Cherry Lime Muffins & NuNaturals Stevia

I think cherry and lime is one of my favorite flavor combinations. Have you ever had a cherry limeade from Sonic? They are so delicious! They are a classic flavor pair that works extremely well together.

Today, I bring you a recipe for some scrumptious Cherry Lime Muffins, made with products sent to me from NuNaturals to review. NuNaturals strives to make sugar-free taste yummy by creating products made with stevia, an all natural, plant-based sweetener. They offer a huge selection of products. Quite frankly, I think they are one of the best (if not the best) producer of stevia-based products out there. Just browse araound their website and you can see that they offer supplements, baking blends, liquid stevia, products to keep your blood sugar in check, and much more. My personal favorite is the wide selection of liquid stevia. They are very versatile and can be used in pretty much anything.

What I was sent to review:

MoreFiber Stevia Baking Blend

Pure Liquid Orange NuStevia

Pure Liquid Vanilla NuStevia

NuStevia White Stevia Packets - 100 Count

Pure Liquid Alcohol Free Stevia

Pure Liquid Clear Stevia

Pure Liquid Cocoa Bean Extract

NuStevia White Stevia Quick Dissolve Tablets

That's a crazy amount of stuff, right?!

I thought everyhing tasted good and did what it was supposed to do. The MoreFiber Stevia Baking Blend can be substituted 1:1 for sugar in a recipe. I used mine to make muffins (see the recipe below) and only substitited a little under half of the sugar with the baking blend. I thought it tasted good, but I definitely would not have replaced the sugar 1:1, or it would've had too strong a stevia taste.

All of the Pure Liquid stevias I received worked well in a variety of recipes. I made a chocolate crust using the cocoa bean extract and clear stevia and found the flavor to be delicious and naturally sweet. I also really enjoyed the flavored liquid stevias (orange and vanilla) because they re so versatile and provide sweet flavor without calories or sugar.

The stevia packets are very convenient for when you want to take your stevia with you. You can toss them right in your purse and sprinkle your stevia on anything you want when out with friends! And the quick dissolve tablets - these threw me off a bit. At first, I wasn't sure about it. Why can't you just sprinkle some powdered stevia in your drink and call it a day? Well, I guess the idea is that these tablets are easier to dissolve in liquids, especially cold liquids. Try these tablets when making lemonade or if you want to sweeten your tea.

I made Cherry Lime Muffins with the MoreFiber Stevia Baking Blend.

Don't they look great?

Cherry Lime Muffins

Based on this recipe

Ingredients

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature

3 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

3 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 cups MoreFiber Stevia Baking Blend

3/4 cups sugar, plus more for sprinkling

1 large egg

2 large egg yolks

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 cup milk

1 3/4 cups red cherries, pitted and cut into quarters

Zest of two small limes

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Spray a cupcake pan/muffin pan with nonstick spray and set aside. In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.

2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter, MoreFiber Stevia Baking Blend and sugar on medium speed until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add egg, egg yolks, and vanilla; mix until well combined. Reduce speed to low; alternate adding reserved flour mixture and milk to mixer, beginning and ending with flour. Remove bowl from mixer; gently fold in cherries and lime zest by hand. Divide batter among muffin tins; sprinkle generously with sugar. Bake until light golden, about 45 minutes for large muffins, about 30 minutes for small muffins. Cool in pan 15 minutes. Remove from pan; transfer to wire rack, and let cool completely.

I love this company, and I know you will too when you try their products!

The Daisy Rating

5/5 daisies

Much love,

Basil Lime Peaches

Who doesn't love basil, lime, or peaches? 

Those are three of my favorite things, right there! And since today is the fourth of July, why not share a good recipe to make on the grill? Somewhere along the line, I lost my exact copy of this recipe, so this is my guess at the amounts. Feel free to mix it up a bit and let me know what you did differently. The amount of brown sugar is the only thing I'm not sure about - I could have used a couple tablespoons, but I'm almost positive it was 1/4 cup. Like I said, try it and let me know. 

