Cakes I Bake

Jenny’s Cakes: I take pride in baking the following cakes from scratch using locally sourced, seasonal ingredients whenever possible. I don’t and will never use any artificial sweeteners or colours. All recipes are my own, inspired by my favourite flavours. The desserts below are all packed with flavour and have only a touch of sweetness so you put your fork down feeling satisfied rather sugar rushed.

100% Organic versions of the cakes below are available upon request

Type	Frosting	total price per 8’ cake
Bourbon Manhattan: Lemon Peel, Bitters, Marachino Cherries	Serve with a shot of Bourbon	$16
Pina Colada: Pineapple cake	Coconut Buttercream	$17
Triple Berry Twist: A swirl of colourful berries & orange zest	Citrus Sugar Glaze	$16
Carrot Cake: Rich with grated carrots. No raisins!	Traditional Cream Cheese Frosting	$15
Speckled Citrus : Grapefruit pieces & poppyseeds	Citrus sugar glaze	$16
Malva Pudding: Traditional South African cake soaked in Bailys just before serving	No frosting. Comes with Bailys mixture to warm on site and pour over individual servings.	$17
Caramel Peach Cake	(the caramel)	$15
Ginger Spice: Refreshing summer take on a winter classic		$15
Souflee Cheesecake:  Flavours optional: mango mint, strawberry rose, blueberry lemon or candied ginger caramel		Please note this cheesecake has a pastry crust so it is best consumed within a day of delivery. Must give 48 hours notice for this order.  $20
Plum Pudding: A moist and boozy cake perfect for welcoming in the fall and winter	Grandma’s Sauce Superb	$16
Boozy Banana Cream Pie: Chocolate glazed pastry with layers of bananas and caramel sauce under a orange rum cream cheese frosting. Decadent, rich and delicious.		Should be consumed within 1 day of delivery. Must give 48 hours notice for this order. $18
Lemon Tart	none	Must give 48 hours notice for this order.  $18
Chocolate Orange Truffle Cake (flourless too!)	Suggested: whipped cream or a citrus gelato	$17
Orange Date Cake: Orange segments and date pieces	Citrus Cream Cheese Frosting	$15
Pistachio Crunch	Orange Blossom Frosting	$17

Hemp and Whole Wheat Bread with Sunflower Seeds and Currants

Mix together:
400g wholemeal flour
100g white bread flour
30g hemp flour
7g yeast
400ml warm water

Wait 10 minutes

Add, roughly:
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1/4 cup currants
1tbsp fresh thyme
1/2 tbsp salt
1 tsp cane sugar

Mix to combine and wait 10 minutes

Form into a ball and put into an oiled bowl, covered with a tea towel, for 45 minutes in a warm spot

Set your oven to 220 C/ 428 F

Turn the dough like in the pictures below

Fold the dough over and seal the seam underneath

Let rise 15 minutes on a tray with cornmeal

 After about 20 minutes, score the bread

 Once oven has reached 220 C/ 428 F, put the bread in the oven, on the centre rack.

After 10 minutes, turn the oven down to 200 C/ 392 F and bake for 30 more minutes, or until bread sounds hollow when the underside is tapped

Let cool completely before slicing

Hemp and Whole Wheat Bread with Apricot and Thyme

Mix to a wet and sticky dough:
450g wholemeal flour
30g hemp flour
7g yeast
400ml warm water
1 tbsp olive oil

Wait 10 minutes

Add:
1 tbsp chopped apricots, lightly coated in flour
1/4 cup sesame seeds
1/2 tbsp salt
1 tsp cane sugar

Mix and slowly knead in:
about 50g of flour or until you are able to form a ball

Let rise in an oiled bowl for 1 hour in a warm spot*

*Unlike my Italian style bread, this bread does not need a long, cool rise because wholemeal flour contains little gluten. For more information, see Understanding Bread is the First Step Towards Bread Without a Recipe

Turn the bread and let rise 1 more hour in a bread tin

Set your oven to 200 C / 392 F

Bake about 45 minutes and let cool.

Understanding Dough is the First Step Towards Bread Without a Recipe

*These instructions, if roughly followed, will leave you with two delicious loaves of bread. Once you understand the formula, you will be able to make any flavour of bread without a recipe.

Start with about 500 grams of bread flour. I know it is about 500 grams because my flour comes in 1kg bags and I use roughly half a bag. 500 grams looks like the volume of half a soccer ball in your bowl.

