Sweet Vinegar Cucumbers

Such an easy and delicious way to serve cucumbers!  Peel and slice your cucumbers and place in a mason jar.  Dissolve ¾ cup of your sugar substitute, I used Splenda sugar blend in 1½ cups of water.  Add 1½ cups of distilled vinegar into your sugar water.  Stir it up and then pour into your mason jar of cukes.  Place in the refrigerator overnight.  I leave it alone for 24 hours at the least.  The longer they marinade the better they taste.  I also flip the jar over about 12 hours in because sometimes they ones at the top are not completely immersed.  You can also put other sliced veggies in like green onions, peppers or cauliflower.  Sweet and sour goodness awaits you! 

Copy Cat Paula Deen Sugar Free Barbeque Sauce

 

Copy Cat Paula Deen Sugar Free Barbeque Sauce

 

¾ cup Heinz reduced sugar Ketchup

½ cup water

½ cup apple cider vinegar

3 T Worchestershire sauce

2 T yellow mustardw

1½ T Colgin Mesquite liquid smoke (must be mesquite)

 

       Combine the above 6 ingredients in a sauce pan and heat over 

       medium.

 

½ t xanthan gum (to thicken)

 

       Once the sauce heats up add and whisk in xanthan gum quickly

       until incorporated.

 

2 t paprika

1 t onion powder

1 t salt

1 t pepper

½ t cayenne pepper

½ t cinnamon

¾ cup sugar equivalent (do not use Truvia)

 

      Add the 6 spices and sugar substitute and stir in thoroughly. 

      Let cool and then pour into a squeeze bottle or mason jar. This
      makes 2 cups of sauce.  2 tablespoonsful of sauce is 10
      calories.  Fat: trace   Protein: 2g   Carbs: trace   Fiber: 2gm

 

This sauce is wonderful.  It is sweet and zingy and has a bit of a kick.  I want no other BBQ sauce in my house now!  I thought it took some one off ingredients but I am going to make this again and again so it is definitely worth the cost to me.  It did not take as long to make as I thought.  I suppose you could use regular ketchup but then the nutritional values would increase.  I bought the Mesquite Liquid Smoke and the Xanthan gum thru Amazon.  I found the Heinz reduced sugar ketchup at my local HyVee.  I used the Slenda sugar blend as my sweetner (pictured below).  My husband and mother gave this a high thumbs up also!  This is definitely a keeper for my recipe box.  This recipe was from the web site "Up Late Anyway."

 

Slow Cooker Baked Beans

 

Slow Cooker Baked Beans

Makes 7 cups
1 medium onion, chopped
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 pound dried pinto beans, rinsed
1 teaspoon liquid smoke such as Wright’s Liquid Smoke
5 cups water
1 cup ketchup
¼ cup molasses
¼ cup Dijon mustard
¼ cup cider vinegar
Put onion, chili powder, pinto beans, liquid smoke, and water into a 6 quart slow cooker and cook on high for 3-4 hours or until the beans are tender. Drain the beans and put them back into the slow cooker. Add the ketchup, molasses, mustard, and cider vinegar and mix until blended. Heat on low for 20 minutes or until bubbling.
A ½ cup serving is 154 calories, 0.7 g fat, 0.0 g saturated fat, 30.1 g carbohydrates, 8.2 g sugar, 7.5 g protein, 5.5 g fiber, 252 mg sodium, 4 Points+

This recipe came from the Snack Girl web site.  I made a double batch because I knew it was going to be awesome and I wasn't disappointed.  I actually have never had baked beans that did not come out of a can.  This recipe is flavorful and the beans are big and meaty and fill up the tummy well!  I will make these again.  This would be perfect to take to a cookout!  I actually made barbeque chicken also and this was a perfect summertime meal.