Morning Pep Pure Birch Xylitol Sweetener Review with Recipe

Hello Pop Culture Shockers! Missed me? Oh, I missed you all soooo much and I am back. Back to share something amazing that I've just discovered! I am pretty partial to the taste of sugar. I just think it has a clean taste, it's sweet, and has no after taste. I have tried Stevia, Splenda, Equal, Sweet N Low, etc. in baked goods and never found one that I could tolerate.  Then along came Morning Pep Pure Birch Xylitol Sweetener! It has no aftertaste what-so-ever. I can literally eat a spoonful and it tastes just like sugar. I have used it in drinks, baked goods, and pretty much everything else that calls for sugar and it works great.

In doing a little research about MorningPep Pure Birch Xylitol Sweetener, I found out quite a few more impressive facts -- for example Morning Pep Pure Birch Xylitol Sweetener is lower on the Glycemic Index and has 1/3 the calories of sugar! Tell me that isn't something worth looking into? Along with this healthy fact comes another -- apparently Morning Pep Pure Birch Xylitol Sweetener is good for your oral and dental health as it reduces plaque, gingivitis and cavities!

More Important Facts: #morningpepxylitol

• Keto Diet Friendly
• Not From Corn
• Non-GMO
• Kosher
• Gluten Free
• Produced In The USA
• Came Be Used In -- Mouthwash, Nasal Spray, Toothpaste, Skincare

This is an all natural sweetener that looks, tastes and can be used anywhere you'd use sugar. So, as promised here is a delicious recipe that I made this morning!

Mini Italian Lemon Cake

Ingredients

• 12 tablespoons all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 10 tablespoons Morning Pep Pure Birch Xylitol Sweetener
• 2 eggs
• zest one lemon
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 10 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 10 tablespoons milk

Instructions

1. Pre-heat oven to 350F, grease and flour a 7 inch CHEFMADE Mini Bundt Pan.
2. In a small bowl whisk together the flour and baking powder and set aside.
3. In a large bowl beat together sugar and eggs until very fluffy and light.
4. Add the zest, juice, oil and milk, beat until combined.
5. Then add the flour mixture and mix until smooth.
6. Pour into prepared CHEFMADE Mini Bundt Pan and bake for approximately 40 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.  
7. Let cool in pan then remove to a cake plate.

You can find Morning Pep Pure Birch Xylitol Sweetener on Amazon at https://amzn.to/2JU9A77 and the CHEFMADE Mini Bundt Pan at https://amzn.to/2WnJRKX

Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake Squares

Hey Pop Culture Shockers! Another day, another recipe. I hope that everyone enjoyed yesterday’s recipes and that maybe you had an opportunity to try one… or two. So, before you ask, no. No, I’m not turning into a baking blog or anything else; I’m simply sharing my newly found hobby. Yesterday, I talked about having a craving for blueberries and lemon. Well, today I indulge that craving. I spent most of the day working in the yard. After a lot of hard work, I figured that I deserved a little something sweet. Here is today’s delicious bit of yummy.

Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake Squares

Ingredients:

Crust

• 9 graham crackers
• 4Tablespoons melted unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar

Filling

• 16 ounces cream cheese softened
• 2 egg
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• zest and juice of 2 medium lemons
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 and 1/2 cups blueberries (I used frozen)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line the bottom of a 2.5 quart Pyrex baking dish with parchment paper and set aside.
2. Using a food processor blend the graham crackers and sugar until it looks like bread crumbs. Add the melted butter and pulse a few times until incorporated.
3. Press mixture into baking dish and bake for 12 minutes.
4. Allow to cool while you prepare the filling.
5. In the food processor, mix cream cheese, egg, sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, and vanilla extract together until smooth and creamy.
6. Pour mixture on top of cooled crust.
7. Sprinkle blueberries over cream cheese mixture
8. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the cheesecake has set up and the edges are lightly browned.
9. Cool for about 30 minutes at room temperature on a wire rack and then chill in the refrigerator for at least three hours. Lift the parchment out of the pan and cut into squares.

Notes From The Web: One thing that really bothers me about recipes is when the recipe calls for, well; let’s say lemon juice and zest. Lemons differ in size so it’s kind of difficult to figure out how much zest and juice to add. I looked it up and apparently 1 medium-size lemon = approximately 1 tablespoon of lemon zest = 2 to 3 tablespoons of lemon juice. Happy Cooking!

