Pancake rant!
- Thread starter Cheese Thief
- Start date
Lily
Gold Member
I have to admit, I was surprised the other week when SW Online's feature of the week included a "recipe" for "Cake in a cup" - a packet of Options chocolate drink mixed with 1 egg and crazy amounts of sweetener (several tablespoons - a teaspoon is more than enough) zapped in a microwave. Of course I tried it. It was pretty good. 
But it seemed an odd recommendation, given that we're warned against "food abuse". I'm pretty sure the makers of Options never intended folk to mix their hot chocolate drink powder with an egg...
On the topic of bananas, there is a fine line between well-chopped bananas and mashed bananas, LOL. I get close to crossing that line frequently when I add my banana to porridge. As Cheese Thief says, I'd much rather sweeten it with banana than manky artificial sweetener.
But it seemed an odd recommendation, given that we're warned against "food abuse". I'm pretty sure the makers of Options never intended folk to mix their hot chocolate drink powder with an egg...On the topic of bananas, there is a fine line between well-chopped bananas and mashed bananas, LOL. I get close to crossing that line frequently when I add my banana to porridge. As Cheese Thief says, I'd much rather sweeten it with banana than manky artificial sweetener.
Tetris
Gold Member
I made the pancakes for lunch and I was full! If I ate 2 scrambled eggs and a banana for lunch, I would be just as full, but less satisfied as it didnt quite give me the sweet fix I was after. Why would these pancakes make you less full?
The process of cooking one small pancake and then eating and then cooking the next and then eating made it a much lengthier process than eating a banana and scrambled eggs, gave time to allow fullness to kick in.
I totally agree on this rule for smoothies and the likes where you could guzzle 500cal of fruit/yoghurt in ten seconds as a snack, but to cook/mash fruit in unobusive portions and have that as a MEAL...
I just cant get over the fact that a preservative filled mugshot is OK as a snack, but not a couple of eggs whisked with a banana? :S
Obviously if it were something you could do freely newbs would abuse it, I think there should be an allowance for it as HexB or somethig though... You can have tinned fruit, cooked apple, but not a cooked banana? I think there should be some loopholes for where you can; particularly if you were going to have the banana anyway but would prefer it fried up for a sweet fix...
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lydia150970
Gold Member
When I do the pancake I use 1 teaspoon of sweetner, vanilla extract and cinnamon, I cook the pancake then add the banana once its on the plate so I don't have to syn it, then dollop some yummy fat free greek yoghurt and a sprinkle of cinnamon.
When you eat whole fruit raw your body uses more energy to break it down and digest it. Cooked or mashed fruit that process has already happened without your body doing any work. Also, once the fruit has been cooked, blended mashed etc, the chemical structure of the fruit acids change, making your body absorb more glucose.
When you eat whole fruit raw your body uses more energy to break it down and digest it. Cooked or mashed fruit that process has already happened without your body doing any work. Also, once the fruit has been cooked, blended mashed etc, the chemical structure of the fruit acids change, making your body absorb more glucose.
BakingBadUK
New Member
Ok, so i'm the blogger who's page you have posted and are having your rant about! Clearly there are some very strong feelings about this recipe so not quite sure how to respond, as not sure whether the frustration is against myself for promoting a recipe with 6tbsp of sweetener, or against SW for it being 'syn free' when 'healthier' options would be synned. (Have to admit feel slightly like it's the first option so far, so hoping this isn't the case!).
I came across the recipe myself on Insta gram when it was posted by someone I followed. As a big fan of pancakes and keen to find something which was allowed on SW I thought I would give a go. I absolutely acknowledge that there is a lot of sweetener in there, which is why it would be a one off and not a regular snack/breakfast choice for myself, although I used Stevia which is supposed to be a 'healhier' sweenener option, I am not a big fan of sweetner, one for the health concerns with sweenener, and 2 because i'm not a massive fan of the flavour!
It was the first pancake alternative I had come across, and If i'm honest I think I would probably rather go with a 'healthier' banana version (now I'm aware that there is one) with the additional syns than the syn free version. However, there are some days when you want to be tight on your syns and save them, so the syn free version does have a place.
The post has had a lot of comments/interest from people either loving them, or disliking them because they are not 'real' pancakes. Clearly anything that is adapted to suit a particular diet or be syn free is not going to be the real thing (if real pancakes were syn free we'd all be much happier!), so there has to be some area of compromise, either on taste or texture, or unfortunately in this case, a syn free sugar alternative.