Pour over warm water until it is half way up the flour. Add 7 grams yeast. ( I know it is 7 grams because the yeast I use comes in 7g packages. 7 grams of yeast looks like a bit more than a tablespoon).

Wash your hands and take off any jewelery. Stir with your right hand, holding the bowl with your left. If you are a lefty, do it the opposite way. It should be sticky and wet, solid enough that if makes a sticky ball.  If it looks like pancake batter then it is too wet. No problem: Add more flour - about a fistful at a time.

Leave this to sit for 10 minutes. You are giving the flour time to absorb water. Without this introduction, you would need to add more flour and your bread wouldn't be as moist. You do want moist bread, don't you? So wait.

After 10 minutes, add about a teaspoon of something sweet ( those little yeasts need some sugar to keep them going, just like humans). I use brown sugar, white sugar or a bit of honey.
Also add about 1 heaping tablespoon of salt. You can eye-ball this one. It may seem like a lot of salt, but remember that you are making 2 loaves with this mixture and so each slice will need to have enough salt to bring out the natural flavours of the bread.
This is also your chance to add any flavours you want*

*If you are adding fresh herbs, add one handful of freshly chopped.  Add half that amount if you are using dried. If you want to add raisins, or dried fruit, soak it first so that it doesn't steal the flour's water. Add about 2 large handfuls. If you want to add bran, then at this time you will also need to add a glug of olive oil. This coats the bran flakes and again, prevents them from stealing the flour's water. Seeds are great additions. Add about 1 big handful.

Stir with your hands again. You will notice that the dough feels a bit stronger now. That is the gluten developing. Stir just until combined then plop the dough onto a very lightly flour-dusted surface.

Don't wash your hands yet. To clean the bowl, put some flour on your hands and use the pieces of dough on your hands, plus the flour as an abrasive to get all the sticky bits of dough off the sides of the bowl. Add those bits to the dough. Wait another 10-15 minutes.

Now you 'turn' the dough: Stretch the dough* into a long line, then fold it onto itself like a book. Rotate 90 degrees and do this again. Do this folding and rotating about 4 times, and you will feel the dough getting strong.  

*Add as little flour as possible. The dough should be a bit sticky, but you should be able to handle it and stretch it without making a total mess.

Put the dough into a lightly greased bowl. I use a bit of  oil, but butter is fine too. Cover it with a cloth and leave it is a warm place for one hour.   

After one hour, do that same 'turning' thing VERY gently, two times. You don't need to stretch it so long and I usually just do this stage keeping the dough in the bowl. Be gentle and DO NOT punch down all those luscious bubbles the little yeasties are working so hard to create! Wait another hour, and then 'turn' the dough again and then wait one hour after that. 

Stop moaning. This slow rise will allow all the flavours of the flour to develop and you will end up with a much tastier bread!


Finally, gently place the dough on a lightly floured surface. Use a sharp knife to slice the dough in half. Move one of the halves aside and place the other in front of you. Wet your hands and shake off excess water. Use your finger tips to GENTLY push down the dough into a square.

For a rectangular loaf:  Fold in the top corners and then fold over like an envelope. Flip it 180 degrees and do the same to the other 2 corners. Fold it over and use your right hand - karate chop style - to close any seams.

For a round loaf: Fold the corners into the centre, flip the dough over and tuck in the dough so that you form a ball. Hold the dough in your left hand, exposing the underside and use your right hand - karate chop style - to close any seams. Do the same with the other dough.

Place the dough in a greased and floured baking tin or on a greased and floured baking sheet. Let proof* 30 minutes and turn your oven to max in the meantime.

* This last rise is called the proof. All that rising before is called rising.

                                         In this picture is one rectangular loaf and one free-form rectangular loaf. 

 
Score your loaves with an x-acto knife, a CLEAN, never used razor (not one that you used to shave you sicko!!) or a serrated knife. ONLY slice 2 millimeters deep! Put your loaves in the centre of the oven and turn the heat down to 392 F/ 200 C.  Top and bottom heat and NOT on convection!

After 10 minutes, turn the heat to 375 F/ 190 C and cook another 30 minutes. You loaves are going to be a deep brown -- not burnt! -- and not 'golden'. If they are brown after about 20-25 minutes, take one out and check by tapping the top and the bottom. Listen: It should sound VERY hollow -- as in, your ear isn't touching the bread when you think you hear it sound hollow. You can hear the hollowness from an arms reach. If it is hollow-sounding, it is ready.

