Unlike Splenda, stevia is an herb and is not available from just one company. So, I imagine it varies. I use only the liquid, non alcohol base mostly in drinks and in small recipes for myself - like the waffles or cream cheese danish. I just experimented with it.

I would only bake with it if I used a recipe designed for stevia - I'm not one to experiment with stuff like that (low patience!). I've eaten FABULOUS brownies sweetened with stevia, and I'm sure I'll make some once I'm off induction because I do prefer to use a more natural sweetener as much as possible.

The packets of stevia tend to lump up in cold drinks and need to be stored in an air tight (non humid) area or they will clump in packets.

So, that is the extent of my knowlege of stevia. Good luck in your cooking endeavors.

I love Stevia, after I cut sugar out of my diet I lost 1o lbs. I use Stevia in all my cooking, baking, smoothies, tea, I even put drops of stevia in my ice-cube trays and make lil popcicles out of it. My favorite is the new liquid stevia flavors from SweetLeaf, the English Toffee flavor is heavenly. I cut up an apple, sprinkle a little cinnamon, add the English Tofee and sautee everything in a pan, it tastes like hot apple pie with out the fatty crust!

Here are two of my favorite recipes is:

#1 BerryBerry Couscous Cake
This cake is so easy to make and can be adapted to any fruit of the season.

Couscous Cake
2 1/2 cups water
1 cup couscous
juice of 1/2 lemon
3 to 6 drops Liquid Stevia (any flavor)or a dusting of Stevia Extract
pinch of sea salt

Berry Topping
1 1/2 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen
1 cup water
4 to 5 tsp. agar agar flakes (kanten) used to thicken the berries
12-13 drops Liquid Stevia (any flavor, or mix flavors...I like Vanilla creme & Lemon drop) or dusting of Stevia Extract
pinch of sea salt

Cake
Bring water to a boil in a saucepan. Stir in couscous, lemon, and stevia. Turn heat to low and simmer for about 5 minutes. Rinse a 9" springform pan or shallow non-aluminum baking dish and spread the couscous firmly into it. Allow to set about 1 hour.

Berry Kanten Topping
Bring all ingredients to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for 8-10 minutes. Set aside at room temperature until the kanten sauce begins to set, about 20 minutes. Then spread it over the cake. Refrigerate until set, about 1 hour.
Serves 6 to 8

Cooking Tips Instead of water, you can cook the couscous with coconut milk, or vanilla soy or rice milk.

#2 Mango Creamsickle

This recipe reminds me of the creamsickles we used to eat when I was a child, no real ice-cream in this recipe....enjoy!

This is a two step process....you must first freeze the puree then continue.
Recipe:
2 cups fresh mango pulp
2 TB or more coconut milk
2-3 drops Liquid SweetLeaf Stevia: Valencia Orange

First: Puree mango pulp and coconut milk in a blender or food processor

Second: Place mixture in ice cube trays and freeze

Third: Remove frozen mango cubes and place in a blender or food processor. Add enough coconut milk to blend the mixture and pulse until creamy. If you like very sweet add more Liquid SweetLeaf Stevia to taste.

Cooking tips: If mangoes aren't available use packaged frozen mango slices. Defrost before using.