Valentine’s Day is coming up, so…Hey, Sweetie! Let’s talk sugar.

Remember those little heart-shaped candies with the delightful words stamped on them that we used to give our friends on V-Day? And oh, how we (the girls) hoped that special fella would present us with a heart-shaped box of chocolates! Today, we bake chocolate desserts for our families, make heart cookies for the grandchildren and follow-up that special dinner with a decadent dessert.

Hey, if it’s one of those rare treats, enjoy. Savor every bite. Tomorrow’s a new day. But if you are like me, that one fabulous treat, tomorrow may find you hunting for more sweets for days to come. The biggest fact is that we, as humans are drawn to sweet stuff.

Now, now, don’t get defensive or self-righteous. We can have a rational discussion, and just about everyone is on a different page when it comes to sugar. In fact, some people are in their own book! (It won’t hurt to read some of those books, either. A real eye-opener is “The Blood Sugar Solution” by Mark Hyman, M.D.)

There is sugar, corn sweetener, high fructose corn syrup (did you know it has 8% less fructose than cane sugar?), glucose, beet sugar, dehydrated cane syrup (isn’t that sugar?) and so many more it would make your head spin. In fact, google “names for sugar.” Holy Cow! One site listed 56 names for sugar, many that we don’t even think of as sugar.

So how do we cut out sugar. Baby steps. First, if  you eat processed foods, packaged cereals, etc., start reading the ingredients list. Get savvy. Look up the ingredients you can’t pronounce. Some are good, some are not. Start substituting unsweetened applesauce for the sugar-loaded varieties. Eat more fresh fruit to satisfy those cravings for sweets. After all, fruit is sweet! Look at your favorite recipes. Try cutting the sugar in half. Try replacing sugar with honey (although too much honey is too much of a good thing, too). Put fruit on top of that waffle.

Speaking of waffles…I took a serious look at one of my favorite recipes and have revamped it. Hope you enjoy this one, and Happy Valentine’s Day.

The Ultimate Waffle

Waffle Mix

3 3/4 cups whole wheat flour
3/4 cup oat bran
3 Tablespoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt

Mix above ingredients thoroughly in a large bowl and transfer to an airtight container for storage.

To make one waffle:
Preheat a 7” waffle iron
Mix together in a small bowl (use that little wire egg whip you got for Christmas in your stocking)
1/3 cup waffle mix
1/4 cup liquid egg substitute
up to 1/4 cup water
1 teaspoon canola or olive oil
Some cinnamon (optional)

Spray preheated waffle iron with no-stick spray

Pour waffle batter onto waffle iron, using a rubber spatula to get all the mix.
Cook about 3 minutes, or until steam stops rising from iron and the waffle feels “crispy” when you lift the lid and tap it with a fork.

Remove cooked waffle from iron and place on a dinner plate. Top waffle with 1/2 cup low-fat or fat-free cottage.

Top with your choice of fruit (fresh or frozen, unsweetened)

Now, the fancy stuff! Squirt some Fat Free whipped topping on the top. Take a picture! You’ve got yourself one super healthy, filling breakfast. At 10:30 a. m. when the others in your office are munching on doughnuts and leftovers of Mary’s birthday cake, you can just smile and say “No thanks. I’m still full from breakfast!”

Enjoy!