In the Kitchen - Baking with Wholesome Sweeteners

                                                               Photo Credit: Wholesome Sweeteners
Wholesome Sweeteners is a company that produces fair trade certified organic sweeteners and syrups. They recently sent me their entire line of sweeteners and syrups to test and review. And they are very generously sponsoring a giveaway for one of my readers with a nice gift basket filled with their awesome products. The giveaway will be open in a few weeks after I have a chance to sample all of their great products. I plan on doing several posts sharing my experience with some of Wholesome Sweeteners products and then opening the giveaway.



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The first product I am going to share with you is Wholesome Sweeteners Organic Turbinado Sugar. My mom has used turbinado sugar for a few years in her coffee and tea so I was somewhat familiar with this type of sweetener. Mom and I tested it in our coffee and found it to be comparable to other turbinado sugars on the market, the big difference with Wholesome Sweeteners sugar is that it is fair trade and organic, in other words good for you and good for the people who produce it!

 I checked the Wholesome Sweeteners website for some turbinado sugar recipes (they have a huge recipe database) and found a great recipe for Berry Berry Berry Pie which is a perfect summer recipe with berries being in season. I easily found all the ingredients at my local grocery store and made this tasty pie the other day. I did not tell my family it was made with Wholesome Sweeteners turbinado sugar so that I could get an unbiased opinion from them. The verdict? It was a hit with everyone including the fussiest eater in the family, my oldest son. Here's the recipe:

Berry Berry Berry Pie

Ingredients: 1 cup Wholesome Sweeteners Fair Trade Organic Sugar ¼ cup tapioca starch ¼ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg 2 cups fresh blueberries 1½ cups halved fresh strawberries 1 cup fresh raspberries or blackberries 1 tablespoon lemon juice ½ teaspoon almond extract Pastry for a double-crust pie (use your favorite recipe, of course!) Milk (optional) Wholesome Sweeteners Organic Turbinado Sugar (optional)

Directions : For filling: In a large bowl, stir together 1 cup sugar, tapioca, and ground nutmeg. Stir in the berries, lemon juice, and almond extract. Gently toss berries until coated. Let mixture stand about 15 minutes or until a syrup forms, gently stirring occasionally. (If using frozen fruit, let mixture stand about 45 minutes or until fruit is partially thawed but still icy.) Meanwhile, prepare and roll out the ½ of the pastry dough and ease the dough into your favorite 9-inch pie plate, being careful not to stretch the dough. Transfer filling to the dough-lined pie plate. Trim the dough even with rim of pie plate. Roll the remaining dough into a circle about 12 inches in diameter. Cut slits to allow steam to escape. Place remaining dough on filling; trim 1/2 inch beyond edge of plate. Fold the top dough under bottom pastry. Crimp edge as desired. If you like, brush the pie dough with milk and sprinkle with additional sugar. Gently cover the pie with foil. Bake in a 400°F oven for 25 minutes (or 50 minutes for frozen fruit). Remove the foil and reduce heat to 350°F. Bake pie for 25 to 30 minutes more or until filling is bubbly and the crust is golden. Cool on a wire rack. Makes 8 servings.

Source : adapted by Wholesome Sweeteners from Midwest Living magazine

Comments : While we always prefer fresh farmer's market berries, they are not always available. Frozen unsweetened blueberries or raspberries will do just as well in this recipe. We suggest using organic ingredients whenever possible. Disclosure: I received samples of Wholesome Sweetener products for testing and review purposes. I only recommend products I personally use and my opinions remain my own.