Get Stuck on This All-Natural Sweetener – Agave Nectar
Previously, I told you about luo han guo. Today, I’ve got another sweetener that won’t spike your blood sugar.
Derived from the prickly blue agave cactus (the same plant that gives us tequilla), agave nectar is gaining popularity. Despite its sweet taste, it has just 11 calories and four grams of carbohydrate (which is mainly insulin) per teaspoon. It is also a low-glycemic food – sranking just 19 on the glycemic index.
Because this golden syrup is composed primarily of fructose (92 percent), it is nearly 25 percent sweeter than table sugar (sucrose). That means you can use a lot less to achieve the same level of sweetness.
So go ahead and sweeten up with this safe, delicious, all-natural product. It can be used anywhere you would use sugar. If you use agave nectar for baking, the following adjustments are recommended:
- For every cup of sugar, use 3/4 cup of agave nectar.
- Reduce the liquids in the recipe by one-third.
- Reduce the oven temperature by 25 degrees.
Kelley Herring
Kelley Herring is the Founder & CEO of Healing Gourmet – a multimedia company that educates on how foods promote health and protect against disease. As a young adult, Kelley battled a debilitating health condition that went misdiagnosed by multiple doctors for more than a year. Finding no help from “modern medicine”, she turned to her own knowledge of biochemistry and her passion for health research. She soon learned that her symptoms were related to nutrition and within weeks, she charted a course back to health with nothing more than simple lifestyle changes and the power of the plate. The lessons she learned spawned the creation of Healing Gourmet. Kelley is a firm believer in vigorous exercise, moderate sun exposure and delicious, healthy, home-cooked meals. She is also the creator of Healing Gourmet’s Personalized Nutrition Software and Editor-in-Chief of the Healing Gourmet book series published by McGraw-Hill including Eat to Fight Cancer, Eat to Beat Diabetes, Eat to Lower Cholesterol and Eat to Boost Fertility.