What is your Favorite Sweetner?

I use only sugar, though I just went through a scary period where my health professional was sure I had diabetes.  I have been rethinking a lot of foods that I eat

I got my test results back today and I do not have diabetes.  Basically all was good.

I feel that I make good choices for myself though they might not be good for someone else.

What sweeteners do you use or prefer?

I bought stevia Splenda years ago and did not like the flavor.

Turbinado sugar or honey. I like the extra flavors they come with beyond sweet.

I swear I didn't cheat off of Christopher's paper.

Turbinado sugar and honey are my go tos.

We will use 'regular' sugar and brown sugar where it is needed but I really enjoy what turbinado sugar is giving.

I've got type 2 diabetes. It may sound like agony, but the easiest path really is to just remove sugars and sweeteners for the first month or so. Your taste buds adapt, and that's what will make it easy long term to stick to a low glycemic index (GI) diet.

The zero cal, zero GI sweeteners I use are stevia (read the ingredients, avoid the mixes) and monksfruit. Stevia has herb/mint undertones. Monksfruit has sort of a berry hint.

But most of the time if I want something sweet? A little sugar or honey or syrup is easiest. Once the tastebuds are adapted, things can easily taste too sweet.

honey and maple syrup are the main go-to’s in our house. coconut sugar if a recipe really needs it to be dry.

Stevia or honey.

Date syrup. It's 100 percent dates, nothing else added, so it doesn't ramp your blood sugar like the refined stuff does. My favorite after that, benefit and taste wise, is honey, and after that maple syrup. But date syrup wins hands-down in my book. They sell it at our Walmart under The Date Lady brand.

j

I like date sugar because it's the only whole food sweetener that I know of. Nothing but dried, ground dates. I follow a whole foods, plant based way of eating so the date sugar fits in nicely with that. I just make sure to get the finely ground kind.

The date syrup is 100 percent dates, too. My wife and I are also following a mostly plant-based diet. The syrup is a bit more processed than date sugar, but it is lovely because it dissolves in drinks, etc. I find myself preferring it to maple syrup on pancakes much of the time because I use less and it's just tastier.

j

Annie Collins wrote:I like date sugar because it's the only whole food sweetener that I know of. Nothing but dried, ground dates. I follow a whole foods, plant based way of eating so the date sugar fits in nicely with that. I just make sure to get the finely ground kind.

My go-to sweetener is raw unfiltered honey. Raw honey has so many health benefits. Primarily, I sometimes use it in tea or if I want to sweeten plain yogurt. I also use it to macerate strawberries to serve over plain yogurt. If I need a real sugar for baking, which I rarely do, I use Golden sugar which has less processing. I have tried the turbinado sugar in baking, but usually it doesn't achieve the same results. I do not believe in using artificial sweeteners. Maple syrup is another sweetener that I might use on occasion. I did try coconut sugar a long time ago and was not happy with it.

My history with sugar is that over a decade ago, I was 200 lbs and told I was pre-diabetic. I made a series of lifestyle changes, to include significantly reducing my sugar intake. I took up a mostly Mediterranean style diet. I eliminated soft drinks, pre-packaged sweets and Starbucks! lol. So, now I drink a variety of hot and cold teas. Most of them plain, sometimes adding some raw honey. I drink my coffee with only a little organic half and half added to it to give it the creaminess. No sweetener. I adapted to it. I also significantly reduced my simple carbs. I lost 50 lbs over the course of 3 years. Slow and steady wins the race. Now I am so used to not having sweeteners, most sweet foods taste TOO Sweet to me. I was served southern sweet ice tea by accident at a restaurant and it was so disgusting I had to spit it out. I cannot tolerate the sweetness of birthday cakes, etc. Candy bars are too sweet as well. So, I have actually developed a dislike for sweets now. I find that I have to reduce the sugar in recipes. For instance I made a baked strawberry oatmeal once. I always follow a recipe the first time and then see if adjustments need to be made. It was sweeter than a dessert in my opinion. Next time I will eliminate the maple syrup in that recipe and let the sweet strawberries shine. It takes time, but after a while, your taste buds do change. When they are not bombarded with sugar all of the time, they become more sensitive to sweetness.

I really thought I would hear a lot about planting stevia though it is good to hear the other options.

Date syrup sounds lovely.

We use stevia in our tea but that's about it. I don't cook with it.

We tend to use fruit in various forms for sweetening foods. We've been off refined sugar, honey, fructose, etc. for almost 30 years due to the effect on my health. I don't have the same problems with whole fruits.

Bananas are great as a sweetener in desserts. One of our faves is fresh/frozen raspberries cooked with chopped bananas and just a trace of salt.

I've used canned pineapple in it's own juice as a sweetener with rhubarb and strawberry. The combination is nice.

I just recently made seed/nut/cocoa balls using chopped dry cherries for a bit of sweetness. The combination is really good. Other finely chopped dried fruits would have worked just as well and they provide more flavor and nutrition than just sugar.

Someone already mentioned dates and date syrup. Those are great but I use them in moderation because they are very sweet to me.

In general I try to use the sweeter fruits to balance the more tart fruits or to just sweeten a dish. The combinations are endless.

Malt syrup is good for baked goods. Same with rice syrup.

I have thought of planting Stevia as well. I think you boil the leaves. I've read that store bought stevia is heavily processed and not as healthy or natural as using the plant. Just like honey. If you buy simply "honey" in the store, it is seriously processed and it changes the product significantly. A local beekeeper did a honey comparison with some youth in the area.

I have not tried the date syrup.

Anne Miller wrote:I really thought I would hear a lot about planting stevia though it is good to hear the other options.

Date syrup sounds lovely.