Hi: I hope there is someone out there that will help me if they can with the problem of artifical sweetners. I am talking about Spenda, sweet and low, Stevia, sugar twin, equal. I can't stand the taste when I have used them in baking and making ice cream. I know there must be others out there that have the same problem? Has anyone tried Xylitol or sweet n safe?

I don't want to give up having a sweet treat that I can fix myself especially ice cream. I just bought an ice cream maker!

Another question is: How come I can drink diet rite and not be bothered by the spenda taste but when I use it to cook with it turns out tasting bad? Help!

Sherrill

Diet Rite uses liquid splenda, If you are using the powdered form it may be the bulking agent they use to make it more like real sugar that you are having the problem with.

You might try liquid stevia or stevia with fiber. If used right it tastes great. Get too much though and it has a very bitter taste. Some sweetners also break down when heated and that could be part of the problem. I think it's also an aquired taste. After going so long without anything sweet at all, then having something with splenda, it will probably taste great

Dr. Atkins (and, I think, Karen on our own site) have suggested that using a combination of sweeteners can result in a better taste than just one artificial sweetener.

Splenda's bulking agent makes it act just like sugar in baking. But using a combination of Splenda and either saccharine or cyclamate will give an interesting variation on the taste.

I now prefer Liquid Sugar Twin - cyclamate in Canada - as a sweetener for tea and coffee. Splenda has a 'hollow' taste for me. But it;s better as a baking ingredient.

Check our Recipe section for good ideas about sweetening treats.

Kathy is right ... the maltodextrin filler used for nearly all powdered sweeteners is made from highly refined cornstarch, and can lend an off-taste. BTW, it's the maltodextrin that has all the carbs ... the sweeteners in their pure form are zero calories and zero carbs.

Another problem is that artificial sweeteners tend to cross the line from sweet to bitter when you use too much. My experience is that results are rarely satisfactory when you substitute exact measure for measure for sugar in a recipe. If the recipe called for 1 cup of sugar, you'd be wise to only use ½ cup equivalent of sweetener and then taste to see if you need to add more. Chances are, you won't need to.

Another trick is to mix different types of sweeteners, for instance .. Splenda and saccharine or cyclamate (not available in US). The sweeteners act synergistically, which means they enhance each others' sweetening potential. YOu end up needing less overall. For example, a recipe calls for 10 packets of splenda. YOu could use 4 packets of splenda, and 4 packets of sugar twin. This would give an improved sweet taste for only 8 packets total.


hth,

Doreen

Thanks all for the replys. I guess no one is using xylitol? I will keep experimenting. My friends husband liked the ice cream I made with sweet and low. She and I gagged on it. I think it's a matter of taste buds, too.

Has anyone used sweet and safe made in Washington State?

Thanks again,
Sherrill