Anyone cooking/baking with Splenda?
I've just recently been given a warning about the state of my blood sugar and am taking steps to correct it. However, I've got folks coming for brunch on Sunday and I'd love to whip up a summer fruit cobbler or crisp but I fear both the sugar and carbs. Does anyone have any recipes or ideas on how to cook/bake with Splenda, or know if I can sub whole wheat flour for AP for toppings, biscuit dough, etc? Please help! Thanks!
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27 Comments:
Have you tried Stevia? It's a natural sweetener (as opposed to a chemical one) derived from a plant.
You can get it at Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, or online at Swanson Vitamins (great company, great price, and their Stevia is awesome!)
Brownie at 4:04PM on 07/21/08
Either way - artificial and calorie-free sweetners can actually be counterproductive to weight loss:
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080210183902.htm
Golden at 5:36PM on 07/21/08
You know, when I bake with Splenda, I just sub sugar out for Splenda exactly in the proportions that it normally would have been there in. I'm a very imprecise baker when it comes to cookies, cakes, and the like--I often throw in handfuls of oat bran, tablespoons of ground flaxseed, and sub out oil/butter for canned pumpkin and applesauce. If it looks too thick, add more skim milk. It works for me, and I personally love the chewiness of having those ingredients in there. All I can say is--don't be afraid to experiment at all! Maybe start by replacing half the regular flour with whole wheat, or take out a half cup and add a half cup of oatmeal? Your baked goods may come out less fluffy and a bit heavier, but the taste might be even deeper!
Pammeh at 5:40PM on 07/21/08
I've baked with Splenda. As far as I remember, I actually used less Splenda than sugar, but then, I have a tendency to use less sugar than the recipe calls for anyway.
Re: whole wheat flour, I agree with Pammeh, when I wanted to replace AP flour with whole wheat flour in a recipe (I've done it with pancakes, muffins and banana bread), I started with half and half, and depending on how I liked/wanted the end result to be, proceeded to decrease or eliminate altogether the amount of AP flour (e.g., now I don't add AP flour at all when I make pancakes, but I use 1 cup AP and 2 cups WW in my muffin recipe, etc).
brooke29 at 6:18PM on 07/21/08
I used Splenda when I went through a phase where my body/stomach thought sugar was the devil (I'm chronically ill, these things happen more than I'd like). My family tasted a strange aftertaste that I never did, but I've heard other Splenda eaters have, so you might want to try out a recipe before serving to guests.
Also I can't remember what kind, I think they've sinced changed their products, but either regular Splenda, or Splenda for Baking, perhaps both, use only half as much as regular sugar, and I remember this messing with the consistency of a few recipes because there was less dough then there should have been.
Here are a couple cookbooks I borrowed from the library, they were decent and I think I made a couple good recipes, but fortunately I'm back in the sugar tolerant living zone and haven't used Splenda in awhile since I'm constantly on the quest to gain weight.
http://www.amazon.com/Marlene-Kochs-Sensational-Splenda-Recipes/dp/1590771389/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1216678411&sr=1-1
http://www.amazon.com/SPLENDA-World-Sweetness-Homemade-Delicious/dp/0811854876/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1216678411&sr=1-4
Also for the whole wheat flour, as Pammeh said you can start subbing up to half the amount of AP flour with other kinds in most recipes. There are many flours out there, I'd suggest going to Whole Foods or somewhere with bulk bins and buying small amounts to see what you like best and what works for you.
Good luck.
bobcatsteph3 at 6:22PM on 07/21/08
Half my family is diabetic, so we use a lot of Splenda. We just sub out sugar for Splenda equally, EXCEPT in recipes where you have to cream butter with sugar. Because Splenda has a different, fluffier consistency, it doesn't mix as well. But with things like batters, biscuits, etc. it's fine. They do have Splenda for baking, which is half sugar/half Splenda. It's a good start.
