An easy pumpkin fudge recipe that’s sugar free and paleo diet friendly. There’s no need to feel guilty indulging in this yummy low carb treat!
Can you believe the month of September is more than halfway over? It still feels a little like summer here as the leaves haven’t turned color yet. But, before you know it, the holidays will be here!
Since we are in the middle of the official pumpkin season, I thought it would be a great time to work on an easy pumpkin fudge recipe. My only requirement was that it be paleo diet friendly. This means it had to be dairy-free as well as not use any sugar alcohols.
One of the things I’ve done to move to a more paleo diet is cut back on heavy cream. And, I’m working on cutting back on the amount of cheese I eat.
It’s not easy as both of those have been regulars in my low carb diet. Although dairy has nutritional benefits, those nutrients can easily be replaced with other foods.
Last week, I wrote an article on All Natural Ideas about whether dairy is good or bad for you. An interesting fact that I uncovered is that about 75% of the world’s population is lactose intolerant.
It appears that the ability to digest lactose beyond the breastfeeding stage is abnormal. This is because humans typically stop producing lactase after weaning. And, many people are actually lactose intolerant but don’t have noticeable symptoms.
So, if dairy is something we were never meant to consume past childhood, maybe it can cause adverse health effects.
Although it’s clear that some milk products are better than others, I wasn’t able to prove that dairy is completely bad. However, based on what I did find, I’ve decided to look for alternatives to dairy.
For this easy pumpkin fudge recipe, I used dairy free coconut butter and oil. To keep it paleo, concentrated stevia liquid was used rather than a bulk low carb sweetener. I also added a little bit of coconut flour to thicken up the mix.
Coconut seems to be one of the best replacements for dairy products. I even found this recipe for making dairy free mozzarella cheese from coconut products. It seems pretty low carb, too.
I’m not missing the dairy at all in this yummy paleo pumpkin fudge! And, although there is a lot of coconut in it, I don’t find that overpowering. The pumpkin and spices are the predominant flavors in the fudge.
Cheese is main reason why I haven’t gone completely dairy free. One of my original thoughts for a low carb pumpkin fudge was to use cream cheese. If you are following a low carb paleo diet, I’d love to hear whether you’ve incorporated any cheese alternatives into your diet.
As I move away from cheese, I’ll be posting more dairy-free recipes in the future. It will be tough to give up cheese completely, though. Maybe one day, I’ll become an expert on dairy-free cheese making.
What are your thoughts on dairy? Do you think it’s best cut back or eliminate it completely?
Easy Pumpkin Fudge Recipe – Sugar Free and Paleo
Easy Pumpkin Fudge Recipe - Paleo
Ingredients
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- 2/3 cup coconut butter
- 1/2 tsp SweetLeaf Stevia Drops
- 2 tablespoons coconut flour
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
- dash sea salt
Instructions
- Stir all ingredients in small pot over medium low heat until well combined.
- Line small container (I used an 8x5) with parchment paper
- Spread mixture into lined container.
- Chill in refrigerator until set.
- Cut into squares. Keep stored in refrigerator.
Notes
Nutrition
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Note on Nutritional Information
Nutritional information for the recipe is provided as a courtesy and is approximate only. We cannot guarantee the accuracy of the nutritional information given for any recipe on this site. Erythritol carbs are not included in carb counts as it has been shown not to impact blood sugar. Net carbs are the total carbs minus fiber.
