One thing I love to do in my kitchen is try things out and have a bit of an experiment. Days where I really research a recipe and test different versions until I find one I love are my favourites.
I was recently sent a couple of packets of Natvia to try and decided it was the perfect opportunity for a bit of kitchen experimentation.
In case you’ve not heard of it before, Natvia is a sugar substitute made from stevia – a natural sweetener with zero, yes that’s right, zero calories!
One of the main selling points of Natvia is that it is “perfect for cooking and baking” so I thought I’d have a bit of fun and test this claim out. I decided that rather than trying to design a new recipe from scratch which I thought perfectly suited the product, I’d simply substitute it into a couple of my tried-and-tested sugar-filled recipes and compare the results.
Wouldn’t it be great if you could switch your sugar for a sugar-free, zero calorie alternative and still have delicious cakes and cookies?
The Test
I chose two tried and tested recipes, fairy cakes – they’re so plain and simple that the impact of the switch shouldn’t be masked by other ingredients, and these chocolate chip and peanut butter cookies – because I wanted to test cookies and it’s the only cookie recipe on the blog (I really should add another one shouldn’t I)!
The Testers
I was concerned that knowing which was which would cloud my judgement so I employed the help of some friends and my eldest boy (4 at the time) and my youngest (2) for a blind taste test.
The Results
In terms of the baking, the Natvia was just as easy to use as sugar.
The Natvia fairy cakes didn’t rise quite as well as their sugar filled siblings. The texture looked a little dense, but they actually tasted lighter than they looked. The icing had the same look and texture of regular butter icing.
You can see the huge different in the cookies. These were honestly made with exactly the same recipes (sugar/Natvia switch aside) and I shaped them in exactly the same way before they were put into the oven. You can see that the sugar version has spread out and they were much more chewy. The Natvia version barely changed shape in the oven and had a more crumbly texture.
But what about the taste?
Let face it, looking at the pictures they both look pretty yummy so it’s really all about the taste…
We all know what cookies and cakes made with sugar taste like. In comparison the Natvia versions were, well… erm… different. The taste was nice, just as sweet as sugar. However, they felt slightly cold in the mouth and seemed to tingle a little. They were a little reminiscent of popping candy.
Some taste tasters really liked the crumbly texture of the Natvia cookies so I’ll have to experiment some more to see if I can come up with a flavour combination that works well with it.
You can always trust a four year old for honesty when it comes to food, and whilst he picked out both the sugar ones as his favourites, he happily polished off the Natvia versions too (and believe me, if he doesn’t like something it will not get eaten).
In case you’re wondering what my youngest thought of it all, he has been sacked as a taste tester as he happily ate them all and didn’t make any helpful comments.
NOTE – Stevia is a natural plant extract that is then bulked out with other products to make it look more like regular sugar and ensure that 1 tsp has the same level of sweetness (for some brands this is ½ tsp). Each brand uses different products to bulk out the stevia and as a result I’d expect that using a different brand may lead to different results.
Will I be switching to baking with Natvia?
It’s a tricky question to answer. In all honesty I preferred the sugar versions and I think the family did too. However, switching from sugar to Natvia (or any other kind of stevia-based alternative) makes a huge difference to the overall amount of sugar in both bakes (and therefore also the calories).
The fairy cakes made with Natvia had 312 calories and 0.7g sugar compared to 514 calories and 51.0g sugar in the original version. That’s a 39% reduction in calories and 99% reduction in sugar – a huge difference!
The Natvia cookies had 248 calories and 3.7g of sugar compared to 338 calories and 26.1g of sugar in the original – a 26% and 86% reduction respectively.
If you’re worried about the amount of sugar in your diet but need a sweet treat then I’d say it’s worth considering.
Have you ever tried substituting sugar for stevia? What did you make and how did it go?
helena says
hello i just wanted to thank you for doing this because im a gcse student and this is my gcse question- how to reduce sugar by making cakes without making a diffrnece so thankyouuuuuuuuuuuuu x
rita Attreed says
Do you use the same weight of Truvia as Sugar? that will be loads, if not what is the ratio please
Eb Gargano says
I found this post fascinating. What a great idea to do a taste test like this. I’ve always wondered about the various sugar substitutes but never quite had the courage to try them out. Might give it a go after reading this. The difference in calories and sugar content is quite dramatic!
Charlotte Oates says
It makes a huge difference to the calories, shame I haven’t found a calorie free alternative to butter and flour!
Kirsty Hijacked By Twins says
They both look lovely! I have also tried Natvia but for cakes I did use their baking sugar which I found to be just as good, but to buy is it very expensive. I was sent it to review and honestly do not think that I would ever spend that much for cakes but it was just as good. I did chuckle at you having to sack a taster. Mine would have been the same! Thank you for sharing with #cookblogshare x
Charlotte Oates says
I’m pretty sure I’ll reappoint him next time – I’m very forgiving 🙂
Sarah James @ Tales From The Kitchen Shed says
Thanks for such an informative post Charlotte. I have wondered about using Stevia, I was surprised at how well your Stevia bakes turned out but I think I’ll keep to eating sweet treats in moderation .
