Low Carb Sweetness
lithezebra
Posts: 3,670 Member
Hi low carbers! How do you feel about the taste of various low carb sweeteners? Has anyone had great success with them?
I've tried stevia, which I hated, Splenda which is okay, not great, but not horrible, and I have erythritol on the way in the mail. I'd like to be able to sweeten my whipped cream and make some low carb chocolates. I don't care about the calories, just the carbs.
I've tried stevia, which I hated, Splenda which is okay, not great, but not horrible, and I have erythritol on the way in the mail. I'd like to be able to sweeten my whipped cream and make some low carb chocolates. I don't care about the calories, just the carbs.
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I like Splenda, and I've made a variation of chocolate meringue cookies with Splenda. Those were good!
This is a link to a recipe for it with Splenda: http://www.food.com/recipe/south-beach-diet-friendly-chocolate-meringue-cookies-3535140 -
@blacktie347 that sounds so good. I have a bunch of unsweetened cocoa powder I'm dying to use, and that's part of my motivation to find a good sweetener. Thanks for the recipe!
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I use stevia and I have to say it was an acquired taste but now it is my go to. The sugar alcohols do not agree with me so I tend to stay away from those.0
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I tried Stevia but finally gave up and tossed the rest of my big bag.
I have done OK with liquid stevia though. I like Splenda pretty well. I have a 3-lb bag of xylitol from Amazon but haven't broken into it yet. 0 -
Xylitol is about the only one I like. The only problem us it doesn't dissolve te way sugar does so can be a bit crunchy0
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I use stevia or splenda. Our go to dessert is "milkshakes": Ice, 8 ounces HWC, 8 ounces unsweetened almond milk, cocoa powder, sugar free choc. syrup, a little stevia. Blend. Or instead of chocolate we have made them with vanilla extract or Mio flavoring.0
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totaloblivia wrote: »Xylitol is about the only one I like. The only problem us it doesn't dissolve te way sugar does so can be a bit crunchy
Hmmm. My chemistry trained brain is wondering if it could be dissolved with heat, a little ethanol, or fat. I'll look it up.
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Splenda Is the only one I've tried, and I cant taste the difference between it and sugar, except it's much sweeter so you only need half the amount. I would like to try stevia but have heard too many negative reports about the taste, so I probably won't bother...0
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It seems like people usually use heat to dissolve xylitol, in oil, or in water or milk, and find it easier if they powder it first with a grinder or a mortar and pestle.
Here's an example: http://www.intoxicatedonlife.com/2012/04/16/healthy-chocolate-candy-aka-cocoa-crack/0 -
lithezebra wrote: »@blacktie347 that sounds so good. I have a bunch of unsweetened cocoa powder I'm dying to use, and that's part of my motivation to find a good sweetener. Thanks for the recipe!
Enjoy! I think you'll like them - it's like eating cookies to lose weight
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I like stevia drops. I find I need to under sweeten foods though or it gets an dd taste.
I will use some xylitol sweetened chocolate chips too, but my stomach doesn't like that much.0 -
I use this mix of stevia and erythritol in baking: http://jp.iherb.com/now-foods-real-food-sugarless-sugar-18-oz-510-g/55361?rcode=muk142 It replaces sugar cup-for-cup. But I notice that eating it too much or too often gives me gas
ymmv!
One Paleo friend tried it in her tea but didn't like the taste, she prefers honey.
I use stevia drops too in smoothies and lattes sometimes. Sweetleaf drops are good.0 -
I'm trying a new one that is called a "prebiotic". The brand name is: Just Like Sugar
It feeds probiotics. You don't have to use much. Its made from Chicory root.
I made some chocolate fat bombs out of it and they taste great. I also put some probiotics in the fat bomb. (I'm experimenting with fermented foods and probiotics at the moment).
I hope this helps,
Dan the Man from Michigan Keto / The Recipe Water Fasting / E.A.S.Y. Exercise Program
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I usually use Truvia in coffee, and sometimes stevia drops. I also just discovered the Swerve erythritol sweetener for baking--I think I like it, but the one pie I made with it was almost too sweet, so I may reduce the amount in recipes for the future.0
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lithezebra wrote: »It seems like people usually use heat to dissolve xylitol, in oil, or in water or milk, and find it easier if they powder it first with a grinder or a mortar and pestle.
Here's an example: http://www.intoxicatedonlife.com/2012/04/16/healthy-chocolate-candy-aka-cocoa-crack/
Thanks, that must be the difference. I used it to make a keto French silk pie and the filling is like a mousse and not heated. To me it tastes pretty much like sugar.0 -
I'm trying a new one that is called a "prebiotic". The brand name is: Just Like Sugar
It feeds probiotics. You don't have to use much. Its made from Chicory root.
