Almost everyone loves sweets, and it doesn’t have to be a problem to enjoy them. By being aware of the quality and quantity of the sweeteners you consume, you can satisfy your “sweet tooth” with healthier alternatives.

Natural Sweeteners

Barley malt comes from sprouted grains of barley that are kiln dried and cooked with water. The resulting syrup is a mild sweetener with a rich malt flavor, recommended for baking. Barley malt is the commonly used sweetener in soy products. Barley malt available at other stores may contain corn syrup or refined sugar; read labels carefully.

Brown rice syrup is made from brown rice that has been cooked for a very long time. This sweetener has a mild flavor and the highest protein content of any natural sweetener. It is very good for baking.

Date sugar is dried, pulverized dates. It is very sweet, and although it does not dissolve well, it is fine for cooking or baking.

Fruit juice sweeteners are most often derived from grapes, followed by apples and pears. The end result of the refining process for fruit juice sweeteners is a product similar to white sugar. Fruit juice sweeteners are used to sweeten beverages or food products.

Fruitsource is a combination of fruit sweetener and brown rice syrup. It is very sweet, but is more slowly assimilated into the bloodstream than refined sugar.

Fructose is the kind of sugar naturally found in fruits and honey. Beware of fructose listed as an ingredient in other foods. Most of the fructose available commercially is made from refined corn syrup, so those allergic to corn may have an allergic reaction. The body responds to high-fructose corn syrup like it does to other refined sugars. Excess fructose in the diet has been shown to raise triglyceride levels, increasing the risk of heart disease.

Honey is one of the most popular sweeteners for people who want to avoid using refined sugar. Honey is produced by honeybees that take nectar from flowers and transform it. There are several types of honey, depending on the geographic location and the types of flowers from which the bees extract the honey. Darker honey contains more minerals and has stronger flavor than a lighter honey.

Natural honey is minimally processed to remove chunks of beeswax and make it pourable. Read labels to be sure the honey you are getting is not overheated or finely filtered (can remove bee pollen), and does not contain sugar or corn syrup. Honey may contain botulism spores, and should not be given to children less than one year old to protect against infant botulism.
Honey should be stored at room temperature, as it will crystallize if it gets cool. Place a container of crystallized honey in warm water to soften it. Honey is a very versatile sweetener. It can be used for baking or as a spread.

Maple syrup is a popular natural sweetener made by boiling the sap of sugar maple trees down into a syrup. It has a distinctive flavor, and is great poured on pancakes or french toast. It is also used for baking.

Molasses is a by-product of the manufacture of sugar from sugar cane. There are three kinds. Light molasses is the residue from the first extraction of sugar and is the sweetest. Medium molasses is from the second extraction and is darker and less sweet. Blackstrap molasses is the final residue and is very dark and only slightly sweet with a distinctive flavor. Blackstrap molasses is a very good source of calcium and iron. “Unsulphured molasses” indicates that no sulphur was used in the extraction process.

Sorghum is made from sweet sorghum, a grain related to millet and similar in appearance to corn. The juice from the plant is extracted and boiled down into a syrup. It has a flavor and texture similar to that of molasses.

Stevia is a perennial plant native to Brazil, traditionally used as a sweetener in beverages. It is 30 times sweeter than sugar, so two drops of stevia extract can sweeten one cup. Refined stevia powder is also available for baking or use as a flavor enhancer. Stevia may be used by people with candida or yeast conditions as a sweetener.

Sugar cane juice is made by mechanically extracting the juice from the whole cane and is available in a dehydrated, crystallized form. One brand is Florida Crystals. Another brand, Sucanat, has extra molasses added to it.

Highly Refined Sweeteners

Sugar or white sugar is made from sugar cane or sugar beets that have been chemically processed or refined to contain 99.9 percent sucrose. This standard leaves little room for the nutrients and fiber that were part of the natural plant.

Brown sugar is simply white sugar with a bit of molasses added for color.

Turbinado or raw sugar is made the same way as white sugar except for the last extraction of molasses. The standard for raw sugar is 96 percent sucrose.

Corn syrup is a chemically refined syrup made from corn kernels. Dark corn syrup is artificially colored. High fructose corn syrup is made by an additional refining process that splits the two components of corn syrup. It is now a common ingredient of processed foods and beverages.

Sweeteners Equivalent to One Cup of Sugar

I found this excellent information while shopping in the Moscow Idaho Food Co-op — an amazing place full of great food and people.

© Twin Cities Natural Food Co-ops.