To top it all off.....

I have been asked about what I use on pancakes. I blog about this a little now and then, but here is my usual options.

Regular syrup; only in a great while. Why? Well, I figure that I go to great lengths to make sure the pancake is such a whole grain nutritional breakfast that I have issues with topping it off with ingredients such as these in Mrs. Butterworths:

High fructose corn syrup

Corn Syrup

Water

Salt

Cellulose Gum

Molasses

Potassium Sorbate

Sodium Hexametaphosphate

Natural and Artificial flavor

Citric Acid

Caramel color

mono and diglycerides

I can't say that I never use they syrup, but it is maybe once a month on french toast. I will use mostly fresh whipped cream, using organic cream and very little sugar and fresh fruit. Sometimes we use freezer jam diluted with a little water and heated up. Real maple syrup is great but it does have a little different taste that sometimes need to be acquired. We love hot apples with a little cinnamon and sugar or hot peaches. I also love buttermilk syrup on wheat waffles. Here is the recipe for those who don't have it. It is definitely not on the low fat side, but you don't need much. Just make sure that you find a buttermilk that has decent ingredients. I usually have to find the organic valley brand.

Buttermilk Syrup

1 stick butter

1/2 c. buttermilk

3/4 c. sugar

Let melt on medium heat until it starts to boil, stirring occasionally. When all melted and just boiling, remove from heat, stir in 1 tsp. vanilla and 1 tsp. baking soda. Stir until all mixed. It will foam up so make sure you start off with a bigger sauce pan. Serve hot.

The buttermilk syrup does have sugar but much lower than real syrup. I would rather have sugar than high fructose syrup!

As for the questions I get on the new sweetner xylitol, I have been trying to research that. I cannot find any negative info on it unless you are a dog. It is processed much like sugar is from a sugar cane only derived from a type of bark from what I understand. It has a good effect on teeth unlike sugar and tastes great. I am nervous that since it is new that the long term effects are not know yet, but it looks promising. I did buy the Spry gum with it to try it out. It is better that glee and xylitol has to be better than aspartame. That's what I know. I will keep checking out links but I have looked at hundreds of sites and that's all I can find. Nothing negative.