Testimony of the Day
“Hey Maria, I’m a Brazilian, I live here in US for about 5 years now, so forgive me if I have some grammar issues.
So, I always was skinny my whole life, and when I turned 24 I started to gain weight, and was diagnosed with hypothyroidism, witch it was something that I expected because my dad and his sister had thyroid issues, it runs in the family, and pretty soon I got back on track.
After I got married (3 years after that), I started again gain weight faster ( 20 lb in 6 months) and my doctor was always mad with me, I was eating everything that she has asked me too, but I wasn’t loosing any weight. In Brazil we eat lot of rice and beans, French fries, bread, ow we have a lot of types of bread, anyways, lots of carb foods, and I was raised eating this and it was really easy do it.
One year after my marriage we came to US and I was pregnant of our first child, we were a poor college students, and gained here pretty fast 35 lb more, and got pregnant again 10 months after my baby was born, and did the same with the third, but in my third pregnancy I was that time with 193 lb and had gestational diabetes and a hight risk pregnancy, and almost died in my delivery with hemorrhage, and ended up having an hysterectomy.
So I was determined to loose all the weight that I had gained in 4 years (which was 50 lb), so started the regular diet, didn’t work, so I went to weight watchers, didn’t work, anyways, lots of diet, lots of frustration, I was exercising everyday and the weight wouldn’t come down.
It was when I was looking for books ate amazon that I discover Maria book, and with the reviews, her facebook page I bought her book right always, read it in two weeks and started right always, this march, and since then I had lost 40 lb, I couldn’t be happier, it was hard to give up my favorite foods, but as soon my cravings disappeared, I started to have the energy that I had never felt with 3 kids under 4, what else could I asked for? I still want o lose more 15 lb, but I’m on my way. I love Marias recipes, I love losing weight always having a desert.
Love you!! Cynthia”
To get started on your path to health and healing, click HERE.
Best Facebook Post of the Day!
“Dairy Queen I’ve missed you for the last 5 months;( . But when this arrived today , I said whoo hoo! Bring on the healthified chocolate/almond butter sugar free ice cream treats for the summer! No more missing the frozen tasty treats that I love so much!
Thanks Maria for letting us know the ice cream maker was on sale! I would spend more on blizzards and larger pants this summer then what this little beauty cost me! 50% off this awesome little kitchen toy! Happy DANCE!” -Lori
Weekend Eating
Do you wake up Monday morning with a “food hangover” and dreading the scale? In the past, I was what you would call a “week-day” dieter. I would be so good during the weekdays (probably because I was so busy) but on those relaxing weekends, I would let anything pass my lips. Yes, I said anything. All of the junk food I blog about staying away from, I was guilty of eating in my past life (several years ago). I would love Friday afternoons because it meant I no longer followed my rules of eating. I do not judge anyone for their diets because I was there once myself too. It was a long process to get where I am today.
Awhile back, Craig and I were at a Chinese/Sushi restaurant and I asked my husband “When was it, where I would see Crab Rangoon on a menu and not be tempted to order it?”… This wasn’t an over night process for me and I don’t expect it to be for you. One main thing that helped for me was to take note of how I felt in the morning after eating junk food. Just how awful I felt the next day helped me make better choices.
The average woman eats 400 more calories (most of them in the form of carbohydrates) on a Saturday or Sunday than she does on a weekday, which can lead to a 9 pound gain over the course of a year.
This yoyo weight gain also causes a tired liver. Instead of hating yourself on Monday morning, keep some of my “healthified” treats on hand.
I actually do recommend a higher calorie day once or twice a week to help stimulate the thyroid and T3 production, but this doesn’t mean a “cheat day” of Pizza Hut and Dairy Queen. It means maybe a huge piece of “healthified” dessert that day or an extra serving of “healthified” pizza. I usually have my cheesecake or my ice cream recipe on those days (I’m not dairy sensitive). Where Craig prefers an extra hamburger (he doesn’t have a sweet tooth).
To read more on Over-Feeding Days, check out my book Secrets to a Healthy Metabolism.
