question about sweetners.....

[annieH]

Ok... tell me this.... what sweetner do you think MOST replicates that of brown sugar??

I have some SAD recipe ideas i want to translate into raw...but the flavour of brown sugar would be sadly missed.
Is there a sweetner thats close to the taste of it?

Thanks alot.

[Rawkinlocs]

I haven't tried it yet, but this might be as close as you'll get:

Raw Organic Yacon Syrup
===================
For those looking for vegan sweeteners that are raw, look no further. The Raw Organic Yacon Syrup's full-bodied flavor will add so much character to your raw dishes, especially the dessert ones. Up until now, there has been a dilemma on this issue: honey, though can be gotten "raw", is not vegan, and maple syrup, though vegan, is not raw. Everything thing else is not even a viable option due to political objections (e.g. sugar cane) or over-processing. So what do you use in raw, organic, vegan dishes?? The answer is Raw Organic Yacon Syrup, which is warmed up to just 104 degrees Fahrenheit to evaporate the moisture to reduce the syrup, making it certifiably raw.

Yacon ( Smallanthus sonchifolius ) is a distant relative of the sunflower with edible tubers and leaves. It is commonly grown and consumed throughout the Andean region. Locally, the tuber is often chopped and added to salads, and are also consumed boiled or baked. Yacon roots contain important quantities of potassium and antioxidants.

Yacon syrup, pressed from the roots, has a dark brown color, sweet flavor (reminiscent of molasses), and is used as an alternative glucose free sweetener and prebiotic with few calories.

The unique market potential for yacon syrup in the U.S. is as a dietetic sweetener due to its unique carbohydrate composition. Most other roots and tubers store carbohydrates as starch - a polymer of glucose; yacon stores carbohydrate as fructooligosacaride (FOS) - a polymer composed mainly of fructose. Yacon syrup has a strong potential in international markets as an ingredient in diet, diabetes, and colon-related heath food products.

Read more at their site...http://www.rawganique.com/Food-organic-yacon-syrup.htm

P.S. This isn't the only place that carries this syrup, so you might want to Google the words "Raw Yacon Syrup" to shop around for the best price on it!

[VeganVixen]

you also might try date sugar ,of course it probably raises your blood sugar more than yacon....

[annieH]

WOW GREAT! thanks for the info....i have heard of yacon before but was not too sure about the taste. it might work very well...i wonder if my natural foods place would carry it...probablly not....i guess i bet i would have to order it online.

Anyway.... thats cool.
And as far as date sugar goes.... that might be a good suggestion too and i am not worried about my blood sugar....more concered about the taste. I don't eat enough of any one thing at a time to worry about the affect it would have.
it never bothered me in the SAD world.....so i doubt it will now.
anyway..thaks again

[Texicalian]

Rawkinlocs - I want to add my thanks to Annie's! I was just wondering last night how I might morph my gingerbread pancake recipe into raw!

[Randolyn]

I purchased date sugar, now I am thinking it may not be raw? Could have been dehydrated too high of heat. So then I figure well I will just make my own? How? LOL What is a date before it is dehydrated? I was thinking a plum but that is a prune. I have googled it and I can not come up with what a date is before it was dehydrated :eek: I appologize for my ignorance :o

[Rawkinlocs]

I think (dried) dates are just dates like figs are figs, dried apricots are apricots...that sorta thing.

Texicalian, you're welcome...now how 'bout posting a recipe for those gingerbread pancakes (the raw version, of course!) ;)

[deedub]

Yeah Rawkinlocs, I just want to add my thanks for the yacon and also just mention that you are so knowledgeable an that I just really love your posts you crack me up too girl. BTW I checked out Rainbow Grocery in San Francisco I they did not carry it and they are a great resource. So I'll look around some more but I definately want to try the stuff as I am on a quest to make a raw BBQ sauce that taste good to me.

[Rawkinlocs]

Yeah Rawkinlocs, I just want to add my thanks for the yacon and also just mention that you are so knowledgeable an that I just really love your posts you crack me up too girl. BTW I checked out Rainbow Grocery in San Francisco I they did not carry it and they are a great resource. So I'll look around some more but I definately want to try the stuff as I am on a quest to make a raw BBQ sauce that taste good to me.


Hey thanks Deedub!! :o And you're welcome about the info on the yacon. I really need to get some of that myself!

Yeah, I read in your journal where you had some "issues" with a nugget and barbeque sauce recipe :D Just be sure that when you DO get that bbq sauce recipe down pat...gimme a holla!

[rawpriestess]

Hi,

Dates are dates. Whether dried or fresh.

Raisins are grapes that are dehydrated, and Prunes are plums that are a special kind that are dehydrated, so I can see your dilema.

As far as tasting like brown sugar, you might try dates, or date paste which is simply dates soaked in water, and you mix up the dates and water together in a blender and then use the "paste", succanat is dehydrated natural sugar cane juice, and has a marvelous flavor, my very favorite of all the sweeteners.

Stevia can have a really heavy taste, it is a plant that is low glycemic, and you can just use the leaves, and you can get it in health food stores in either white powder form or a brown liquid form, I like the brown liquid as it is very potent.

I think either the dates, or succanat taste the most like brown sugar

Brown sugar, is simply white sugar with some molassas left in. White sugar is simply sugar with ALL of the molassas removed, along with everything else that is good.

[annieH]

Thanks for the info.... i do love dates and i tend to eat alot of them with a walnut tucked inside....yum. I never thought of them though as a sweetner to sub for brown sugar but you make a good point and i am sure they will work fine. Thanks again