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brushwish3-blog · 5 years

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25 Low-Sugar Baking Projects for Not-Too-Sweet Treats

I love sugar as much as anyone; it's the backbone of most everything I do, since it provides desserts with volume, structure, body, flavor, and, oh yeah, sweetness (its least important job as far as I'm concerned). Sugar's at the top of the food pyramid for a reason, a sweet cap to an otherwise balanced diet, something to be consumed in moderation.

For the most part, I accomplish that with portion control: thinner slices of cake, smaller scoops of ice cream, one cookie instead of two. But a number of my favorite recipes have a relatively low amount of added sugar, around eight grams or less per serving. For those who love baking, but feel like cutting back on sugar for one reason or another, these recipes should fit the bill.

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Like the original, my homemade Fig Newtons feel pretty virtuous. The cakey cookie is lightly sweetened with honey and brown sugar, while the filling itself is made from nothing more than dried figs, plain applesauce, and a squeeze of fresh orange juice. It's a chewy, fruity snack that's not too sweet or rich and easy to customize with the variations in my cookbook (including apricot-strawberry, blueberry-lime, cherry-banana, and...bacon!).

Homemade Fig Newtons »

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

This simple galette is primarily sweetened by the pears, with just a few spoonfuls of added sugar to draw out their juices. Cardamom, Chinese five spice, and vanilla bean amplify the natural flavor of the pear, which stands in creamy contrast to the crispy crust below. It's the ideal dessert to conclude a night of tapas or wine and cheese, but to be honest, I'm all about having it for brunch.

Vanilla Pear Galette »

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

The bulk of sugar in these lemony scones comes from a sprinkle of turbinado on top, an entirely optional (though delightfully crunchy) addition. The dough itself leans on fresh blueberries for sweetness, with just 2 teaspoons of sugar to help with flavor and browning.

Lemon-Blueberry Scones »

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

My buttermilk granola has less added sugar than its commercial counterparts, just enough to help it brown and crisp in the oven. With toasted sugar, that sweetness is even milder, tempered by a hint of caramel complexity. Serve it for breakfast with Greek yogurt, or grab a handful whenever you need a light and crunchy snack.

Buttermilk Granola »

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

In most recipes, sugar serves some key structural role, but in these grainy English muffins, I use honey in an entirely optional way—to serve as a sweet counterpoint to the graham-y flavor of whole wheat. You can dial it back to taste, but I'd use at least an ounce, so the yeast has a snack during its long, overnight rise.

English Muffins »

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Few things are as satisfying as homemade bagels that turn out just as blistered, chewy, and flavorful as if they'd come from an old-school bakery. There's just a pinch of sugar to help fuel the dough's slow, overnight rise and a bit of malt syrup in the boiling water for a glossy brown and aromatic crust, but the total amount is still well below our 8 gram threshold—even if you opt to make cinnamon raisin bagels instead.

Bagels »

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Look, it's not my fault if you wind up drowning these in maple syrup, but the waffles themselves have only a pinch of sugar in the batter. Instead of doing an overnight rise, I often make these brown-butter waffles first thing in the morning. Then I let them rise all day, so I can griddle them up to serve along with soups and stews or (my fave) fried chicken.

Brown-Butter Yeast-Raised Waffles »

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

I learned to make biscuits when I was about two years old, less a reflection of my skill than a testament to the truly foolproof technique—smushing butter into flour with reckless abandon. Biscuits are a fast and simple breakfast or the foundation of a breakfast sandwich, but they're also an easy side for just about any meal (well, any Southern meal).

Light and Fluffy Biscuits Recipe »

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

As with my lemon-blueberry scones, the dough here is just barely sweetened, with most of the sugar coming from the chocolate itself. So instead of a sweet milk chocolate, choose something bitter and dark for a bold take on chocolate scones.

Chocolate Scones »

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Thanks to whole wheat flour, digestive biscuits have an amazing, graham cracker–like flavor and crunch. Paired with a shiny coat of dark chocolate, these crisp but tender digestives are immensely satisfying with a cup of tea (and when sugar is of no concern, they're the perfect size to sandwich around a toasted marshmallow for s'mores).

Chocolate Digestive Biscuits »

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

They may be showered in powdered sugar, but that's only because Mexican wedding cookies (a.k.a., Russian tea cakes; a.k.a., snowballs; a.k.a., Danish wedding cookies) start with an almost savory dough. And, of the sugar that's sprinkled on top, a good deal is lost along the way, scattered across your baking sheet and (real talk) down the front of your shirt.