Peaches, Blueberries and IBD on my!

So along with my new hobby of gardening, I’ve been on a huge cooking kick. Believe it or not, this is the first year that I’ve grown vegetables. I mean, I’ve grown plants before but I’ve never actually planned out and planted a garden until this year. And I must say that my garden is coming along quite nicely in spite of the fact that I got a little bit of a late start. You can check out my garden on Insta and a video is soon to follow. I digress. Back to my foodie and cooking kick. Anyone who’s read my blog for a while knows that I have IBD… and that’s where all of this started.

Without going into massive detail -- ‘cause I want to share a few of the recipes that I’ve made this week -- I was diagnosed at the end of last summer with IBD. I absolutely did not want to take traditional meds and I’ve opted to attempt to treat the disease via diet and exercise. Although I was ill throughout the winter, so far it’s been okay. I have to avoid certain foods and increase the intake of certain supplements depending on what my body has decided to do. The one constant is an avoidance of processed food. I’m talking store bought cookies, chips and all those items laden with heavy preservatives. My body simply cannot tolerate them and I pay far more attention to what I’m cooking and baking. Which is kind of how I decided to grow my own organic veggies. I’ll go more in depth at a later date. Let’s get to what I’ve baked this week. 

None of what I cook is exactly low cal; I actually don’t care about that at the moment. I’m far more interested in what my body can happily digest and what doesn’t make me feel ill. As a disclaimer, I’m not a medical person so don’t take anything that I write as anything more than my story. My first recipe happened because I’d bought peaches at our local farm stand and let them get a little too ripe. It’s a traditional French dessert called clafoutis that’s usually made with cherries, however any stone fruit can be used and it is delicious! 

Peach Clafoutis

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 6 to 8 medium peaches
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1 1/2 cups whole milk
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• Confectioners' sugar

Directions

1. Pre-heat the oven to 350°F. Butter a 2-quart casserole dish and set aside.
2. Slice the peaches into wedges that are 1/4 inch wide.
3. In a glass bowl, sprinkle the peaches with 1/3 cup of the granulated sugar and set aside.
4. In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs with the remaining 1/3 cup sugar, flour, and salt. Whisk in the milk and vanilla until batter is smooth.
5. Arrange the peaches in the casserole dish and pour the batter over the peaches.
6. Place on the center rack in the oven. Bake just until set, about 1 hour.
7. Let cool and dust with confectioners' sugar. Optional – Serve with vanilla ice cream.

Sometimes you just get cravings like the one that I had for something made with blueberries. Initially, I wanted something with lemon and blueberry, but changed my mind when I saw this recipe by Martha Stewart. Yes, Miss Martha gets real fancy however I refuse to make my newly found love of cooking into something nerve racking and miserable! So my advice is to always enjoy what you’re doing and leave the neurosis to Martha!

Blueberry Upside-Down Cake

Ingredients

• 4 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1/3 cup plus 3 tablespoons light brown sugar
• 1 1/2 cups blueberries (I used frozen and it worked very well!) 
• 3/4 cup flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 cup milk, room temperature

 Directions

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 1-quart, 5 1/2-inch-diameter souffle dish. Pour 2 tablespoons melted butter into the souffle dish. Sprinkle 3 tablespoons brown sugar over butter. Scatter 1 cup blueberries over sugar. Set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. In another medium bowl, whisk together remaining 2 tablespoons butter, remaining 1/3 cup brown sugar, and the egg. Whisk the milk into the egg mixture. Add flour mixture; whisk until batter is smooth.
3. Pour half the batter into souffle dish. Sprinkle remaining 1/2 cup blueberries over batter. Spread remaining batter over blueberries. Bake until a cake tester inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean of batter, about 45 minutes. Immediately unmold cake, inverting it onto a serving dish. Optional – Serve with vanilla ice cream.

Okay, so I also made a batch of chocolate chip cookie. The recipe was straight out of the Betty Crocker cookbook. I will state that, that particular recipe does not include vanilla and I think that it’s weird not to put vanilla extract into chocolate chip cookies. So I added 1 teaspoon. I’ve found that I make all recipes my own. I have to because I can’t always tolerate certain ingredients. And honestly, if something is your delightful hobby you should make it your own. Happy Cooking!

