Help me devise an Easter candy recipe that will accomodate my kids' dietary restrictions.
April 3, 2007 12:37 PM Subscribe
Help me devise an Easter candy recipe that will accomodate my kids' dietary restrictions.
I was inspired by the raspberry pectin candy recipe of this thread but, my kids can't have corn (karo) syrup, or any sweetener except stevia. They can have gelatin. I'm willing to go in any direction, but they are on a modified specific carbohydrate diet (no gluten, starch, dairy, soy, chocolate, carob, honey and a few other limits).
What ideas can you give me to help me figure this out, working from fruit juice, pectin, gelatin, stevia....? I do have a food dehydrator. ?? I'll accept even (slightly) educated guesses at this, since I'm making a stab in the dark anyway.
It's Easter, the Easter bunny is coming. Help me come up with something tasty that she can bring for my kids.
I was inspired by the raspberry pectin candy recipe of this thread but, my kids can't have corn (karo) syrup, or any sweetener except stevia. They can have gelatin. I'm willing to go in any direction, but they are on a modified specific carbohydrate diet (no gluten, starch, dairy, soy, chocolate, carob, honey and a few other limits).
What ideas can you give me to help me figure this out, working from fruit juice, pectin, gelatin, stevia....? I do have a food dehydrator. ?? I'll accept even (slightly) educated guesses at this, since I'm making a stab in the dark anyway.
It's Easter, the Easter bunny is coming. Help me come up with something tasty that she can bring for my kids.
You might try this book: Simple Treats.
You might also try adding "vegan" to your search terms with Google, along with "diabetic" (making an assumption here). I realize you probably aren't vegan since you include gelatin as a possibility, but a lot of vegan recipes will very health concious and trying to avoid alot of the things your child needs to avoid.
posted by nelleish at 12:58 PM on April 3, 2007
You might also try adding "vegan" to your search terms with Google, along with "diabetic" (making an assumption here). I realize you probably aren't vegan since you include gelatin as a possibility, but a lot of vegan recipes will very health concious and trying to avoid alot of the things your child needs to avoid.
posted by nelleish at 12:58 PM on April 3, 2007
How about fruit leather? You could cut shapes with Easter themed cookie cutters.
posted by LoriFLA at 1:00 PM on April 3, 2007
posted by LoriFLA at 1:00 PM on April 3, 2007
Some sort of gummy candy, modified from one of these recipes?
Gummies-1
Gummies-2
posted by divka at 1:08 PM on April 3, 2007
Gummies-1
Gummies-2
posted by divka at 1:08 PM on April 3, 2007
Not exactly candy, but you could try a recipe like the fruit juice gelatin on this page, using jello egg molds like these.
posted by jheiz at 1:09 PM on April 3, 2007
posted by jheiz at 1:09 PM on April 3, 2007
They also make a jelly bean mold, though I'm not sure if you could get it in time. Previous link to the egg mold was ancient, I think this is more current.
posted by jheiz at 1:14 PM on April 3, 2007
posted by jheiz at 1:14 PM on April 3, 2007
You should be able to make "Jell-o Jiggler" candy by making double-strong gelatin with fruit juice. It sets up really firmly and you can cut out shapes (maybe use an easter-themed cookie cutter?). Just watch out for high-acid juices, like pineapple juice, because it will interfere with the gelatin's ability to set.
The fruit leather idea is also a good one.
I can't see any reason you'd need additional sweetening with fruit juice, so try small batches of fruit-juice-based candy without the cups and cups of sugar they call for (I just googled some recipes and it's appalling how much additional sugar they call for! I feel for you.)
posted by some chick at 1:50 PM on April 3, 2007
The fruit leather idea is also a good one.
I can't see any reason you'd need additional sweetening with fruit juice, so try small batches of fruit-juice-based candy without the cups and cups of sugar they call for (I just googled some recipes and it's appalling how much additional sugar they call for! I feel for you.)
posted by some chick at 1:50 PM on April 3, 2007
If fructose is considered to be a problem then fruit and fruit juice must be considered a problem too. There is no difference between the fructose in fruit and that in HFCS.
posted by nanojath at 2:20 PM on April 3, 2007
posted by nanojath at 2:20 PM on April 3, 2007
Knox Gelatin has (or used to have) a recipe for fruit juice finger jello on the back of the box.
posted by necessitas at 3:05 PM on April 3, 2007
posted by necessitas at 3:05 PM on April 3, 2007
HFCS is derived from corn. If corn is a problem, then HFCS is a problem.
posted by peep at 3:18 PM on April 3, 2007
posted by peep at 3:18 PM on April 3, 2007
When Easter comes around, I also look for Passover's contribution to desserts: deelish low-fat, low-carb macaroons. Here's a recipe for stevia-sweetened choco-roons.
posted by rob511 at 4:19 PM on April 3, 2007
posted by rob511 at 4:19 PM on April 3, 2007
Sorry, overlooked your chocolate ban. Make plain 'roons then!
posted by rob511 at 4:40 PM on April 3, 2007
posted by rob511 at 4:40 PM on April 3, 2007
Dates or date-based treats?