Mexican Wedding Cookies »

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Though lightly glazed in barley malt syrup, homemade Wheat Thins don't require much added sugar, so you can grab a handful of crispy crackers without overdoing it (whatever that means to you). Plus, there's a little more glaze than strictly necessary, so a good deal of the sugar that's present on paper won't ever make it to the crackers themselves. With a sprinkling of coarse salt and the grainy crunch of wheat germ, these savory-sweet crackers are as hearty as they are crisp.

Homemade Wheat Thins »

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Unlike the epic crunch of homemade Wheat Thins, these whole wheat crackers are thick and tender with a gentle snap (like the Carr's ones you buy). They're fun and easy to make (the dough comes together super fast in a food processor), and they will keep up to a month in an airtight container. Pull them out as a homemade addition to cheese plates, or smear one with peanut butter for a simple snack.

Whole Wheat Crackers »

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Out of everything on this list, these are my all-time favorite for snacking; they're unambiguously salty, cheesy, and crisp. Like any other cracker, these have a great shelf life, so I like to make a big batch to enjoy over a few weeks. Plus, when I'm feeling creative, homemade Cheez-Its are easy to customize with additional herbs and spices or alternative types of cheese.

Homemade Cheez-Its »

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

With a cheesy crust, chunks of salty ham, slivers of scallion, and shredded Gruyère scattered throughout the dough, savory scones make a hearty breakfast, or they can be cut small to serve alongside bowls of creamy tomato soup.

Ham and Cheese Scones »

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

With fresh parsley, a dash of onion powder, garlic, paprika, and cayenne, these cheddar biscuits have a bold flavor that can stand up to even the heartiest bowl of chili or chowder. So grab a spoon, dollop the dough onto a half-sheet pan, and start baking!

Garlic-Cheddar Biscuits »

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

It breaks my heart to see Irish soda bread relegated to a bit of St. Patrick's Day kitsch, especially when recipes treat it like some sort of fruity scone. In reality, Irish soda bread is a crusty loaf that's chewy and satisfying enough to pair with any meal or even just a charcuterie plate. It has an almost pretzel-like flavor that goes with any sort of stew or braise.

Irish Soda Bread »

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Like bagels, my favorite dinner rolls are briefly boiled before baking, producing a crackly crust that's glossy and eggshell thin. Inside, they're fluffy and light—perfect for mopping up sauces and stews. Thanks to a long overnight rise these rolls can be a make-ahead element for family dinners and holiday gatherings, letting you knock out the work of making and shaping the rolls a day in advance.

Crisp and Fluffy Dinner Rolls »

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

I've always thought of chicken pot pie as a secret pastry since the best part is the crust, whether you opt for drop biscuits or a flaky lid (I'm partial to hearty whole wheat). But even if the crust is the star, the filling has to do its part, which means the chicken has to be juicy and the sauce has to be thick and full of flavor.

Chicken Pot Pie Recipe »

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

These biscuits get their sweetness from thick and mellow sweet potato purée. The sweet potatoes also lend a bright orange hue and wonderfully buttery flavor. Serve the biscuits alongside hearty soups and stews or with a spoonful of jam.

The Best Sweet Potato Biscuits »

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Angel biscuits are buttery and tender, but their flavor and texture is more similar to a Parker House roll than a traditional biscuit. After proofing overnight, they're ready to bake in the morning, so you can enjoy them for breakfast, lunch, and maybe even dinner.

Yeast-Raised Angel Biscuits »

[Video: Serious Eats Video]

Pumpkin purée transforms a regular white sandwich loaf into a beautiful and flavorful bread. The pumpkin purée imparts the bread with a subtle earthiness and seasonal flair. It's a versatile loaf perfect for toasting, sandwiching cold cuts, cubing for bread pudding, or whipping up a grilled cheese sandwich.

Yeasted Pumpkin Bread »

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

It's true that these are technically cookies, but their almost-savory flavor gives them balance and depth. With biscotti, the exact amount of sugar per serving depends on how you slice it, so aim for 30 12 millimeter pieces to keep the sugar in check. Lean and crunchy with a refreshing anise flavor, they're perfect for dunking in fortified wine or snacking on with a cup of coffee.

