Copy-Cat Outshine Mango Frozen Fruit Bars or Full-O-Fruit Pops

These mango pops are SO yummy! 

You will love me this summer after you make these.

Copy-Cat Outshine Recipe.

In a health food store we often frequent, my daughter and I saw a box of frozen Mango Full-O-Fruit Pops. They were a bit pricey, but...

We bought them, we ate them, we loved them.

I then duplicated them!

This is the recipe I created and they taste just like the ones we bought. I can't find the brand in stores anymore, so I'm glad I can make them at home. Outshine brand is the closest thing I've found in the market now.


I originally used fresh mango to make these but Costco usually carries frozen mango chunks, and using the frozen mango saves time, is less messy and makes putting these popsicles together even easier. My kids beg me to make these and yours will too (Heck, I beg me to make these). Yeah, I just typed 'heck'. Wow.

Do not leave out the fresh lemon juice, it's the key to a balanced flavor.

Taste the mango mixture and adjust the tartness and sweetness to taste. Remember that frozen treats need to be sweeter than room temperature treats.

You can easily make these sugar free by using a combination of erythritol, xylitol, and a very few drops of stevia glycerite. I have not worked out the proportions yet. Using this blend of sugar-free sweeteners gives a more realistic effect.

I also added some extra nutritious ingredients to make these healthier, but all you taste is the yummy mango.





Mango Full-O-Fruit Pops Recipe:

Makes 12.

10.50 ounces  Filtered water
10 ounces  organic mango puree
4 ounces  (1/2 c.) organic evaporated cane juice (Costco carries)
2 to 2.80 ounces  (about 1 large lemon) organic fresh lemon juice
1 t.  Guar gum (a natural healthy fiber thickener)
1/4 t.  Xanthan gum (a natural healthy fiber thickener)
1 Pinch  Sea salt or BioSalt
1/8 t.  Tumeric powder (natural coloring high in anti-oxidants)
1 T.  Udo's Oil (balanced nutritional oil), optional
1 t.  Cal/Mag powder (calcium & magnesium powder), optional

Method:

In a high-powered blender, puree the mango with the water and lemon juice.
Add everything else, with the gums added last, and blend well.
Pour mixture into 12 large popsicle holders and freeze until solid.


Notes: 

The gums mix in better if you first pre-blend them with the other dry powder ingredients.

You may substitute Lakanto's golden zero-cal sweetener (erythritol based sweetener) for the sugar.





Enjoy!

Leila.

Light & Fluffy Vanilla Microwave Jiffy Cake - Amazingly Sugar-Free & Gluten-Free

This is a special recipe. 

If you have been looking for a healthy 2-minute microwave cake or muffin recipe, this is it. 

Not only is this cake amazingly light textured, it is also gluten-free, sugar-free, low-carb, high fiber, dairy-free, starch-free, and chemical-free.

Basic Vanilla Jiffy Cake with Sugar-Free Chocolate Ganache Topping.

Vanilla Jiffy Cake

There are some recipes out there that use almond flour and/or coconut flour, but they are generally heavy, dry, and not convincing. It is highly unusual to have a tasty sugar-free, gluten-free, and low-carbohydrate recipe in one.

You're welcome :)

I purposely pared this cake/muffin recipe down. It is like a blank canvas, ready for you to unleash your creativity on.

I'm thinking, pumpkin-spice, applesauce cake, lemon-blueberry, sugar-free chocolate chip frosted with sugar-free chocolate ganache... I will be posting a almond-poppy seed muffin recipe next, using this recipe as the foundation. Check back soon.

This recipe is also a work in progress. Don't get me wrong, it's great as it is, but our recipes continually evolve here at Kitchen Cheetahs. We already have many variations, but I wanted to provide you with a basic recipe that is easy to make at home, with ingredients easy to source.



For a grain-free version, you may omit the oat bran flour and chia flour and use 1 T. golden flax seed meal instead. Note that the taste of the flax meal will be noticed in this recipe, since there are no spices or other strong flavors to mask the taste.

