Artificial Sweeteners

Here's an article about artificial sweetners which I just received and thought was very helpful:

With all the debate of whether or not artificial sweeteners are
better for you to use than regular table sugar, it's difficult to
find a definitive answer.

Your body performs hundreds of chemical reactions every time you
metabolize a meal just to maintain homeostasis, but even a machine
as great as your body has its limits. Therefore, even water or
oxygen at the right dose will create a toxic environment for your
body which could have potentially harmful side effects (including
death).

Many "experts" who are looking to find fault with a certain product
manufactured today can go to the research and find out what side
effects were found in rats or other lab animals.

The major problem with this type of adversarial expert is that
there will most likely always be side effects with any substance,
since the goal of researchers is to find the point at which the
product in question becomes toxic. This way they can establish the
highest no-adverse-effect level (HNEL) to provide an acceptable and
estimated daily intake (ADI & EDI).

With this in mind, it is important to always read the research for
yourself when trying to figure out if a particular food or
substance is healthy for you.

To make your job a little easier, I've objectively outlined the
major attributes of each artificial sweetener.

Here is a list of the most common artificial sweeteners and their
possible side effects:

Aspartame (NutraSweet & Equal)

Used in: Diet sodas,breath mints, sugar-free gums, frozen yogurt
What is it: Aspartic acid and phenylalanine
Tastes like: Chemical tasting
Strength: 150-200 times stronger than sugar
Calories: 0 calories

Possible side effects: Unless you have a rare genetic condition
that does not allow your body to process phenylalanine
(phenylketonuria), you should be fine. Although, some studies are
trying link a multitude of illnesses such as headaches/migraines,
dizziness, nausea, weight gain, muscle spasms, depression, fatigue,
insomnia, heart palpitations, vision and hearing problems, anxiety
attacks, vertigo, memory loss and joint pain, Emotional Disorders,
Multiple Sclerosis, Lupus, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, brain tumors,
brain cancer, diabetes, Alzheimer's Disease, Parkinson's Disease,
Epilepsy, birth defects, and diabetes to the overuse of aspartame.

Saccharin (Sweet 'N Low)

Used in: Some toothpaste like Crest and Colgate, as well as diet
sodas
What is it: Sulfur dioxide, chlorine, ammonia, and biochemical acids
Tastes like: Bitter with a metallic finish
Strength: 400-500 times stronger than sugar
Calories: 1/8 calorie per teaspoon

Possible side effects: In 1977, the FDA made all products
containing saccharin add a warning label stating that it was
determined to cause cancer in laboratory animals. In May of 2000,
it was removed from the National Toxicology Report on Carcinogens.

Sugar Alcohols (Low Carb Products)

Used in: Low carbohydrate products
What is it: sugar with an added hydrogen molecule
Tastes like: Similar to sweetness of sugar
Strength: Similar to sugar, but with less impact on blood glucose
levels
Calories: 25% less calories than sugar

Possible side effects: Deleterious effects such as bloating, gas,
diarrhea, vomiting

Stevia (not approved yet by FDA)

Used in: Not yet approved by FDA
What is it: Stevia plant
Tastes like: Similar to sweetness of sugar
Strength: 180-400 times sweeter than sugar
Calories: 0

Possible side effects: Stevia is in same family of plants that
includes chrysanthemums, daisies, and ragweed. If you are sensitive
to any of these plants you may also have a reaction to Stevia.
Other side effects are still not known, but studies looking into
fertility and a lowering of blood pressure and heart rate are under
way.

Sucralose (Splenda)

Used in: Numerous low carb or sugar-free products
What is it: Sugar bonded with chlorine atoms
Tastes like: Slightly chemical tasting
Strength: 600 times sweeter than sugar
Calories: 0

Possible side effects: Although there are many accusations, no side
effects have been confirmed in 113 studies over 20 years. The upper
limit is considered to be 1,500 12 once diet sodas a day. It's
important to note that although splenda contains chlorine atoms, it
differs in the way it is structured and therefore does not resemble
household chlorine. The human body also contains its own natural
chlorine in the form of KC1 and NaC1.

After reading the ingredients of many of the artificial sweeteners
it's easy to see how mass media or viral marketing could turn any
product into the next coming of the plague.

While I don't recommend using artificial sweeteners, I can't talk
too negatively about them since there simply isn't enough evidence
to say that they are harmful. With this in mind, everyone has
varying degrees of sensitivity to particular substances and
therefore should use their best judgment.

