natural sweeteners

There should be no reason why you can’t enjoy a healthy sweet every once in a while. Some sweeteners are better than others, though. If you are going to indulge in a dessert, try to use one of the unrefined sweeteners below to keep from having an insulin spike, or “sugar crash,” causing an extreme high followed by an extreme low. All of these can be found at your local natural food store or online. They are listed in alphabetical order, not by how often I use them. You’ll find the ones I like most are used throughout this book.

agave nectar

Agave is made from the juice of the agave cactus. It’s been under scrutiny because of its refining process. It is sweeter than refined sugar, but it is low on the glycemic index and does not increase insulin secretion. I think if you use it moderately, like a touch in your tea sometimes, that is fine. But I don’t use it as my regular sweetener.

amasake

Amasake is a fermented drink made from sweet rice. It has a very thick, creamy texture, like a smoothie, and usually comes in small cartons from a company called Amazake. It’s great straight if you want a healthy dessert, and it also makes a great base for sauces, custards, and puddings.

barley malt

This is made when barley is fermented, turning the grain into sugar. It is thick, dark, and sticky like brown rice syrup but isn’t as sweet as the other natural sweeteners. It’s perfect to use in place of molasses in recipes.

brown rice syrup

This is a sweetener that is made when brown rice is ground, cooked, and mixed with enzymes that change it into maltose. Since it’s made from a complex carbohydrate, it gives you a slower release of insulin. It has a thick, sticky texture and is less sweet than maple syrup. In recipes, it’s interchangeable with other liquid sweeteners, but I often do half brown rice syrup and half maple syrup for a bit more sweetness.

coconut nectar and palm sugar

These sweeteners are the new kids on the block and are some of my favorites. Palm sugar makes the perfect granulated substitute for regular sugar, and it has a low glycemic index. The nectar has a similar texture to brown rice syrup, and the taste is a cross between agave and brown rice syrup.

dates and date sugar

Dates are a great natural sweetener to use, since the fruit is packed with fiber, nutrients, and minerals, which you get whether you use the date or date sugar. Date sugar is the granulated form and can be used to directly replace sugar in recipes (though it won’t be as sweet). Date sugar is best used in baking, while the actual dates can be soaked and pureed for any recipe. The perfect no-bake crust is made by processing dates with raw nuts (see springtime lemon bars, on page 216).

fruit

Fruits are naturally sweet, with many beneficial vitamins and minerals, so it’s the ideal choice if you are craving something sweet. Fruit won’t necessarily be enough sweetness for baked goods, but will make a nice addition in terms of texture and flavor. You'll find a few desserts in here that are essentially fruit dressed up, and those are great if you are trying to reduce the amount of sugar and baked goods in your diet.

maple syrup and maple granules

Maple syrup is a sweetener made by boiling the sap of maple trees. The liquid and the granules can be used in baking. You can substitute equally maple granules for sugar or maple syrup for a liquid sweetener. Be sure to buy 100 percent organic pure maple syrup when possible.

stevia

Stevia is a naturally sweet herb that comes in a powder form and a liquid concentrate, and can be 100 to 300 times sweeter than sugar. It has an unusual licorice-like taste that my taste buds can spot from a mile away. Its flavor is intense. I never use it personally, but many who are sugar-phobic love it. Start with a little to see if you like it, and do some experimenting to find the right amount to put in baked goods.

xylitol

This is an alternative sweetener made from birch bark that can be a good substitute for granulated sugar. It’s very sweet, so you’ll want to use less of it than you would of other sweeteners, which is good, because it’s fairly expensive.