We like to make multiple batches of the single-serving dry cake/muffin mix and individually seal them in small zip-lock bags. When the munchies hit, grab 1 bag of dry mix and add the wet ingredients, mix, microwave, and enjoy!

This Jiffy Cake generously serves one. My daughter and I usually share one. An added benefit of this cake is that it is quite filling, and staves off cravings for hours. This cake isn't full of empty calories either, so it makes a great meal or snack. We like these low-carb Jiffy Cakes a lot, as they help with carb cravings when you want to slim down.




Basic Jiffy Cake Recipe for One Jiffy Cake:

Dry Ingredients:
3 T. (24 grams) white almond flour (Honeyville is a good brand)
2 T. (18 grams) coconut flour (we like Wilderness Family Naturals brand)
2 t. (6 grams) oat bran flour
1 t. (2.50 grams) chia seed flour
1 T. (15 grams) erythritol (or Lakanto's granular zero-cal sweetener)
1 T. (14 grams) xylitol
1 T.  (11 grams) IMO powder (or inulin powder)
1/2 t. (2.50 grams) baking powder
1/8 t. (0.40 grams) lecithin powder
heaping 1/16 t. (0.50 grams) sea salt

Wet Ingredients:
1 large egg, at room temperature (about 50 -51 grams)
1 t. (8 grams) vegetable glycerine
1/8 t. (1 gram) stevia glycerite, to taste
2 T. (28 grams) warm water
2 T. (26.50 grams) warmed deodorized coconut oil
1/2 t. (2.50 grams) real vanilla extract


Method:

Pre-grind your chia seeds into a fine flour using a small seed/coffee mill.
Grind together all the dry ingredients so that the sweeteners are powdered into the mix.
Store dry mix in an air-tight container until ready to use.

To make one Jiffy Cake:

In a 2-cup microwave safe baking container, whisk the egg until blended.

Add the other wet ingredients in the order listed and mix to combine.

Place the container of batter off-center in your carousel microwave and cook on high for 2 minutes, uncovered. The center should just spring back when touched.

Let cake cool in the microwave 3 minutes.

Remove from microwave and invert cake onto a plate, if desired, and cool 3 more minutes.

If you are not going to eat the cake right away, cover the cake to prevent it's drying out.



Photos of the process:

Get all your ingredients out.

A seed mill and good scales are helpful to have.

A small casserole dish (with vented lid) for cooking the cake in.

Measuring the dry ingredients.

I move each ingredient to the opposite side as I use it, so I don't forget where I'm at in the recipe.

The coconut flour I used.

Grind the dry ingredients together in 2 batches.

Do not grind until mixture heats up or it will clump.

The finished dry cake/muffin mix.

Crack the egg into the baking dish then mix in the rest of the wet ingredients.

Mix the dry mix into the wet mix until lump free.

Place the baking container off-center in the microwave so it will cook more evenly.

Let the cooked Jiffy Cake cool in the microwave for about 3 minutes.

Remove cake from microwave and let cool another 3 minutes.

The finished vanilla Jiffy Cake.

Cover the cake if you are not going to eat it right away

The cooled cake is ready to frost.

Here is a sugar-free chocolate ganache frosting.

Dig in!

Look at the light texture and moist crumb...

Hard to believe that this is a guilt-free treat, huh?

O.K., I'm going to go eat this now.

Enjoy,

Leila & Nancy.

Successful sugar-free caramel experiments today!

Sugar Free Caramel experiments in the Kitchen Cheetah Test Kitchens

Imagine a dab of rich, buttery, creamy smooth caramel on your finger tips, just waiting to be tasted...

That's what I got to do today. CARAMEL.

We have been working on formulating a delicious sugar free caramel, not an easy task. Today, great progress was made towards our goal!

Years ago, when my husband and I owned a gourmet candy manufacturing business, I experimented with sugar-free caramel and toffee. At the time, maltitol and maltitol syrup (sugar alcohols) were pretty new to the market and I experimented with those. I was only somewhat satisfied. I had to add some other natural ingredients to create caramelization (also known as the maillard reaction). Sugar alcohols do not caramelize on their own, which is a problem for sugar-free candy manufacturers. Artificial flavors and colors are used to achieve a caramel-like look and taste - but they don't really fool you.

