Low-carb desserts can be healthy and tasty with careful planning. Sugar-free doesn’t necessarily mean low-carb, and fruit is as heavy in carbs as sugar. Good options include small amounts of fruit, non-dairy topping and berries, sugar-free vanilla yogurt, semisweet chocolate chips, and low-carb cookies made with peanut butter and sucralose. Paying attention to all ingredients and their carbohydrate content is key.
What are some low-carb dessertsAnd where is the holy grailBoth seem to be impossible quests. However, with careful planning, a cook can manage some desserts that are healthy and low in carbohydrates, as well as being tasty.
Low-carb desserts start with a knowledge of how sugar works. Sugar doesn’t just add sweetness. It can also act as a liquid and add texture to desserts. So cutting out the sugar may or may not work very well in any given recipe. A cook also needs to remember that a dessert can still be high in carbohydrates even if it’s sugar-free. That’s because other ingredients in the recipe, such as white flour, contain just as many grams of carbohydrates per serving as sugar. So a cook has to pay close attention to all the ingredients in the recipe, not just the sugar.
A commonly held misconception is that fruit is the acceptable wholesome dessert, in preference to everything else. When it comes to carbs, however, fruit is as heavy as sugar. The body doesn’t necessarily process the sugar in fruit as quickly, due to the accompanying fiber, but it will be processed and affect blood glucose levels. For those on a low-carb diet for health reasons, such as diabetes, there are few “good carbs.” For the body, it’s all sugar. A person simply needs to make wiser choices in fruit types and amounts.
Some good low-carb desserts include fruit — just in small amounts. A parfait of non-dairy topping and berries makes a good dessert. Plain or sugar-free vanilla yogurt can also be used in place of the whipped topping.
Chocolate can also play a role in low-carb desserts as long as it’s semisweet and in moderate amounts. The chocolate chips can be melted with butter to produce a sauce suitable for use on sugar-free ice cream. One ounce of semisweet chocolate chips has 19 grams of carbohydrates. However, a tablespoon of salsa has less than 10 grams per serving.
The cookies can also be used for low-carb desserts. Combine 1 cup (226 grams) of peanut butter, 3/4 cup (170 grams) of sucralose, 1 egg and 1 teaspoon of vanilla. Roll into balls, place on a baking sheet, flatten with a fork, and bake for about 12 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit (177 degrees Celsius). Let it cool five minutes and enjoy. This recipe makes 12 to 18 cookies, depending on size.
The key to making tasty low-carb desserts is paying attention to all the ingredients, their purpose in the recipe, and their carbohydrate content. This will help a cook make wise substitution choices. Even if the dessert isn’t as low-carb as the cook would like, as long as the dessert is eaten in moderation, it can be an occasional and welcome addition to a low-carb meal plan.
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