Almond Biscotti With Anise »

Toning down the sweetness in these gingerbread cookies allows the rich flavors of freshly ground ginger, orange zest, and warm spices to shine through. Despite the addition of both brown sugar and molasses, these cookies are rolled so thin the yield is quite high, leaving only 3 grams of sugar per 2 1/2-inch cookie. Serve them plain or with a thin layer of royal icing. Either way, they'll be gone in a snap.

Gingerbread Cookies »

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

This banana bread is classic, but it's certainly not plain. While it's an optional step, toasting the sugar will bring the bread an added layer of depth. Ripe bananas give the loaf structure, while replacing some of the all-purpose flour with oat flour makes for a moister bread. Baked as two 8-inch loaves, cut into 10 slices each, our classic banana bread technically qualifies for the list—so just keep an eye on the serving size. However you cut it, our take on this recipe will be a hit.

Classic Banana Bread »

This post may contain links to Amazon or other partners; your purchases via these links can benefit Serious Eats. Read more about our affiliate linking policy.

Source: https://www.seriouseats.com/roundups/low-sugar-baking-recipes

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jmuo-blog · 6 years

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New Post has been published on https://jmuo.com/23-halloween-treats-spooky-scary-savory-and-sw/

23 Halloween Treats: Spooky, Scary, Savory, and Sw...

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[Photograph: Vicky Wasik, Yvonne Ruperti]

I’m going to be honest—I’m not much of a Halloween fan. I don’t like scary movies and have never been one for costumes, and the average Halloween party goes way past my bedtime. I am, however, always on board for food.

You might think Halloween is all about the candy, and we do love a good excuse to pound Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. But over the years, we’ve been inspired to create a whole range of Halloween recipes for homemade treats both savory and sweet. Below are 23 of our favorites, including some that play within the sugar-overload theme—from witch-finger cookies to the biggest peanut butter cup you’ve ever seen—and a few more dinner-appropriate items, like a festive orange and black roasted-carrot dish and ghostly pan pizzas. For the crafty among you, we’ve even got a wicked haunted gingerbread house that’s as tasty as it is terrifying impressive.

Savory Halloween Recipes

Roasted Carrots With Black Sesame Dressing

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

To give roasted carrots a Halloween-appropriate twist, serve them with a jet-black sauce made with earthy black sesame paste, tart lemon juice, and olive oil. The sesame paste is just bitter enough to cut through the sweetness of the carrots, and minced parsley gives the side some freshness.

Roasted Carrots With Black Sesame Dressing Recipe »

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Ghost and Spider Pan Pizza

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Sometimes making a Halloween dish is as simple as adding some spooky decorations to a normal recipe. Here, that means starting with our Foolproof Pan Pizza and topping it with mozzarella ghost cutouts (complete with slivers of black olives for eyes) and black-olive spiders speared with rosemary needles for legs.

Ghost and Spider Pan Pizza »

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Deviled-Egg Eyeballs

[Photograph: Carrie Vasios Mullins]

This devilishly gruesome-looking snack also starts with a classic recipe—we use a standard deviled-egg mix of mayo, mustard, and paprika to season the filling. But the shape of the eggs makes for an easy transformation into bloodshot eyes, once you add sliced black-olive “irises” and red-pepper “veins.” Not only are those olive irises creepy, their briny flavor also helps balance out the rich egg yolks.

Deviled-Egg Eyeballs Recipe »

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Seafood Ramen With Squid Ink, Mussels, and Salmon Roe

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Black-as-night squid-ink spaghetti lends itself naturally to Halloween festivities. To make it even scarier, though, we top a bowlful of it with lurid orange salmon roe, squishy mussels, rings of slippery squid, and “bats” cut out from sheets of nori. True, spaghetti generally wouldn’t be mistaken for ramen, but we’ve found that boiling the noodles with baking soda makes them taste remarkably similar.

Seafood Ramen With Squid Ink, Mussels, and Salmon Roe Recipe »

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Pumpkin Cheddar Crackers

[Photograph: Carrie Vasios Mullins]

Sugar cookies are fun to make and decorate for any holiday, but as I’ve grown up and my tastes have changed, I’m happy to apply my cookie cutters to a more savory recipe, like these thick, flaky, and buttery biscuit-like crackers. It’s a great recipe to tackle alongside your kids, who can go to town stamping out the pumpkin shapes; the knife-cut ridges are probably best left to a grown-up.