Maltitol causes gastric distress in most people, but was an improvement over mannitol. Sugar alcohols cause gastric distress in general. Xylitol is generally better tolerated than maltitol, plus xylitol has many health benefits. Still, you only want to eat it in small doses.

Erythritol is generally tolerated the best out of all the sugar alcohols. However, erythritol recrystallizes much quicker than regular sugar does, leading to grainy caramel, grainy marshmallows, grainy fudge - yuk. Erythritol also does not brown, so you can't make caramel with just erythritol.

There are some newer, healthy sugar alternatives on the market now, which we are experimenting with. We are very close to reaching our goal of a delicious, natural sugar-free, chemical-free caramel that is firm enough to wrap in caramel wrappers, or dip in our sugar free chocolate. SO EXCITING.

I just had to share!

Freshly made sugar-free caramel.

This caramel has a nice rich color and caramel taste!

Sugar-free caramel experiment - after the cold water test. Nice texture :)

Stay tuned!

Author, Leila.

Our Favorite Reduced Fat Sour Cream Blend - Plus a recipe for Strawberries Romanoff, a La Madeleine Restaurant Copy-Cat

Favorite Reduced Fat Sour Cream Blend

We love sour cream. We like yogurt. We love them mixed together. Using Greek yogurt results in a thicker "sour cream". You won't have to skimp anymore when dolloping your dishes with sour cream. You can use a low-carb Greek yogurt to make it even better for you. Greek yogurt alone is Not a replacement for sour cream, I don't care what anybody says. But this works!

We recommend this in a classic dessert called Strawberries Romanoff:  Our easy version of this recipe is to simply dollop our sour cream blend over fresh ripe strawberries and then sprinkle with Golden Lakanto powder (a healthy brown sugar substitute). O.K., I'll post a more complex recipe below...



FAVORITE REDUCED FAT SOUR CREAM BLEND Recipe:

2 pound container Greek yogurt
8 to 12 ounces organic sour cream (our favorite is "Green Valley Organics" Lactose Free sour cream)


Method:

Stir sour cream to make it a softer texture.
Add 1/2 cup of the Greek yogurt, and blend in well.
Add 1 more cup of the Greek yogurt, and blend in until smooth.
Add the rest of the Greek yogurt and blend until smooth and uniform in texture.
Scrape out into an air-tight storage container and chill to thicken.


Use as you would regular sour cream.



STRAWBERRIES ROMANOFF Recipe:

Total prep Time:  5 minutes

4 c. fresh strawberries, washed and de-stemmed, cut into bite-sized pieces if needed
1/2 c. Kitchen Cheetahs Reduced Fat Sour Cream Blend
3 T finely powdered brown Lakanto (natural brown sugar substitute)
1 T. real vanilla extract (or brandy flavoring, to taste)
1/2 c. heavy whipping cream (cold!)
1 T. finely powdered white Lakanto (natural white sugar substitute)
Stevia glycerite, a few drops to taste (stevia glycerite recipe on this blog, or use NOW brand's)


Method:

Put the prepared strawberries into a serving bowl or individual serving dishes.
In a bowl, mix together the "sour cream", brown Lakanto powder, and flavoring.
In a separate bowl, whip the cold whipping cream until about half-way thickened.
Add the 1 T. finely powdered white Lakanto sweetener and finish whipping until soft peaks form.
Sweeten to taste with a tiny amount of stevia glycerite, if desired.
Fold the whipped cream into the sour cream mixture until uniform.
Top the berries with the finished sour cream mixture and serve.


This more complex recipe is based on a recipe from La Madeleine Restaurant. I removed all the sugar and real brandy. The original recipe calls for 1 T. brandy, 3 T. brown sugar, and 3 T. white sugar.