Ice cream
Someone mentioned on my Facebook Fanpage that they didn’t want to be a “stick in the mud” mom for not taking their kids to the new Frozen Yogurt shops that are popping up on every street corner! When I was a teenager, I mistakenly ate fat free frozen yogurt for a dessert thinking it was a safe “diet” food. NOPE, it isn’t. One of the most famous frozen yogurt chains ingredients for vanilla yogurt powder is: Pure Crystalline Fructose, Dextrose, Maltodextrin, Non-fat Milk, Yogurt Powder, Micro-encapsulated Probiotic (Lactobacillus Sporogenes)
Not good! The first 3 ingredients = sugar, followed by processed cow’s milk. Maltodextrin, in particular, has a glycemic index of 110 (sugar is only 57). Not only is it made from GMO corn, it also increases blood sugar. The scary thing is, since it technically isn’t a sugar (in the chemical world), it doesn’t have to be listed as a sugar. SO things like Ensure or Pedia-Sure will claim 0 grams of sugar…sure, but the maltodexterin will increase blood sugar even higher than sugar would. To read more on this, check out the chapter on Alternative Sweeteners in Secrets to a Healthy Metabolism.
Also, have you seen the prices at those places!? I often get questions about the cost of the ingredients I recommend. I calculated the price for my ice cream recipe with all the top-notch ingredients like organic coconut oil, Swerve (or Just Like Sugar) and farm fresh organic eggs. The results:
My recipe = $3.13 per pint.
Ben and Jerry’s = about $4.00 per pint.
Cold Stone Creamery = $7.50 a pint and it has 2 GRAMS of trans-fat!
You can also buy most of the ingredients I use in bulk and store in a chest freezer to lower the cost even more! Eating healthy costs you a lot less in the long run due to medical bills but it can cost less now versus buying pre-packaged at the grocery store. It just takes a little more of your time, which I would also argue against since the time it take to load everyone up and drive to Dairy Queen and back is about how long it take to make fresh ice cream at home! And it tastes so much better when you make it fresh at home! I get my ingredients for great prices HERE and on the right column on this blog where it says “stock your pantry”.
Cookie Dough Ice Cream
Ingredients
VANILLA ICE CREAM:
- 5 large egg yolks
- 3/4 cup allulose keeps ice cream soft
- 1 teaspoons stevia glycerite
- 1 cup organic heavy whipping cream
- 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1 teaspoon Redmond Real salt
- 1 vanilla bean Click HERE to find (or use vanilla extract)
"HEALTHIFIED" CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE DOUGH
- 3/4 cup blanched almond flour
- 1/4 cup coconut flour
- 1/2 cup butter or coconut oil
- 3/4 cup Natural Sweetener or erythritol or Allulose
- 1 teaspoon stevia glycerite
- 1 teaspoon Redmond Real salt
- 1 ChocoPerfection Bar chopped
Instructions
- ICE CREAM: Place all of the ice cream ingredients in a blender (Click HERE to find my favorite blender) and mix until smooth.
- Place the saucepan onto medium heat on the stove and cook, stirring constantly (I used my hand mixer, see photo). Stir until thickened into a custard (make sure to heat slowly or you will get scrambled eggs!).
- Remove from heat and cool completely (I cooled overnight in the refrigerator...it was hard to wait!).
- Place into your ice cream machine (click HERE to find the one I love AND it is 1/2 off the original price!!!) and watch the magic happen within 15 minutes or according to your ice cream maker's directions.
- Freeze until set for vanilla ice cream or stir in chunks of cookie dough.
- COOKIE DOUGH: In a medium bowl, cream the butter and natural sweeteners. Cream for a few minutes until very fluffy.
- In a separate bowl mix together the almond flour, coconut flour and salt.
- Slowly add in the dry ingredients to the wet and mix until smooth.
- Add in chopped chocolate.
- Using your hands, roll into little balls and freeze.
- Once frozen stir into the vanilla ice cream.
- ICE CREAM SANDWICH OPTION: Add an egg to the cookie dough and bake some dough at 325 degrees F for 13-18 minutes to make a few ice cream sandwiches!
Nutrition
Here is a video of me making ice cream (and some protein bread with the whites!).
