Here’s a list of the ingredients I use most often to create sugar-free, gluten-free, candida-friendly recipes at home and for this blog. Where I prefer (or most often use) one specific brand, I’ll name it here; otherwise, I tend to rotate among brands or buy items on sale.

Note that this page is a work in progress–I’ll be adding new ingredients as I continue to experiment in the kitchen or as I discover new brands, so come back often to check!

Just click on any category below, and you’ll jump to that section.

Categories

Natural Low Glycemic Sweeteners
Cacao, Chocolate and Carob
Flours, Grains and Starches
Binders
Nuts, Seeds, and Butters
Non-Dairy Milks
Protein Powders
Oils
Condiments, Sauces & Other Flavorings
Herbs & Spices
Dried Fruit
Appliances and Utensils

Natural Low Glycemic Sweeteners:

Stevia:

• NuNaturals Alcohol Free Liquid Stevia: my favorite plain stevia. No bitter taste (really!)
• NuNaturals Alcohol Free Vanilla Liquid Stevia : great for baked goods–you can decrease the vanilla a bit if you use it.
• NuNaturals Alcohol Free Orange Liquid Stevia : I use this in smoothies or other fruity recipes.
• NuNaturals Pure White Stevia Extract (powdered) : pure stevia; a (very) little goes a long way!
• NuNaturals NuStevia Simple Syrup: a mix of stevia and glycerin, this is a great basic liquid sweetener.
• NuNaturals NuStevia Cocoa Syrup: a chocolate flavored syrup that’s great wherever regular chocolate syrup can be used.
• SweetLeaf pure plain stevia liquid : another pure stevia that has a great flavor.
• SweetLeaf English Toffee Flavored Liquid Stevia : my favorite flavored stevia.

Other Natural, Low-Glycemic Sweeteners:

• Wholesome Sweeteners Organic Coconut Sugar
• Coconut Secret Organic Coconut Nectar, Raw
• Sunfood Organic Yacon Syrup
• Navitas Naturals Lucuma Powder : made from the dried lucuma fruit, it’s low glycemic, high fiber, and tastes like caramel. Really, why wouldn’t you use it if you could? 😉
• XyloSweet Xylitol (my new favorite dry sweetener; white like sugar, granulated, and no aftertaste!).
• Lakanto (monkfruit and erythritol) dry sweetener (also great for baking; tends to be a little more crystalline once cooled than xylitol).

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Cacao, Chocolate and Carob:

• Navitas Naturals Raw Cacao Powder (a great choice that’s less acidic than regular unsweetened cocoa powder, and high in natural antioxidant compounds).
• Ghirardelli 100% Cacao Unsweetened Chocolate (Baking Bar)
• Lilys sugar-free chocolate chips
• Unsweetened Carob Chips (note: I use I use chips from Grain Process Enterprises in Toronto; I haven’t been able to find something similar in the US).
• Bob’s Red Mill Toasted Carob Powder
• NuNaturals Cocoa Syrup: this reminds me of that childhood chocolate syrup we used to drizzle over ice cream. Good anywhere you’d use chocolate syrup!

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Flours, Grains and Starches:

Ingredients for Ricki’s All-Purpose Gluten-Free Flour Mix:

• Bob’s Red Mill Millet Flour (note: you can also make your own by grinding whole millet in a coffee grinder until powdered)
• Bob’s Red Mill Garfava Flour (fava bean and garbanzo bean flour)
• Bob’s Red Mill Potato Starch

Other Flours:

• Bob’s Red Mill Sweet Rice Flour
• Bob’s Red Mill Teff Flour
• Bob’s Red Mill Organic Coconut Flour
• Bob’s Red Mill Chickpea Flour
• Bob’s Red Mill Buckwheat Flour
• Bob’s Red Mill Brown Rice Flour

Grains:

• Whole Quinoa

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Binders:

• Psyllium Whole Husks : works beautifully as a binder in gluten-free baking when you don’t want to use xanthan or other gums.

• Bob’s Red Mill Xanthan Gum (Bob’s is corn-free)

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Nuts, Seeds, and Butters:

Nuts & Seeds:

• Manitoba Harvest Shelled Hemp Seeds
• Raw Pecans
• Raw Pumpkin Seeds
• Raw Sesame Seeds
• Raw Sunflower Seeds
• Navitas Naturals Chia Seeds
• Flax seeds and Flax meal (I prefer to buy the whole seeds and grind them myself)

Nut & Seed Butters:

I love making my own nut butters from scratch, but here are some alternatives I use when I run out or don’t have time:

• Maranatha All-Natural Roasted Almond Butter
• Maranatha is a great brand in the US; I use Nuts to You (only in Canada).
• Cashew Butter
• Coconut Butter is like nut butter made from dried coconut meat (NOT the same as coconut oil!)
• Organic Sunflower Seed Butter
• Tahini (sesame seed paste)

Non-Dairy Milks:

 

• Unsweetened Almond Milk (plain) : my go-to milk in a carton.
• Unsweetened Almond Milk (vanilla) : great for baking to add a touch more flavor.
• Unsweetened Cashew Milk (plain): fabulously rich, but still drinkable–and perfect for baking.
• Unsweetened Oat Milk : perfect for frothing in matcha lattes or other drinks (I use it in baking, too)
• Native Forest Coconut Milk: a rich and creamy coconut milk for all kinds of uses (but especially ice cream!). Native Forest has non BPA lined cans.