Enjoy,

Leila

The BEST Fluffy Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe - Which so happens to be SUGAR-FREE!

Light & Fluffy Classic Cream Cheese Frosting

 (Sugar-Free, Low Carb, Gluten-Free)

This truly delicious cream cheese frosting will add a bit of decadence to any sugar-free cake, cookie, or muffin recipe you feel like smothering it with. You will smile as you reach your finger into the bowl for a taste. I bet you can't dip it in just once! I won't tell...

Just make sure that you sugar blend is very finely ground. Erythritol has harder crystals than regular sugar, so you have to tell it who's boss! The more finely it is ground, the smoother your frosting will be. If you know you are going to make the extended frosting version, re-grind the erythritol or erythritol/xylitol blend with the Frosting Thickener (recipes below).

You will love adding this classic frosting recipe to your sugar-free, low-carb collection!

BASIC SUGAR-FREE CREAM CHEESE FROSTING Recipe:

8 ounces organic Neufchatel cheese (or cream cheese or vegan cream cheese)
2 T. organic palm shortening (Spectrum Naturals brand)
2 T. organic butter or soft coconut oil
1 - 1 1/2 c. finely ground 4 times, erythritol, or Lakanto sweetener (or 50% erythritol + 50% xylitol)
1/8 t. gum blend (preferably 50% Konjac gum + 50% xanthan gum), optional (makes smoother)


Method:

Whip the softened cream cheese of choice.
Add the oils and whip together.
Whisk the gum blend and powdered sugar substitute together.
Sift the powdered sweetener blend into the cheese mixture and whip until fluffy.
If you want a bit sweeter, add a touch of homemade stevia glycerite (recipe on blog).
Chill frosting.
Use to frost sugar-free cakes, muffins, etc...



EXTENDED VERSION of the above FROSTING:

To the above frosting add:

6 T. "Frosting Thickener" (recipe below)
4 - 6 T. vegetable glycerin
1/16 t. gum blend
1 T. Cal/Mag powder, optional (gives a whiter color and makes frosting less tart)


Method:

Whip the Frosting Thickener, glycerine, gum blend, and Cal/Mag into the finished frosting above, until fluffy.
Let frosting then sit for 30 minutes.
Re-whip on high with an electric hand mixer, the frosting until very smooth and fluffy.


Flavor options:

Add real vanilla extract, or almond extract... Orange zest, or lemon zest, etc...



FROSTING THICKENER Formula:

75% (by weight) Arrowroot starch or Tapioca starch
25% (by weight) Coconut flour


Method:

Mix the starch and coconut flour together.
Grind as finely as possible (for as long as you have the time and patience for) in a Krups seed mill.
Store unused Frosting Thickener in an air-tight container.



Note: 

The Cal/Mag powder is a mixture of food grade calcium and magnesium powders, found in the supplement section of your local health food stores.

Cream Cheese frosting made in the Cheetah Test Kitchen.

Enjoy!

Leila & Nancy



































Author, Leila Wood.

Sugar-Free Clean-Eating Rich Chocolate Frosting Recipe

Easy Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting (SUGAR-FREE)

Use this yummy and original frosting recipe on our low-carb mug cakes or anywhere else you choose. This is a healthy, sugar-free option that is much lower in carbs than regular frosting.

This easy to make frosting is a great choice for low-sugar, low-carb desserts. You can even make this dairy-free if you use a vegan cream cheese.You get healthy fats from the coconut oil too.

We hope you enjoy adding this rich frosting recipe to your go-to healthy recipe collection.

Easy Sugar-Free Cream Cheese Chocolate Frosting

EASY CHOCOLATE CREAM CHEESE FROSTING Recipe:

2 c. FINELY powdered erythritol or white Lakanto zero-cal sweetener (can use part xylitol)

1/2 c. room temperature coconut oil (not melted)

Cream together several minutes. then cream in:

1 package chilled LIGHT cream cheese (or vegan cream cheese)

Cream in. Then add:

6 to 8 T. Dutch cocoa powder (sifted and free of lumps) (Natural cocoa doe not taste as good)

Cream in. Then add alternately:

4 to 6 T. "FROSTING THICKENER" (see recipe below)

1/4 c. vegetable glycerine (or raw honey, or agave, or maple syrup - NOT SUGAR-FREE)

Cream together well. then add:

Real vanilla extract, to taste

Homemade stevia glycerite, to taste (recipe on this blog)

Cream together to blend in very well. Taste for flavor and sweetness. 

