We love to try new foods. Some are great. Some don’t measure up and some become staples in our kitchen. See what you think.
Swerve is a zero calorie, sugar replacement. It can substitute for sugar on a cup-for-cup basis. It is available as Granular, Confectioners and Brown Swerve in 12-ounce recloseable bags. All varieties are kosher certified (OU) and NonGMOcertified. Ingredients in Swerve are also considered pet safe – some sugar substitutes are toxic to pets. Our tasters thought Swerve had no aftertaste and could be used spoon for spoon as a substitute for sugar.
Swerve is made of erythritol and oligosaccharides with citrus-based natural flavors. Erythritol is a sugar alcohol naturally made by fermenting glucose sourced from European grown nonGMO corn. Most sugar alcohols, used in low calorie foods, yield some calories, but erythritol yields almost none. It has just 0.2 calories per gram or just 44 calories in a cup, as compared to 773 calories in a cup of regular white sugar. Erythritol can be considered a zero-calorie sweetener, according to FDA labeling regulations, because it has less than 5 calories in a 1 teaspoon serving. In actuality it has less than 1 calorie per teaspoon. Erythritol does not affect blood sugar levels so it is safe to use for people with diabetes.
Oligosaccharides are sweet, prebiotic,fibrous carbohydrates that cannot be digested in the human digestive tract. The oligosaccharides pass down the tract to the large intestine where they serve as food for our healthy microbes which in turn protects us against invading microorganisms. The oligosaccharides in Swerve are sourced from root vegetables. The brand recommends storing Swerve in the refrigerator or freezer as it may clump in heat and humidity. This brand, based in New Orleans, is worth trying because of its versatility as a sugar replacement in cooking.