Charlotte Oates says
Thanks Sarah. When I’ve tried other baking switches in the past I’ve found that the recipes needed a lot of adjustment to work. I was surprised how easily it switched too.
Sarah says
This is really interesting. I am trying not to have sugar in my diet, but have yet to try and cook with any of the alternatives. Great, honest post x #TastyTuesdays
Charlotte Oates says
I’m trying to cut sugar too… but failing miserably 🙂 oops
Let me know if you ever decide to try baking with stevia and what you think of it.
All about a Mummy says
This is really interesting – the stevia cookies actually appeal to me more from an aesthetic point of view. I’ve tried various different sugar substitutes in the past with limited success. I’m kinda of the opinion that if you are going to bake something sweet just embrace the sugar! It’s all about moderation. #sundaysweets
Charlotte Oates says
After trying the stevia out I think I agree with you, I preferred the flavour of sugar so I’d rather have less treats with real sugar than switch to stevia just so I can have more, especially as the remaining ingredients in the cakes and cookies aren’t exactly full of nutritional value either. However, I’ve not ruled out having another experiment in future to see what I can come up with.
rita Attreed says
What ratio of stevia to sugar do you use please, I’d like to try baking with stevia but weight wise it’s much lighter
Thanks
Charlotte Oates says
Hi Rita,
It depends on which brand you use. I used Natvia which is manufactured to be about the same as sugar, but I know that some other brands use different ratios. It usually says on the side of the packet what the right ratio is. I know that 1 tsp of Truvia is equivalent to 2 2/3 tsp sugar so you would need to use 3/8 of the amount of sugar listed in the recipe.
I hope that helps.
Angela / Only Crumbs Remain says
Such an interesting post Charlotte. I bought a Stevia product a week or two back with the aim of making some ‘healtier’ bakes. I know exactly what you mean about the cold and tingling sensation though; I tend to suck on one or two polo mints through the day but the sugar free versions- and they do exactly they same. It takes a little getting used to.
Angela x
Charlotte Oates says
The sensation was quite a surprise first time, not at all what I was expecting. I suspect it was more due to the erythritol used to bulk natvia than the stevia itself so other brands may have a different taste (they use it because it’s derived from natural sources and helps offset the bitter taste of stevia).
I’m really interested to see how your baking goes, what are you thinking of making?
Angela / Only Crumbs Remain says
The specific bake I’ve not actually decided upon yet, but I was thinking of keeping it simple by using a tried and tested bake that I know works with the usual caster sugar; very much in the same vein as you’ve done here. As you’ve mentioned yourself, there’s not much point in tackling a new bake because you have nothing to compare it too.
Angela x
Fionnuala says
This is really interesting Charlotte. I like to stick with what I know and not use substitutes, so I don’t see myself changing over.
51g of sugar seems a huge amount for a fairycake. I assume that is including the icing, is it? I usually use lemon glaze or chocolate on mine, so while still sugary they are not quite as high in sugar.
Charlotte Oates says
You’re right, the actually fairy cake has 15.1g sugar the rest is in the icing. It’s fashionable these days to pipe a lot of icing on a cake which really, really adds to the calories (I wanted the calories quoted to represent the amount on the cakes in the pictures). Your way of making them would be a lot lower.
Fionnuala says
Yours do look a lot prettier though with all the piped buttercream and you are absolutely right to give the calorie count of what is depicted.
If I am making cupcakes I make a creamcheese topping and that takes a lot of icing sugar too. and I really load it on. It looks great but can be a bit much. I find I need to be in the mood for it Needless to say, the children love it! 🙂
Mummy Tries says
Love how thorough you are Charlotte! It’s interesting how much sugar and calories are saved with stevia, and there’s no denying that the cakes and cookies still look super yum. I’m just not convinced though, I honestly think that anything that’s been as processed as this can’t be good for us. I only use raw organic honey, or organic dried fruit to sweeten baked goods these days 🙂
PS. Poor Josh getting sacked, bet he’s devastated!
Charlotte Oates says
I come from a background of risk analysis and hypothesis testing, I love a good experiment 🙂
I don’t disagree with you about the level of processing and I don’t think this has any place in your diet. However, in a straight swap between a cake full of refined sugar and a cake with stevia (as processed as it is) I think answering the “which is healthier” question is a lot tougher and would generate different opinions from different people. Certainly I can see the benefits for someone trying to lose weight but struggling to give up sweet treats, as the health risks of being overweight are clearly documented.
I started writing about all these pros and cons but soon realised that I’m no expert so decided to steer clear and stick to the facts about taste and calories and let people make up their own minds.
I’ll probably reappoint Josh next time as I’m a very forgiving person and he’s very cute.