Memorial Day Picnic Ideas With Recipes

Memorial Day, which will be here is less than one week, unofficially kicks off all that is summer. And what better way to celebrate then to pack a picnic basket with absolutely delicious recipes. Even if you’re not packing a picnic, these recipes are sure to please the crowd!

Starting off with a few tips to make the best of your day, let’s go over a few essentials. Wet Wipes, Salt and Pepper, Paper Towels, A Tray, Serving Spoons, Folding Knife and Trash Bags. If you want to make life a little easier, or are looking for the perfect hostess gift, pick up a Colavita Perfect Pasta Basket ($55). This basket from Colavita has everything that you’ll need for the recipes below. Now, let’s get to those yummy recipes!

Potato Salad with Basil Pesto and Sun-Dried Tomatoes

Unlike most potato salads that hold well for hours (if not days), this potato salad with basil pesto and sun-dried tomatoes is best served right away when the potatoes are warm and tender and the pesto is still a vibrant green. Note: You can make the pesto up to 2 days ahead.

Prep: 15 mins

Cook: 20 mins

Yields: 8 Servings

Ingredients

• 2 lb baby red potatoes, halved
• 1 1/2 oz. fresh basil, stemmed, washed, and patted dry (about 3 cups)
• 3/4 cup grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese
• 1/4 cup toasted pine nuts
• 2 scallions, trimmed and thinly sliced
• kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/3 cup Colavita Extra Virgin Olive Oil, plus more as needed
• 6 Colavita Sun-dried Tomatoes, finely diced (about 1/4 cup)

Directions

1Place the potatoes in a medium pot and cover with cold water by a couple of inches, about 2 qt. water. Stir in 2 tsp. salt and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook until the potatoes are tender when pierced with a fork, about 15 minutes. Drain well and transfer to a large serving bowl.

2Meanwhile, put the basil, ½ cup of the Parmigiano, the pine nuts, scallions, and ¼ tsp. each salt and pepper in a food processor and blend to combine. While still blending, add the oil in a thin, steady stream so that the mixture becomes smooth and uniform; thin with more oil as needed for consistency. Season with more salt and pepper to taste.

3Toss the warm potatoes with the basil pesto. Sprinkle the potatoes with the sun-dried tomatoes and the remaining ¼ cup Parmigiano and serve.

Lasagna Florets

This attractive way to serve lasagna not only makes a great presentation, but is delicious as well. Serve them as appetizers at your next gathering.

Prep: 1 hr 15 mins

Cook: 40 mins

Yields: 4-6 Servings

Ingredients

• 1 lb Colavita Lasagne, cooked al dente according to package directions
• 12 oz. package frozen spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry
• 2 cups ricotta cheese
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan or pecorino cheese + additional for topping
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/4 tsp grated nutmeg
• 4 cups Colavita Marinara Sauce, or homemade sauce
• salt & pepper, to taste

Directions

1In a large mixing bowl combine the spinach, cheeses, egg, nutmeg, salt and pepper; mix until well blended. Take one lasagna noodle, spread with about 1-1/2 tablespoons of the cheese mixture; roll it up gently so the cheese mixture stays in place.

2Continue until all the lasagna noodles are used. Place rolls in the refrigerator for about one hour or until the cheese becomes firm.

3Taking one roll at a time gently cut in half down the middle (a serrated knife works best). Layer a large baking dish with two cups of marinara; place florets on top with the curly side up.

4Cover with foil; bake at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes; uncover and bake for 10 minutes more, or until the sauce is bubbly and the cheese is melted through. Serve with the extra sauce and grated cheese.

You can’t have a summer picnic without some luscious libations! And these from Sailor Jerry, Hudson Bay and Monkey Shoulder are sure to delight!

Sailor Jerry Lemonade

2 parts Sailor Jerry Spiced Rum

Top with lemonade

Serve on the rocks or in a pitcher for large groups.

--

Ginger Monkey

1 ½ parts Monkey Shoulder Scotch

2 ¾ parts Ginger Ale

Orange wedge

Fill long glass with ice. Pour ingredients in glass and gently stir. Garnish with orange wedge.

