Over the last few years, I’ve done a lot of low carb baking and have tried almost every sweetener on the market, so today, I can freely say that my absolute favorite one is erythritol. If you are not familiar with it, erythritol is a sugar alcohol. It is available in crystalline and powdered forms and has 70% of the sweetness of regular sugar. What I like most about it, is that in baking it acts like real sugar but without the calories or the bad effect on the blood sugar levels. Plus, erythritol is tooth-friendly – it does not feed bacteria in the mouth and does not promote tooth decay like regular sugar does.

I have tried substituting sugar with erythritol powdered sugar in many recipes and the results were great. It worked perfectly well for my cake recipes as well as in the frosting, but I have to confess that my brownies were not 100% the same. I liked their texture and taste but they were different. I’ve also used erythritol powered sugar in smoothies, yogurts, ice cream and meringues, and it worked perfectly well in all of them, which is why I fell in love with it.

Erythritol also works great in coating, for example, when sprinkled on pork rinds or something alike. I’m looking forward to using it to make make hard candy in my favorite flavour, caramel. By reading low carb forums, I learned a trick on how to make delicious caramel hard candy – not heating it for too long because erythritol caramelizes faster than regular sugar or other sugar alcohols.

Moreover, baked sweets with erythritol powdered sugar are most delicious to eat them a day after you have made them. That is because, with erythritol, there is a ‘cool’ sweetness flavor effect that’s most noticeable a day or two after baking the treat. Generally, recipes made with these sweeteners don’t stay moist for very long.

If you are new to this product, start using it moderately as it may upset your stomach and cause gases or bloating if eaten in excess. But don’t worry, consuming it in moderate quantities won’t cause you any problems, this is just a precaution.

In conclusion, erythritol is a great sugar substitute to have in your kitchen! It’s perfect to use in different recipes and to create delicious healthy treats. You can find it available in most health food stores today, but in the case you have a problem finding it, you can always do it the smart way and order it online. Bon appetit!