So I want to make sugar free s'mores for a once in a while treat. So I know there's a homemade graham cracker recipe on here and I can get sf chocolate, but what i'm missing is the marshmallow! Does anyone happen to have a recipe on hand?
Wow, I learn something new every day here. I was ready to say it wasn't possible, but I googled and found a recipe that uses agave (so it's not actually sugar-free) also a recipe that uses sugar replacer (but also egg whites so I wonder if it ends up more like a meringue.) Also saw versions available for purchase. Who knew? (well, maybe everyone but me...)
I would love to try to make some from real marsh mallow plant - no gelatin required - but I have never even seen that.
I just want to pop my head in here and say that agave "nectar" can be nearly pure fructose... HFCS is actually only about 50% fructose (and pure cane sugar is metabolized into about 50% fructose, so HFCS and table sugar are about equally bad from the fructose point of view).
So, if you are trying to stay away from fructose, or just the calories in sugar, you would want to steer clear of the agave.
Marsh mallows grow wild around here but I've never done anything with them (though I do have some in my perennial bed). I don't eat gelatin so now you've got me curious
Agave is considered low glycemic and diabetic safe so used by some Beachers.
Agave is considered low glycemic and diabetic safe so used by some Beachers.
Fructose (and therefore agave) is low glycemic. It has a different metabolic pathway. However, there are real concerns about that metabolic pathway. If you are choosing fructose as part of a healthy WOE, I'd strongly encourage you to watch "Sugar, the Bitter Truth" if you haven't already. It's pretty long and gets technical, so the oversimplified exec summary is this: table sugar is bad for you primarily because when it's metabolized, half of it becomes fructose (this isn't true of other sugars, e.g. lactose and of course glucose). And it turns out that fructose is metabolized in the liver into fats that can cause problems. While it doesn't provoke insulin spikes, it's good to be informed about the tradeoffs, (including the possibility of making diabetes/IR worse).
Thanks for the link. There are certainly differing opinions about agave just as there are about sugar, splenda, aspartame, stevia, etc. It's up to each of us to do our research and make the best choice for us. From the South Beach perspective glycemic index and amount of processing are big factors in that decision.
And now back to marshmallows
Quote:
Originally Posted by yoyoma
Fructose (and therefore agave) is low glycemic. It has a different metabolic pathway. However, there are real concerns about that metabolic pathway. If you are choosing fructose as part of a healthy WOE, I'd strongly encourage you to watch "Sugar, the Bitter Truth" if you haven't already. It's pretty long and gets technical, so the oversimplified exec summary is this: table sugar is bad for you primarily because when it's metabolized, half of it becomes fructose (this isn't true of other sugars, e.g. lactose and of course glucose). And it turns out that fructose is metabolized in the liver into fats that can cause problems. While it doesn't provoke insulin spikes, it's good to be informed about the tradeoffs, (including the possibility of making diabetes/IR worse).
I think the OP was hoping for a recipe to make her own
That was my plan. I don't plan on doing it very often, maybe once every year, but I just wanted to see if there were actual recipes I could use that wouldn't throw me off my weight loss.
I've bought sugar free (Splenda sweetened) vegan marshmallows at a local health food store before, so you should check local stores in case they have some. Unfortunately I can't remember the brand (I don't eat marshmallows usually, so I haven't had it since 2006).
Sugar Free Marshmallows?
