Stevia, bit of a disappoinment

[Sirzy]

Bit of a food/cookery question...

I usually use Splenda/Sweetex/Canderel in my coffee and for baking, but I've recently been getting bladder irritation from them (not an unusual side effect with artificial sweeteners apparently). So I thought I'd give stevia ago (I didn't want to use xylitol as there's alot more carbs in it), as it's derived from plant leaves and isn't quite as overly processed as the other sweeteners, whether it will irritate my bladder or not still remains to be seen :? After trying it in my coffee and using it to bake my usual almond biccies (it can be heated and used in baking according to the brands website), I noticed it wasn't particularly sweet at all. I needed two teaspoons in my coffee to make it taste even remotely sweet, and even then it was only slightly sweet (usually two teaspoons of splenda is too sweet for my taste!), plus my biccies didn't have any sweet taste to them at all :eh:

I don't want to put more of into my receipes etc, as this will drive the carb content up considerably, but it's supposed to be 1 teaspoon of stevia = 1 of sugar in terms of sweetness. I'm wondering if this could be just this particular brand (it's Pure Via), but I don't want to spend almost four pounds on the Canderel stevia if it turns out this isn't much good either.

Anybody here use stevia and found a brand that is as sweet as the other artificial sweeteners?

Thanks

 

[Helenababe]

They've brought out Stevia sweetners in pill form for drinks, but I won't try them, as they're nearly £4!
I can't seem to find a cheap but effective sweetner for cakes either. I'd need half a jar of my cheap granular sweetner to sweeten them.

Helena

 

[Sirzy]

Have you tried Splenda for baking? I find it as sweet as sugar, and it doesn't have an aftertaste at all. To be honest, I'd happily carry on using it if it wasn't for the bl**dy bladder irritation I get from it :x

I wouldn't waste your money on stevia, it doesn't taste very sweet and it has an odd aftertaste. I've heard Truvia tastes better but it has sugar alcohols in and alot more carbs than the other sweeteners

 

[Helenababe]

No I haven't tried Splenda because I read there were calories in it, but if it doesn't make much difference to BS I might try it.

Helena

 

[Sirzy]

There are some alleged health issues with artificial sweeteners, so you might want to do some research before deceiding to use them.

I looked into these issues and came to the conclusion that I'm happy to use them, but you might feel differently after having a bit of a read around, I didn't want to recommend Splenda to you without pointing this out first

 

[dib]

I use pure Stevia liquid, measured out with a small eye dropper which is provided, one drop replacing one spoon of sugar. It works fine for me. Available under the Swanson brand from many ebay sellers.

 

[Sirzy]

Dib,

Have you tried the powder too? Is the liquid form as sweet as sugar spoon for spoon?

I've found that the stevia doesn't taste instantly sweet, it takes a second or two to register as sweet on your tongue, like a short delay between having it and tasting the sweetness, whereas with other sweeteners it's an instant hit of sweetness the moment you taste it, it's a very odd sensation with stevia :?

 

[georgiepieman]

HI,

I've been using a Stevia product here in the US for a number of years with great success - but it must first be said, that all Stevia's are not created equal!

I am using a Stevia extract called "Strevia Extract in the Raw. It's ingrediebts are maltodextrin and stevia extract (Rebiana).

If you're obsessed with reading labels like me, then you've probably come across the ingredient maltodextrin. Sounds like some type of sugar, but is it safe to eat? It'll settle your mind to know that this common additive is an easily digestible carbohydrate made from rice, corn, or potato starch (celiacs beware — it can also be derived from barley or wheat). It's made by cooking down the starch, and then acid and/or enzymes break the starch down even further.

The manufactures of this product claim it to be:
"an all-natural, zero calorie sweetner derived from the leafy green foliage of the Stevia plant, native to South America and used indigenously as a sweetner for over 400 years. It has also been vastly popular in Japan for more than 30 years. The sweetest extract from these leaves has recently been isolated to provide pure sweetning power without the aftertaste."

Nutrition facts claim "0 Carbohydrates."

The greatest thing about Stevia in the Raw is that it is excellent for cooking and baking as it measures cup-for-cup with sugar. I even use it for making bread dough. If your recipe calls for "brown sugar," I use 1 Tbsp molasses to 1 cup Stevia Extract.

Give it a try! :thumbup: