Just 4 You Meals delivery service enjoys the challenge of designing recipes which hit the comfort food category while upholding our team's commitment to healthy calories. In our American, culture sugar is hyper prevalent in our food culture. From spaghetti sauce to salad dressings sugar pervades even the "healthy" foods in the grocery aisle. Many have turned to Stevia as a way of sweetening their food, but struggle with adding it to their cooking due to its aftertaste and finding recipes complemented by Stevia they would enjoy eating.
With several years of meal prepping for healthy eating, let us share four essential tips our professional chefs have learned the hard way.
First, the quality of your Stevia matters. Stevia comes directly from a plant, but some companies add artificial flavors, fillers, and even other sweeteners to their brand of Stevia which greatly effects the flavor. Natural Stevia is best and Sweet Leaf is a great liquid choice for your drinks and cooking. There are great powdered Stevia options too. Just make sure to read the label first.
Second, the ratio of how much Stevia you put in your food compared with sugar is not one to one. We have found roughly 1/4 tsp of Stevia for every 1 TBSP of sugar is a good starting point. If you don't begin tasting your food as you prepare a meal or sauce. For baking, start with a few small batches until you find the combination which you are comfortable. Simply put, taste, taste, taste!
Third, our team has found using the following fresh and local foods helps cut down the aftertaste. Sour and citrus based items are great to use as a fresh healthy base for sauces. Coconut oil used for your fat interacts well with Stevia. For baking we recommend almond milk as the nutty flavor helps mask some of the Stevia after taste. You may be thinking "this list looks a lot like the ingredients found on my easy meal prep company JUST 4 YOU MEALS." You are correct. Each of these items are great for those avoiding dairy, gluten and sugar. Don't forget a little bit of salt.
Finally, to encourage your healthy eating incorporate Stevia slowly into your diet. For some, eating too much too early into their meal prep ruins the start of good habits. This is in large part due the shock of how different the natural plant Stevia tastes compared to cane sugar and the high fructose corn syrup found in many American foods.
Looking for more tips on your way to easy meal prep? Check out www.just4youmealplans.com and see why we are one of the top rated Meal Delivery and Meal Prep companies in the Triad.