Pumpkin Cheddar Crackers Recipe »

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Sweet Halloween Recipes

Black Sesame Ice Cream

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

The secret to both the charcoal color and the surprisingly nutty flavor of this moody-looking ice cream is a Japanese-style black sesame paste—substituting it with the stuff available on supermarket shelves just won’t do the trick. The paste is made from roasted, un-hulled sesame seeds, which results in a toasty and ever-so-slightly bitter flavor; we temper it with a little brown sugar.

Black Sesame Ice Cream Recipe »

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Super-Spooky Halloween Gingerbread House

[Video: Vicky Wasik]

Gingerbread houses are traditionally a Christmas treat, but if you can’t wait until December, how about making a haunted gingerbread house? It starts with the same crunchy Construction Gingerbread and fast-drying Royal Icing, but the decorations make it clear what holiday we’re celebrating. Our free downloadable template makes it easy to plot out and build your very own house of horrors, even if you’re a gingerbread-house newbie.

Download the Super-Spooky Halloween Gingerbread House Template »

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Homemade Milk Duds

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

I’ve always treated Halloween mostly as an excuse to eat candy that I would never buy during the rest of the year—but I might have to stop buying Milk Duds even at Halloween, because these lightly bittersweet DIY versions are so much tastier. Plenty of cream in the caramel means it comes out nicely soft and chewy. Follow Kenji’s instructions for tempering chocolate to create a smooth chocolate coating, into which you’ll plunge the caramels by hand—this is definitely a recipe for those who don’t mind getting a little messy.

Homemade Milk Duds Recipe »

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Made-From-Scratch Caramel Apples

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Ever cracked a tooth on a caramel apple? Yeah, not fun. No risk of that with this recipe: The caramel we use is tender enough to chomp through with ease, even as it’s thick enough to fully coat the apple. Its taste isn’t overpowering, either; you’ll get plenty of caramel depth without completely obliterating the fruit’s flavor.

Made-From-Scratch Caramel Apples Recipe »

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Vampire Mouth Marshmallow Sandwich Cookies

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

A cross between s’mores and those cheap plastic vampire teeth that pop up at Halloween parties, these impressive sandwich cookies are made with home-baked chocolate graham crackers, red frosting “gums,” marshmallow “teeth,” and slivered-almond “fangs.” We use a tangy cream cheese frosting for the gums, which cuts through the sweetness of the marshmallows and graham crackers.

Vampire Mouth Marshmallow Sandwich Cookies Recipe »

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Witch Finger Shortbread Cookies With Raspberry Jam

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Fake vampire fangs a little too cutesy for you? If you’re more into the blood-and-gore side of Halloween, these shortbread cookies are for you. They’re shaped like severed gnarled fingers, which makes them pretty gross to start. But the real kicker comes when you bite into them and they start “bleeding” a filling of raspberry jam.

Witch Finger Shortbread Cookies With Raspberry Jam Recipe »

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Four-Layer Halloween Ice Cream Cake

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

This monstrous ice cream cake could have you in a sugar coma before you even head out trick-or-treating. So save it for afterward, when you’ll have Halloween candy you’ll need to get rid of anyway! An Oreo crust is topped with four different layers of candy-packed ice cream—we combine chocolate ice cream with Reese’s cups, coffee ice cream with Kit Kats, dulce de leche with Twix, and vanilla with Snickers. But we also drizzle the whole thing with ganache, just for good measure.

Four-Layer Halloween Ice Cream Cake »

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Better Than Snickers Milkshake

[Photograph: Autumn Giles]

This milkshake won’t require you to dip into your Halloween haul. Rather than using actual Snickers, we simply mimic the flavors of the classic candy bar, blending together caramel ice cream, peanut butter, and unsweetened cocoa powder. A topping of caramel sauce, whipped cream, and chopped peanuts (and a maraschino cherry, naturally) finishes it off.

Better Than Snickers Milkshake Recipe »

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Chocolate Peanut Butter Jack-o’-Lantern Cookies

[Photograph: Carrie Vasios Mullins]

More cute than creepy, these kid-friendly jack-o’-lantern sandwich cookies are super easy to make—just stamp out the chocolate dough with a pumpkin-shaped cutter, carve out eyes and mouths in half of the cutouts, then sandwich one cut and one uncut cookie around a layer of creamy peanut butter.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Jack-o’-Lantern Cookies Recipe »

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Peanut Butter Reese’s Pieces Blondies

[Photograph: Yvonne Ruperti]

Reese’s Pieces are wonderful for topping baked goods because, apart from adding a nice touch of color, they remain surprisingly crunchy after coming out of the oven. The crispy candy provides a nice textural contrast to the blondies, which we under-bake slightly so they come out soft and fudgy.

