Keto dessert and 7 mistakes Ketonians often make

Keto dessert is a subject of great controversy. All around the World Wide Web, on social media, and especially on Twitter, you will find different opinions and advice from Keto and Low-Carb promoters. We like to call them Keto Evangelists! Many of them will question if it’s necessary to have Keto dessert at all!

There’s is an argument that Low-Carb approach to living has to exclude all bad habits and having dessert was one of those bad habits. On the other side, there is a large number of Keto foodies all around the globe who disagree with this claim. While obesity and metabolic diseases are all around us, we must not forget that psychology plays a major role in any process of healing.

The sugar danger

When you give a taste of sweetness to a baby for the first time, for example, a spoon of sweetened camomille tea, its facial expression will immediately change. The small one will literally smile widely and brightly.

Of course, we all know that sugar lits up the same spot in the brain as other addictive drugs. It’s highly addictive, toxic and maybe the main cause of our general civilisation problems related to nutrition and health. Now that we learned all about sugar and starch, we really have to use all the power of our mind to say a big NO to it. In fact, we should also say NO to most fruits and starchy vegetables. Even to cereals, pasta, rice, and all those foods that’ll turn into sugar in about 20 minutes.

Human nature and forbidden fruits

I am not having an intention to make this into a religious or philosophical post. However, let’s remember the biblical story of Adam and Eve. Why did they eat from the tree of wisdom? Just because it was forbidden. Then let’s remember the story of potatoes and Greeks that we covered in one of our previous articles!

When potatoes were first introduced in Greece nobody wanted them. Let’s be honest, if we tried them for the first time and did not know you have to spice them up and roast them with a lot of oil or butter, we would hate them too! Therefore, Ioannis Kapodistrias had to make a fake law and forbid potatoes in order for people to start stealing them and actually consuming them. If you forbid something to humans, they will want it so badly that it will be beyond the self-control of an individual.

But can we still have the taste of sweetness?

Now that we are not sugar addicted, the natural taste of sweetness will appear everywhere. Taste the butter, cream, some kinds of cheese, most of the vegetables, coconut, avocado, even seafood and liver. Natural sweetness is all of the sudden presents everywhere. With just a dash of 100% natural sweetener, such as dried stevia leaves of monk fruit, you will be able to create the most delicious dessert that will not jeopardise your healthy new Keto-lifestyle. Furthermore, dried stevia leaves will not spike your insulin or break your fast as you might have read about industrial versions of stevia or other sweeteners.

The trick is to avoid all industrial desserts even if they are labelled as Keto-friendly or Low-Carb. Nothing will be good for you as the dessert you make with all your passion and 100% healthy ingredients at home.

The psychological effect and success in making Keto dessert

Nothing can compare with the joy of creation! When we are working on just about anything, our passion grows, our determination is strengthened and we start learning from our mistakes. That is a basic principle of science! This is why Keto baking and cooking provides so much joy! When you discover that anything can be ketonised, you suddenly realise that you DO NOT have to miss anything and you can enjoy life without even thinking about a dessert that often. If you have it 2-3 times a week, you will not even want it that much! Furthermore, you will learn to make it dense in nutrients and then they can serve as a perfect breakfast or replace a meal when you are on the road!

When Keto desserts end up unhealthy…

You know the saying: The road to hell is paved with good intentions! Indeed, even when you learn about organic, wholesome, healthy ingredients, you can still fall into a trap of making it unhealthy! Especially if you still insist on making things quickly and way too easy! For this specific reason, here’s a list of common mistakes Ketonians can make when they approach Keto dessert preparation.

1. Using a microwave

No, it will not end up being healthy and it will not save you time. You can read all about why “nuking” the food is not going to help you in your quest to become a healthier and better looking Ketonian in this article. If you want a quick dessert, invest in a good non-stick pan or waffliera! A healthier, tastier, approach to quick Keto dessert preparation.

2. Using way too much industrial sweetener

If your recipe calls for a cup of industrial sweetener, whether it’s xylitol, erythritol or any other industrial sweetener, you will end up with an unhealthy Keto dessert. Using too much industrial sweetener is not going to help you with your sugar cravings! Furthermore, it will most probably create gastrointestinal problems, laxative effects, allergic reactions or just feeling sick to your stomach. We should think twice before using the sweeteners. Always choose 100% stevia extract, monk fruit or even better, organic dried stevia leaves, powdered or infused in water. Don’t worry about the aftertaste, a dash of salt and lemon juice will lift the experience to a new and delicious level.

3. Overuse of berries and nuts

Now that we’ve learned that some berries and nuts are Keto-friendly, we incorporate them in many Keto dessert recipes. however, you really have to take the things easy here. Even though berries are usually low glycemic fruits, you can easily add more fructose than you really wanted. Let your fist be your measure as it was for the ancient people. That’s a single portion. If you are preparing a dessert or cake that will have more than one portion, then you can add more berries and nuts, but always measure them per single portion.

4. Measuring Keto flours with cups

Again, nut or seed based flours are not carb-free and for good Keto baking, all you really need is a few tablespoons. Especially if you are using coconut and flaxseed flours. Play with your other ingredients, add a tablespoon of psyllium, ground chia or beef gelatine to create a thicker dough. A great example of Keto dessert is our flourless Crepe recipe. You don’t need any flour to make delicious and fluffy crepes! When you are using the flours, keep the final result within 3 to 4g of net carbs per portion.

5. Using industrial stabilisers, emulsifiers and binding agents

If you decided to make a healthy Keto dessert, this means you don’t want too many industrial additives! Right? Then why do you need Xanthan gum, fermented sugar, guar gum or any other additive that ends up with gum? You are ending up with the same bad additives that food industry is using in the unhealthy versions of dessert. Even if your Keto desserts call for whipping cream or cream cheese, read the ingredients! In most of the cases, you will end up with Carrageenan and some sort of gum! Rather use grass-fed beef gelatin, psyllium powder or chia seed flour as healthier and much more natural binding agents!

6. Industrial extracts, aromas and flavourings

Did you decide to make everything from scratch? Then please don’t go for the industrial flavourings unless they are 100% organic, natural and consist of maximum 2 ingredients. For example, vanilla extract, it should not contain anything except vanilla extract and water. In some cases, alcohol is present too. Any other ingredient in your flavouring is making it potentially hazardous. You can make your own vanilla flavourings by using the organic vanilla bean, cinnamon stick, other natural spices and herbs. Furthermore, if you are really found of intensive flavour, you can use a tablespoon of alcoholic liquor, heat it up, let the alcohol evaporate and then use it in your dessert. In Keto Mediterranean approach, we usually use Ouzo, Rum or Mastic liqueur for this purpose.

7. Industrial sugar-free chocolate

After learning so many recipes for homemade chocolate, do you really need to purchase that bar of industrial chocolate? Even if it is labelled as sugar-free, organic or healthy, in most of the cases you will end up with soy lecithin, unhealthy sweeteners and artificial stabilisers! On the other side, With only 30 g of organic cacao butter, 2 tbsp of raw organic cacao powder, any of your desserts will taste as chocolaty as you want it! Health benefits will be numerous. You can read all about cacao butter in this interesting article.

Healthy is delicious

Receiving feedback from Keto Mediterranean groups and followers is showing us that all our recipes provide a great experience to Keto foodies and enthusiasts. You can prepare a healthy and delicious Keto dessert with less than 3g of net carbs, enjoy it after your well balanced Keto meal and have better results in regaining your mental, physical and spiritual health! The photo we received from our social media follower who prepared our Gunpowder Gelatin says it all! Anybody can become an excellent Keto chef! With the right determination – a much healthier life is possible!