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Apple & Pumpkin Pie: Two Naturally Sweet Choices

in The Too Busy to Diet Blog on November 16, 2015

Apple Pie & Pumpkin Pie: Two Naturally Sweet Choices

Thanksgiving is not only a great kick-off for a day full of football; it is also the kick-off to a season of holiday overeating. It is a time for getting together with family and friends and eating many of the tried and true recipes that we all look forward to through out the year. It is also a great time to use many of the season’s fruits and vegetables that are out in full force. Two of those are apples and pumpkin.

Apple and pumpkin pies are both naturally sweetened.
For those with diabetes, sugar can be reduced by half or artificial sweeteners can be used in equal amounts to replace sugar. You may need to experiment with the sugar amounts over the years to find the correct proportion of sugar substitute for you. Remember that spices added to apple and pumpkin pies add sweetness to the finished product. These include cinnamon, cloves, and allspice.

Apples are high in soluble fiber and serve as s very good source of immune-boosting vitamin C. They also provide the antioxidant quercetin that helps endurance by making oxygen more available to the body.

What is pumpkin spice? It is a mix of ginger, nutmeg or mace, clove, cinnamon and allspice. To make it easy on yourself, you can buy these spices already mixed together.

Pumpkin is high in fiber and disease fighting nutrients. These include: potassium, pantothenic acid, magnesium, and vitamins E and C. They have also been found to boost your mood.
Pumpkins contain one the highest supplies of bioavailable carotenoids of any food. These are helpful in reducing risk from many different cancers including: lung, colon, bladder, skin, cervical, and breast.

Jacqueline King, MS, RDN, CDE, FADA