Xylitol as a Sugar Replacement

[shel]

Hi Gang,

I'd like to try using Xylitol instead of sugar in a lemon curd recipe, and maybe in some other recipes as well. Would it be a direct 1:1 relationship with sugar, and how well does Xylitol work in various types of recipes?

Shel

[Suzanne]

Doesn't Xylitol have a laxative effect? If so, I would be very careful using it by itself.

[shel]

Originally Posted by Suzanne

Doesn't Xylitol have a laxative effect? If so, I would be very careful using it by itself.

I'm not sure if it does. I've used it in coffee, tea, in hot cereal, on cold cereal, small amounts in home made spaghetti sauce, with no ill effects. However, I've not used it as a major ingredient, such as in the lemon curd recipe I posted earlier this morning. A friend uses it quite a bit, although I've nevr talked with her about her specific uses, and she's never mentioned a problem.

There have been a couple of sugar-free chocolate bars (non-Xylitol) that have given me me a trip to the john, but nothing serious, and only when I've eaten too much of the chocolate.

Shel

[Joyfull]

You might want to read the health concerns on here. Especially if you have a dog in the house..

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xylitol

And, heres an older thread about xylitol from the archives you might wanna check out too..

Xylitol...

You know, I just looked over a couple more sites on xylitol.. one of them says to use it 1 to 1 in recipes. The other says use 1/2 cup xylitol for 1 cup sugar as a sub.. Pretty confusing..

Shel, if it was me, I'd email the company that makes it for a brochure or something.. That way you'll know for sure the proper amount to use..

[the_seraphim]

if you do go ahead and use the xylitol.. make sure you tell your eaters, myself as xylitol, like sorbitol is a polyalcohol im allergic to it and get diarreah and stomach cramps for days after eating less than a teaspoon full so i can only imagine the discomfort from a helping of your lemon curd

[shel]

Originally Posted by the_seraphim

if you do go ahead and use the xylitol.. make sure you tell your eaters, myself as xylitol, like sorbitol is a polyalcohol im allergic to it and get diarreah and stomach cramps for days after eating less than a teaspoon full so i can only imagine the discomfort from a helping of your lemon curd

That's a god point. I usually know my guests well enough to know their food preferences and allergies, but since this is a new addition your comments are worth heeding.

Shel

[wtdedula]

Hello All;
I started using Xylitol in cakes about 4 months ago and really like it because I can't taste any difference between a cake made with Xylitol and one made with real sugar. I've made cakes for my family and friends and have gotton no complaints yet. I do inform them that the cake was made with Xylitol and I do inform them of the potential of a laxitive effect. I also have personally not had any bad experiences with it. So far, I've made a German Chocolate Cake, a carrot cake, and a boston cream pie. I've gotton all of these recipes from the book "Sweeten Your Life the Xylitol Way" by Karen Edwards. The great thing I like about this book is that it was written by a nutritionist so each recipe isn't only sugar-free but each recipe is healthy too as only 100% whole wheat flour is used and even health foods such as prunes, and Lecithin.

I always have problems when I eat candy bars sweetened with Malitol as most other people do. However, as I said - no complaints with Xylitol yet. In the book above Karen Edwards states that Xylitol could cause a laxitive effect if you eat too much at one time but she says that this problem diminishes as your body gets used to it.

Replacing Xylitol is easy as it's a 1 to 1 replacement with sugar.

As an alternative to Xylitol, you may alwo want to try Erythritol. I ordered a bunch but hadn't tried using it yet. It apparently has even less of a laxitive effect than Xylitol (On the jar, it ways "Excellent Digestive Tolearance). Unlike Xylitol, Erythritol may be just a bit more difficult to imcorporate in recipes because it is 70% as sweet as sugar so you may need to use slightly more to get the sweetness you want.

I would love to learn how to make chocolate candy bars using Xylitol as those ones made with Mailtol really cause me a problem.

I have also experimented with Stevia (Another natural sweetner). I have used it in freshly squeezed Lemonaid with good results but not in cakes yet.

I wish we'd see more natural sweetners used in traditionally sugar-sweetned items in the grocery store. I sure wish candy manufacturers would stop using **** Mailtol and start use Xylitol or Erythritol instead.

Tim

[MikeLM]

Is this a cooking forum or an industrial chemistry forum?

I've never heard of any of these things.

Mike

[shel]

Originally Posted by wtdedula

I would love to learn how to make chocolate candy bars using Xylitol as those ones made with Mailtol really cause me a problem.

Maybe these will help:

http://www.lowcarbchocolates.com/mbars.html
http://ask.metafilter.com/57599/A-Di...-Easter-Basket

Shel

[cakerookie]

Originally Posted by MikeLM

Is this a cooking forum or an industrial chemistry forum?

I've never heard of any of these things.

Mike

Mike the sugar they are talking about is sometimes used gums and candy. Its a sugar alcohol much as isomalt is. Most often these do have a laxative effect if used in large amounts. Deal is they are rarely recognized by the body as a carbohdrayte and pass right through you. If I were to use it in recipe it would be in extremely small amounts.