I find that these recipes are made for tweaking, so while the suggestion of 6 tbsp sweetner is suggested, this can be played around with. I think the suggestion is so high to make them feel more like pancakes than just being an omelette.
I'm first and foremost a 100% full fat baker, (which you will see from my blog), but am always keen to try lower fat alternatives and willing to experiment to see ways in which 'treats' can be included in a SW lifestyle. I'm absolutely not promoting the consumption of copius amounts of sweetener as a regular lifestyle choice (although lets not forget that some people do that anyway via soft drinks such as diet coke), but as a one off if you're fancying a treat, but want to stay on plan then it's good to have some choices available to you.
Cheese Thief
Gold Member
Just to clarify it wasn't meant as an attack on you at all. It never even crossed my mind that you'd read this. I was just really surprised when I was suggested this recipe as a healthier alternative to the banana one. I think a lot of people equate syn free with healthy, which often isn't the case.
There are numerous examples I could have given to make my point, its just your pancakes were the one recommended to me. I'm sure as a one off its great, but a lot of people would jump at the chance to have syn free breakfast pancakes each day. As a daily thing I think pretty much everyone is in agreement that it isn't a particularly healthy choice. Of course that isn't your problem, you just post the recipe and no-one would hold you accountable for how people use it.
The issue for me isn't with the recipie, its been created following the Slimming World 'rules', so ultimately any blame lies with them. Its all well and good sweetner being syn free if people use it in a cup of tea rather than sugar, but they really need to address when large quantities are used in baking.
As with anything SW isn't perfect and this is often demonstrated with the home baked foods. I read the other day about someone eating an entire half syn cake! Unfortunately some Slimming Worlders have no idea when it comes to healthy eating, and if they can get away with eating a full cake for half a syn they will! SW really needs to take some kind of responsibility and put guidelines in place for baking to protect peoples weight loss.
Thanks for your response anyway, but please don't go away thinking it was a personal attack on you or your blog, it's the plan I have an issue with.
lydia150970
Gold Member
I totally agree about eating the whole 1/2 syn cake. I like the scanbran cake recipes but I tend to make them in cupcake cases so that I don't sit and eat the whole thing, I wrap them all up individual and have 1 or 2 at the most a day. I think a lot of it is to do with using your common sense when following the plan.
Cheese Thief
Gold Member
Completely agree with you on the common sense front, it's a pity it isn't that common though!
Happy Hippo
Full Member
Just to add to this discussion, I also love a good rant about the more bizarre finer points of the SW plan, but on the whole the plan does make very good sense. In this case there is nutritional know-how behind their thinking. I'd like to direct you to this post last year which I thought explained it very well (it should link to post #8, if not then scroll down to it)
http://www.minimins.com/slimming-world/324486-logic-blending-mashing-fruit.html#post6616944
I don't think that the odd pancake is going to make the blindest bit of difference, I have what you might call an "emergency-SW-life-is-too-short-panic-button" when I'll just eat it rather than bleat about it My Consultant tends to agree, she said that at one SW Head Office meeting they were discussing something like how many millimetres of fat should be allowed on gammon steaks to qualify as free, and she thought "did I really give up my weekend and travel 200 miles for this?!". A bit of common sense is always a good thing. Another example of tweaking is instant mashed potato for scones and sauces - some insist that it be synned, however a quick shake to thicken a slow-cooker stew is hardly the end of the world and after all it is a much healthier meal than the takeaway pizzas we were all scoffing before we joined!
My favourite rants have been about Mullerlights. You can have an own-brand FF yogurt with the same amount of calories and practically the same nutritional value, but they are synned because of a 0.1g difference in the protein content per 100g. I suppose they have to draw the line somewhere but come on, don't tell me that there isn't a SW-Muller group hug going on somewhere in Alfreton...
One last thing, sweetener doesn't have to be unhealthy. It is about 98-99% maltodextrin which bulks out the sweeteners to make them the same sweetness as sugar. They just tend to taste a bit artificial. For cooking, use yellow or green types as they tend not to be affected by heat. I used Stevia in a scanbran cake and it was bleurgh so I have gone for Sucralose instead. Aspartame isn't the best choice for cooking and I don't much care for it anyway.
