Have you had to give up those sweet rolls and coffeecake in the morning in your battle against the bulge? Try making you favorite coffee cake or cinnamon rolls with Splenda instead of sugar. (Splenda can also be found on store shelves in a 3.8 ounce box, which contains roughly 3-4 cups of Splenda or an even larger bag to accommodate baking quantities.) It may not remove all cause for guilt, but it certainly will allow you to have a little something sweet in the morning. My personal favorite is a little variation on “Monkey Bread.” I mix up a batch of drop biscuits. (You can make them from scratch, use a baking mix or even use rolled biscuit dough by cutting each biscuit into quarters.) In a separate bowl, I mix one quarter cup melted butter, one half cup Splenda and two teaspoons cinnamon. I then brush the bottom of a small cake pan with some of the butter mixture, drop the biscuits close together into the pan and then pour the rest of the butter mixture over the top of the biscuit batter and bake at 350 degrees until done. This creates a great pull-apart coffeecake that is wonderful with coffee.
Growing up in Maine, apples were always a favorite for making baked desserts. I had a terrible weakness for Apple Crisp and still do. Fortunately, when I found Splenda, Apple Crisp was no longer out of reach for me. One thing to remember when using Splenda while baking with apples is that Splenda will not make your sliced apples “sweat” and create a syrup like real sugar will. There is a very simple way to adapt your recipe to accommodate this though. Prepare your apples as you normally would by peeling and slicing them. Then use your usual recipe for Apple Crisp, only substitute Splenda for sugar, cup for cup, and add one cup of sugar-free applesauce to your apples. Most applesauce brands that sell a sugar-free variety generally label it as “natural” or “no sugar added”. Always remember that most companies add sugar (or high fructose corn syrup a.k.a.: SUGAR) to applesauce. By reading the labels on the products you purchase, you can avoid the pitfalls of hidden sugars and truly enjoy your favorite desserts in their sugar-free form. For berry based desserts, you can use Splenda to easily replace sugar and not have to worry about the juice/syrup level. Berries have enough natural moisture to create that luscious syrup with Splenda.