Take the loaves out and put them on a wire rack. And now the worst part: WAIT MINIMUM 30 MINUTES before slicing into that bread. It is going to be crackling and smelling fine, but resist. If you cut the bread when it is still warm you stop its final little cooking time.

30 minutes later: ok NOW you can eat it! Enjoy!

Cheesecake!

*This recipe makes two 7" cakes... In the picture is one, 14" cheesecake. You can use this recipe to make one large cheesecake but if you do, reduce the oven heat by 10 degrees Fahrenheit and bake for an additional 30 minutes.

First, make the sweet dough because it needs to rest in the fridge. Even better, make it the day before.

Sweet Dough
--> this recipe makes a bit more sweetdough than required for the cheesecake, but you can roll it out and cut out shapes to make cookies with the extra. I made stars to decorate mine...and then some cookies too.

In a bowl, sift together:

250g icing sugar
7.5g baking powder
500g bread flour

Use the tips of your fingers to rub the flour mixture together with:

250g cold butter, cut into cubes

Mix until bread-crumb consistency, then add:

2 eggs

Stir until combined and then on your counter, kneed the dough until smooth. Wrap up tightly in cling film and let rest in your fridge.

Preheat your oven to 350 F/ 176 C

Once the dough has rested - either over night or for at least one hour - tear off half of the dough and warm it up slightly and quickly by massaging it in your hands. Form it into a disk about one inch thick and LIGHTLY dust your work surface, the dough and your rolling pin with flour.

Roll out the dough to about 2 centimeters thick.

Use your spring-form pan bottom to measure the circumference you will need. Cut out the two circles and place at the bottom of your buttered pans. Cut out the scrap pieces to make cookies - try to avoid waste and make some irregular shaped cookies instead of kneading the dough together again ( this is result in some tough cookies)

With the other half, massage and form into a 1-inch tall rectangle. Roll out to form a long 2 centimeter-thick rectangle. Prop the spring-form pan (bottom not attached!) on its side and lightly roll it one full circle down your dough to measure how long and how wide of a piece you will need. Do again for your second spring-form. Cut accordingly, making more little cookies with scraps.

Put the spring-form pans back together and place the dough on the sides, using one finger to smudge out the seam between the dough on the side and on the bottom. Put them in the fridge to rest and chill out while you complete the following steps.

Now you can get the cheesecake started.

Cream together:

600g firm cream cheese
100g sugar
50g corn starch
5g vanilla
juice and zest of 1/4 of a lemon

Slowly stir in:

4 egg yolks ( SAVE the egg whites!)

Whip in a separate bowl:

200g 35% cream

Fold in the whipped cream to the above mixture.

Whip in a separate bowl:

4 egg whites
pinch of cream or tartar ( if you don't have any, then wipe the bowl with a cloth that has been dampened with a bit of white vinegar)

While whipping the egg whites, slowly add:

100g sugar

When the egg whites are forming soft peaks, fold them into the cream cheese mixture.

Pour the tasty mixture (because you have no doubt already poked a finger in the batter) into the dough-lined spring-form pans, place on a tray and into the centre of your oven.

Bake for 40 minutes or until golden.

If you like, you can pour mango puree over the centre of the cheesecake right before serving. That's what I did and it was delicious!

'Plum' Pudding - my way

My grandpa is visiting for the holidays and so I have been going through the recipes my grandma handwrote for me. One recipe is for English XMas 'Plum' Pudding. It is a recipe, she writes, from "Women's Day" Specialty Recipe Collection, circa 1960s - but Grandpa remembers it as hers.

Grandma's recipe calls for candied citron, candied fruit and candied orange peel to be soaked overnight in beer....but I didn't have any beer, so I altered the recipe - slightly- and the result was a slightly boozy success - especially with the 'Sauce Suberb' (recipe below)

Let the following ingredients soak up 1 cup spiced rum and 1/2 cup prune juice over night:

1 1/2 cups raisins
1/4 cup candied cherries
1/4 cup dried apricots
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup chopped dates
and add the zest of 1 small orange and then cut the orange into small cubes and add them too.