Dear Maria,
I just bought your slow cooker cookbook, and made my first recipe, the glazed breakfast cake (page 27). Like the cookies above, there is no leavening. The cake was a failure. I cooked it for 5 hours, but the middle was still raw. Am I missing something? I followed the recipe exactly.
Denise
Hmm, not sure what happened. This is the first time I got feedback that a recipe didn’t work from that book. The low on your slow cooker might not be hot enough.
Thanks Maria– I will try cooking on high in the future. I am excited to try more recipes!
Maria,
LOVE the way that you multi-task! I would love to try the protein bread recipe. Is there really only 2 ingredients? What is the measurement for the protein powder? Baking time and temp?
Thanks,
Jamie
The recipe is here. 🙂
http://mariamindbodyhealth.com/crab-blt-and-paula-deens-diabetes/
MAria- I am really at a loss. I can not tolerate hardly any sweeteners – I have tried them all. I am stuck as to what to do to be able to incorporate sweets into my eating. It’s hard to to even do muffins etc. I have tried the ice creams numerous times and they never turn out – nobody likes them and I end up throwing it away not to mention its rock hard. I’ve tried Just like sugar, erythitol, Xylitol and swerve. Help! IF you wish to e-mail me separately that would be fine.
You can try monk fruit extract (lo Han). To by honest, other than in our tea/coffee, we don’t eat much sweetener in our house. 🙂
http://astore.amazon.com/marisnutran05-20?node=13&page=2
Why do you put so much in all your recipes then ? I came over to your website because I was interested in your books but I have not seen one “sweet” recipe that I could make because I do not eat any of the sweeteners you use I only use whole fruit and the amounts you use to sweeten are far higher than I eat. It is such a shame :o(
Sugar in fruit raise blood sugar and is not Keto nor low carb.
Parabens Cynthia! That’s amazing!
Thanks Maria!
I was just wondering if there was a secret to keeping the ice cream from freezing rock solid? ….or do you eat the whole batch when it’s just made? I’ve made several recipes with different sweetners and guar and xantham gums and none of them are spoonable once they’ve been in the freezer.
You could try a little vegetable glycerine (2 TBS). 🙂
Hi Maria, just wanted to let you know that since giving up the dairy Friday (ish, I had a whey shake that morning). I’ve lost 2 lbs!! And I’d even exercised less due to a cold. So thank you so much for suggesting the dairy free. I still plan for the health assessment though as I believe I can go into remission for my RA with your help (already soooo much better).
I had a bread question. I made the protein bread yesterday and my egg whites were perfect. Then I slowly put in the egg protein (the only thing they had was whole egg powder) and it fell. I went ahead and folded in the egg yolks and baked it and it did come out ok. It was eggy lol, but I’d made your chili and it was fantastic with it! Just wondering though, did the egg whites fall because it was egg protein. In your video yours stays so fluffy as you’re pouring in your protein powder. Maybe I added it in too fast too?
Thanks!
Awesome! Probably. Any fat or liquid in the whites with make them fall. So next time try a protein powder. 😉
Maria, thank you for this post. Very timely! My daughter & I were starting our 30 day plan yesterday. So, what do we do? Uh hu, we go out to our favorite Chinese restaurant Saturday. Well, neither of us felt really great yesterday. Our ‘start’ got put off a day… Nice to know we aren’t alone & it’s not the end of the world. Today is all ready better, and I know we’ll make it.
This recipe is awesome too. Chrissy, (the daughter I keep mentioning) got a carton of ‘gluten free’ cookie dough at whole foods. Thinking this would her cheat. She took maybe three -four bites & decided it just wasn’t that good. So, she’ll love this! She’s still dreaming about Nutella cupcakes! Your recipes will make this transistion from eating out, a lot, to making our own sooo much easier! Thank you! 🙂
Yes, the ‘Gluten free” products are almost as bad as the wheat ones. I always have some of my treats in the freezer so I have healthy options if I need them. 🙂
Looks so yummy! I just got a soft serve machine, think I’ll try to halve your recipe and see how it comes out.
