how do you use agave nectar?

putting aside any debate on whether it is better worse or the same in comparison to other sweeteners how can it be use and how do you personally incorporate it or replace with it?

I stumbled on organic agave nectar in the 'syrup section' a the grocery after the fructose thread brought it to my attention. never had heard of it before honestly or I guess if I did just didn't pay much attention to it.

it seems to work well as sweetener in my tea and I can see it being used as a pancake syrup alternative (although it seems almost too sweet).

what else should I try it for? 

The "problem" with most of the truly natural sugars is their liquidity.  There's something about being able to coat a pure sugar crystal in fat that makes certain baking methods do certain things that you just can't duplicate with honey, maple, agave.  If you try to sub sugar for any of those three in cookies, they'll be totally different texturally.  If you're expecting that, it's fine.  If you want the kind of cookies your grandma used to make....it's disappointing. 

I've seen honey powder and maple syrup powder.  Would it be possible to dry agave all the way out I wonder?  In some non-energy intensive way?

That said.  I've never actually bought the stuff but we used it at a few coffee shops because it dissolves in cold water.  What about agave "mead?"  Like, tequila wine?  I bet it would be good, I don't know for sure yet but I bet it's a common brew in the appropriate geographical regions.  Fermentation is always where my mind goes. 

marina phillips wrote: What about agave "mead?"  Like, tequila wine?  I bet it would be good, I don't know for sure yet but I bet it's a common brew in the appropriate geographical regions.  Fermentation is always where my mind goes.   

Well, You are correct! Pulque is made from Agave sap (before syrup, I think). I had a 6-pack of it that was terrible, but I've never had the traditional stuff. You'd probably have to go to Mexico to find it. Doesn't ship/store well -

"Just before the peak of fermentation, the pulque is quickly shipped to market in barrels. The fermentation process is continuous, so the pulque must be consumed within a certain time frame before it spoils."

"Pulque is a milk-colored, somewhat viscous liquid that produces a light foam. It is made by fermenting the sap of certain types of maguey (agave) plants. In contrast, mescal is made from the cooked heart of certain agave plants, and tequila, a variety of mescal, is made all or mostly from the blue agave. There are about six varieties of maguey that are best used for the production of pulque.[1][2] The name “pulque” is derived from Nahuatl. "

more - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pulque

Hey, Leah, if you've ever substituted honey before, it's similar to that. You decrease other liquids a bit, and/or increase flour or thickeners. It's sweeter per cup than sugar, so you probably only need about 3/4 cup agave where 1 cup sugar is called for--or the bottle might have suggestions on this, too.

Last summer, I made unsweetened tapioca-coconut milk pudding with fresh berries, and then folks drizzled on and stirred in the amount of agave they wanted. Yum!

I've also used it in baked goods, even pie fillings--since I cook gluten-free, I'll usually add more tapioca starch to compensate--with decent results. Though I'm generally trying to bake less grain-based things these days.

Just this week, for a birthday, I made a GF coffee cake and was out of brown sugar and molasses. I made the cinnamon-brown-sugar-flour-butter part with regular, organic white sugar, and added a few tablespoons of agave, instead of molasses, as a brown sugar substitute. (I'm sure most know that brown sugar is actually just white sugar with some molasses added, right?) Anyway, it turned out yummy--a lighter taste than brown sugar, but still that sticky, caramel-y coffee cake decadence. (I know, I was still using sugar...)

Hope that helps.