The next day:

Beat together:

4 eggs
1 1/2 cups brown sugar

Stir in:

The fruit mixture
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup bread crumbs ( * if you don't have any, toast some bread and then grind it up)
and....and....1/2 cup lard

Sift the following into the above mixture:

1 cup all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1/8 tsp cloves
1/8 tsp allspice

Start boiling some water.

Pour the mixture into 2, greased moulds (only half way up!). Cover each one with tin foil with a pleat in the centre and then tie the foil on tightly.

Place them in a deep dish/pan - ideally the same height as the moulds, with a rack on the bottom (I used the big roasting pan- which has a rack- that we use for our turkey.)

Pour boiling water half way up the moulds.

Cover the pan with more tin foil ( or a lid, if it fits tight) and cook on the stove top for 2 to 2 1/2 hours. Keep the water boiling.

*Try your best to refill more boiling water when the level goes down.

It is done when a knife comes out of the centre clean. Unmould and serve immediately OR keep in the fridge over night and the next day, unmould by dipping the bowl into a hot water bath for 5 minutes and then flipping it out onto a plate.

Serve with Sauce Superb (this recipe is from my grandma as well. She got it from a 'Loblaws Old Fashioned Recipes Pamphlet' from the 1940s):

Whisk in a bain marie until thick and pale yellow:

2 eggs

Take off heat and whisk in:

1 cup icing sugar
4 tsp spiced rum

In a separate bowl, whisk:

1 cup 35%/ whipping cream

Fold the whipped cream into the egg mixture and serve immediately (pft - as if you could wait!)

All About Persimmons

I knew they existed. That is to say, I knew that they were orange and called persimmons but I didn’t know much else. I saw signs in Chinatown flaunting a sale of 15 for $5, but I couldn’t buy that many without first knowing more. Even though this temperate fruit can cause pain if eaten before it is ripe enough, it is still part of every fruit display along Spadina, and therefore it must be delicious. I began my research hoping I was correct in assuming dangerous = delicious

Persimmons Species
The Mexican species (D.digyna) known as black sapote gets unenthusiastic reviews. However, if you ever need to dye a sheepskin black, then black sapote is the way to go – or so I’m told.

American persimmons (D.virginiana) are plum-sized and used to be highly valued in eastern United States, but have since been out-shadowed by the superior kaki (D. kaki).

Kaki is the most popular persimmon worldwide. Native to China, this non-astringent species was adopted by Japan. They are about the size of apples and are prized for their sweetness, which is balanced by their low acidity. The bright orange flesh contains beta-carotene and lycopene and because of this, they share a similar aroma with winter squash.

The most popular cultivars of Kaki persimmons are the flat-bottomed persimmons, Fuyu and the Jiro. Neither is tannic and both can be eaten when still fairly firm. You can peel them before eating, and when you take a bite, make sure not to eat any seeds.

Astringent Persimmons

Like the stringy bits inside a banana peel, not everyone enjoys astringency. Astringent persimmons, identified by their acorn shape, need to be very ripe before eating and even then the skin is fairly inedible and is better used as a cup for the pulp inside. The most popular astringent cultivar is the Hachiya, distinguishable by it’s dark yellow flesh.

The astringency comes from the high level of tannins in the fruit. In Japan, unripe, astringent persimmons are crushed, fermented and used as a dye called kakishibu (meaning, persimmon-bitter). Kakishibu was one of the most widely used preservative and weatherproofing agents in Japan during the Heian Period (794 – 1185 AD) and continues to be used in the same way today. Artist Masamichi Terada was “intrigued by the subtle beauty of the material” and decided to devote his life to study and preserve kakishibu-dyeing as an art form.

If you are going to eat the astringent persimmons, you must wait until they are so ripe they are almost liquid beneath the flesh; otherwise, they are inedible. The astringency of an unripe persimmon is due to the tannins, which break down the salivary proteins and cause the mouth to feel dry and sandpapery.

It was centuries ago that the Chinese discovered that if unripe persimmons were buried in mud for several days they would lose their astringency. For the scientific foodies: The lack of oxygen in the mud altered the persimmons’ metabolism, resulting in the accumulation of an alcohol derivative: acetaldehyde, which binds with tannins in the cells, thus preventing them from binding with our salivary proteins. Cool! If you want to try it out yourself, you can tightly wrap your unripe persimmon in cling film; there is no need bury it in mud unless you are hardcore. Freezing the fruit and then thawing it softens the fruit and also removes some of the astringency.

