Maintaining the volume of a recipe when skipping sugar?
Spiegelchan
Posts: 78 Member
Have you guys modified any baked goods to eliminate or reduce the amount of sugar used? What do you replace the missing volume with?
Usually if a recipe calls for sugar I just ignore it, but some of the recipes I’m looking at for the solstice call for a LOT of sugar (like, these lemon bars want a third of a cup and this cheesecake seriously dares ask for a cup and a half) and I’m worried that if I just skip it completely, the recipe will fall apart because that sugar was supposed to make up like a third of its weight or something and now it’s just not there. Would I replace it with flour? Some kind of starch?
Really curious to know what you guys have done or would try. Thanks!
Usually if a recipe calls for sugar I just ignore it, but some of the recipes I’m looking at for the solstice call for a LOT of sugar (like, these lemon bars want a third of a cup and this cheesecake seriously dares ask for a cup and a half) and I’m worried that if I just skip it completely, the recipe will fall apart because that sugar was supposed to make up like a third of its weight or something and now it’s just not there. Would I replace it with flour? Some kind of starch?
Really curious to know what you guys have done or would try. Thanks!
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Replies
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Why are you skipping the sugar?
I've halved the amount of sugar in a recipe with good results.4 -
I’m not sure what you mean by why am I skipping sugar? I prefer things to be less sweet.2
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Im just worried because there’s more sugar in this recipe than flour. So if I take it out do I even have a recipe.0
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I've reduced sugar by about a third with no problem. Sugar isn't just for flavor, it keeps a recipe moist as well. If something calls for a lot of sugar, leaving it out will drastically change the texture and possibly it's ability to hold it's shape. I'm not a creative substituter, and I don't really avoid sugar in desserts anyway, so I'm not sure how to counteract that.
Most reduced sugar cheesecake recipes I've seen use a sugar-substitute instead.3 -
I'll add, lemon bars and cheesecake in their simplest forms aren't really all that sweet - the sugar is to counteract the sourness of the lemon and cheese. Maybe search for a bunch of different recipes for them and choose the one that starts out with the least amount of sugar, and then reduce that a little from there.1
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It’s going to depend a lot on the recipe. Sugar does not just provide sweetness; it’s also important for various chemical reactions in the baking process. How much sugar you can leave out or substitute will depend on exactly what sugar is doing for that recipe.5
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http://www.littlehomesteaders.com/2014/03/lemon-lavender-bars/It’s going to depend a lot on the recipe. Sugar does not just provide sweetness; it’s also important for various chemical reactions in the baking process. How much sugar you can leave out or substitute will depend on exactly what sugar is doing for that recipe.
How would I go about determining that, though.0 -
Spiegelchan wrote: »http://www.littlehomesteaders.com/2014/03/lemon-lavender-bars/It’s going to depend a lot on the recipe. Sugar does not just provide sweetness; it’s also important for various chemical reactions in the baking process. How much sugar you can leave out or substitute will depend on exactly what sugar is doing for that recipe.
How would I go about determining that, though.
Most bakers I know who sub ingredients use trial and error, they always try something at least once before making it for an event.1 -
I experiment with increasing other dry ingredients in the recipe slightly. I reduce the sugar in Dutch almond macaroons (bitterkoekjes) and add a little extra almond flour to compensate because otherwise the dough is more liquid causing the cookies to come out flat instead of fluffy.1
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Most bakers I know who sub ingredients use trial and error, they always try something at least once before making it for an event.
Yeah! The solstice is next weekend 🌸 I’m just hoping to see how other people have done it and what they keep in mind when trying to maintain volume and texture without the sweet taste.
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Here are some of the things sugar does in a recipe:
https://www.finecooking.com/article/what-every-baker-needs-to-know-about-sugar
Based on my limited experience with lemon bars, if you were to reduce the sugar in them, your lemon layer might be denser (and obviously less sweet) and your shortbread layer might not brown as well. That’s just an educated guess, though.0 -
I experiment with increasing other dry ingredients in the recipe slightly. I reduce the sugar in Dutch almond macaroons (bitterkoekjes) and add a little extra almond flour to compensate because otherwise the dough is more liquid causing the cookies to come out flat instead of fluffy.