Use immediately or chill.

FROSTING THICKENER FORMULA:

1/4 c. arrowroot or tapioca starch

2 T. coconut flour

METHOD:

Grind the starch and coconut flour together 2 to 3 times (letting it cool down between grindings) in a Krups seed mill until it is as fine as possible. 

Store in an air-tight container in your pantry. Use to thicken healthy frostings.

Enjoy, 

Leila & Nancy

BEST NEW HEALTHY CHOCOLATE in the World - Now being sold!

This is THE CHOCOLATE BAR we all have been waiting for!!!

My mom did it!!!

My mother, +Nancy Glazier, is the creator of this new healthy chocolate bar.

She LOVES chocolate and has been frustrated by the lack of tasty AND healthy chocolate choices in the market. Chocolate should not make you sick. My mom wanted to create a chocolate that everyone could enjoy, even those who have blood sugar issues or other health issues.  Chocolate by itself is healthy, it's all the other stuff that is typically added (sugar) that makes chocolate problematic.

Check out the CLEAN ingredient label at the bottom of this post. It's amazing.

She has been perfecting this amazing chocolate formula for a few years now, and it is FINALLY available for you, thanks to a company called Lakanto.

We are so excited to introduce this amazing chocolate to you here at Kitchen Cheetahs.

In many taste tests, this has been voted as the best tasting chocolate, hands down. People do not believe it is sugar free when they eat it. This chocolate is also easy on the digestive system, unlike other sugar free chocolates.

Try this gourmet healthy chocolate and We think you will agree that this is the best tasting chocolate ever, even better than the Belgian sugar-bomb chocolates. This chocolate is definitely worlds above the rest when comparing to all of the other sugar-free chocolates found on the market.

This gourmet bean-to-bar chocolate is sugar-free, chemical-free, low-carb, dairy-free, vegan, paleo... And GUILT-FREE! 

You can enjoy eating chocolate again! 

P-A-R-T-Y 

I just received this picture of the newly packaged gourmet chocolate last night. I hear it has sold out already.

More is being made of course and I have to find out where it is being sold in the market. I would like to have a link here on the Kitchen Cheetahs blog, to be able to directly purchase this chocolate. I'm working on it, so stay tuned. I just had to tell you the good news as soon as I received it! I can't wait to start posting recipes using this new chocolate!

We are working on healthy sugar-free caramels in the Cheetah Test Kitchens too. Can you imagine how much fun we are going to have together with all this chocolate and caramel action going on?

The back of the +LAKANTO - Zero Calorie Natural Sweetener chocolate bar

Do you see that this chocolate has about half the calories compared to regular chocolate?

Have a great day!

Leila

Microwave Gingerbread Mug Cake - Healthy, Gluten-Free & Delicious!

Amazing Mini Gingerbread Speedy Cake


This is a gluten-free cake unlike any other gluten-free cake recipe out there.

2-Minute Gingerbread.

This gingerbread is light and fluffy. It tastes terrific, plus it is packed with lots of nutritious ingredients, instead of using a high amounts of starch like the typical gluten-free baked goods. This unique Gingerbread Mini Cake fills you up and keeps you feeling satisfied for a long time, taking care of your cravings for sugary sweets. It's perfect paired with a cold glass of organic whole milk or almond milk.

We LOVE this recipe!

This is a recipe created in the Kitchen Cheetahs Test Kitchens in the fall of 2014. This delicious microwave mini cake cooks in only 2 minutes. It's nice to make just a little cake and not have a bunch of leftover cake you don't know what to do with.

