Lakanto This product is recommended in "The Body Ecology Diet" so we wanted to give it a try in baking. In our apple pie, it didn't taste any different than sugar. In cookies, it had a "cool" taste...almost cold...hard to explain. We agreed that the coolness came from the sugar alcohol Erythritol and not the fruit extract. I would not make cookies with it again but I would use it in pies!
Steviva Blend (with Erythritol) Stevia extract is so sweet it requires only a fraction of a teaspoon to sweeten. It makes it more difficult to use in baking so manufacturers add bulking agents to stevia extract. Look for the stevia blends that contain erythritol (an all natural, gluten-free fermented grain extract) which doesn't affect insulin levels making it safe for diabetics and doesn't feed yeast, making it safe for those suffering candidiasis. Stay away from Stevia mixed with Maltodextrin! Table sugar is at 65 on the glycemic index and Maltodextrin is at 100! Watch out for it in packaged foods as a hidden sugar. Because Maltodextrin is considered a "complex carbohydrate" and not a refined simple sugar, manufacturers are allowed to state "no sugar" or "low sugar" on product labels but it will impact blood sugar more severely than table sugar!
Stevia Plus This product is blended with Frutafit Inulin Fiber which is considered a prebiotic because it is digested by the good instestinal bacteria. It feeds them and makes them happy and doesn't feed the bad bacteria. This NSI brand says it contains Maltodextrin listed under "Other Ingredients" so I called the company and they said there is less than 1 mg per serving and because it is too small to quantify it is listed under other ingredients. One serving includes 475 mg of Frutafit Inulin Fiber and 25 mg of Stevia Extract.
Green Stevia Leaf Powder If you really want to be healthy and avoid even refined stevia, this is the way to go. You can even grow your own stevia, dry it in a dehydrator and grind it up with a mortar and pestle when you need it. Or, you can boil down fresh leaves and make your own liquid extract!
Stevia Extract Powder Used in conjuction with other sweetener such as honey, maple syrup, molasses and it will mimmick the flavor of the other sweetener. This means you won't taste the aftertaste of stevia and the other sweetener flavor will be intensified. This is also why, when shopping for liquid stevia extract you will see many flavored extracts such as Vanilla Creme.
Vanilla Creme Liquid Stevia Make your own flavored yogurt by purchasing one of the many flavors of the liquid stevia and adding to plain yogurt. I haven't found stevia sweetened yogurt in stores! What a great way to make your own! We compared the amount of added sugar to yogurt compared to ice cream and it was much higher and doesn't even take into account the natural sugars in the added fruit! How about Chocolate Raspberry flavored yogurt? Or lemon? I like adding lemon or lime halves to our green smoothies to make them taste great. We'll have to try this liquid extract. With the stevia adding sweetness, I will be able to make green smoothies without adding any fruit! So far our favorite drink that replaced soda in our home is carbonated mineral water with lemon or lime squeezed in and a few drops of liquid stevia extract. It's great! The convenience of the liquid drops has me sold. I will most likely try all the available flavors in different applications. I did melt down bittersweet baking chocolate and added drops of the vanilla creme to it and it tasted delicious. Now I can't wait to buy the Chocolate extract for next time!
Liquid Stevia Root Beer Flavor Purchase inexpensive carbonated mineral water and add this flavoring to make your own healthy soda! I will have to buy this, try it out and post my results on the blog!
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