And using WW flour, I'd also start by subbing out only part. The glutens in WW flour react differently than with AP flour.
amanda0730 at 7:59PM on 07/21/08
My grandma is diabetic, and she uses a lot of splenda. Usually I taste artificial sweeteners in stuff, but I don't taste the splenda in her baking. (I do taste it in many commercial products though, we think it may be the preservatives bringing out the flavor, as she tastes it there too)
She subs it in "family" recipes as well as using the splenda cookbooks. (A couple weeks ago I had her "icebox cookies" when I was over at her house, and another time she had oatmeal date cookies, the oatmeal date cookies were WONDERFUL, and the icebox cookies were pretty good too. Reminds me that I need the recipe for those.)
cmtigger at 8:35PM on 07/21/08
I've always had an 'intolerance' to artificial sweeteners. Really. And, the more I read about them, the happier it makes me that I can't tolerate them. I do think stevia is a good choice. It doesn't work for everything, and it doesn't really taste like sugar, but it still tastes good in beverages, and most importantly it is 'natural'. I wish you all would do a google search on Splenda and other artificial sweeteners. I'm really afraid of them now. Here's a link to one article, there are lots more, especially from Dr. Mercola.
http://splenda.worldwidewarning.net/
Carolina de Witte at 8:48PM on 07/21/08
I use Splenda in my fruit pie fillings with excellent results. It isn't the same for other baked goods (i.e. anything requiring the creaming method-it doesn't work like sugar in that regard). Aside from giving some people gas or causing a little water retention, artificial sweeteners haven't been shown to have any harmful effects with long-term use (according to trustworthy scientific research). I also use half w.w. flour in my pie crust, and my pie crust recipe uses oil instead of shortening so it's easier to work with. It's delicious and much more flavorful than white flour! More than half would be too heavy though, I think.
buffy at 10:17PM on 07/21/08
Many people have strong feelings about artificial sweeteners, so my suggestion would be to make one dessert that uses regular sugar and give the leftovers away after, so you aren't tempted, then make another with Spenda and tell people that's what you used. That way, they can choose whichever they prefer.
Or skip the splenda all together and make the "healthy" dessert with fruit and yogurt and maybe some nuts if you want something crunchy.
dbcurrie at 11:13PM on 07/21/08
just so that you know, there have been people that have the same reaction to splenda and artifical sweetners as they have to sugar. I would go ahead and make the real thing, but also include lots of lean proteins, and only eat a small amount of the sugar and carb laden. (protein slows the jump of blood sugar and keeps you a little more level) Good luck! I'm glad you're taking this issue seriously, diabetes is one of the hardest dietary issues to deal with! You'll be in my thoughts!
huneybumper at 7:45AM on 07/22/08
I use Splenda quite frequently on things--regarding the blood sugar spike, I find that aspartame (Equal) has a SEVERE effect upon my blood sugar--shaking hands, the whole works (and I'm not diabetic) and have to eat something pronto to avoid seeing stars. Splenda has no such effect on me, one reason it's recommended for diabetics.
I don't use it for baking so much because I get nervous about substituting but it's good to hear that it works so I will try it next time--the company website has the sugar/sweetener equivalents.
Slightly off topic--sometimes I taste a bitter aftertaste with Splenda, but very rarely. I wonder why I taste it sometimes but not other times.
HeartofGlass at 8:20AM on 07/22/08
If you are worried about blood sugar you should also experiment with taking some wheat out of your baking. Starch=sugar. Sugar=carbs
Try some rice flour, chick pea flour or another low gluten flour. Your baking will be altered by using splenda and reducing or eliminating wheat. Baking is chemistry and when you alter the chemistry of a recipe the results will vary. Less brown, doesn't rise as high, crumb and texture.
I make a oatmeal bar with frozen berries that is good with splenda in regular and brown. http://bakingbites.com/2007/05/berry-oatmeal-crumble-bars/
Nicole at baking bites always has great recipes.
Also our buddy Paula Deen has a recipe that OMG has not butter or flour that amazingly worked like a dream. http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/magical-peanut-butter-cookies-recipe/index.html
The recipe was good. I also have dipped the bottoms in dark chocolate and they were even better. 60% worked really nice.
Baking with splenda
JerzeeTomato at 8:36AM on 07/22/08
I make fruit crisps with a little whole wheat pastry flour and old fashioned rolled oats. Can you have oats? I use a little turbinado (unrefined) sugar and apple cider or juice to sweeten the fruit.
