PB and J Ice Cream Sandwiches

Did you know that American's have one of the highest calcium intakes in the entire world, yet we have the highest rate of hip fractures? One reason is we also have the highest rate of sugar intake. Sugar leeches calcium from the bone leading to osteroporosis and other serious issues such as arthritis.

So instead of a big sugar bomb, try these which have almond milk. Did you know almond milk has twice as much calcium as dairy? I have charts for all sorts of foods in my cookbooks, including this one on milk:

Milk Substitutions (Per Cup)
FOOD	Best	Carbs	Sugars	Fiber	Calories
Skim Milk	Bad	13	13	0	91
Hemp Milk	Best	1	0	0	60
Unsweetened Almond Milk	Best	2	0	1	40
Unsweetened Coconut Milk	Best	1	0	0	50

Making low sugar ice cream is tricky. If you use erythritol or ZSweet for a sweetener, it hardens to a ROCK! BUT if you use SWERVE or "Just Like Sugar" (click HERE to find), it stays nice and creamy! Another trick is to always add a pinch of salt to the mixture.

PEANUT BUTTER ICE CREAM: 
5 egg yolks
1 cup "Just Like Sugar" (or Swerve)
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 cup unsweetnened almond milk
1/2 cup natural peanut butter
1 tsp Celtic sea salt


In a medium saucepan place the egg yolks and sweetener in to mix on high with a hand mixer. Whip yolks until light in color and double in size. Stir in the whipping cream. Place the saucepan onto medium heat on the stove and cook, stirring constantly (I used my hand mixer, see photo). Stir until thickened into a custard. Remove from heat and stir in the almond milk, peanut butter and salt. Let cool completely (I cooled overnight...it was hard to wait!). Place into your ice cream machine (click HERE to find the one I love AND it is 1/2 off the original price!!!) and watch the magic happen within 45 or according to your ice cream maker's directions. Freeze until set. Option: stir in chunks of extra peanut butter if desired. Makes 6 servings.

NUTRITIONAL COMPARISON (per serving)
Traditional PB Ice Cream = 401 calories, 23g fat, 9.5g protein, 40g carbs, 1.3g fiber
"Healthified" PB Ice Cream = 254 calories, 22g fat, 9.5g protein, 5.4g carbs, 1.5g fiber

PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES:
1 1/2 cup peanut flour
1 tsp aluminum free baking powder
1/2 cup coconut oil or butter
1/2 cup natural peanut butter
1 cup Just Like Sugar (or Swerve)
1 tsp stevia glycerite
1 egg
1 tsp Celtic sea salt

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. In a medium bowl, cream the butter, peanut butter, sweeteners, and egg. Cream for a few minutes until very fluffy. In a separate bowl mix together the peanut flour, baking powder, and salt. Slowly add in the dry ingredients to the wet and mix until smooth. Roll 2 TBS of dough into a ball in your hands (for uniform shape) onto a cookie sheet, then press down to they are about ¾ of an inch thick. Place cookies about 2 inches apart. Bake in preheated oven for 17-20 minutes or until golden around the edges. Cool completely on the baking sheet before removing and enjoy! I keep mine in the freezer (for portion control!:) Makes 24 cookies.

NUTRITIONAL COMPARISON (per cookie)
Traditional PB cookie = 161 calories, 7.5g fat, 3g protein, 21.4 carbs, 0.6g fiber
"Healthified" PB cookie = 90 calories, 7.6g fat, 4.1g protein, 2.3 carbs, 0.9g fiber

To assemble the ice cream sandwiches remove the ice cream from the freezer and let it stand at room temperature for about 5 minutes to soften slightly. Spread a layer of NATURE'S HOLLOW jam (or fresh berries) on the flat side of each peanut butter cookie. Place a scoop of peanut butter ice cream in the center of half the cookies, on top of the jam. Top with the remaining cookies, jam side down. Gently squeeze the cookies together until the ice cream and jam come to the edges of the cookies. Put the ice cream sandwiches back in the freezer for at least 15 minutes to harden the jam. These can be made 2 days ahead. Place them in a large plastic storage bag or airtight container and store in freezer.

NUTRITIONAL COMPARISON (per sandwich)
Traditional PB and J Sandwich = 539 calories, 27g fat, 73.8g carbs, 1.9g fiber
"Healthified" Sandwich = 320 calories, 26.2g fat, 12.8g protein, 8g carbs, 4.4g fiber























VARIATION: Omit the jelly and dunk into my "healthified" chocolate sauce!

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