Support Group / Cooking Class - THIS SATURDAY!!!

Liz,

I had mentioned this elsewhere, but have you tried making a balsamic glaze (basically a balsamic reduction) with splenda?  Any tips?  

Also - would love a BBQ sauce recipe!  (I tend to like sweet  and tangy BBQ sauces...)

Can't wait to meet you in person on Saturday!  I'm psyched!

Karen

Pam makes a balsamic glaze - I'll ask her what she does - I am sure she uses Splenda.

BBQ - yep! I can do that - we are actually going to do a pork recipe like boneless ribs! mmmmm

Can't wait to meet you either! Hubby might just recognize you! lol (from Thompson)

Well...I don't measure....

My balsalmic glaze is a cross between a glaze and a sticky thick vinagrette.

Put balsalmic vinegar in a nonstick sautee pan and add a few teaspoons of splenda granular (not the stuff in the packets)

Put over medium low heat (so it is simmering but not burning) and stir occassionally, until reduced and slightly thickened, about 10 minutes or so depending on how much you use.

You can use it as is....OR....

Put into a blender
Add a small spoonful of dijon mustard, sprinkle of garlic powder, a few grinds of black pepper
Turn on blender and very very slowly drizzle in extra virgin olive oil until it is thickened a little bit
If you put it into the fridge it will thicken really nicely most of the time!

Pam

That sounds PERFECT (and I'm bad at measuring, too - rarely do it!) !   My "old" way of doing a balsamic glaze for my tilapia was to first brown some sliced almonds in a pan with a spray of olive oil, then set aside. Sear the tilapia in the same pan with chopped onions and some garlic, salt and pepper, leaving the "stuck on" fish and onions in the pan after removing the filet.  Then adding balsamic and brown sugar and frozen black (unsweetened) cherries and reducing it until thickened.  It sounds like the splenda will work perfectly as a substitution in this -- wasn't sure if you could cook like that with it or if it would work well with the vinegar.  I'll try this tonight with my tilapia!

I also like the idea of using the blender to add the spices and oil... sounds like that would be a really tasty salad dressing!

THANKS!  

Karen

In little amounts, such as in sauces/glazes/etc I have no problems using splenda.  Baking and large amounts...well...it just doesn't work.  However, most of the time diabetisweet works out well (although in one or two recipies there has been a distince after taste from the diabetisweet)

The black cherries in the glaze sounds AWESOME...I might do just the pan sauce with the cherries for myself one night! 

The glaze doesn't get quite as thick as it would with the brown sugar on just the stove top...which is why even for a glaze I tend to throw it into the blender with the oil...it thickens it like if you were making a mayo from scratch....but it's still tasty regardless!

What IS diabetisweet and where do you get it?  I've never seen it in any of the stores (that I know of).  Do you think it's "safe" if I get migraines from aspartame and saccharine, but am fine with splenda?

The black cherries really do make the sauce... the key is to slice them in half before putting them in, so their juices mingle with the balsamic. 

Thanks for the tips...I'll let you know how it goes!

Karen

Diabeti sweet is isomalt.  Every once in awhile I can find it at giant...in their PHARMACY section...where they keep birth control and condoms (because they have a small diabetic section in that area with ensure and stuff like that)   I would think it would be ok for you...but who knows...It is pricey.  Liz uses it in a bunch of her recipies.  They make two varieties..a white and a brown sugar.

well, that's one place I would never have thought to look!  HAha...  Thanks!  Worth a try, especially if it is better for cooking.

Thanks!
karen

Karen - I get it at the Target in Warrington - it is in the Pharmacy Dept with the other Diabetic supplies - it is almost directly across from the Pharmacy near the end of the aisle.

I love it - I think that you'll be safe from the migraines with it.

Liz

PS - I can show you the box saturday, I have it on hand always

I would like to suggest cooking for dummies recipes....for those of us that suck in the kitchen....you know, like those simple less than 5 ingredients types of things.



HG