http://www.minimins.com/slimming-world/324486-logic-blending-mashing-fruit.html#post6616944
I don't think that the odd pancake is going to make the blindest bit of difference, I have what you might call an "emergency-SW-life-is-too-short-panic-button" when I'll just eat it rather than bleat about it
My Consultant tends to agree, she said that at one SW Head Office meeting they were discussing something like how many millimetres of fat should be allowed on gammon steaks to qualify as free, and she thought "did I really give up my weekend and travel 200 miles for this?!". A bit of common sense is always a good thing. Another example of tweaking is instant mashed potato for scones and sauces - some insist that it be synned, however a quick shake to thicken a slow-cooker stew is hardly the end of the world and after all it is a much healthier meal than the takeaway pizzas we were all scoffing before we joined!My favourite rants have been about Mullerlights. You can have an own-brand FF yogurt with the same amount of calories and practically the same nutritional value, but they are synned because of a 0.1g difference in the protein content per 100g. I suppose they have to draw the line somewhere but come on, don't tell me that there isn't a SW-Muller group hug going on somewhere in Alfreton...
One last thing, sweetener doesn't have to be unhealthy. It is about 98-99% maltodextrin which bulks out the sweeteners to make them the same sweetness as sugar. They just tend to taste a bit artificial. For cooking, use yellow or green types as they tend not to be affected by heat. I used Stevia in a scanbran cake and it was bleurgh so I have gone for Sucralose instead. Aspartame isn't the best choice for cooking and I don't much care for it anyway.
BakingBadUK
New Member
Phew, that's a relief, I'm really not into the blogging thing to be controversial or get people's backs up at all! I completely agree, 'healthy' and 'syn-free' are totally different things, and like you say, these plans needs to be approached with a degree of common sense.
I remember being amazed after following the Weight Watchers diet for some time and having their 1 or 2 point soups for lunch every day and successfully losing weight, that according to the SW plan those soups were 4.5 syns which is crazy, it's just because the different plans look at assessing the different properties of the food.
I think it's safer to take the fruit 'syns' with a pinch of salt, lets face it, a couple of syns for a mashed banana or other fruit in a smoothie is far healthier and a better choice than the equivalent syns for a chocolate or sweet of the same syn value, and your overall health will be better from having that fruit and the vitamins it contains.
In terms of people eating full cakes because they can I think part of the problem if the mentality of these eating plans. SW promotes itself on you being able to eat 'unlimited' quantities of free and superfree foods. Promoting that kind of attitude to people who are trying to lose weight is going to be counter productive because let's face it, we're probably not great at portion size or applying a degree of common sense to whether we actually are hungry/need that amount of food. So if you're being told you can eat as much as you like, then people are going to overeat because they think it's allowed under the plan. The real issue that needs to be addressed is the underlying attitude to food, which is why so many people put the weight back on shortly after losing it all. It becomes a vicious cycle, which to be honest, the companies such as Weight Watchers & Slimming World don't want to change because they make so much money from people going back round that cycle every few years!
Happy Hippo
Full Member
Again, this comes up quite often. I know it is completely counter-intuitive to be told you can eat as much fruit and (allowable) carb-rich food as you like, not count calories and still lose weight, but you can! Nutritionally it makes sense when you delve into the plan. I stuff myself something silly and have lost 4.5st in a year, it would have been more if I hadn't taken Christmas off!
What you are doing is essentially cutting out all processed fats and sugars save for negligable amounts. By eating lots you are boosting your metabolism so much that you are burning more calories at rest that you would otherwise. You also stay full up so there is a natural limit - your appetite! Some of SW's original research showed that people who ate as much as they liked ate disproportionately fewer calories if they cut out fats than if they didn't (cutting a long story short - it was in the preamble to one of their books from 2001). One of the most undervalued aspects of the plan is that it encourages you to cook from scratch and not eat processed foods (don't let me get into a rant about mugshots please!!). This is why there will be no freefood allowance for the scrambled eggs and 97% lean pork in a McD's Big Breakfast, and no freefood allowance in a bowl of Wagamama noodles. Make the two yourself though and they are free! It sounds mind-achingly inconsistent, but it isn't. Us lot with all these long award-rich signatures are proof that you can scoff yourself to slim
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Cheese Thief
Gold Member
Happy Hippo - Thanks for posting, loved the link, explains the science behind syning cooked fruit really well. I have no problem syning something if there's a good reason behind it, just annoyed me that on a calories basis you'd still be consuming the same amount regardless. Now I can see there's more to it than I thought so it doesn't leave such a sour taste in my mouth. Well done on converting me to cooked fruit syning!
There are soooo many things with the Slimming World plan we could nit pick at if we wanted. I know the inclusion of mug shots as free drives some people crazy, I guess it's all down to common sense and creating a balanced diet overall. As with most things as long as you don't completely overdo it then I don't see anything wrong with having them now and again, but I'm sure a nutritionist would tell us to steer clear.
