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Vegan sweeteners

As was discussed on Slashfood recently, stevia is a great alternative to the White Demon, refined table sugar. One method of refining sugarcane involves a step where the liquid is filtered through a cattle bone charcoal mixture, with a little albumen thrown in. Not remotely vegan. While stevia is a good, strong, sweetener for that shade grown soy latte, you might also try: Brown Rice Syrup, less sweet than honey and bakes well. Sucanat, organic sugar cane juice with the essence of the sugarcane sans water. Sucanat is good in hot liquids, but lumps up oatmeal and is not ideal for baking. Maple Sugar/Maple Syrup, organic, pure, expensive, but worth it. Pure maple syrup is graded A-C, A being lightest, C the most robust and similar to restaurant grade corn syrup knockoffs. Nothing wrong with C, it's just meant to be the dominant flavor of the food.

Then, there's always Blackstrap molasses. Anyone who's trained with triathletes, especially in the '90s, knows that Blackstrap is believed to (lots of potassium, B vits.) help flush lactic acid from muscles and speed overall recovery from heavy exertion. Whatever your sweet needs, don't turn to the White Demon-- it's no good. Period. Check all this out, and more here.

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Filed Under: Trends, Health & Medical
Tags: alternative, blackstrap, maple, molasses, processed, stevia, sucanat, sugar, sugarcane, sweeteners, syrup, vegan

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Reader comments (Page 1 of 1)

Christina

8-26-2006 @12:59AM Christina said... One of the best vegan sweeteners around isn't mentioned at all--agave nectar. It's made from the agave, which is the same plant that gives us tequila. It's low on the glycemic index so you won't get a big buzz then a huge blood sugar crash, and it's suitable for diabetics. It's comparatively as sweet as honey with less of a "bite". It's a great vegan honey substitute (especially for tea), as it has a similar viscosity. It also comes in a variety of styles, like raw, light, amber, and dark, the darker styles tasting more mineralized, like molasses. It's even available in flavors like lemon, lavender, and Mexican vanilla.
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Textbook Case

8-26-2006 @2:34AM Textbook Case said... Nothing good about sugar but the taste, how well it dissolves, how well it bakes, and turning it into caramel. Unfortunately, so far nothing else approaches it, or my addiction to it.

Stevia's not terrible though, and organic B maple syrup is good in the right situations (in a 50/50 mix with melted butter over french toast).

Granted, not vegan, but if you want to feel superior about yourself, skip cruel veganism and join the fruitarians. Stop killing plants, you filthy murderers (as I splash wheat grass juice across your hemp sweater)!
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Ryan Petersen

9-06-2006 @10:46AM Ryan Petersen said... Stevia's got a lot going for it, although the taste admittedly takes some getting used to. Once you do you won't want to go back though. I created a non-commercial Web site earlier this year that offers recipes, news, research studies and background info about the sweetener: http://www.steviainfo.com. Take a look when you have a few minutes.
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lanalove

11-14-2006 @5:25PM lanalove said... Wow thanks for the great info! I love stevia, agave nectar, brown rice syrup, been hearing lots of good stuff about black strap molasses lately too..anything other than those harsh synthetic chemical sweeteners and sugar, just learned about the filtration process of sugar... yuck! No more! Baking is fun again with all the healthy substitutions that I use, there is always a healthy substitution for all the unhealthy ingredients that recipes call for, and homemade healthy treats are best. I found lots of great recipes at www.sweetleaf.com
Thanks again for being a health maker rather than a health breaker! Eat fresh healthy whole foods and you will be happy & healthy!
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4 Comments / 1 Pages

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