LadyMarmalade at 8:46AM on 07/22/08
How can I thank you guys? These are all great suggestions and many of you have given me a lot to think about! I will definitely be doing some experimenting with new ingredients. Thanks so much again!
sixsonnets at 10:56AM on 07/22/08
@sixsonnets, when you're making these substitutions, do a little research and make sure that the sub is actually moving you towards accomplishing your goal. I know people who wildly substitute one thing for another thinking it's healthy and then they eat with mad abandon, and what they've really done is created something that's just slightly better for them (or not), not as good tasting, and then they eat 3 times as much because they think it's suddenly become a health food.
And everyone's needs are not identical. What's bad for someone else might not make any difference at all to you.
For example, whole wheat flour has more fiber, so it's good for you in that sense, but it's still wheat flour. It's got everything regular white flour has, plus the extra. So if wheat itself is a problem for you, whole wheat isn't going to be much better than white flour. If more fiber is one of your goals, then you might get the same benefit by adding some fiber powder (I'm thinking something like Benefiber) to your flour, if you're making something where whole wheat would be less tasty.
When it comes to substituting rice flour or oat flour, that makes sense if you need to avoid gluten, but gluten is protein, not a carb, so that sub might not make sense for you. It is important for people who have issues with gluten, but otherwise you're just subbing one carb for another.
Subbing a nut-based flour, like almond meal, might make sense in that you're subbing protein and fat for some of the carbs. It's not going to produce the same result, but in some recipes, it might work. You'd get the same benefit by adding chopped nuts or peanut butter to the recipe. Calorie-wise, the nuts are probably adding rather than reducing.
Just for the fun of it, I looked up the nutritional content for bread flour, white flour, whole grain wheat flour, rice flour and oat flour. The bread flour and whole grain wheat had nearly identical carbs (72.53 and 72.57 grams per 100 grams, respectively.) White flour has 76.31, so it's not that much different. And there are going to be differences depending on brand, etc. so those tenths of grams don't mean a whole lot.
Rice flour has 80.13 grams of carbs per 100, so you're actually increasing carbs with that substitution. Oat flour has 65.7, so the carbs are lower, but really, it's still in the same ballpark. And in terms of calories, it's higher than the wheats or the rice flour. Fiber-wise, it's not as good as the whole wheat flour, but better than the rest.
I know people who claim that they NEVER use refined white sugar, but they slather honey on everything and use raw cane sugar or some other less refined version. That may be slightly better for you than plain white sugar, but it's still sugar. Depending on why you're cutting down on sugar, those subs might not add up to much.
Anyway, good luck with your new adventures in cooking. Personally, for me, for a special occasion, I'd just make the dessert and eat a smaller portion. If you eat half a slice rather than a whole slice you've cut the carbs in half, which is better than what you'd do by switching to whole wheat flour and eating a full slice. You're probably going to have to learn to cut back, anyway, because you're going to be in plenty of situations where you can't control ingredients.
Then, you can do the research on the ingredients you use at home and decide which substitutions make sense for you, personally.
dbcurrie at 12:30PM on 07/22/08
@dbcurrie....great post...alot of great information! Currently I'm in the process of cutting out alot of 'unnatural' stuff from my diet, and have lost 30 lbs in the past year this way. I haven't cut out fat, or sugar for that matter, I've just cut back on both, and nearly every artificial ingredient that I can. I read labels voraciously. I've found, like you suggested, that by cutting back my portion sizes, and having a small amount of something rather than substituting large portions of artificially sweetened, lowered fat products, I'm content, and it shows in my dress size.
Are you a nutritionist?
mepolo at 1:09PM on 07/22/08
I am a diabetic. I use the same amount of splenda as you do sugar so 1 cup of one is 1 c of the other. Yes artificial sweeteners are not super great for you but if you have no choice at least it is an option. They are a great way to feel included in treats yes some people say just eat less of the real dessert but you may not relive that is an extremely tiny serving. Hope all goes well for you.
http://organicandnaturalmom.blogspot.com/
love2cook at 1:16PM on 07/22/08
@mepolo, I'm not a nutritionist (nor do I play one on TV). But I am extremely skeptical of unsubstantiated health claims, diets, food fads, etc. So when something new comes along, I tend to research it before I embrace it. Most things, I don't embrace, because I like food and if I want something "bad" I'm better off eating it once and being done with it, rather than "sneaking" it and feeling guilty or, worse yet, denying the craving and eating everything else that is similar but not as satisfying.