Hudson Baby Bourbon

Reyka Pimms Cup

1 Part Cucumber-infused Reyka Vodka

1 Part Pimms

¾ Part Fresh Lemon

¾ Part Ginger Syrup

Top Soda

Garnish-  Cucumber Ribbon and mint

Combine all ingredients into cocktail shaker. Shake, garnish, serve.

Super Cocktails for Your Super Bowl Party

Whether you’re watching for the football, commercials, or Justin Timberlake’s sure to be killer performance, it’s no use throwing a Super Bowl Party without some super spirits to match. See below for a full selection of recipes from the likes of Ancho Reyes, Drambuie, Flor de Caña, Hudson Whiskey, Monkey Shoulder, Montelobos, Reyka Vodka, Sailor Jerry, and Q Drinks - and be sure to check out Kona Brewing as your go-to beer. Your guests will be doing their own touchdown dances with one of these cocktails in hand.

Ancho Verde Margarita

1 part Ancho Reyes Verde

1 part Milagro Silver Tequila

1 part fresh lime juice

1/3 part agave nectar

Method: Add all ingredients to a shaker, add ice, and shake hard. Strain over fresh ice into a rocks glass with half its rim salted. Garnish with a lime wheel.

The Upbeat (Created by Vance Henderson, Drambuie Ambassador)

.75 parts Drambuie

.75 parts Hendrick’s Gin

2 parts Darjeeling tea, (cooled)

.5 part Rose Simple Syrup

2 dashes Peach Bitters

1 parts Sparkling Water

Method: Combine Drambuie, Gin, and Simple Syrup in a mixing glass filled 3/4 with ice. Stir for 30 seconds to combine. Pour into an Old Fashioned glasses with one large ice cube. Add 2 dashes of the bitters into each glass. Further sweeten with rose simple syrup to taste. Stir again. Finish with Sparkling water in each glass. Garnish with an orange slice.

Flor de Caña Ultimate Mojito

2 parts Flor de Caña 7

1/2 part lime juice

1/3 part superfine sugar

3 leaves mint

Champagne

Method: Muddle lime juice with sugar in a Collins glass. Add mint leaves and muddle again. Fill glass 2/3 full with crushed ice and add rum. Top off with a champagne float. Garnish with sprig of mint.

Baby Bourbon Smash

1 1/2 parts Hudson Baby Bourbon

3/4 ounce simple syrup

2 fresh lemon wedges

A couple sprigs of fresh mint

Club soda

Muddle lemons, 4-6 mint leaves, and simple syrup in the bottom of an Old Fashioned/rocks glass. Add cracked ice, Hudson Baby Bourbon, and top with splash of club soda. Stir briefly to combine and garnish with a mint sprig.

Ginger Brewskie

1 part Monkey Shoulder

3/4 part ginger syrup

3/4 part fresh lemon juice

Top with your favorite beer

Method: Add all ingredients, other than the beer, to a shaker. Add ice and shake by hand. Strain into a glass and top with your favorite beer.

Ponche Primavera (PITCHER)

12 ½ parts Montelobos Mezcal

7 ½ parts Ancho Reyes Chile Liqueur

5 parts lime juice

5 parts lemon juice

15 parts sweetened agua de Jamaica (Mexican hibiscus tea water, can be found in most supermarkets)

1 part Oleo Saccharum (an oil made from mixing citrus peels with sugar)

Method: Combine all ingredients in a punch bowl and mix together. To keep chilled, freeze a large ice block the night before by double boiling water and using a large casserole dish. Add edible flowers to the water before it freezes (optional). Let ice block rest in punch bowl throughout the gathering. Garnish with cinnamon sticks, orange wheels, lemon wheels, and edible flowers.

Lightning On My Feet

1 ½ parts Reyka Vodka

2 parts pineapple juice

¾ part Solerno Blood Orange

½ part fresh lemon juice

Angostura bitters

Method: Combine all ingredients into a cocktail shaker. Shake and serve over crushed ice in Rocks glass. Top with a couple dashes of bitters and garnish.

