar substitute is stevia. It doesn't affect my BGs and I reckon, or - hope! my gut biome likes it too, being a herb etc etc. (This may be wishful thinking, but I choose to wish it :).)

I also love baking. I have found the best stevia crystals both for my BGs, my tastebuds, and for availability, and the last time I went to the groovy healthfood shop, when the shops were open again, I bought three canisters of the stuff. The Lockdown affected me badly in this way as I 'had' to use some xylitol crystals that don't affect me so well (BGs raise, and what they call, um, 'digestive issues') for baking and ice cream making, and I was not happy.

How to tell what sugar substitutes work best for you? Eat and meter. And check out your physical reactions - your body will let you know (and everyone else around you :D) .

Recipes? I have enjoyed collecting my favourite diabetic-friendly LCHF and Keto stevia sweetened or portion-controlled berry sweetened treats recipes. Yes - recipe and nutrition books from the libary, bookstore and online.

Happy searching! And baking, and eating, @galadriel.
 
AloeSvea said:
My favourite sugar substitute is stevia. It doesn't affect my BGs and I reckon, or - hope! my gut biome likes it too, being a herb etc etc. (This may be wishful thinking, but I choose to wish it :).)

I also love baking. I have found the best stevia crystals both for my BGs, my tastebuds, and for availability, and the last time I went to the groovy healthfood shop, when the shops were open again, I bought three canisters of the stuff. The Lockdown affected me badly in this way as I 'had' to use some xylitol crystals that don't affect me so well (BGs raise, and what they call, um, 'digestive issues') for baking and ice cream making, and I was not happy.

How to tell what sugar substitutes work best for you? Eat and meter. And check out your physical reactions - your body will let you know (and everyone else around you :D) .

Recipes? I have enjoyed collecting my favourite diabetic-friendly LCHF and Keto stevia sweetened or portion-controlled berry sweetened treats recipes. Yes - recipe and nutrition books from the libary, bookstore and online.

Happy searching! And baking, and eating, @galadriel.
Click to expand...

Sure hope you are still around because I could have done that reply!! I'm just starting to try out some cakes and breaks right now and Stevia has been my choice for my morning coffee, which I'm gradually changing to Chicory Root. I haven't had enough stevia to bother testing, 1/32 is the size of the scoop I take each morning, well, twice for 2 cups.

So I'll test after I try Stevia in my baking. I don't go overboard with baking, but cooking, I do that for myself every day. I like to cook simple, nothing fancy, just a bit of safe seasonings no salt if I don't need it for something. I also use the libary (ebooks mostly) and once in awhile I like to buy one from the Kindle Books an Amazon. Haven't found the cookbook I really like yet so just using Youtube videos so far ;)
 
One of the first things i did when i started my LCHF diet was to sort out how to do low carb baking. Initially I didn't use any sweetening, but I discovered that erythritol and stevia are quite safe for diabetics and now I tend to use blends of the two, and these don't cause me any issues with glucose levels. Xylitol is supposed to be great for baking, but it can be lethal to dogs, so I won't have it in my house.

Seven years ago there weren't so many online resources available that offered low carb baking recipes, so I tended to adapt my existing baking to suit, but now there are dozens of sites that Google can direct you to. But anyway, here's an old list I compiled of some of my variations on themes for muffins etc:
https://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/threads/low-carb-recipes.4871/page-48#post-987609

I've since added walnut and pecan meal to my list of alternative "flours".
 
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