Medicinal Properties


What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, right? I am curious about the health qualities of persimmons because in traditional Chinese medicine, bitter foods are connected to the heart. As it turns out, astringent persimmons (shi zi) have been used in traditional Chinese medicine for more than 2,000 years. Some practitioners use fresh persimmon juice to lower blood pressure (note: persimmons DO interact with blood-pressure medicine. So talk to your doctor). More commonly used is the dried calyx. (A calyx includes all of the sepals of a flower, which form the outer floral envelope that protects the developing flower bud.) The persimmon calyx (shi di) is dried in the sun and used to treat ailments of the lungs and stomach. It directs stomach qi downwards, which pushes food downwards in order to remove impurities.

Harvesting and Preparing to eat Persimmons


Harvest season varies depending on elevation, sunlight, et cetera, but wherever they are, the fruit is picked - always leaving the calyx intact - when it is dark orange and still firm – between October and December. For better flavour, non-astringent persimmons can be left on the tree until they are a bit softer.

Persimmons – astringent and non-astringent – are delicious when dried. They can either be peeled and dried whole or cut into slices. In Japan, the dried fruit is called hoshigaki. Traditionally in Japan, the whole, peeled astringent Hachiya persimmons are hung in rows, resembling lanterns so that airflow is even. When astringent persimmons are dried they lose all their astringency and develop a sweet, chewy consistency. Every few days they are massaged gently to distribute the pulp inside. Eventually a white bloom develops; it looks like mould, but in fact it is the sugar drying on the surface. Once dried, the darkened persimmon maintains its acorn shape. In China it is called shi bing, in Vietnam it is known as hồng khô and in Korea it is known as gotgam. In Korea, dried persimmons, cinnamon and ginger are used to make the traditional Korean spicy fruit punch, sujeonggwa. In Korea, persimmon vinegar, called gamsikcho is praised for its health benefits.

If persimmons can be made into vinegar, then they can be made into wine. Persimmon wine is made and enjoyed worldwide. There are also many recipes online that do not seem too difficult; you’ll be hiccuping in no time!

In the United States, persimmon pudding is made in a similar way to pumpkin pie – and also served with whipped cream. Heat accentuates astringency, so adding half a teaspoon of baking soda to every cup of persimmon pulp will help moderate the taste.

There are far too many delicious ways to eat persimmons – I think I’ll make persimmon chutney and go from there. Recipe to come soon or available upon request.

Boozy Banana Cream Pie

Devastated by the cessation of Gourmet Food Magazine ( R.I.P. 2009), I found myself sitting on the floor of my room, clawing manically through precious stacks of old Gourmet magazines dating back over ten years. I needed to absorb all the recipes and beautiful photography I could, as if they too were in danger of disappearing.

I came across a recipe for banana rum cream pie, kept the magazine open on that page and put it on my desk. I would be attending - and participating- in a "Food Jam" later in the week. Every few months my mom's boyfriend, Trevor - musician and foodie - hosts a pot-lock style dinner where there is one certain dish, or a certain set of rules that apply to what everyone is allowed to bring. Then we eat and play music and basque in life. Friendly competition always results in marvelous creations, like chocolate chicken chili at a "Chili Cook-off" last year, or goat's milk ice cream rolled in blue cheese and walnuts at the "Size Matters" food jam- where 'contestants' were asked to bring 30 identical pieces of anything they wanted as long as it was 2x2 inches.

Yesterday was Possum Pie. Rules: It must be a pie...that is all.

There was Sheppard's Pie, Trevor's apple, lime and pepper pie, Meat pie, Venison pie, Mississippi Mud pie...in total about 10 completely different pies, all with incredibly different- but all delicious- flavor profiles.

I made my own version of Banana Rum Pie, inspired by Gourmet magazine.

Here is the recipe:

Sweet Dough- I had made this earlier in the week for the cheesecake, and still had lots left, so I decided to use this instead of Gourmet's graham cracker crust.
( I don't have a mixer, so I did this by hand, which is not so bad, but if you have a mixer, use it)

Mix together:
250g icing sugar
250g unsalted butter, slightly soft
2 large eggs
*if using a mixer, mix on 2nd speed for 2 minutes. If by hand, until all the ingredients are just combined.