We like to prepare several of these single-serving cake mixes and package them up into mini zip-lock bags. The ingredient list is more complex, but it is totally worth getting out all of these ingredients to make these cake mixes. Then they are ready for a quick dessert, breakfast, or snack. Often 2 of us will share 1 of these scrumptious cakes. They are very filling and enjoyable to eat. These quick mini cakes are great for people who don't want to be deprived on their low-carb or gluten-free diets, and still want to lose weight.

These are truly a guilt-free treat. I feel completely comfortable having my family eat these for breakfast. They are sugar-free (except for the small amount of molasses), gluten-free, chemical-free, and dairy-free. They have a nice protein content and are loaded with healthy fiber. The coconut oil is good for you too.

Stay tuned, more delicious speedy mini-cake recipes will be posted on this blog!



MINI GINGERBREAD SPEEDY CAKE Recipe:

Dry Cake Mix Ingredients:

3 T. finely ground white almond meal
1 T. plus 1 t. coconut flour
1 T. finely ground golden flax meal
2 t. finely ground rice bran or oat bran
1 T. xylitol
1 T. IMO powder
1 T. Lakanto brand White Zero-Calorie Natural Sweetener (sugar substitute)
1/16 t. (heaping) lecithin powder

3/4 to 1 t. ground ginger (make sure your ginger powder is fresh)
1/2 t. baking powder
1/4 t. ground allspice
1/8 t. ground cinnamon
1/8 t. powdered intense natural sweetener, of choice (we will post a formula for soon!)
1/16 t. (heaping) sea salt or Biosalt (recipe on this blog)


Wet Ingredients:

1 large egg, at room temperature
1 t. vegetable glycerine
2 T. warmed coconut oil
2 T. warm water
1 t. dark molasses


Method:

To Make The Dry Cake Mix:

Place the first 8 ingredients in a Krups seed mill and finely grind together. The finer this is ground, the nicer the cake will turn out.

Pour out the fine powder mix into a small zip-lock bag.

Add the rest of the dry ingredients into the zip-lock bag.

Seal the bag and shake together well to blend.

Repeat this process for however many cake mixes you choose to make.

Label and store the bags of cake mix in your refrigerator, or in your freezer for longer term storage.


To make 1 mini-Cake:

Oil a 2-cup sized Pyrex baking cup (we like to use deodorized 76 degree coconut oil).

Crack the egg into the 2-cup Pyrex baking cup and whisk to blend without incorporating air.

Add the vegetable glycerine and molasses and whisk together.

Add the warmed coconut oil along with the warm water, whisk together well to blend.

Pour in a single serving of prepared dry Mini-Cake Mix. Stir together until smooth.

Place the Pyrex baking cup off-center in your carousel microwave for even cooking.

Cook on high for 2 minutes in the microwave. The center of the cake should just spring back when touched.

Let cake cool in the microwave 3 minutes.

Remove from microwave and eat once it has cooled down enough, or cover with a lid to keep moist and eat it later.


Variation: To Make a mini-cake that you can turn out of the baking cup:

Cut out a piece of parchment paper that fits neatly into the bottom of your Pyrex baking cup.

Oil the bottom and partway up the sides of the Pyrex baking cup. Place the parchment paper disk in the bottom of the baking cup and press to attach.

Oil the top of the parchment paper in the baking cup.

Mix up your cake mix in a separate small bowl and scrape it out into your oiled and papered Pyrex baking cup.

Microwave 2 minutes, as directed above. Cool 3 minutes in the microwave.

Remove from microwave and then invert cake onto an oiled serving plate. Peel off parchment paper.

Let the cake cool an additional 3 minutes before eating, or cover for later.

Source: 

VitaFiber IMO (Isomalto-oligosaccharide) fiber powder http://www.bioneutra.ca/product_vitafiber.htm



Photos of the process:

We keep deodorized coconut oil in a jar for quick but gentle melting in the microwave.

Look at that nice light and moist texture...

2-Minute Gingerbread Jiffy Cake.

Enjoy!

Leila & Nancy

The Kitchen Cheetahs!