Dried papaya or pineapples (YUM!)
colored or ukrainian eggs?
posted by bottlebrushtree at 7:15 PM on April 3, 2007
Dried papaya or pineapples (YUM!)
colored or ukrainian eggs?
posted by bottlebrushtree at 7:15 PM on April 3, 2007
try searching for raw dessert recipes. they vary in quality, but rarely contain added sweeteners (they just have a high dried fruit component, usually)
oh, and the fruit juice finger jello is fantastic. i bet it would be great with young coconut juice.
posted by lgyre at 7:31 PM on April 3, 2007
oh, and the fruit juice finger jello is fantastic. i bet it would be great with young coconut juice.
posted by lgyre at 7:31 PM on April 3, 2007
Hey there, again. lol
Okay, so, I'm slightly confused by your requirements because fruit juice isn't different from honey (carb-wise) but anyway.
If you're interested in tweaking that recipe, here's a no-sugar needed pectin. One brand here and I know I saw one -can't remember if it's the same one- in the baking section of my local grocery store. If you can find it in yours then use that. Regular pectin needs to sugar to "set". Are additives okay? If not, then just skip the food coloring. In fact, I encourage it. You can skip the corn syrup, too, but use less water and less baking soda.
Argh, I was going to suggest meringue kisses made with stevia, but I can't find a recipe. ROAR!
And I know you said chocolate is out, but what about regular cocoa powder?
Because you could make peanut butter balls.
Ingredients: sugar-free peanut butter(try the natural ones), puffed rice cereal, stevia, cocoa powder.
-Crush the puffed rice. Easy to do if you put the rice in a ziplock bag, and smush.
-Mix peanut butter with the now powdered puffed rice. Sorry I can't give you specific measurements, because I make it with regular chocolate, but you want the mixture to be kind of dry but sticky enough that it sticks together when you shape them into balls. I estimate 3 parts puffed rice to 1 part PB.
-Stir in stevia, to taste
-Let mixture sit for 15 minutes.
-Shape into balls, you pick the size.
-Dust with cocoa powder.
Actually, come to think of it, you don't even need the cocoa powder, just dust with more powdered puffed rice. But that sounds kinda boring.
I hope that helps. Good luck!
posted by moonshine at 10:11 PM on April 4, 2007
Okay, so, I'm slightly confused by your requirements because fruit juice isn't different from honey (carb-wise) but anyway.
If you're interested in tweaking that recipe, here's a no-sugar needed pectin. One brand here and I know I saw one -can't remember if it's the same one- in the baking section of my local grocery store. If you can find it in yours then use that. Regular pectin needs to sugar to "set". Are additives okay? If not, then just skip the food coloring. In fact, I encourage it. You can skip the corn syrup, too, but use less water and less baking soda.
Argh, I was going to suggest meringue kisses made with stevia, but I can't find a recipe. ROAR!
And I know you said chocolate is out, but what about regular cocoa powder?
Because you could make peanut butter balls.
Ingredients: sugar-free peanut butter(try the natural ones), puffed rice cereal, stevia, cocoa powder.
-Crush the puffed rice. Easy to do if you put the rice in a ziplock bag, and smush.
-Mix peanut butter with the now powdered puffed rice. Sorry I can't give you specific measurements, because I make it with regular chocolate, but you want the mixture to be kind of dry but sticky enough that it sticks together when you shape them into balls. I estimate 3 parts puffed rice to 1 part PB.
-Stir in stevia, to taste
-Let mixture sit for 15 minutes.
-Shape into balls, you pick the size.
-Dust with cocoa powder.
Actually, come to think of it, you don't even need the cocoa powder, just dust with more powdered puffed rice. But that sounds kinda boring.
I hope that helps. Good luck!
posted by moonshine at 10:11 PM on April 4, 2007
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by kch at 12:43 PM on April 3, 2007