May I ask you a question about a Fair Trade chocolate bar that I recently picked up? It has the following ingredients: unsweetened chocolate, Inulin, Dextrin (made from non-gmo corn), erythritol, cocoa butter, milkfat, soy lecithin, natural favors, stevia extract, natural vanilla.
The outside of the package emphasizes that it’s sweetened with stevia, yet when you look at the ingredients stevia is second to the last ingredient! Is the Dextrin related to Maltodextrin? (Like the healthier cousin, because it’s made from non-gmo corn?). Should I be suspicious about the natural favors? Natural flavors is so over used! And natural vanilla; if it really is natural vanilla, why don’t they just call it Vanilla?
I really want to support the Fair Trade Chocolate farmers, but only if the supporting ingredients are on the healthy side.
Does your book of Healthy Sweets touch on the subject of all these new ingredients?
Thank you for all you do!
It is similar to maltodextrin. I would look for a different one. The Stevia listed second to last isn’t a problem though because it is 300 times sweeter than sugar so you don’t need much. Yes, I have a whole section in my sweets book about sweeteners. 🙂
Maria!
First – thank you so much for starting your blog! It’s chock full of helpful information and I’m so glad I found you! ^-^ I had to laugh when I read your post about cheat day should not equate to eating pizza hut and dairy queen because that has been the case for my family in the past and I’ m *really* trying to curb that habit :D. Needless to say I’ll be using this recipe in the near future! lol
Thank you for sharing your journey and discoveries of great recipes! Again, so thankful to have found your blog! 😀
Best, Dawn
PS – In your video you mentioned we coulud win one of those kitchen gadgets – I’d love to know more! 🙂 Forgive me if I heard wrong or am missing something. I promise I read the post … a few times ;). Thanks again! ~Dawn
Thanks!
Hi Maria, I just wanted to ask a question about the sweetener comment you made above. You say you don’t eat much sweetener. Does that mean you don’t eat the desserts very often? How often is too much. Is a daily healthified treat ok? Or would you recommend less frequently? Thanks!
It depends on your goals and activity level. For most people trying to lose weight, I one limit treats to on a day on the weekends. We stay full from our high fat in our diet that we don’t eat sweets much at our house. 🙂
Hi Maria – I love your printable recipes! Just visited after a while and like that change 🙂 Keep up the hard work!
Thanks!
If I only have erythritol can I use that for ice cream? Swerve is too expensive for me right now! If I add some salt and use erythritol would it work?
That should work. You can also try some vegetable glycerine (1-2 TBS) to help keep it soft. 🙂
We don’t have an ice cream maker (yet ;)) but I know how my husband and my sister ( who lives with us ) is normallly jonesing for a blizzard and/or something sweet. So… I made just the cookie dough balls and I’m very pleased to report that while the mister thought these were a little salty, the texture of the cookie dough balls is spot. on. He’s a very picky eater, so I’ll be tweaking the salt to his liking. I *love* having these in the freezer for a quick, bite sized snack. They are perfect with almond or cashew milk! And of course, nicely paired with coffee ;). Thank you so much for making and sharing this recipe Maria! 😀 A++ 😉
Thank you! 🙂
Does anyone know what brand of Stevia Glycerite she uses?
I use NOW. 🙂
http://astore.amazon.com/marisnutran05-20/detail/B0017WI3F4
Maria I would like to make this but my 15 month old is very sensitive to almond milk. Could I use coconut milk instead? Thanks!
Yes, that will work.
Hi Maria, just discovered your blog and I am happy to say that I’m enjoying it immensely! Your kids are lovely! Got a question for you, what is your opinion on raw dairy? Thats the only kind we use it my household, however, I still gain weight when consuming dairy and it causes inflammation throughout my body…so I stay away from it…I guess, diary is one of those things you gotta figure out for yourself…Would you agree? Can I replace it with coconut milk instead in the recipe? Tnx 🙂 Much love!
You can try removing dairy for a month or two and after your villi heal, try reintroducing it. 🙂
Protein Bread – what is the measurement for the whey powder? I searched and couldn’t find a recipe for this bread. I am not dairy intolerant so you said something about sour cream…how much? I have 6 egg whites I do not want to go to waste. Is there a egg white : whey powder ratio you use to guide you?
