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Try Some Low-Carb Treats to Satisfy a Sweet Tooth

Peanut butter cookies

No matter what holidays you celebrate, sweet treats are often part of the equation, which can be a challenge if you have type 2 diabetes. Don’t worry — you don’t have to give up all of your sweets. The Registered Dietitians at Level2 have created a few low-carb alternatives that will help you keep your glucose in check at special occasions.

Peanut Butter Cookies 

Ingredients: 

  • 1 cup of peanut butter
  • ½ cup low calorie natural sweetener like Truvia, Stevia or Splenda 
  • 1 egg 
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract 

Directions: 

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, mix together peanut butter, natural sweetener, egg, and vanilla extract. Chill mixture in the fridge for at least 10 minutes. 
  2. Portion mixture into 1 tbsp balls and place on an ungreased sheet pan. Press lightly with the lines of a fork to create a crosshatch pattern and flatten each cookie slightly. 
  3. Bake for 8 minutes. Let cool on sheet pan at least 5-minutes before transferring to a wire rack to finish cooling.

Yields 20 cookies.  
Nutrition per 1-cookie: Calories 80/ Total Fat 7 grams/ Total Carbs 3 grams/ Protein 4 Grams 

“Sugar” Cookie 

Ingredients: 

  • 4 tbsp of unsalted butter, softened 
  • ¾ cup low calorie natural sweetener like Truvia, Stevia or Splenda 
  • 3 oz cream cheese, softened 
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract 
  • 1 egg 
  • 3 cups of almond flour 

Directions: 

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Add sweetener and butter to a mixing bowl and mix together. Add in the cream cheese and mix together. 
  2. Add in egg and vanilla extract and mix together. Add almond flour and mix until the cookie dough forms. 
  3. With wet hands, use a cookie scoop or spoon (1-2 tablespoons) to shape the cookies, this should make between 10-12 cookies. 
  4. Place cookies on a greased baking sheet, flatten each using the palm of your head.
  5. Bake for 10-14 minutes until the cookies begin to brown. Allow cookies to cool for about 10 minutes before removing from cookie sheet. 

Yields 12 cookies.  
Nutrition per 1 cookie: Calories 244/Total Fat 20 grams/ Total Carbs 15 grams/ Protein 7 grams 

Gingerbread Protein Chia Pudding 

Prep Time: 5 minutes 
Servings: 4 
Ingredients: 

  • 1.75 cups full-fat coconut milk (one 15 ounce can) or unsweetened almond milk 
  • 2 tablespoons of molasses (dark or light) 
  • 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup or honey 
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon 
  • ¼ teaspoon nutmeg 
  • ¼ teaspoon ground ginger 
  • ¼ teaspoon ground cloves 
  • Pinch of salt 
  • ⅓ cup chia seeds 
  • 2 scoops protein powder: unflavored or vanilla protein powder of choice – collagen, whey, vegan- low carb protein powder 
  • Chopped pecans or any type of nut (optional garnish) 

Directions: 

  1. In a medium bowl, whisk together coconut milk, molasses, maple syrup and spices (cinnamon and salt). Add in the chia seeds and whisk again. Pour into individual cups or leave in bowl. 
  2. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Serve in the morning with pecans, banana slices and additional molasses if you wish. 

Nutrition: Calories 294kcal/ Carbohydrates 23.4g/ Protein 15.3g/ Fat 19.5g 

Apple Crisp 

Ingredients:

  • Nonstick cooking spray 
  • 1 packet of low-calorie natural sweetener like Truvia, Stevia or Splenda 
  • 1/4 cup almond or coconut flour 
  • 1/4 cup pecans  
  • 1.75 tbsp olive oil 
  • 2 tbsp of ground cinnamon 
  • 1 tsp ground nutmeg 
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract 
  • 5 Red apples (peeled and sliced) 

Directions:  

  1. Preheat oven to 375° F. Coat a 13 x 9-inch pan with cooking spray.
  2. In a small bowl, combine sweetener, almond/coconut flour, oats, olive oil, cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla. Blend with a fork until moistened (mixture should be crumbly).
  3. Cut up apples and layer apples in a pan.
  4. Sprinkle topping mixture evenly over top. Bake 30 minutes or till apples are soft. 

Nutrition (7 servings, 1/2 cup per serving): Calories 150/ Total fat 9g/ Total Carbohydrate 18g/ Protein 2.5g 
 

Low Carb Spiced Nuts 

A few possibilities of nuts to use in this recipe (try any combination):

  • Walnuts 
  • Cashews 
  • Peanuts 
  • Almonds 
  • Pecans 
  • Macadamia 

Ingredients: 

  • 2 egg whites 
  • 4 cups of nuts (preferably raw and unsalted) using any combination of nuts above to total 4 cups, for example; 1 cup almonds, 2 cup peanuts, 1 cup cashews or 1 cup almonds, 1 cup walnuts, 1 cup cashews, 1 cup peanuts. 
  • 2 cups low-calorie natural sweetener like Truvia, Stevia or Splenda 
  • 2 tsp nutmeg 
  • 2 tsp cloves 
  • 2 tsp cinnamon 
  • 1 tsp cayenne pepper (optional: for added spice) 

Directions: 

  1. Preheat your oven to 200 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, combine the sweetener and spices of choice. Stir to combine them evenly with a spoon, set aside. 
  2. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk the two egg whites rapidly with a fork until frothy (you could also use a hand mixer if you have that available). 
  3. Toss the nuts in the egg whites to cover completely. Place the coated nuts into the large mixing bowl and cover with the sweetener and spice mixture. 
  4. Spread the nuts onto a large baking sheet. Bake for approximately 3 hours, or until slightly roasted, stirring after each hour of cooking.

Nutrition per ¼ cup serving, serves about 30: Calories 105/ Total Fat 9.5g/ Total Carbohydrate 3.8g 
 

Dec. 14 2021

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