I made some chocolate fat bombs out of it and they taste great. I also put some probiotics in the fat bomb. (I'm experimenting with fermented foods and probiotics at the moment).
I hope this helps,
Dan the Man from Michigan Keto / The Recipe Water Fasting / E.A.S.Y. Exercise Program
I bet that is inulin. I have a bottle of it for the soluble fiber, and I've noticed that it tastes sweet. Thanks!0 -
totaloblivia wrote: »lithezebra wrote: »It seems like people usually use heat to dissolve xylitol, in oil, or in water or milk, and find it easier if they powder it first with a grinder or a mortar and pestle.
Here's an example: http://www.intoxicatedonlife.com/2012/04/16/healthy-chocolate-candy-aka-cocoa-crack/
Thanks, that must be the difference. I used it to make a keto French silk pie and the filling is like a mousse and not heated. To me it tastes pretty much like sugar.
Maybe powdering the xylitol and letting it sit overnight in the liquid portion of the filling would dissolve it. I'm definitely going to try xylitol.0 -
The only sweeteners I can stand are Xylitol (my fav) or Erythriol (which I have on hand because one of my kids is sensitive to the xylitol) ... seems like xylitol takes less to effectively sweeten things. I made a flourless chocolate cake using the xylitol a couple years back - it did great! I use it in tea daily and have used it to sweeten up a cocktail (vodka, heavy cream, coffee, xylitol) to mock a white russian on special occassion. No problems with it dissolving for me
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I like erythritol fine for a light sweet in coffee and tea but find it doesn't sweeten enough for baking vs. the dry & grainy bulk it creates (plus the cost). Not very patient or confident about experimenting with adding liquids/fats yet to balance that, there might be easy fixes for those with that talent. Different brands of stevia do taste markedly different; I read once about something that in certain processing makes it bitter.0
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I found a package of Xyla (xylitol) hiding at the health food store. It's good! I just dissolved some in warm cream and added cocoa powder and coconut oil to make a chocolate sauce. Xyla dissolved well without having to heat it up a lot.0
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Remember that combining different sweeteners amplifies the taste, because each hits different notes. I will only use SweetLeaf brand Stevia, as it is the only one that doesn't have an insulin reaction for me. Once in a blue moon I will mix a tiny bit of splenda in (I prefer the liquid as it has no carbs - there are carbs in the packets due to creating the powder)... To explain the amplification factor, my best friend was using 8 splenda in her morning coffee. After deciding to mix the two, she's down to one packet of each splenda and SweetLeaf... and says she's cutting down, because it is almost too sweet.
So for me, it's more about the hidden carbs in the dextrose or maltodextrin used to powdering the forms - and avoiding liquids with "natural flavors" as those can easily cause almost instant migraines.... I'd rather have the sweet taste "not quite right" than have a huge insulin reaction...0 -
I recently tried Stevia, because I already know I don't like Splenda or Sweet and Low. I find all 3 of those repulsive to be honest. So, with that being said, the only sweet I'm getting is if I decide and can fit in a piece of fruit. I'm really fond of granny smith apples.
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I don't use sweetners much - if its just a quick shot of sweetness in coffee or tea, I use SweetLeaf stevia drops but often find it isn't worth the effort. For baking I keep the Swerve brand of erythritol - I find the powdered version great for sweetening whipping cream.
DJ Foodie has a six parter on sweetners that starts here: djfoodie.com/Blog/2014/03/03/The-Sweet-Spot--Everything-I-know-about-Sweeteners0 -
Another sweetener that is hardly EVER mentioned, but my absolute favorite (taste-wise) is Monk Fruit. They have it at Walmart and other large grocery stores.
If you get that sweetener, you'll throw away all the others....
Dan the Man from Michigan0 -
@DittoDan - hey coupons.com has a coupon for that right now, if you're into couponing. I think it was for $1 off. 0
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Another sweetener that is hardly EVER mentioned, but my absolute favorite (taste-wise) is Monk Fruit. They have it at Walmart and other large grocery stores.
If you get that sweetener, you'll throw away all the others....
Dan the Man from Michigan
So it doesn't taste like Stevia?0 -
lithezebra wrote: »
I hate Stevia. I bought a whole bunch and now I don't know what to do with it.... argh!
Monk fruit is wonderful.
Dan0 -
I found that the different brands/type of stevia taste completely different. I like Truvia in my coffee and stevia drops in my iced tea. I'm using Swerve in my baking.0
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lithezebra wrote: »
I hate Stevia. I bought a whole bunch and now I don't know what to do with it.... argh!
Monk fruit is wonderful.
Dan
Perfect! I hate Stevia too. Is there a brand of monk fruit that you recommend, @DittoDan ?0 -
splenda is all I use. dont like the aftertaste of others0
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