Sift together and add to the above mixture:
500g bread flour
7.5g baking powder
*if using a mixer, mix on 1st speed for one minute. If by hand, mix until it forms pea-sized crumbs and sticks together with you squeeze a handful.

Do not over mix.
Put the mixture on your counter top and kneed gently just to incorporate everything. Form it into a round disk, about 1 inch thick, and wrap tightly in plastic wrap and place in the fridge. Use within a week.

When dough has chilled, soften slightly by gently kneading the dough- just so that it doesn't crack when you roll it. Lightly dust your work surface and roll out a circle to about 2 millimeters thick, and about 12 inches in diameter.

Roll up loosely with your rolling pin and then lay the dough into a lightly buttered pie mould. Gently press the dough along the edge and use a knife to scrape away the rough bits at the top. Let this sit in the fridge to chill for about 30 minutes to an hour.

When ready, poke some holes in the bottom with a fork and bake at 350 F until lightly golden- about 15 minutes, but keep an eye on it.

While the crust is cooking...

Caramel Rum Sauce
In a small pot or pan, combine:
3 tbsp dark brown sugar
3/4 cup whipping cream

Let it bubble over medium heat until it is almost at caramel sauce consistency (mmmmmm)


Then, over low heat add:
1/4 cup of dark rum

Let it reduce slightly and thicken until it is a perfect rummy caramel sauce. Set aside.

Rum Cream Topping

Mix until fluffy:
8 oz cream cheese
the zest of one small orange
6 tbsp dark brown sugar
(shh! secret ingredient: 1 tsp curry powder!)


In a separate bowl, whip together to form soft peaks:
1 cup whipping cream
2 tbsp dark rum

Fold the whipped cream mixture into the cream cheese mixture, starting with a little to loosen the cream cheese, then the rest. Fold gently, but effectively. Keep the mixture in the fridge until you need it.


*CHECK THE PIE*

When the pie has been taken out of the oven, set it on a cookie rack to cool slightly. Then, brush the bottom layer with:

1/2 cup melted chocolate*

*I used chocolate chips, but you can use whatever type of chocolate you like. This is to prevent the crust from getting soggy under the bananas.

When the chocolate has hardened, slice on a bias:

4 large bananas

and arranged them evenly.



Then pour over your caramel sauce*
*If it is too thick to pour, no problem!- just add a little more cream or warm it up slightly.







To finish, pour the rum cream topping into the centre of the pie, then smooth out with a rubber spatula or a pallet knife, working clockwise ( or counter clockwise if you wanna be a rebel!) from the center outwards.

Most importantly, remember to TASTE every ingredient and every mixture, at every step of the recipe.

The Sour Side of Sugar Substitutes

I try to stay well away from aspartame, but it seems to be everywhere. In 1965, chemist James Schlatter discovered aspartame accidentally while working for pharmaceutical giant Searle & Co. (later sold to Monsanto in 1985). I first learned about Monsanto when the company’s GMO Round-Up Ready Canola was blown- by the wind- to Percy Schmeiser’s farmland, where the seeds grew and contaminated his crop. Monsanto sued Percy. Nothing good can come out of capitalist companies more interested in profiting than protecting.

But back to aspartame.

Aspartame’s full name is L-alpha-aspartyl-L-phenylalanine methyl ester. It is composed of two amino acids - aspartic acid (40%) and phenylalanine (50%) – and a methyl ester (10%) which - when swallowed - becomes free methyl alcohol. Also known as Methanol, free methyl alcohol is toxic. Ten milliliters will cause blindness, and ninety more milliliters will cause death. Of course, there is only a very small amount in Aspartame, so what harm could it do, right? Health Canada isn’t; so, should we be?

In 1965 James Schlatter was in his lab, trying to make a drug to combat ulcers. He spilled the solution, and later, he unprofessionally licked his fingers and tasted something very sweet; In fact, 200 times sweeter than sugar. Schlatter and his colleagues reported “another accidental discovery” to The Journal of the American Chemical Society (Mazur, 1969), stating it was an “organic compound with a profound sucrose (table sugar) like taste”.

The years following Schlatter’s discovery, scientists across the United States conducted studies on mice and primates. They found that aspartame induced seizures in primates (Weisman, 1967) and holes in the brains of mice (Olney, 1970). Meanwhile, Searle & Co. lobbied to make the sweetener legal, claming that their own studies had found no adverse effects.