Sailor Jerry Backyard Lemonade

2 parts Sailor Jerry Spiced Rum

Top with lemonade

Method: Serve on the rocks or in a pitcher for large

Pineapple Paloma

 1 oz Reposado Tequila

.5 oz fresh lime juice

1.5 oz fresh pineapple juice

1 oz pink grapefruit juice

2 oz Q Grapefruit Salt Rim

Method: Run a cut lime around the edge of a large rocks glass and rim with salt. Add first four ingredients to a cocktail shaker, shake with ice and strain over fresh ice into the rocks glass. Top with Q Grapefruit and stir to combine. Garnish with a pineapple wedge.

Valentine’s Day Cocktail Recipes

With romance in the air, it has never been a better time to surprise your loved one and try out a new, sinfully delicious cocktail for Valentine’s Day. With options from Drambuie, Hudson Whiskey, Monkey Shoulder, Montelobos, Reyka Vodka, Sailor Jerry, Q Drinks, and the perfect sparkling option, Pata Negra cava, now is your chance to set the mood with an elevated nightcap… or two.

Mixed Berry Sangria (created by Vance Henderson, Drambuie Ambassador)

3 parts Drambuie

1 part Triple sec

1 Cup White Wine (Chardonnay is perfect)

1 part OJ

1 part Fresh Lime Juice

1 part Honey

2 cups Frozen Berries

10 Dashes Cherry Bitters

Method:

Add all Ingredients to a Blender and blend until smooth. Garnish with skewered berries with basil sprig.

White Manhattan

2 parts Hudson NY Corn Whiskey

1 part Lillet Blanc

3 dashes orange bitters

Method:

Stir ingredients 50 times with chunk ice to chill and dilute properly. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a lemon peel.

Strawberry Mamie Taylor (By Giuseppe Gonzalez Suffolk Arms, NYC)

2 parts Monkey Shoulder

.5 parts Lemon juice

.75 parts ginger syrup

.25 parts strawberry puree

Method:

Shake. Top with soda.

Smoke & Flowers (SERVES 5)

7 ½ parts Montelobos Mezcal

2 ½ parts St. Germain

5 parts strawberry puree (wash strawberries and blend in a blender)

3 ¾ parts lemon juice

2 ½ parts simple syrup

Method:

Combine all ingredients in a pitcher and stir together vigorously. Add ice cubes when ready to serve. Garnish with strawberry and lemon slices.

The Siren (by Ingi R. Sigurdsson)

1.5 fresh Lemon juice

1 oz simple (1:1)

1 oz St. Germaine

3 oz Reyka Vodka

6 oz champagne

Method:

Combine all ingredients into cocktail shaker except champagne. Shake, top, garnish and serve. Shake/strain over the fruit juice cubes/top with 6 oz prosecco. Bordeaux/Burgundy wine glass. 2 cranberry juice cubes/2 grapefruit juice cubes/ 1 large simple syrup ice cube with orange blossom water, rose water, frozen edible Sonja orchid.

For flower ice cube liquid:

4 liters water

24 oz simple syrup 1:1

10 droppers Orange flower water

10 droppers rose water

Method:

Stir til combine. Freeze in 1x1 molds with Sonia Orchid. Juice from concentrate...not juiced and frozen.

Sailor Jerry Cherry

1 ½ parts Sailor Jerry Spiced Rum

3 parts Q Ginger Beer

1 cherry

2 dashes cherry bitters

Method:

Build Sailor Jerry and Q Ginger Beer over ice. Top with dashes of cherry bitters. Garnish with a cherry.

Smoking Rose Paloma (Recipe by Ashley Conway, Craft and cocktails)

5 oz Q Drinks Grapefruit Soda

2 oz mezcal

.75 oz fresh lime juice

.5 rose simple syrup (recipe below)*

garnish: grapefruit slice, rose petals

Method:

For the flower ice: Fill a glass 1/4 the way full with water. Add rose petals. Prop on it’s side in the freezer, making sure it doesn’t spill. Let freeze completely before using. This is an optional step, if you are looking to make a drink ASAP (we all have those days), just add regular ice to the glass. But if you do take the time for this step, it makes one pretty cocktail!

Add all liquid ingredients except Q Drinks Grapefruit Soda into a shaker. Shake well to help dilute the cocktail a bit since the ice in the glass won’t melt as fast. Remove the glass from the freezer. Strain into the glass. Top with the Grapefruit Soda and stir. Garnish with grapefruit slice.

Please remember to ALWAYS drink responsibly.