Sweets

January 24, 2011

Maple, Granola Brittle 2.0

Last Friday, I wrote about my own recipe testing adventures for Food52.com and lucky for me (and well, I guess you too) this website also has a few readers who are willing to get their own pots and pans dirty for the good of the team. If you’ve been following Sodium Girl for a while, you may remember the runny, gooey mess that was my attempt at making Salt-Free Maple, Granola Brittle. This was my first try at being a home-made Willy Wonka and I’m being kind when I say that I wasn’t successful. I not only failed to make […]

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November 17, 2010

Salt Free My Recipe: Pecan Pie

For two days in a row now, I’ve had pie for breakfast. Sorry I’m not sorry. And sorry I don’t fit into my pants. But as someone that rarely enjoys the lusciousness of baked goods, I’ve been digging into my latest creation with abandon. Pecan pie. There are two things about this gooey holiday dessert that usually deter me from eating it. First, there are the pecans. I happen to not only be on a low sodium diet, but also quite allergic to nuts. Fun. And second, there’s the corn syrup, which (surprisingly) happens to be high in sodium – […]

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August 11, 2010

Sweet Thang

I love a Red Vine, a Twizzler, and even the absurdly long Red Rope. But all these licorice treats, whether twisted or pull n’ peel, contain too much sodium – usually around 50 to 100 mg per pop. So I let go of my licorice dreams and focused on other sweet nibbles, like dark chocolate and gummy candy, which generally fall into low sodium safe zone. But then, after years of longing for just one herbaceous bite of this magical candy, a low sodium cowboy unexpectedly rode into my life (slash grocery store) and came to the rescue. Turns out, Newman’s Own […]

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May 5, 2010

Spring Fling

Monday night, SF Tao of Pao, the ladies from Farm & a Frying Pan, and I gathered together for our third installment of our blogger dinner. The theme this evening was “Spring” and the F & FP gals imagined a beautiful menu, consisting of pea risotto, oven baked asparagus, and some iteration of berry cobbler. As the email exchanges flew and logistics were made, I found myself to be the last to respond and suddenly (cue dissonant chord) I was the one in charge of the desert. Dessert means baking. Baking means exact measurements and exact ingredients. And that means […]

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April 7, 2010

Lemon Meringue Pots

Ok, before we even start this post, I have to ask.  Does anyone else see a baboon in the picture of the lemon meringue above?  Or perhaps Simba from the Lion King? It is kind of like a sighting of the Virgin Mary, but without any religious implications or unexpected media attention. But perhaps this is a forewarning of one, truly wild dessert…so with that in mind, off we go. For the Mom’s birthday dinner menu, I was given three simple, low sodium requests: (1) risotto cupcakes, (2) juicy lamb, and her ultimate, favorite dessert, (3) lemon meringue pie. As […]

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April 2, 2010

Popsicle, My Popsicle

I am a truly loyal woman.  Monogamy is my middle name.  Strange choice for a middle name, yes, but you get the point I am trying to make here, so let’s not spend too much time questioning it. I am also fully aware that I have already professed my undying love and commitment to my single, favorite kitchen utensil – the great immersion blender.  But seeing that it is Good Friday and almost Easter (and we’ve recently celebrated Passover and apparently National Peanut Butter and Jelly Day), there is a palpable spirit of confession and forgiveness in the air.  So with […]

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February 10, 2010

Custard’s Last Stand

Although this may be a shock, there are some people in this world who do not like chocolate.  No, no.  I don’t mean myself.  Trust me, I’m on a steady diet of the dark stuff for breakfast every morning.  It’s good for your health, right?  But there are people out there (hey Dad) who, for some reason, do not taste the bitter sweet, buttery flavors that we find so decadent.  So for those folk, I wanted to offer up a Valentine’s Day treat that is not dipped, coated, or sprinkled with any form of cacao: A Simple Vanilla Custard. This […]

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February 3, 2010

Tally Me Bananas

Sometimes a blog post is short and sweet, just like a good afternoon snack or the lovely lady you call Mom.  Today, I’m going to focus on the former (sorry Mom) and share with you a newly discovered treat that comes in an individually sized pouch and is so delicious that it will disappear in minutes.  Its name?  Danielle.  I know.  It sounds like the title of a telenovela and trust me, these perfectly fried banana bites are just as captivating. After an afternoon of work and errands, my good friend Emmerson and I decided it was high time for […]

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January 8, 2010

Dream a Little Dream Bar

This recipe for Dream Bars is care of my wonderful Nana, who I am sure pick-pocketed it from someone else, but for the sake of legacy and honor, we will just go ahead and give her full credit. The brookies (brownie cookies) make the most of baking’s basic ingredients and the extra flare of sugar-soaked coconut will transport your taste buds to a magical, tropical island in the dead of winter.  They are perfectly chewy and hold up well when given a deep dunk in a glass of coconut milk.  You will use one bowl, one pan, and only 40 […]

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December 23, 2009

Put a Lime in Your Coconut

It’s the holidays (and my birthday) which basically means I have license to stuff my face with as many sweet treats as possible. An annual chubby bunny experiment of sorts. But low sodium desserts, especially at restaurants, tend to be difficult to find. Caramel, baking powder and baking soda, salted butter… it all kind of gets in the way of a low sodium diet. But thanks to the delicious coconut, new doors of decadence have been opened. Coconut has recently been a low sodium scene stealer. Its milk (15mg of sodium per serving) makes a wonderful substitute for recipes that […]

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