I'm living proof that Slimming World works with 3st 11.5lbs lost in 6 months (albeit a very high starting weight!), but I honestly haven't gone crazy with 'unlimited' portions or anything in that time. Its just that eating when you're hungry and stopping when you're satisfied can be hard to get your head round when you're 'allowed' unlimited amounts. Regardless of all my criticisms of the plan though, I really do love it because its worked for me.
Baking Bad - Really interesting point about the fact that from a financial point of view SW might actually not want people to break the cycle, so they get repeat custom! I've got to say hand on heart that I'm sure my C wants us to keep it off for life when we get to target, but wonder what the corporate big wigs at Head Office think?! Maybe I'm being cynical now and getting my conspiracy head on!
There are soooo many things with the Slimming World plan we could nit pick at if we wanted. I know the inclusion of mug shots as free drives some people crazy, I guess it's all down to common sense and creating a balanced diet overall. As with most things as long as you don't completely overdo it then I don't see anything wrong with having them now and again, but I'm sure a nutritionist would tell us to steer clear.
I'm living proof that Slimming World works with 3st 11.5lbs lost in 6 months (albeit a very high starting weight!), but I honestly haven't gone crazy with 'unlimited' portions or anything in that time. Its just that eating when you're hungry and stopping when you're satisfied can be hard to get your head round when you're 'allowed' unlimited amounts. Regardless of all my criticisms of the plan though, I really do love it because its worked for me.
Baking Bad - Really interesting point about the fact that from a financial point of view SW might actually not want people to break the cycle, so they get repeat custom! I've got to say hand on heart that I'm sure my C wants us to keep it off for life when we get to target, but wonder what the corporate big wigs at Head Office think?! Maybe I'm being cynical now and getting my conspiracy head on!
Mrs CC
Silver Member
Anna, this is what annoys me about SW and WW do it as well - fake versions of junk foods. I know everyone is different, but I'd much rather cut out the junk and have the proper thing occassionaly in a smaller portion, than have a rip off version that doesn't taste as nice everyday!
I'm very cynical with the whole free processed foods thing and I am convinced that SW has deals with certain manufacturers for their products to be free.
Happy Hippo
Full Member
Swings and roundabouts - I tried a fakeaway (I only make them for the pun) doner kebab and although it was essentially thinly-sliced meatloaf in a pitta, it were bluddeh luvleh. But on the other hand my SW success has come from adapting my own cooking to their principles rather than running around finding the cheapest Mullerlights. I reckon my slow-cooker curry knocks the socks off any takeaway and has the added bonus of cleaning out your bowels before weigh-in day! (sorry about that mental image...)
The recipes subforum shows what an ingenious lot the Miniminers are.
Getting back on topic a bit, I suspect the large amount of sweetener is needed in those pancakes as the maltodextrin probably acts a little bit like flour or baking powder to stop it turning into an ommlette. The artificial taste is probably because it is then too "sweet" - although the brain will tell you it tastes odd instead because it isn't sugary-sweet it is weird-sweet.
Happy Hippo
Full Member
Cheese Thief - you're very welcome Let me know if you find a syn-free version of stilton or brie and I'll happily thieve it! I love Green days so I can have stilton as HEb and a 15 syns worth of Port
Let me know if you find a syn-free version of stilton or brie and I'll happily thieve it! I love Green days so I can have stilton as HEb and a 15 syns worth of Port BakingBadUK
New Member
Just out of curiosity, where did you get the link to my blog post from? Did you say it has been mentioned by another SW member? Interested to hear that my little old blog has been referred to by people!
Have a few other SW friendly recipes on there (those without lots of sweetener!), although need to get back into the habit of posting!
Have a few other SW friendly recipes on there (those without lots of sweetener!), although need to get back into the habit of posting!
Cheese Thief
Gold Member
Quite random how I found your blog actually. Basically I found the banana and pancakes recipe online on Facebook and posted a pic in my SW group's closed group on FB saying they were lovely and syn free. Then someone reminded me about the cooking fruit rule and told me to try these (linking your blog) as they are much healthier/syn free. Not sure how they found them tbh, imagine your page must be pretty high up the Google rankings.
Will have to have a look at your other stuff, don't worry I'm not that nit picky about the sweetener, lol. A few people in my group loved your version of pancakes and had good losses this week, so as long as you use common sense when it comes to these things its all good!