Peanut Butter Reese’s Pieces Blondies Recipe »

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Chocolate-Covered Candy Corn Layer Cake

[Photograph: Yvonne Ruperti]

The monochromatic icing on this cake hides a surprise—cut it open, and you’ll find three layers of cake colored to look just like candy corn. The cake has the intensely buttery flavor of candy corn, too, thanks to a couple sticks of actual butter and several tablespoons of butter flavoring.

Chocolate-Covered Candy Corn Layer Cake Recipe »

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Candy Corn Pecan Pie

[Photograph: Cakespy]

Sure, it could seem like overkill to add a notoriously sweet candy to a notoriously sweet pie, but Halloween isn’t a time for moderation in sugar (did you see the ice cream cake above?). If you really need an excuse, I will say that the candy corn gives the pecan pie filling a pleasant vanilla note as it melts. But the real reason for this pie is the fact that Halloween comes only once a year. Embrace the sweetness.

Candy Corn Pecan Pie Recipe »

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Ghostly Cupcakes

[Photograph: Carrie Vasios Mullins]

Cupcakes are one of our favorite desserts to bring to Halloween parties—individually portioned, portable, and easy. Plus, who doesn’t love a cupcake? You could spread orange icing onto chocolate cupcakes and call it a day, but these ghost faces, made of white marshmallow frosting and strategically placed chocolate chips, are way more festive, and not much more work.

Ghostly Cupcakes Recipe »

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Chili-Chocolate Spider Cupcakes

[Photograph: Yvonne Ruperti]

Options for decorating Halloween-y cupcakes are limited only by your imagination and your patience. This recipe, for instance, is a little bit more involved than the previous one, but it’s guaranteed to be a hit at any party. We top green-frosted chocolate cupcakes with spicy chocolate spiders made with ganache, licorice-string legs, slivered-almond fangs, and sour-candy eyes. A small amount of chili flakes added to the ganache for the spider bodies gives the cupcakes just enough kick.

Chili-Chocolate Spider Cupcakes Recipe »

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Chocolate Mini Cheesecakes

[Photograph: María del Mar Sacasa]

Cupcakes aren’t the only option if you want an individually sized dessert, and trust us, no one is going to complain if you show up to a party with mini chocolate cheesecakes baked in muffin tins. Made on a vanilla wafer cookie base and topped with lacy white chocolate “spiderweb” designs, these cheesecakes are the perfect treat for a more elegant Halloween shindig.

Chocolate Mini Cheesecakes Recipe »

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Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream

[Photograph: Max Falkowitz]

Peanut butter is a godsend when you want ice cream without putting in the work of cooking a custard—all of its fat and protein lets you make a stable no-cook base. It also tastes pretty good, too, especially when paired with dark chocolate fudge and chopped Reese’s cups for a Halloween candy–centric dessert.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream Recipe »

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Peanut Butter Cup Pie

[Photograph: Lauren Weisenthal]

Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups come in a variety of sizes, but I bet you’ve never seen one quite like this. To make a pie-sized peanut butter cup, we start with a chocolate wafer crumb crust, spoon in a peanut-butter-and-cream-cheese filling, and top it all with dark chocolate ganache. The recipe doesn’t say to wrap the whole thing in decorative foil to complete the effect, but I’m not going to tell you not to do it, either.

Peanut Butter Cup Pie Recipe »

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Halloween Waffle-Iron S’mores (S’moreffles)

[Photograph: Daniel Shumski]

When your kids get home from trick-or-treating—or when you do—set aside some of that candy to make these gooey s’more-like waffles the next day in your waffle iron. We make the waffles with whole wheat flour and honey to give them a graham cracker–like taste, then melt in whatever chocolate candy we have left after Halloween night.

Halloween Waffle-Iron S’mores (S’moreffles) Recipe »

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This post may contain links to Amazon or other partners; your purchases via these links can benefit Serious Eats. Read more about our affiliate linking policy.

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