A McDonald’s Sundae Reimagined: The No More Dirty Looks Skinny Sundae
In case you missed the memo, refined sugar is really, really bad for you.
This post from yesterday’s Lifehacker does a pretty good job of explaining the basics of how sugar reacts in the body and brain. If you’re up for an even deeper look, read the killer (pun intended!) New York Times Magazine cover story from last month, and check out this video of Dr. Lustig—who Siobhan saw speak last month at the Dr. Weil conference in SF—and see for yourself that it’s the devil.
But man does it taste good. Sweets are also tied into all kinds of comfort-and-reward-do-my-parents-love-me stuff left over from childhood. Of course, it’s ok to splurge on a sugary treat here and there, but I’m gonna get bold and say that I’ve concocted a dessert you could enjoy every day if you’d like to. And, by total happy accident, it tastes a lot like a grownup version of a McDonald’s Sundae.
In fact, if I was Bethenny Frankel I’d be calling this the Skinny Sundae and selling it to someone for a cool 100 mill. But what makes this treat so amazing is not its lack of calories (we know better than to equate low calorie with healthy, right?) but its significant lack of sugar along with its surprising nutritional density.
Here’s how you make it.
Mix:
—3/4 cup of plain Greek yogurt (I used the Fage 2% — feel free to try a sugar-free vegan alternative but make sure that its THICK.)
—1 tbsp vanilla extract
—Stevia to taste (Stevia is a natural sweetener made from a plant. You can get it anywhere now, and it has no glycemic impact and no creepy chems.)
—Stir in 1 tsp of organic crunchy salted peanut butter (I used one from Trader Joe’s—whatever you use, it’s gotta be crunchy and salty. I know you can’t see them in the picture—I’m not going to win any food photography awards—but those little crunches are the best part.)
Drizzle with:
—1 tsp of maple syrup (I’m using a can I smuggled home from my last visit to Quebec. It’s been in my fridge for a while and it’s nice and thick.)
To do the chocolate version drizzle instead with a melted square or two of high-quality dark chocolate. I bet raw honey would be yummy too, but not any kind of McDonald’s equivalent.
I just can’t tell you how delicious this is!
Here’s why it works: Stevia on its own has a bit of an aftertaste that takes getting used to, but that’s fully masked by the delicious flavors of vanilla, peanuts and maple syrup. And even though it’s only a teaspoon of syrup, it feels like plenty (look at the picture!) and having that real sugar in there is key to making the experience satisfying—that, along with the salty crunch of the peanut butter and the creaminess of the yogurt make it hit all of the right dessert notes.
Now let’s do a health comparison!
McDonald’s Caramel Sundae with Peanuts: 385 calories, 11.5 grams of fat, 9 grams of protein, 160mg sodium, 62 carbs, and…. 44 GRAMS OF SUGAR.
Our Sundae (roughly the same size): 177 calories, 8.5 grams of fat, 19.5 grams of protein (!!), 67.5mg of sodium, 12 carbs and… 11 GRAMS OF SUGAR.
Ow math—but clearly worth it! That’s a lot of protein, and not a lot of sugar, for something that tastes a little bit like heaven. K, this post is officially as random as my vegan cappucino one (btw, I still use coconut milk in my coffee).
Do you have any amazing lower-sugar dessert recipes to share? Bring it!
Sounds yummy! I’m off the the grocers to stock up on the necessary provisions.
I make this thing that I think I originally got off of wholeliving, that is tahini sweetened with apple sauce and raw honey topped with fruit and toasted flaked coconut. AMAZING! You just use twice as much apple sauce as tahini, and equal amounts raw honey and water (usually between 1-2 tbsp.), food process it, then top with cut up fruit and coconut. Best with juicy things like berries, mangoes, kiwi, citrus. [193 calories, 8.4 grams fat, 3.6 grams protein, 20 mg sodium, 4.5 grams fiber and only 23.3 grams sugar!]
So doing this.
If you use the Stevia drops they last a lot longer than the packets and the contents of the packets do tend to clump being that they are quite fiberous. 2 drips can sweeten a 16 oz coffee, so proceed with caution.
I don’t have a sweet tooth at all, but if I make dessert, it is normally a granita, no sugar or sweetener added; just pureed fruit.
This sounds amazing, I will definitely be trying it ASAP.
Funny you should ask! I just made the Salted Chocolate Almond Butter Fudge from http://cosmohippiechef.blogspot.com/2011/04/salted-vegan-chocolate-almond-butter.html and it was terrific. I used honey instead of the nectar (not vegan, but what I had in the pantry), and I think next time I’m going to use bittersweet chocolate instead of semisweet. And, yes, the 1 T of vanilla is the correct measurement – it tastes terrific to use that much.
i know this is going to sound a little difficult because it involves an ice cream maker and a blender, but it is soooo easy…and a delicious creamy icy treat as the days begin to boil. ice cream makers run about $30 and if you store the bowl in your freezer you can make “ice cream” in about 20 minutes.
low-sugar almond pecan maple granita
blend 1c almonds with 2c coooold water. blend until it’s as smooth as possible in your blender. now you have some thick almond milk. pour into your ice cream maker bowl and whirl away. drizzle the following into the bowl of the ice cream maker as it whirls away: 1 tbspn maple syrup, 1 tbspn vanilla extract, 1 tbspn dark rum. it’ll take 10-20 minutes to get to the right consistency, depending on the brand of your machine. basically you can stop it whenever you like what you see and taste. the final product should have the icy texture of a granita…or a creamy solid slushee. toast up some pecan pieces on the oven and then cool while the ice cream makes itself. when it hardens or reaches the consistency you like, assemble your sundae with a drop of maple syrup and pecans on top.
to give your mcd sundae an icy twist just dump all the ingredients in the ice cream maker bowl and give it a spin for about 15m. seriously good frozen yogurt. you’ll never want any of that commercial stuff for $5 again!
to make proper ice cream that has a super creamy consistency and longer shelf live in your freezer you need to follow some stricter rules as to quantities of sugar/alcohol and cooling your mix before making the ice cream. but for our purposes of almost-immediate low-sugar icy satisfaction, this totally works. i am literally typing as i eat this little wonder.
I just made this and devoured it! It was great. Thanks for sharing!
That was look yummy! But I don’t love caramel, I do love chocolate fudge.. :)