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Guide To Using Natural Sweeteners
By Fran Costigan
The following guidelines will help you transform
your favorite desserts into more healthful treats.
| Sweetener Source |
Characteristics |
Baking with Natural Sweeteners |
| Pure maple syrup |
From the sap of maple
trees.
Use in all baked goods; wonderful in cakes. |
Substitute 2/3 to 1/4 cup maple for
1 cup white sugar. Reduce liquid in recipe by 3
tablespoons. Add 1/4 teaspoon baking soda per cup of maple
syrup. Buy pure U.S. organic syrup. Some maple
producers still use illegal formaldehyde pellets and other
additives during processing. Store refrigerated.
High in potassium and calcium. |
| Maple sugar |
Dehydrated maple
syrup. 93 percent sucrose; 1 percent to 3 percent
invert sugars* |
Use in all baked
goods. Substitute 1 cup maple sugar for 1 cup white sugar.
No reduction of liquid is necessary. Add 1/8 teaspoon
baking soda per cup. Store in a tightly closed container
and sift before using. Mix with liquid to make glazes.
Organic is available. |
| Barley malt syrup |
Sprouted barley.
Maltose, glucose, complex carbohydrates: 3 percent protein from
malt. Dark brown, thick and sticky; has a strong,
distinctive flavor like molasses. Half as sweet as white
sugar. |
Best used in
combination with other sweeteners. Wonderful in spice
cakes, gingerbread, and baked beans. Substitute 1-1/3 cups
barley malt for 1 cup white sugar. Reduce liquid in recipe
by 1/4 cup. Add 1/4 teaspoon baking soda per cup barley
malt. Purchase only 100 percent barley malt, not
barley/corn malt syrup. Store refrigerated. Organic
is available. |
| Brown rice syrup |
Brown rice and various
enzymes. Maltose, glucose, complex carbohydrates.
Amber-colored syrup with mild "butterscotch" flavor. Half
as sweet as white sugar. |
Baked goods made with
rice syrup tend to be hard or very crisp. Use brown rice
syrup in cookies, crisps, granola, pies, and puddings.
Combine with another sweetener such as maple for cakes.
Substitute 1-1/3 cups for 1 cup white sugar. Reduce liquid
1/4 cup per cup rice syrup. Add 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
per 1 cup rice syrup. Store refrigerated. Organic is
available. |
| Honey |
Extracted from flower
nectar by bees. Fructose, glucose, sucrose. Color
and taste depend upon the flower source. 20 percent to 60
percent sweeter than white sugar, so use less! |
Use in all baked
goods. Substitute 2/3 to 3/4 cup for 1 cup white sugar.
Reduce liquid by 1/4 cup. Add 1/4 teaspoon baking soda per
cup honey. Reduce oven 25°F and adjust baking time.
Some vegans don't use honey, as bees are sometimes killed after
the season. Honey can affect blood sugar levels, as most
concentrated sugars can. |
| Date sugar |
Ground, dehydrated
dates. Sucrose, glucose, fructose, and complex
carbohydrates. Mahogany color, coarse granules. |
Contains folic acid.
Use in crisps, crunches, as sprinkle, or topping.
Substitute 1 cup for 1 cup white sugar. Add hot water to
dissolve date sugar before using in batters. Use in
combination with other sweeteners. Burns easily.
Purchase date sugar made from unsulphured, organically grown
dates. Store in a tightly closed jar. |
| Granular fruit grape juice
concentrate and rice sweetener syrup |
Glucose, fructose,
maltose, and complex carbohydrates. Light brown granules,
brown sugar-like taste. |
Use in cookies,
crisps, granola, pies, puddings and cakes. Substitute
1-1/4 cups for 1 cup white sugar. Reduce salt 30 percent
to 50 percent. Don't overmix batters. Oil or line
pans with parchment. Bake at 325°F to 350°F maximum and
adjust baking time. Organic is available. |
| Mixed fruit juice |
Peach, pear, grape,
and pineapple concentrate juice are most common. |
Use in all baked goods
and desserts, especially spice, carob, and chocolate cakes.
Substitute 2/3 cup for 1 cup white sugar. Reduce liquid
1/3 cup per cup of fruit sweetener. Add 1/4 teaspoon
baking soda per cup fruit sweetener. Reduce oven 25°F and
adjust baking time. Some concentrates are more acidic than
others. Store in refrigerator. Use at room
temperature. |
| Sucrose, some natural fructose |
Generally
amber-colored and fruity tasting. |
Dried cane juice.
Sugar cane, water removed. Minerals and molasses are
retained. Use in cookies, crisps, granola, pies, puddings
and cakes. Substitute 1 cup for 1 cup white sugar.
Add 1/4 teaspoon baking soda per cup dried cane juice. Be
sure to purchase organic. Any pesticides and chemicals
used on the cane are concentrated during processing. Store
in a tightly closed container and sift before using. |
* Sucrose and invert sugars. Amber-colored coarse
granules, with a mild molasses-like taste.
NaturoDoc's Take: Though some components of
natural sugars are chemically identical to refined white sugar, it's
not true that "sugar is sugar." Low-tech processed natural
sugars retain vitamins, minerals, and other components essential for
their digestion, and are metabolized more slowly than white sugar.
White sugar creates a strain on our bodies, depletes stored vitamins
and minerals, and suppresses the immune system.
Chemically, many kinds of sugars exist. Labels
could say sucrose, glucose, fructose, maltose, dextrose, lactose,
galactose, or levulose. All nutritive sweeteners contain one
or more of these sugars.
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