I also believe that if you really pay attention to your body, you'll choose the right foods for you. Eating a wide variety of things, in moderation (in my opinion) will get you the array of vitamins and minerals that you need, and keep you from overindulging in things that aren't so good from you. Most foods have good things and bad things about them, so if you eat a lot of different things, you balance the good and the bad.
Listening to your body includes paying attention to real hunger, knowing when to stop eating, and understanding that a craving may have something to do with a nutritional need as well as an emotional need.
People managed to keep themselves from starving and eat the right sorts of things to ward off vitamin deficiencies (if the right foods were available to them) long before there were nutritional labels.
Now, too many people rely on those labels and think that Lean Cuisine is a healthier choice for them than some fresh fruit because they can't count the carbs and sodium on the fruit label.
Listening to your body also means not basing choices on what is bad for someone else. Just because some people are allergic to peanuts, it doesn't mean peanuts bad and you should avoid them. Same with gluten or lactose or soy or any of the myriad things that other people have sensitivites to.
If you get a bad reaction to a particular food, then maybe you shouldn't eat so much of it. You don't need a doctor or nutritionist to tell you that if you break out if hives every time you eat strawberries, then maybe you should stay away from them.
And I'm really slow about jumping on the "this is bad for you" bandwagon that cuts whole categories of food from the diet. I really don't believe any natural food is bad for you, if you consume it in moderation. Some things that are bad for you in excess are required in the diet in smaller amounts, so trying to cut out these things is just plain silly.
Like the person I know who had decided that "salt is bad for you." That's it. No ifs, ands, or buts. Salt is bad. She has cut all salt out of her cooking and removed salt shakers from the table. But she hasn't a clue what's in the food she buys. Ham, bacon and McDonalds foods are high in the food chain for her, and she's overly fond of Chinese buffets as well. And there's plenty of soy sauce.
So she cut out table salt, but now craves other things which in the end probably means she's eating more sodium than ever. Once, I tried to tell her that salt was a necessary item, in the proper quantity, but she decided that table salt is the salt that's bad, and that's all there is to it. Her body, on the other hand, is telling her that she needs salt, so she craves bacon and other salty things.
Anyway, that's my rant. What works for me may not work for someone else. But a little bit of research goes a long way.
dbcurrie at 1:51PM on 07/22/08
@dbcurrie - well said!!! One of the best posts I've read on SE.
@mepolo - good for you! That's how I eat too. I don't have weight issues, but they do run in my family. I think I've managed to stay on the thin side because I eat the same way you describe, and I get lots of exercise. It's not complicated, and it doesn't turn food into the enemy. Every time I hear about someone cutting out a certain food completely, thinking that's going to be the magic pill, it makes me cringe.
CookiePie at 2:11PM on 07/22/08
Well said, dbcurrie--I tend to agree. Moderation is key, and if you listen to your body and provide it with whole, unprocessed and nutrient-dense foods (fruits, veggies, dairy, nuts, beans, seeds...) you will be well off.
That being said, I've still tried to cut out some added sugar in my diet--I've tried to substitute Splenda into recipes and it works, but from what I've tried, the textures and densities are a bit different than their originals. In muffins, I've had them turn out a bit more spongey and not as flakey--kind of rubbery, if that makes sense. My cookies have been a bit off as well, but it's been awhile since I've experimented.
My suggestion would be to, if baking, lower the sugar content a bit--most recipes can be cut back by 1/4-1/2 cup (at least!) and still taste and appear pleasant. It's a lot of trial and error, but it might be worth the effort. For fruit cobblers or crisps, try to find naturally sweet, in season fruits that DON'T NEED a lot of extra sweetener added to them. (I think that so many people have just given in to adding all this extra sugar to foods, and then develop this overly-sweet preference and need lots of sugar to satisfy their sweet tooth...so many recipes just pile on the sugar, in my opinion...)