Can coconut sugar be used as a sweetner
Nope, still just sugar in the body.
What kind of ice cream maker do you use? Does it require the rock salt?
I have this one and love it. No rock salt needed. Just freeze bowl and turn it on. 🙂 http://astore.amazon.com/marisnutran05-20/detail/B0006ONQOC
Thanks so much!!! I just got my ice cream maker in the mail today. Can’t wait to use it. (Just like yours only the stainless steel) Do I have to freeze the ice cream after it is made if I do the uncooked version?
Yes. 🙂
Is Just Like Sugar the only sweetener that will keep the ice cream soft? Also, which JLS – tabletop or baking? Thanks.
Either works. Otherwise you can try some vegetable glycerine with swerve. 🙂
How does xylitol work as a sweetener in these ice cream recipes? Does it cause the ice cream to harden like the erythritol?
I think it will harden, but maybe not as much. You can add some vegetable glycerine to help keep it soft. 😉
Maria,
We got our ice cream maker (like the one you linked to) last week and have been making the yummy treat almost every other day 🙂 We put it in the freezer for an hour or so to harden up a bit and it’s delicious. However, if it is left in the freezer over night, it gets hard as a rock! Is there something I can do to prevent this? We do use a lot less Swerve, none of us like it that sweet, so I think we only put in 1/4 to 1/3 of a cup. Could this be the problem?
Also, I found the last part of this article to be very encouraging. I would love to read more on your journey, struggles etc. with transitioning to this lifestyle. I think this is what keeps many from doing it. You feel like you are going against the whole American life! I went to the store a few weeks ago and wanted to see how hard it would be to find food with no sugar (of any kind) or chemicals etc. IT WAS NOT EASY. It can get very discouraging fast; especially when you have a large family to feed and money is TIGHT. Anyway, I just wanted to let you know I appreciated your transparency in this area. I’d love to hear more about your (and others) transition period. I’m sure I’m not the only one who can’t do it overnight. Baby steps!
One more thing…. for years (because of cost) my husband and I would try to buy healthy food for us but still feed the kids cereal, homemade baked goods, pasta etc. Guess what, it never worked! This is the first time we are doing it all together. More expensive and harder right now, but finally seeing lasting changes. It feels good to feed your family well. I think that’s what motivates me more than anything. 🙂
Thank you!
hi maria! do you recommend the swerve be granular or confectioners? just worried the granular might not dissolve and the ice cream will be gritty?
thank you!!!
I usually use confectioners for a finer texture. Also, you can add a couple tablespoons of vegetable glycerine to keep it softer and smoother in the freezer. 😉
http://astore.amazon.com/marisnutran05-20/detail/B004C7MTLA
Maria,
Is there a way to make the ice cream without an ice cream maker?
Thank you!
Allie
Here are some ways. 🙂
http://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-make-ice-cream-without-an-ice-cream-machine-171060
What’s a good container to store a big batch of this ice cream in? Something not plastic and free of estrogens 🙂
I have some metal ones here. 🙂
http://astore.amazon.com/marisnutran05-20?node=45&page=2
I’ve been adding glycerine to my ice cream hoping it would prevent it from freezing like a rock. Unfortunately it hasn’t helped. I believe store-bought ice cream stays scoopable because of all the preservatives in it (read a label-there is all kinds of stuff in it). I remember buying ice cream from a local dairy years ago and it was always extremely hard after being in the freezer. It didn’t contain any extra ingredients in it. If you put your container of ice cream in the microwave for a few seconds it will soften it enough to serve it; or leaving out on the counter for 15 or 20 minutes also helps
I just set it out for awhile.
“If you use erythritol for a sweetener, it hardens to a ROCK! BUT if you use Swerve or Just Like Sugar, it stays nice and creamy! ” I don’t understand. I use Swerve all the time. Isn’t Swerve almost 100% erythritol? Also, could Truvia (my favorite) be used?
Yes. Truvia is erythritol. More tips here:
http://mariamindbodyhealth.com/ketogenic-baking-tips/