This would be delicious regardless of how much brown sugar you use. The tangy lime juice and honey with the brown sugar make for a great combination! The basil also adds the perfect, unexpected bite to these peaches. So yummy. 

These would be perfect with a scoop of cold, creamy vanilla bean ice cream. They make a great, healthy dessert option!

Ingredients

1 tablespoon honey

1/4 c. brown sugar

1-2 tablespoons basil, finely chopped

Juice of one large lime

Lime zest (optional)

3-4 peaches, pitted and halved

Directions

1. Combine all ingredients (except peaches) in a large bowl. Stir until smooth. 

2. Add peaches to bowl and toss until all peaches are coated in the marinade. Set to the side to marinate while you fire up your grill (or grill pan, which is what I used). 

3. Place your peaches, flat side down, on the grill. The marinade will get bubbly and caramelize. You want to see pretty grill marks on these! 

4. Cook for about 10-15 minutes or until the peaches are nice and soft. Be sure to watch them so they don't burn. Brush with the leftover marinade throughout the cooking time so they get lots of flavor.

Much love, 

Coconut Lime Snowballs

Ready to try something EXTRA delicious? These cookies literally melt in your mouth - now if that doesn't make you want to try them, I'm not sure what will! 

These snowball cookies have an extra "oomph" because they contain lots of lime juice and coconut flakes! I used a dried, unsweetened coconut flake for these. It makes pretty many, too - at least 2 dozen or so, I'd say! Perfect for Christmas, New Years, or whenever! 

Coconut Lime Snowballs

Ingredients

• 1 cup(s) of Earth Balance Buttery Spread
• 2/3 cup(s) of powdered sugar
• 2 tsp. of vanilla
• 1/4 tsp. of salt
• 1 tbsp. of Earth Balance Soy Milk
• 1 3/4 cup(s) of all purpose flour
• 1 cup(s) of finely chopped walnuts
• 3 T. + 1 tsp. of lime juice
• 3 tbsp. of coconut flakes
• 1 1/2 cup(s) of powdered sugar (for rolling)

Directions

1. Beat together Earth Balance spread and powdered sugar in a bowl.
2. Add remaining ingredients and mix together.
3. Place tablespoon sized balls of dough on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake in a 350 degree oven for 8-10 minutes, until golden brown. Cool completely.
4. Roll each balll in powdered sugar.

What is your favorite way to use limes?

Much love, 

Key Lime Cupcakes

I find it to be very delicious. However, I realize the lime curd has a lot of cornstarch... (and honestly, it was still a little on the runny side for me.. I'd add a bit more) but it tastes good! I've never used agar agar, but you have and you think it would work better for this, try it and let me know how it goes please!

Cupcake batter
1/2 c. Earth Balance butter
3/4 c. sugar
1 1/2 c. flour
3 Ener-G Egg Replacers (equiv. of 3 eggs - in powder form)
1 1/2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. baking soda
1 c. milk substitute
Zest and juice of 1 large lime
1/4 t. sea salt

Directions:
Beat Earthy B and sugar until creamy. Then add all dry ingredients, lime juice/zest and milk - combine until smooth. Scoop into cupcake pan and bake at 350 degrees for 23-25 minutes. Let cool. (This should make 12 cupcakes) After cool, fill the center of each cupcake with lime curd by using a knife to cut a hole in the middle that does NOT go through to the bottom. After it's filled, put the cut out piece back on top. Ice with lime icing. Enjoy!

Lime Curd
1/4 c. cornstarch, plus extra to make thicker (use your judgement)
1/3 c. lime juice
1 T. lime zest
3/4 c. sugar
4 T. Earthy B
3 T. milk substitute

Directions:
In a small pan, combine sugar, lime juice and zest, milk substitute and Earthy B. Cook until sugar is dissolved, then add cornstarch and cook until thickened. Remove from heat and allow to cool.

Lime Icing:
1/2 c. Earthy B
3 c. powdered sugar
1 t. lime zest
1 T. lime juice

Directions:
In a bowl, beat butter until creamy. Add sugar, lime juice, and lime zest and stir until combined.