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Protein Powders:

• • • SunWarrior Grain-Free Warrior Blend (vanilla)
    • Vega All-in-One Protein Shake

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Oils:

• Nutiva Organic Virgin Coconut Oil A great-tasting virgin olive oil.
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Toasted Sesame Oil

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Condiments. Sauces & Other Flavorings:

• Pure vanilla extract: nothing beats the real thing!
• Pure Almond Extract: one of my favorite ways to enhance the flavor of baked goods and desserts.
• San-J Organic Tamari Wheat-Free Soy Sauce A good gluten-free soy sauce.

• Bragg Liquid Aminos All-Purpose Seasoning A great sub for soy sauce on the Anti-Candida diet.

• Bragg Organic Apple Cider Vinegar Works well in salad dressings, in baking to help leaven, or in this yummy faux kombucha.
• Nutritional Yeast. So maybe it doesn’t *really* taste like cheese, but it is a delicious, “cheesy” flavoring nonetheless! I use this in many recipes, from pasta sauce to pizza topping.

• Imagine Vegetable broth I like that they use only whole food ingredients, and nothing artificial. I use this broth whenever I don’t have homemade on hand–almost like homemade!

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Herbs & Spices:

• Chinese Five Spice : this combination of star anise, cloves, cinnamon, pepper and fennel is one of my all-time favorites, and I use it in both savory and sweet recipes all the time.

• Cinnamon : it not only stabilized blood sugar, it tastes delicious. I use it daily in smoothies, oats, pancakes, or savory dishes, too.
• Cardamon : I love the subtle and fragrant flavor that cardamom adds to dishes, especially Indian recipes.
• Dried Basil : I use dried basil in the winter when I can’t get fresh. It’s great in pasta sauce, stews, or even salad dressings.
• Dried Dill : One of my favorite herbs–I love to add fresh dill to salads, but dried is great in soups, stews, or savory pancakes. I also use it often in a tahini-lemon sauce for my Toronto Sandwich.

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Dried Fruits:

• Organic Goji Berries. These bright reddish-pink superfood berries are tangy and sweet, with a lower glycemic index than raisins. I often use them in place of raisins in various recipes.
• Organic Golden Berries. Another great lower-glycemic substitute for raisins, golden berries are very tart with just a hint of sweetness. Great in a recipe that has other sweet components (though I personally love them as a snack!)
• Prunes. I use prunes in place of dates in many recipes.

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Appliances and Utensils:

• Cusinart 11-cup Food Processor. This is my go-to machine, the one I use more than any other in my kitchen; I literally use my processor every single day. I love the professional strength of the motor and the durability of this machine. I’ve tried other food processors over the years, but I always come back to Cuisinart, as it produces the smoothest results in the shortest time. Plus, you can wash it in the dishwasher–beauty!
• Vitamix 5200. It took me a while to come over to the world of high-powered blenders, but I’m so glad I did. Adding kale to a smoothie is a breeze with this incredible machine, and there’s no trace of grit or fiber in the final product. You can also use it to make silky smooth nut butters and more. The company also offers incredible customer service.
• Cuisinart Mini-Prep. I use my mini processor regularly for all kinds of small jobs, from chopping veggies to making a single-serve batch of Carob-Coconut Smoothies. It’s great when you don’t have enough to fill a larger machine, or if you are saving for the large processor, use the mini in the meantime: it can get most jobs done just fine if you split the contents into two or three smaller batches. And it’s got the durability of the larger processor.
• Breville Smart Oven and Air Fryer. I use this mini-oven daily. It’s big enough for a 9×13 pan or smaller cookie sheet, and works beautifully without heating up the entire kitchen. I love that it turns off automatically once done, too!

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My Books:

My books are available in bookstores everywhere, or via amazon.com, indigo.com, and other online sellers.

• Naturally Sweet & Gluten-Free (allergy-friendly and low glycemic vegan desserts and baked goods, made gluten-free and with low glycemic sweeteners like coconut sugar, stevia and coconut nectar).
• Living Candida-Free: a full program to eat free of sugars, yeast and mold on a vegan diet; with over 100 recipes suitable for anyone on a sugar-free, gluten-free, vegan and anti-candida diet.

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