Comparing Labels

A lot of talk lately has centered around nutrition labels...making them easier to understand, more applicable to the way people eat, etc, etc.  Do we really need to have this?  The single most important thing on a nutrition label can't be manipulated or changed - the ingredient list.  It's that simple.  Junk into your body = lousy nutrition.  I mean, a piece of fruit has sugar and so does a piece of chocolate but nutritionally, your body processes it different.  No label can account for that. 

Being a food manufacturer, I have a strong sense of responsibility to provide food that tastes good but also is a food I would be okay putting in my body.  It is so frustrating reading a "natural" label, or people asking me if we make a calorie free peanut butter.  Just think about that.  Calorie free peanut butter.  That is not possible.  Food has calories.  It's supposed to.  It is how our bodies work.  The problem is that food is no longer food.  And people consume it in much larger quantities than our bodies were designed to need.  There is no simple answer but rather a lifestyle overhaul to make us healthy.  Starving our bodies and feeding onchemicals will NOT make you healthy.  Maybe you'll lose weight but is that the overall goal for our lives?  Living a healthy life full of energy is way more important to me.

Just to illustrate what I mean, here's an example of two labels.

First one:
Serving Size: 1 Tablespoon
Calories: 60
Sodium: 35 mg
Fat: 3 g

Carbohydrates: 8g; Sugar: 8g
Protein: 2 g

Next one:
Serving Size: 1 oz (about 2 Tablespoons)
Calories: 131
Sodium: 2 mg
Fat: 9g
Carbohydrates: 5g: Fiber 2 g, Sugar 3g
Protein: 4g

So far, which would you eat?  Does the label really tell you all that you need to know?

Now for the ingredients:

First one:
Peanuts, Corn Syrup, Sugar, Water, Tapioca Starch, Dextrose, Hydrogenated Rapeseed/Cottonseed Oil, Contains 2% or less of the following: Egg Whites, Propylene Glycol, Sodium Carboxmethyl, Cellulose, Tartaric Acid, Natural and Artificial Flavors, Heliotrophine, Hydrochloric Acid, Sodium Benzoate

Second one:
Peanuts, Pecans, Raw Muscavado Sugar, Ghee

Did that help any more?  Which do you think says "Homemade" on the label?  Would it surprise you to know that it's not the 2nd one?  It is homemade but it doesn't need to try and fool you. 

I won't tell you what the first one is...but I will tell you it is sold as an Amish Homemade Peanut Butter.  Seriously.  What in that ingredient list says homemade to you?  Is it the Propylene Glycol?  Is it the Sodium Carboxmethyl? The Hydrochloric Acid maybe?  I hope you get the idea.  I would have no idea where to get those things or why I'd even want them in my food.  Is your peanut butter being free flowing that important to you?

I will say that the second one is our Butter Pecan nut butter and it is spreadable and wonderfully tasty and beyond all of that is is FOOD.  All food.  Real and wonderful and calorie and fat laden.  Now, I am not saying that eating a diet full of fat is okay.  It's not.  We have a resposibility to our bodies to nourish them in healthy ways.  But I am saying that a typical diet of processed, quick, fast crap is not the way. 

Bird Seed Cookies

To celebrate the debut of our new nutbutter, Birds & Bees, I made cookies for our demo today.  So many people loved it and said I should be selling those as well as the nutbutters!  I ran out of recipes so I'll share it here for anyone who'd like to try it. 

It's a great, chewy cookie and uses no flour!  Any nutbutter will work in this recipe as long as it's a natural one - no commercial nutbutter goop!  ;-) 

Bird Seed Cookies

Makes 4 dozen

Ingredients:

·         ½ c Birds & Bees Peanut Butter

·         ½ c Birds & Bees Almond & Cashew Butter

·         ¾ c packed brown sugar

·         1 egg

·         1 ripe banana mashed

·         2 ½ c oats

·         1 t baking soda

Directions

1.       Cream nut butters and sugar and add egg and banana, incorporate well.

2.       Add oats and baking soda to nut butter mixture, mix well.

3.       Drop by teaspoonful on greased baking sheets.  Bake at 350 for 6-8 minutes. 

Sea Salt Caramel Oatmeal Cookies

Happy National Peanut Butter day!  What a great idea for a day...right?  I mean, peanut butter is pretty much the nectar of life around here at Blind Spot Nutbutters so any reason to further celebrate it is something I'll get behind! 

Anyway, how to celebrate..?  Cookies of course!  I love cookies and so it's one of my favorite go-to desserts.  Well, second to ice cream. And maybe cake.  Okay, so I love all desserts.  ;-)  Who doesn't? 

So here's what I came up with..just to share with all of you! 

These cookies had a great texture...nice and chewy but still with a bit of a crisp on the outside.  Hungry yet?  Well, here's the recipe...

Ingredients

    1 cup sugar

    1 cup Blind Spot Nutbutters Sea Salt Caramel (or your favorite flavor!)