Prior to aspartame, saccharin was the sugar substitute of choice. It had a strange aftertaste and some scientists deemed it dangerous to human health. But the maker of saccharin, Sherwin-Williams and their supporters denied any health claims that would jeopardize sales. It remained - and still is - legal in the United States. It was science versus corporation and too often the former is snuffed out.

Saccharin shares its science versus corporation battle with its predecessors: cyclamate and aspartame. Saccharin was discovered in 1879 when scientist, Constantin Fahlberg, was experimenting with coal-tar derivatives and also found it to taste sweet. Saccharin took the place of cyclamate (discovered in 1937, also by a scientist who also accidentally tasted his solution). Thankfully, cyclamate was made illegal- and still is- in both Canada and the United states after studies found it was a carcinogen.

Miraculously, in 1977, Canada banned the use of saccharin in foods and beverages after a study found that repeated consumption caused cancer of the bladder in rats (http://archives.cbc.ca/health/public_health/clips/2987/). Unfortunately, this meant from 1977 until 1981 Canadian sugar-junkies weren’t getting their sweet fix.

And then in 1981 aspartame was allowed to sneak in. Health Canada claims it is safe to consume 40 milligrams/kilogram of body weight/day and declares all other scientific studies that found it dangerous are “not supported” (http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/securit/addit/sweeten-edulcor/aspartame-eng.php). Monsanto agrees with Health Canada. (Or does Health Canada agree with Monsanto?)

By 1982, diet soft-drink sales in Canada tripled to represent 15 percent of all soft-drink sales (http://www.nytimes.com/1982/10/24/business/searle-s-push-into-sweeteners.html?&pagewanted=2).

When aspartame was introduced, the director of Sherwin-Williams, Sally Domm, saw it as a business opportunity, stating, “If you have products with a mixture of aspartame and saccharin, there's a good chance it would increase the market for us.''

A United States-based group, which represents Diet Coke, Splenda, Sweet 'N Low and some Hershey's chocolate, has been harassing Health Canada for more than 10 years to grant approval of the artificial sweetener for use in food. In 2007, Health Canada admitted to considering the re-introduction of saccharin based on findings by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, which deemed saccharin safe. It is still illegal, but the battle is not over.

By the 1980s aspartame was legal and booming. Soon it was added to carbonated drinks and being introduced to products such as Lipton powered tea mix, General Foods' Kool-Aid and Country Time lemonade, and a Quaker Oats cereal, Halfsies.

Today, aspartame is found in more than 6000 products worldwide, including soft drinks, juice crystals, chewing gum, candy, gelatins, dessert mixes, puddings and fillings, frozen desserts, yogurt, tabletop sweeteners, and some pharmaceuticals such even in some vitamins and sugar-free cough drops.

Aspartame is still a source of controversy within the scientific community and chemical industry. Recent studies are no more conclusive than those thirty years ago; some strongly warn against the consumption of aspartame, while others indicate that findings are inconclusive and others claim it is completely safe.

In 1996, Olney et al conducted a study that found a correlation between the sharp increase of brain tumor incidence and malignancy with the introduction of aspartame. They concluded that aspartame’s carcinogenic potential needed to be reassessed. (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8939194?dopt=Abstract).

Cyclamate was 30-50 times sweeter than sugar; Saccharin is 300 times sweeter; Aspartame is 200 times sweeter- but without the chemical aftertaste of saccharin. Guess what? Sucralose is 600 times sweeter than sugar!

Without a doubt, sucralose will sneak by, poisoning Canadians, just like cyclamate did and saccharin and aspartame do. Please don’t be sucked in to claims of sugar substitutes and reduced calories. If the product had processed or refined sugar to begin with, it was never healthy; adding more chemicals it doesn’t become any more so.

Whether cancerous or not, sweeteners are moneymakers for companies that place health second to profit. They bombard us with ads glorifying their reduced sugar content in over-processed food which is so far from it’s original form it can hardly be called food at all.

If you want to eat something sweet, eat an (organic, local) apple!


Books to read:
Excitotoxins: The Taste That Kills (1994)
Dr. Blaylock is a certified neurosurgeon with 25 years of experience. He is also a lecturer and author. In his book, he discusses the toxic effects of a number of food additives, including MSG (monosodium glutamate), aspartame and L-cysteine.

The secret history of the war on cancer by Devra Davis