We received a three pack of honey as a Christmas gift. The gift giver owns a honey company and told my husband that the wildflower honey might be helpful to alleviate his allergies. This got me thinking about honey and other natural sweeteners, since I am trying to get away from eating white sugar. Brown sugar, both light and dark, is just white sugar that has been cooked to different degrees so it falls into the same category. So here, without further ado, is what I found out about these three natural sweeteners.
Honey
Honey is an ancient food and the only food that will never spoil. It has a long history of human consumption and the flavor of the honey is based on the nectar source. There are various types (orange blossom, tupelo) and grades (A, B, C) available. It is also used in medical traditions to treat ailments and unfiltered, pasteurized honey is known to alleviate allergies. Honeybees transform nectar into honey by the process of regurgitation (yuk!) and store it in wax honeycombs in the beehive. Honey is perfect for sweetening hot tea, putting on biscuits and toast (with butter) and for cooking and baking.
Of all the three sweeteners, honey is the thickest. It has 46 calories per tablespoon and scores 55 on the glycemic index. I was looking at the glycemic index because I am trying to avoid the high and subsequent crash of energy that white sugar brings. The pluses of honey is it never goes bad and the taste varies according to the nectar source.
Maple Syrup
I have been fascinated with maple syrup and the process of making it, every since reading a story about it in my Barbie magazine when I was little. What I remember most was that after they got the syrup out, they drizzled it on the snow into designs where it got hard. They then ate it with donuts and pickles! (to counteract the sweetness of the syrup) It is made from the xylem sap of the sugar maple, red maple or black maple trees. In cold climates, these trees store starch in their trunks and roots before the winter. The starch is converted to sugar that rises in the sap in the spring. The sap is processed by heating it. Canada is the largest producer, Vermont the largest in the U.S.
Maple syrup is the least thick of the three sweeteners. It has 26 calories per tablespoon, tastes like maple and scores 55 on the glycemic index (same as honey). It comes in grades A, B and C, with A being the most refined. I discovered Grade B while on the Master Cleanse. It has a more maple-y flavor. Maple syrup is 100% natural, contains calcium, zinc, antioxidants, riboflavin and niacin. Another plus is that vegans can eat it. Maple syrup is good on pancakes, waffles, oatmeal, in baking and as a glaze for meats and veggies.
Agave
I discovered Agave while visiting my niece Kate in Boulder, Colorado. It has a lower glycemic index that honey or maple syrup, creating less of a crash. Once I left Colorado, I noticed they carried Agave at Whole Foods and even Publix. This is a sweetener produced in South Africa and Mexico from several species of the agave plant, the same plant used to make tequila. It has been used thousands of years as a sweetener. Leaves are cut off the plant after it has aged 7-14 years; juice is expressed from the core, filtered, then heated. The filtered, hydrolysed juice is concentrated into a syrupy liquid.
Agave is sweeter than honey, but less thick. It contains 60 calories per tablespoon, scores 15 on the glycemic index and has a sweet, smoky taste, kind of like molasses. It is vegan friendly as well. It is perfect for sweetening iced tea, since it dissolves in cold liquid. I have also seen it used in lemonade and mixed drinks lately. I like to squirt a little atop my fresh fruit and Greek yogurt, as a flavor booster.
So, there you have it. Each natural sweetener has its own advantages so it comes down to: what you're using it for, which taste you like the best and how many calories you want to consume. Here's to a (naturally) Sweet Life!
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