Here is a great idea on where to use the sweet spice. Since the Holidays are upon us already, one of the desserts I love is gingerbread/spice cake. It is a perfect foil to showcase the sweet spice blend. And for this recipe, you can try omitting the sugar altogether, depending on your nutritional needs right now. If you want to make it a gingerbread instead of a spice cake, add 1 TBS ground ginger and 1 TBS finely chopped fresh ginger to the recipe and VOILA! Gingerbread. Another option is to omit the brown sugar from the recipe but lightly dust the top of the cooled, baked cake with powdered sugar (lightly, I said!). And you can get that barely sweet dessert, with the spice mix working its magic. Molasses spice cake Ingredients - ½ cup (118 ml) molasses - ½ cup (118 ml) hot water - 1¼ cup (150 g) all purpose flour or Gluten Free Flour - ¾ teaspoon baking soda - 1 ½ TBS Sweet Spice - pinch salt - ½ cup (100 g) light brown sugar - 1 lemon, zested - 4 tablespoons (57 g) unsalted butter, room temperature - 1 large egg, room temperature Method 1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Lightly oil and line the bottom and two sides of a 9 x 9  inch cake pan with parchment paper.  You may also make muffins if desired 2. In a microwave safe cup, heat water to hot and mix in the molasses until smooth and well combined. 3. In a mixing bowl whisk the all purpose flour, baking soda, sweet spice and salt together until well combined. 4. In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the brown sugar, lemon zest, and butter.  On medium speed, beat for 2-3 minutes until light and fluffy. 5. Turn the mixer speed to low and add the egg.  After 1 minute drizzle in the warm molasses water until smooth and well combined. Mix the dry ingredients into wet until just combined. 6. Evenly pour the molasses cake batter into the prepared pan. Bake the spice cake for 28 - 32 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs. 7. Cool the pan in the pan for 10 minutes. Gently lift the molasses spice cake out of the pan using the parchment paper. Transfer to a serving plate or serve right from the pan. 

I was coaching a small group of clients a while back and several of them had the same request of me : to come up with something they could add that tastes sweet but wasn't sugar. That was a serious challenge. So, in evaluating that request, I realized that smell was just as important as taste. And half of our food experience is expressed in smell, so making something that smelled sweet was crucial. What sweet smells do I like? Vanilla, cinnamon, cardamom, allspice, pretty much all the "warm" spices. So the challenge was also to create a powder, not a paste because it should be something easily used to sprinkle onto fruits, yogurt, buttered toast, etc. Vanilla powder was the answer. It had an incredible smell and taste, and was just made from whole vanilla pods. Voila! It all came together. Everyone seems to like it. This spice can also be a tea; infuse 1/2-1 tsp per cup of very hot water. Let steep for 1-2 minutes and enjoy. Perfect Fall Cup. Let me know what you think! Sweet Spice Mix use this spice mix to replace sugar 2 TBS vanilla powder 1 TBS ground cardamom 1 TBS ground cinnamon 1 tsp ground allspice