Thanks! Do you have a general ratio you aim for?0 -
Here are some of the things sugar does in a recipe:
https://www.finecooking.com/article/what-every-baker-needs-to-know-about-sugar
Based on my limited experience with lemon bars, if you were to reduce the sugar in them, your lemon layer might be denser (and obviously less sweet) and your shortbread layer might not brown as well. That’s just an educated guess, though.
Thanks, that confirms my intuition that I can’t just leave it out! It didn’t say anything about potential substitutes to replicate the more important reactions, though. I’m really not sure where to look?0 -
I don’t know,1/3 cup, even 1.5 cup of sugar in an entire recipe doesn’t seem that excessive to me. I think you can potentially cut back or use a sugar substitute like Splenda, but completely omitting it in something like a lemon bar would drastically alter the taste and potentially the texture. I know you said you prefer things less sweet but are you making this for an event where others will be eating it? I would not be amused if I bit into a sugarless lemon bar at a party!3
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I would google low sugar <insert recipe name here>, and see what comes up. Odds are you could find an alternative that could work out for you.3
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Spiegelchan wrote: »I experiment with increasing other dry ingredients in the recipe slightly. I reduce the sugar in Dutch almond macaroons (bitterkoekjes) and add a little extra almond flour to compensate because otherwise the dough is more liquid causing the cookies to come out flat instead of fluffy.
Thanks! Do you have a general ratio you aim for?
My experiments have had limited success. Dutch bitterkoekjes are only egg whites (2), ground almonds (150g), sugar (150g), and almond extract (1 tsp). When I simply reduced sugar by 30%, texture of macaroons were hard and flat instead of soft and fluffy. When I increased almond flour to fully compensate for weight of lost sugar weight, the cookies were puffy but dry and powdery in texture. Next time I will try 25% compensation for weight of lost sugar.1 -
My 2 cents. Cheesecake may be fine. Texture will change, but maybe not a lot.
Lemon square shortbread layer will become more like pie crust layer. Not necessarily a bad thing, just different.
Lemon square lemon layer— hmmmmm0 -
No.Spiegelchan wrote: »Im just worried because there’s more sugar in this recipe than flour. So if I take it out do I even have a recipe.
If you are making it for an event, premake the recipe at least once. But don't plan on reducing the sugar more than half and 1/3 would be safer.Spiegelchan wrote: »Most bakers I know who sub ingredients use trial and error, they always try something at least once before making it for an event.
Yeah! The solstice is next weekend 🌸 I’m just hoping to see how other people have done it and what they keep in mind when trying to maintain volume and texture without the sweet taste.
I can generally reduce sugar by 1/3 without having to make any other adjustments to the recipe.1 -
Google for no sugar baked goods recipes.
Personally, if I want non sweet food items, I don't start with recipes for sweet baked goods. Less sweet is easy, just reduce the amount of sugar, that can often be done with no issue.4 -
Spiegelchan wrote: »Most bakers I know who sub ingredients use trial and error, they always try something at least once before making it for an event.
Yeah! The solstice is next weekend 🌸 I’m just hoping to see how other people have done it and what they keep in mind when trying to maintain volume and texture without the sweet taste.
Are you cooking just for yourself, or will this be a party of some kind? Do you know if the people you're cooking for would even enjoy the taste of lemon squares or cheesecake without sugar, even if you can find a way to give them the expected appearance and texture without sugar? (Most people I know would not. They might try to eat a little if they were being polite, but they would probably just push it around on their plate after the first bite and throw it in the trash as soon as your back was turned.)
Personally, I would look for recipes for treats that don't have a lot of sugar to begin with, rather than have to try to figure out how to make something "work" with a substitute for something that is a major component of the recipe.