Basically, if it was up to me I would use them sparingly...

My view is that if you are limiting your processed foods and
sweets, you really don't have to worry too much about whether or
not you are even ingesting these sweeteners. Last time I checked
there weren't any artificial sweeteners in lean proteins,
vegetables, and fruits...

IN THE KITCHEN: Top Tips

Cutting Cheesecake Neatly


I always wondered what the best way to cut a cheesecake was.—You know, the thick, delicious kind that sticks to the roof of your mouth when you take a bite—I would always make a mess of it with a knife. No matter how carefully and slowly I would cut, the cheesecake pieces ended up with jagged edges after the first few cuts. But then I came across this tip in a magazine, and it works wonders.


Take a string of dental floss (about 18 inches for a 10-inch cheesecake), wrap the ends firmly around your fingers and press the string through the cake and into the crust. Let go of one end of the floss and pull it through the cake at the bottom. Repeat for all cuts. Voila. A cleanly cut cake. (Note: This only works for a cake that has been baked or set and then released from a spring-form pan. It doesn't work while your cake is still in a pie pan.)

Another trick to cutting cheesecake neatly, and this works with the cake still in the pan, is keeping the knife (a very sharp knife) clean and smooth between each cut. To do this, fill a tall container with hot water, deep enough to cover the blade of your knife. If no container is available, hold the knife under hot water.

Dip the knife into the hot water, then wipe it on a clean towel before making every cut. The constant dipping and cleaning will prevent chunks of cake from the previous slice from depositing on top of the next slice.

Crumb Coat


This trick takes a few extra minutes, but the results are worth the time and effort. When decorating a cake, put on a "crumb coat" of icing first before applying the final layer of icing. To apply the crumb coat, put on a very thin layer of icing. (It can be messy and show lots of crumbs!) Put the cake in the freezer for 15-30 minutes, so the icing firms up, before applying the top coat of icing. This thin crumb coat catches all of the crumbs of the cake, so you don't have to worry about crumbs showing in the final product, and gives you a firmer base to work from. The crumb coat can also serve to protect the cake overnight from drying out in the fridge, if you're doing the final icing and decorating the next day.

Getting Butter Out of the Measuring Cup


Before measuring the butter in your recipe, rinse your measuring cup with clean water and shake it out. Then after you measure the butter in the cup, and are ready to add it to your ingredients, the butter will usually slide right out of the cup cleanly, without any scraping needed.

Easy Inverting

Web excerpt

For one hundred percent assurance your cake won't stick to the pan when you try to invert it, line the bottom of the pan with waxed or parchment paper. For a round cake pan, lay the paper out on a flat surface, place the bottom of the cake pan on top of it, and trace around the pan with a pen. Cut out the waxed paper, lightly coat the pan with oil, and put the paper in place. Prepare and bake cake as directed. Once the cake is baked and cooled for 10 minutes, loosen the edges with a knife and invert onto a cake rack to cool. The paper should peel off the cake easily.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Tricks

Web excerpt

The number one problem with chocolate chip cookies I hear about is: "My cookies come out flat! What can I do?" This is such a common problem. Here are the first few things you should check:

* Make sure your cookie dough is cold when you put it on the cookie sheet. If you have to chill it in between batches, that's what you should do.

* Make sure your cookie sheet is cooled to room temperature between batches. I usually rinse mine under the tap to clean off the crumbs and cool it down.

* Mix the dough thoroughly, but don't over-mix it.

* Try adding a tablespoon up to an additional ¼ cup of flour to the recipe if your cookies are still coming out too flat.

* Don't over bake. Remove cookies when they're just turning golden, but are still a bit soft in the center, and let them cool on a plate, rack, or countertop. They'll continue cooking for a few minutes after coming out of the oven.

"This recipe is certainly silly. It says to separate the eggs, but it doesn't say how far to separate them."—Gracie Allen, comedienne

(Cortesia: Vita Magazine)

Cool pictures and tips for our Hot Kitchen!

Meu sonho de consumo! What a cool kitchen!

Orange X Fat

Here's a cool tip: If you cut an orange in half and throw it in the feijoada, it sucks all the fat. Take it out before serving, and you'll see that all the fat is gone from the feijoada and into the orange. is that cool or what???

Parsley X garlic and onions!

To get rid of the garlic or onions smell in your hands after cooking, rub parsley, then wash it with cold running water and it'll be gone immediately!

Got any cool tips to add?