It didn’t snow for
Christmas this year, which really was a shame. I dare say Norway is one of the
most beautiful countries in which to enjoy the season when it’s cold and white
and beautiful. Instead, it rained for the majority of Christmas Eve and Day,
and we just had to make do with candles and music inside while listening to the
rain whipping on our windows.
The other tradition to
be neglected this Christmas was my sugar intake. I didn’t have any. At all.
About three weeks before the time was upon us I decided to quit refined sugar
for good. I remembered those two weeks sometime early this year when Ariz and I
experimented with taking refined sugar entirely out of our diet and the ensuing
cleanliness my body thrived in. But regardless of how good I felt back then
it’s still needless to say that Christmas 2013 has been full of interesting new
experiences and surprises – the holiday doesn’t exactly scream sugar free, at
least not in Norway.
The day after my
epiphany/challenge/”Oh my god, what have I done?”, I sat down to collect
recipes for all my favourite Christmas cookies without sugar. Gingerbread was
an obvious one, then chocolate balls, oat nuts (havrenøtter) and finally, goro
– a very Norwegian tradition. It’s actually so traditional that they’ve stopped
producing the goro irons – luckily my mum sampled one before it was too late. I
was filled with enthusiasm and willpower and thought a sugar free Christmas
would be a pure, healthy piece of cake. It’s funny how excited we are about new
things – a new haircut, a new car, or a new resolution. I don’t think I’m ever
as determined about the new year as I am January 1st. But then comes
the 2nd and the 3rd and soon enough you begin to lose the
initial fascination with the new and
become tired and sick of the usual.
Having that said, I
was still motivated to stay sugar free when I decided to try out a gluten-free,
sugar-free gingerbread recipe. I’ll just skip right ahead to the ending for
those of you who haven’t got time for the story: gluten-free gingerbread should
only be made by those with a special license and/or magic ability. The thing
about baking without flour is that almond flour, which is most commonly used as
a substitute, does not bind the dough as well as its counterpart. Imagine my
surprise, but primarily horror, when I mixed everything together and not only
did it taste absolutely nothing like gingerbread, but it also crumbled like a
week-old, dried out slice of bread. It was literally impossible to make anything
that was even mildly similar to the slim, delicious, crispy gingerbread I had
so hoped to achieve.
Setbacks like these
almost make me want give up. I didn’t want to have a sugar free Christmas
anymore. It was a dumb idea and I would go back to the refined yummies
immediately. But after some comforting words from my mother and husband I decided
to try again, and simply attempt to find a sugar
substitute, rather than a gingerbread substitute altogether. It worked
beautifully. The cookies that came out of the oven were, indeed gingerbread.
And that’s coming from someone who loves gingerbread almost as much as she
loves Christmas itself. My spirits were officially restored and I went on to
the chocolate balls and goro. And they were both successes. Particularly the
goro, which was so delicious that we finished them all before Christmas,
forcing me to make another batch on the 25th.
It’s the 29th
of December today, and I’ve survived my very first holiday completely without
sugar. Even though it’s tough I still think I prefer it to feeling awful and buying
premade cookies that anyone could have made. Making everything from scratch
sort of adds that little traditional and personal touch of having to spend a
few hours baking and reflecting on what a beautiful time of year it really is. So
next year I’ll dream of a white Christmas again, though just the cold, outdoors,
kind of magical one.
Merry Christmas and
Happy New Year J
No comments:
Post a Comment