stevia

[snowbirdie]

Hi folks,
      I recently purchased a bag of stevia in the raw. I really dont care for it. It leaves a bitter after taste in the mouth. It really is not a satisfying sweetner for cooking. Maybe I was expecting something more than what it is. It is a very light sweetner. I bake a lot for my grandkids and the one can't have sugar so I always bake hers with artificial sweetner. It was ok but not as good as splenda. Oh well. Just one opinion. I would like to know what you all think.
                                                  Judie

[witheraway1]

I agree with you too. I reall never buy it anymore. I like splenda personally. So that makes two of us...Good to hear from you. Wither

[wendysgoodnews]

I bought Truvia and felt the same about it.  It just has a funny taste to it and makes the fruit I put it on change its flavor.  I am glad to get your opinion of Stevia in the raw because I had planned on trying it.

[CodingQueen]

I've tried a few and SweetLeaf is the one that I like.

CQ

[LINDA RN]

I tried the sweetleaf and it is bitter to me also. Guess you have to keep using it until you don't taste the after-taste anymore. I will try it again, but not sure I will ever really like it.

[Bethann]

I have found it is good for some things and not good for others because it can be bitter. I haven't baked with it though except for the LDL pies and that turned out great! Usually stevia is great with fruit but I found it doesn't work for things like Rhubarb, Cranberries and coffee. For coffee I bought a liquid Stevia that has Vanilla in it (made by Now) and that is wonderful! At first I found that I used too much in my tea and such and that can give a bitter taste as well. At times I have found that I could only use a third of the little packets depending on the brand.
I use it all the time especially for when I drink my Apple Cider Vinegar with water and I also add it to my tea. I sprinkle it on fruit that is not sweet. Stevia also makes a great Lemonade (and I have heard it makes a great Ginger-ale but I haven't tried that yet). It could be I have adapted some to it...
It would be interesting to do more baking with it. I'd like to try that some day! If it tastes bitter I would try again and cut down the amount of Stevia used possibly? 

[LINDA RN]

I am drinking my second cup of coffee with cinnamon flavored liquid stevia. Still bitter and only used 4 drops in a mug of coffee. Not very sweet so I don't think I used too much. In the morning I plan to make a 1/2 gal iced tea and add the lemon-flavored stevia. I am sure it tastes better in tea.

[CodingQueen]

I never cared too much for sugar so I don't use Stevia in my coffee or tea. I only cook with it when a recipe calls for sugar or make Lemonade/Limeade so that may be why I haven't noticed the bitterness in the Sweetleaf.

CQ

[debbiewetzel]

I too like Splenda and am not such a fan of Stevia.

[wendysgoodnews]

I am always trying to find something healthier then splenda but I haven't found anything yet that tastes as close to sugar with no funny tastes.

[wendysgoodnews]

Yes I bought truvia but when I made my berry pie with it the taste was off.  I also tried it in making my cole slaw and it just doesn't taste the same as sugar would.  It seems to change the whole taste.  I have alot of it so will try it in other things.

[Bethann]

I read on my Braggs Apple Cider Vinegar bottle that it could be sprayed on popcorn. Seemed strange to me of course I had to try it!  ;)  *woot*
....and then I added some stevia powder as well as I often add stevia to my popcorn.
My husband liked it with ACV (and he can be fussy)  :thumbsup:  and I liked it as well. But I'm thinking not every one would?

Take Care!
Beth(Ann)  :happy:

[crickadoodle]

Just to say that I thought I hated Stevia and found it bitter and all.  Then I purchased the KAL brand of pure stevia.  I use it in my iced tea and hot tea mainly, because that is all I would really need sweetened.  It is great!  I used to use Splenda, but really don't find a big difference with the KAL stevia.  Even all stevias are not pure stevia.  This was the only brand I've found to be pure stevia.  I guess there are others, but I read labels and all the others I've seen have other things mixed in.  Stevia is supposed to be very healthy for you, so I feel good about the switch I made to using it, and it was painless.

[Bethann]

I've heard too that if it is not pure it can be bitter.
I love my Stevia! 

[CodingQueen]

Has anyone tried Steviva Blend? My sister is using it and says it's very close to the taste of sugar unlike other Stevia products she's tried in the past. The only problem is that the sweetness is 2:1, therefore, you only need half the amount of blend to replace the sugar and that can affect the bulk of the recipe if baking a cake, pie, etc.

CQ

[crickadoodle]

Pure Stevia is probably a bigger difference than that, CQ.  The little bitty spoon in my KAL stevia is quite small.  I can't even use a whole one in my cup of tea.  I would think it is about 1/6 of a teaspoon, if I had to guess.  I would normally use a teaspoon of Splenda in my tea.  When I bought my first bottle of it at a local health food store it was $29.00!  I almost didn't buy it, but it lasts forever.  I still have it in my purse for when we go out to eat and I need to sweeten iced tea.  I got it for $17.00 at Vitacost.com when I bought my second bottle.  It is exactly the same as my $29 bottle.  You use so little it really does last a long time and is well worth the price.

[CodingQueen]

crickadoodle,

I'm sure it is but she was wanting to get away from Splenda. She bakes alot but doesn't want to use real sugar in her recipes. The Steviva blend has made it much easier for her to accomplish her goal without having to deal with the bulk issue the way you would if using regular Stevia. I was just wanting to know if anyone else has used it.

CQ