But if you want to try, I would sub corn starch for sugar in the cheese cake filling (and I would add savory flavors, because I know anybody I would serve it to would think it was awful if I didn't add some kind of flavor to make up for the lack of sweet -- maybe rosemary and basil, or mint and orange. Something, for heaven's sake.) (ETA: If it's a cooked filling, with eggs, the sugar helps keep it from curdling.
I guess you could try cornstarch in the lemon bars, but it's just going to sour. I doubt anyone other than you is going to want to eat it.
ETA again -- you'll likely have better luck with desserts that aren't cooked. There's a fair amount of science in baking, even if it's achieved by trial and error, and when you mess around with ingredients that are part of chemical reactions, you can end up with a mess. How about layering fresh fruit with unsweetened freshly whipped cream, and garnishing with fresh herbs (mint, basil, etc.)?9 -
lynn_glenmont wrote: »
ETA again -- you'll likely have better luck with desserts that aren't cooked. There's a fair amount of science in baking, even if it's achieved by trial and error, and when you mess around with ingredients that are part of chemical reactions, you can end up with a mess. How about layering fresh fruit with unsweetened freshly whipped cream, and garnishing with fresh herbs (mint, basil, etc.)?
This. If I were attending an event (assuming that is the case here) I would greatly appreciate a fruit dessert because I dislike really sweet items. I recently ordered a funnel cake for myself and my wife with only half of it powdered with sugar and the person preparing it asked the cashier/order taker 3 different times to confirm the instructions. I took it to mean that doesn't happen very often. I wasn't on a calorie restriction at the time I just did not want my half ruined with all that sweetness. The funny thing is most people were not even ordering the plain jane model with just the sugar. They had a deluxe model with the sugar, chocolate syrup, and something else I don't remember that was the one to get for all the sweet tooths.1 -
If you don't like sweet foods why not make something savory like a scone or cheese straws.4
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mochapygmy wrote: »If you don't like sweet foods why not make something savory like a scone or cheese straws.
Or, if you don’t mind splurging a bit, fruit drizzled with a little balsamic vinegar is amazing and not too sweet. Get the highest quality balsamic you can find/afford.2 -
If you really do want to make cheesecake or something and you want to use less sugar, I think the best suggestion is to google diabetic cheesecakes and follow that recipe.
They will use sugar substitutes but they will also have factored in the sugar not being there for moistness, texture etc.
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I agree with the post that mentioned a true cheesecake is not actually very sweet at all.
Look for recipes that are crustless and also don't have some sour cream layer to them.
I like a cheesecake with NO crust and no topping. If made well, it's so rich and decadent and very lightly sweetened that you realize you don't need all that other stuff. It should be dense and creamy and just a small piece is all you can even eat.
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corinasue1143 wrote: »@Spiegelchan
So how did everything turn out?
The lemon bars turned out pretty well, i ended up reducing the sugar from 1 1/3 cup to 1/3 cup, and added in more flour to replace it. Either because of the reduced sugar or because I baked it too long, the top got a little dry, but underneath was normal lemon bar-ness. Everyone liked that one. For the cheesecake, I found a recipe for raw vegan cheesecake, ignored all the sweeteners, and added honey to taste (about a tbsp between filling and crust). I discovered too late that I don’t like the taste of lavender, but the (lavender-free) crust was great, and my friend liked it, so I’ll try again next time with a different flavour.
And of course you guys are right that following a naturally less-sweet recipe is the path of least resistance; I totally get that. I just love making things hard for myself because limits infuriate me🙃2 -
HereToLose50 wrote: »I agree with the post that mentioned a true cheesecake is not actually very sweet at all.
Look for recipes that are crustless and also don't have some sour cream layer to them.
I like a cheesecake with NO crust and no topping. If made well, it's so rich and decadent and very lightly sweetened that you realize you don't need all that other stuff. It should be dense and creamy and just a small piece is all you can even eat.
That sounds delicious, damn. Definitely want to try a real cheesecake next, then. Do you have a favourite recipe?0
maybe arrowroot or gelatin or something?
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