Natural Sweeteners with Health Benefits

 Skip the refined or artificial sweeteners. Use natural sweeteners that provide your body with health benefits too. 

Here are five natural sweeteners that can benefit your health:

Dates

Dates are naturally sweet, so as you can imagine using date syrup, date paste, or even whole dates in your recipes would bring an incredibly delicious and sweet touch. The great thing about using dates is that date paste can actually be used in the same quantities as you would use sugar in your recipes. This means less complicated calculations and more time making delicious recipes! You can also use date sugar which can easily be found in health food stores, or date syrup for an equally as sweet flavor. As if there weren’t enough benefits already, dates also hold some amazing health benefits. They are easy to digest and rich in potassium, iron, magnesium, and B6 which is not something that you would get from refined sugar! 

Maple Syrup

Who doesn’t love pure maple syrup? Maple pairs well with things like cinnamon, and nutmeg which are flavors commonly used throughout the winter and fall season. Pure maple syrup is an excellent source of manganese, calcium, potassium, and zinc and is also rich in antioxidants. It turns out you can have your cake and eat it too when sweetening with pure maple syrup. You will want to be sure to choose the darker grade B maple syrups as they contain stronger amounts of those free radical scavenging antioxidants!

Brown Rice Syrup

Another excellent way to sweeten your treats is by using brown rice syrup. You can use this syrup in anything ranging from baked goods to your morning cup of coffee, or drizzled over your oats making the investment in this natural sweetener worth it! The complex carbohydrates in brown rice syrup mean this sugar is slower to release than traditional sugar and may provide your body with longer sources of energy without an unwanted sugar spike. Try adding brown rice syrup to your baked goods for a subtle but delicious sweet flavor.

Molasses

Turns out molasses taste great in more than just your grandmother’s traditional chocolate chip cookie recipe! Many recipes tend to call for blackstrap molasses, as it helps to bring out all the wonderful flavors baked goods have to offer. Unlike refined sugar, blackstrap molasses contains vital vitamin and minerals and does not contain nearly as much sugar as cane syrup, and refined products. Try adding molasses to your cookies and bread recipes.

Banana Puree

An excellent plant-based way to sweeten your treats. Bananas are very sweet and taste even sweeter when they are super ripe and mashed into a puree. If you love banana bread, you may also love sweetening some of your other baked goods with bananas. Bananas are rich in fiber, are easy on the tummy, and add a natural touch of sweetness making them an excellent all natural sweetener.

Reducing your refined sugar intake is important, but that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy your favorite treats either. Try using some of these natural sweeteners as a healthier way to sweeten cookies, cakes, and all of your traditional baked goods this year. Not only will these natural sweeteners provide a natural touch of sweetness, but they also provide you with a boost of nutrients all at the same time so that you can enjoy treats without the guilt.