Enter erythritol. When I heard of this new, sugar option for the first time, I was skeptical. In my experience, the bitter aftertaste, indigestion, and undesirable taste and texture of the baked products were the artificial sweeteners and sugar alcohols.
What does erythritol mean?
It is a natural sweetener that is becoming more and more popular as more individuals are seeking sugar options. It belongs to the family of polyols called sugar alcohols, rich in fruit and vegetables such as grapes, watermelon, champagne and fermented foods such as soy.
Erythritol is low in calories and low in carbohydrates. It is typically made from a yeast-like fungus like trichosporonoids megachiliensis or moniliella pollinis by fermenting glucose from wheat or maize starch. The outcome is a fine, granulated powder that imitates sugar texture and taste.
Because of its distinctive molecular composure, erythritol has a cooling impact on the tongue when it is dissolved. Although some do not want this impact, it enables to mask the bitter aftertaste frequently associated with sweeteners.
Erythritol benefits
“Erethritol is almost calorie-free, but still 60-70% sweet as table sugar,” says Lisa Richards, licensed nutritionist and the Candida Diet developer. “Without increasing your blood glucose you can use it in your recipes.” Richards suggests that it is “almost calorie-free,” because erythritol sweeteners do not have calorie zero and neither other common sugar alcohols. However, erythritol clocks at only 24 calories per gram compared to 4 grams of sugar, 2.4 grams of xylitol and 2.7 grams of sorbitol make it one of the most low-calorie sweeteners choices.
“Since erythritol is sugar alcohol, it does not influence your body as normal sugar does,” claims Richards. “Your blood sugar will not spike or lead to tooth decay. It will not help you gain weight, as it is nearly calorie-free and can meet your sugar cravings. “Indeed, the reason erythritol does not influence your body is mainly because your body is not able to disassemble it. It moves through, prevents metabolism and does not affect blood glucose concentrations. “It’s also a nice option for diabetics,” suggests Richards.
An unexpected advantage of erythritol?
“It is a proven antioxidant, and free radicals which can cause cellular harm have been shown to be eliminated,” she claims.
A study by an animal defined erythritol as a free radical scavenger because of its capacity to practice its antioxidants before leaving the body.
Sugar vs. erythritol
So we discovered that erythritol is a calorie-free low-glycemic sweetener, an antioxidant with almost no bitter aftertaste, but can it functionally substitute sugar?
“Even if the granularity of erythritol is similar to table sugar, it does not disintegrate as well or it has the same creaming abilities when combining sugar with fat, such as butter or cocoa oil,” says Genevieve
Greco.
To remedy this, Greco indicates that erythritol be used as a confectioner. “I think that provides the finest texture in completed cakes and cookies and enables its full, sweetening powers to take impact.” Greco notes that erythritol does not have sucrose, a sugar substance that enables that method to happen, when it comes to baking or caramelizing. “That implies that you may miss the golden brown hue that is prevalent in cakes and muffins.” “Some brands such as Swerve are able to supplement the long-chained oligosaccharides which assist to brown, but which are not readily metabolized in the body.
Baking blends are still low in glycemia and low in calories. “Remember, when we discovered that erythritol has a cooling impact beforehand? Greco warns that the longer the baked good sits, the better. “I recommend you eat erythritol-containing products for an ideal taste the day they are produced.”
How to use erythritol?
If you’re hunting for erythritol, it’s probably because you’re glycemic that doesn’t spoil your diet. “It’s a healthy swap for table sugar and a perfect substitute for low-carbon, paleo, or keto diets,” Greco claims.
But if you’re an enthusiastic baker (or you’ve never seen The Grand Baking Show), you know that sugar plays an significant part in baked goods ‘ flavour, uplift and texture. So how can we efficiently swap it out? Fortunately, Greco has a few tips.
“Since it is about 70% sweet as sugar, it’s recommended to use it in a proportion of 1:1.25. For example, if a recipe calls for 1 cup of sugar it will take 1.25 cups of erythritol. “Greco points out that baking with erythritol may produce results which differ from cane sugar products because erythritol is not hygroscopic and doesn’t maintain much humidity.
It also turns out that management of erythritol texture can be somewhat sophisticated. The final baked foods can be leaned to the crispier side rather then moist and chewy. Greco has, however, a solution to do so: “The addition of ingredients, such as applesauce, pumpkin purée or mashed bananas, can contribute to the maintenance of adequate moisture and chewing in the completed item.” “I occasionally exchange my alternate sweetener stevia in warm drinks like coffee and tea for erythritol because the heat helps to dissolve the granules instead of leave my bottom pool.”
Almond Butter Oatmeal Erythritol Cookies
I personally prefer erythritol when you make nut butter cookies! Here’s a very simple recipe to try:
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 cup creamy almond butter
- 1 cup quick oats
- 1/2 cup erythritol granulated sweetener
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 cup small chocolate chips
INSTRUCTION:
Oven preheat up to 350 ° F. Mix together all ingredients except cinnamon into a bowl. Roll in2-inch balls and set on a lined bakery sheet of parchment. Sprinkle with a fork and cinnamon. Bake in an oven until golden brown for 10 minutes.
Is erythritol secure? Effects and considerations on the side
Although the overall consensus on erythritol is that it is secure, digestibility is generally the main disadvantage to sugar alcohols.
“Some alcohols of sugar, such as xylitol and maltitol, can cause gastrointestinal disorders and a mild laxative impact,” he suggests. However,’ this is less of a problem with erythritol because it is absorbed by your body. The bloodstream absorbes 90% of erythritol before it enters the big intestine, thus not causing the same digestive problems as other sugar alcohols can. “One research likened another famous sugar alcohol, xylitol, and erythritol to test each other’s gastrointestinal tolerance. Participants had important symptoms of nausea and GI distress with 35 grams of xylitol consumed. It only took 50 grams of erythritol to notice mild symptoms of nausea that is more than the average person would probably eat.
While more study on sugar alcohols in particular is required, erythritol seems a useful alternative for sugar. As with most foodstuffs, moderation is always a nice strategy.
One final recommendation from Richards: “Be conscious that erythritol is made from fermented maize when you buy it. I would suggest finding an erythritol brand that, if possible, utilizes non-GMO maize.