    2 large eggs

    2 tablespoons milk

    1 teaspoon vanilla extract

    1 cup All Purpose Flour

    1 teaspoon baking powder

    1 teaspoon baking soda

    1 1/2 cups quick rolled oats

Directions

    Preheat oven to 350°F. Beat sugar, brown sugar, butter and peanut butter in large mixing bowl on medium speed of electric mixer until creamy. Beat in eggs, milk and vanilla. Mix well. Combine flour, baking powder and baking soda; stir in rolled oats. Add to peanut butter mixture and beat on low speed until well blended. Cover and chill 30 minutes.

    Drop by heaping tablespoonful, 2 inches apart, onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until light brown around edges. Cool 2 minutes before removing to wire rack to cool completely.

I adapted this from a recipe I found online a long time ago.  I love the crunch of salt that is in each cookie from the Sea Salt.  It's a great combo!

I am thinking this cookie may make an appearance on a demo table soon...

Prep Time:	20 min
Cook Time:	12 min
Yield:	4 1/2 dozen

Ingredients

• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 3/4 cup Smucker's® Natural Creamy Peanut Butter
• 2 large eggs
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup Pillsbury BEST® All Purpose Flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 1/2 cups quick rolled oats
• 1 cup flaked coconut

Directions

1. HEAT oven to 350°F. Beat sugar, brown sugar, butter and peanut butter in large mixing bowl on medium speed of electric mixer until creamy. Beat in eggs, milk and vanilla. Mix well. Combine flour, baking powder and baking soda; stir in rolled oats and coconut. Add to peanut butter mixture and beat on low speed until well blended. Cover and chill 30 minutes.
2. Drop by heaping tablespoonful, 2 inches apart, onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until light brown around edges. Cool 2 minutes before removing to wire rack to cool completely.
3. VARIATION:
4. JUMBO CHEWY PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES: Prepare dough as directed above. Drop by 1/4-cupfuls, 3 inches apart, onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 14 to 17 minutes or until light brown around edges. Makes 1 1/2 dozen.

- See more at: http://www.smuckersnaturalpeanutbutter.com/recipes/dessert/45#sthash.dMttQ6aT.dpuf

Prep Time:	20 min
Cook Time:	12 min
Yield:	4 1/2 dozen

Ingredients

• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 3/4 cup Smucker's® Natural Creamy Peanut Butter
• 2 large eggs
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup Pillsbury BEST® All Purpose Flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 1/2 cups quick rolled oats
• 1 cup flaked coconut

Directions

1. HEAT oven to 350°F. Beat sugar, brown sugar, butter and peanut butter in large mixing bowl on medium speed of electric mixer until creamy. Beat in eggs, milk and vanilla. Mix well. Combine flour, baking powder and baking soda; stir in rolled oats and coconut. Add to peanut butter mixture and beat on low speed until well blended. Cover and chill 30 minutes.
2. Drop by heaping tablespoonful, 2 inches apart, onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until light brown around edges. Cool 2 minutes before removing to wire rack to cool completely.
3. VARIATION:
4. JUMBO CHEWY PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES: Prepare dough as directed above. Drop by 1/4-cupfuls, 3 inches apart, onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 14 to 17 minutes or until light brown around edges. Makes 1 1/2 dozen.

- See more at: http://www.smuckersnaturalpeanutbutter.com/recipes/dessert/45#sthash.dMttQ6aT.dpuf

Prep Time:	20 min
Cook Time:	12 min
Yield:	4 1/2 dozen

Ingredients

• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 3/4 cup Smucker's® Natural Creamy Peanut Butter
• 2 large eggs
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup Pillsbury BEST® All Purpose Flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 1/2 cups quick rolled oats
• 1 cup flaked coconut

Directions

1. HEAT oven to 350°F. Beat sugar, brown sugar, butter and peanut butter in large mixing bowl on medium speed of electric mixer until creamy. Beat in eggs, milk and vanilla. Mix well. Combine flour, baking powder and baking soda; stir in rolled oats and coconut. Add to peanut butter mixture and beat on low speed until well blended. Cover and chill 30 minutes.
2. Drop by heaping tablespoonful, 2 inches apart, onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until light brown around edges. Cool 2 minutes before removing to wire rack to cool completely.
3. VARIATION:
4. JUMBO CHEWY PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES: Prepare dough as directed above. Drop by 1/4-cupfuls, 3 inches apart, onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 14 to 17 minutes or until light brown around edges. Makes 1 1/2 dozen.

- See more at: http://www.smuckersnaturalpeanutbutter.com/recipes/dessert/45#sthash.dMttQ6aT.dpuf

Lotta Latte Fudge

People go crazy for this fudge. Seriously, they do.  I have taken it to several tastings and it is crazy how much they love it.  I think that because the Lotta Latte is a denser nut butter it makes it easy to translate into a super creamy fudge.  Seriously, all I add is a bit of powdered sugar, some almond milk and voila it's a fudge.  :) 

I have some tasty treats ahead to share that I use in my demos of the nutbutters as well as using recipes for our every day. 

But in the meantime...make some fudge!  Now that Lotta Latte is ending it's run as a flavor for us, you better find a jar if you can!