A fruit trifle with plain yogurt, fresh berries, and angel food cake (yes, I know--it's basically pure sugar...) or a light pound cake could work! the sweetness of the berries would naturally sweeten the plain yogurt, and the cake part could also add that dessert-y sweetness, without going overboard.
FINALLY, I've recently started seeing a reduced-sugar brownie mix in grocery stores. I think it's Pillsbury brand, and I actually think it is pretty good. I usually add a thin glaze on top, and add some chocolate chips to the batter. If you underbake them just a bit and then chill them in the fridge (or even freezer) they are heavenly!!
luswim06 at 2:21PM on 07/22/08
@JerzeeTomato: What a coincidence! I just made a variation of that recipe a few days ago! :) Only mine used equal parts sugar/sweetener to peanut butter, and I only used a half teaspoon of vanilla. I know this somewhat defeats the "healthy" purpose, but...have you tried replacing half the sugar with brown sugar? HEAVENLY!
Pammeh at 3:39PM on 07/22/08
My husband is diabetic and we've made a lot of changes as suggested by the nutritionist. It's definitely true as per luswim06's comment that once you start cutting back on sugar you taste how much utterly unnecessary sugar (or corn syrup!) there is in an incredible array of foods. We eat a lot of fresh, locally grown produce and part of why I emphasize that is based on our nutritionist's advice to always have a mix of fat, protein and fiber derived from actual green vegetable sources in every meal. The fiber is what slows down digestion and keeps your blood sugar steady. (Fruit is less desireable because of the carb load.)
We literally eat veggies at every meal now, whether it's tomatoes and sauteed spinach with breakfast, tofu and carrot juice in the smoothie - of course all the obvious salads and so on - the key is that fiber from actual natural food sources (not a fiber pill, powder, etc) to keep the blood sugar steady. And since you're supposed to eat 5-9 servings a day, this is how that can actually happen - LOL.
Our doctor is very happy because he has stabilized his sugar at normal, which is apparently the hardest thing to do. We are no saints believe me, and our next step is the exercise and weight loss, but for now - steady sugar has been a big improvement and it's all those veggies that do it.
That's why I bought Jessica Seinfeld's book about sneaking veggies into everything - she puts spinach in blueberry bars for instance. That book is too kid-oriented for us, but I think it's another way to accomplish the goal and she does not use splenda to do it.
Check it out and see if this emphasis on vegetables at every meal doesn't give you the actual long term results you are looking for. And good luck! It can be done, with love and patience and a sense of fun and exploration which you obviously already have in abundance! yay.....
Tobey at 3:46PM on 07/22/08
I haven't cooked with it yet, but I actually just tried a Kool Aid made with Splenda (I don't even drink Kool Aid, it was just a freebie sample at a baseball game) and it was delicious! It tasted less sugary than I remember the normal stuff tasting like, and I actually wanted more!
Hillary
Chew on That
Chew on That at 4:52PM on 07/22/08
i haven't used it in awhile, but i remember the Splenda package recommending cutting the amount of sugar by 1/2 when using it as a substitute for white sugar in baking. I did and still found most baked goods to be too sweet. Most artificial sweeteners are actually much sweeter than cane sugar.
tinat at 11:40AM on 07/23/08
In regards to baking, anything that rises is going to have trouble with Splenda for Baking because Splenda does not contain the same chemical properties that allow things like cakes to get nice and fluffy. If I'm making a cake, and I want to decrease the sugar, I usually halve the sugar component and add a little bit of stevia. Cake made with Splenda subbed in for sugar usually has an odd aftertaste. You'll always need some amount of sugar in the recipe in order to get the rise and crumb that people associate with cake.
For whole wheat flour, if I'm making a cake, I use half white flour and half whole wheat flour, again because of problems rising. Whole wheat flour is heavier than white flour and won't rise as well. I find than a 50%/50% split is a reasonable compromise for a cake.
kathrynyu at 1:03PM on 07/23/08
I have used Splenda in cheesecakes without any difficulty; just remember that the graham cracker crumbs sometimes used for crust also have sugar. (I've begun making mine crustless,or using multigrain bread crumbs instead of graham cracker cumbs. Works fine, and gives a little more texture.
lemons at 6:27PM on 08/09/08