Why "Sweeteners"? (Mission Statement)

In early 2010, my husband had a blood test with some troubling results. At that point in time, I started to try and alter a variety of recipes in order to remove the sugar and lower the overall caloric values of the foods I prepared. Since he won't eat things which he doesn't enjoy, I've done a lot of experimenting to incorporate whole grains, remove sugar, and reduce fats without sacrificing texture and flavor. As one might imagine, this is no small feat.

Every recipe that appears on this site will have been tweaked to produce a tasty result. One of my pet peeves with recipes that are "guiltless" or altered to take out sugar and white flour is that beautiful pictures of foods are put up along with recipes, but when I try the recipes, the results fall short of the mark. This will not be a site with beautiful pictures and recipes that don't live up to them on the flavor front. If anything, the pictures won't do the food justice as I am a much better cook than I am a photographer! If you try a recipe and it doesn't work, please tell me about your process and I'll try to help you troubleshoot it.

In regards to ingredients, all of the recipes for baked goods or sweets will usually use Splenda, either granular or packets. I don't use the "baking blends" because they are partly composed of sugar. I know that many people use agave nectar or other types of "healthier" sweeteners, but these things are not an option for me. I live in Tokyo, and my choices are extremely limited as Japan is not the sugar-free paradise that many Western countries are. I ask anyone who decides to comment to please keep this in mind before issuing dire warnings about the dangers of Splenda and recommending that I turn to another type of sweetener.

Thank you for reading!