Ideal No Calorie Sweetener Tastes Better Than Sugar. I Don't Think So

Recently my husband and I were at our local mall, and they had a health fair. We stopped at several of the tables, and received samples, fliers, and lots of great information.

One of the tables had Ideal No Calorie Sweetener. We wanted to discuss this with the person at the table, because Len is insulin dependent diabetic, and I am really concerned about artificial sweeteners. He drinks diet coke, sugar free lemonade, and eats sugar free cookies, candies, puddings, jello, syrup, and ice cream bars. I have really tried to get him to cut down on the sugar free products, because I feel that they are causing him harm.

When it comes to eating oatmeal twice a week, I have mine with raisins, and Len has raisins and a packet of sweet 'n low. I know that 'saccharin' is controversial, and do worry about it.

We came home with 20 individual packets of Ideal, 2 packets of Ideal Brown for cooking and baking, and 2 packets of Ideal Confectionery for sprinkling and frosting.

I put the sweet 'n low away, and just had the Ideal for Len. When it came to the first lot of oatmeal he looked at the packet, as it is white, with green writing. I asked him to try it, and he did. I think he is so used to the sweeter taste of sweet 'n low, that he said it wasn't sweet enough. I find sweet 'n low to be so sweet, that I can't personally take it.

A couple of weeks ago the first of the Plant City, Florida, strawberries were in the shops. These are local to us. I purchase a pound, and love them with just a tiny sprinkle of sugar. I opened a packet of Ideal no calorie sweetener, and tipped a tiny amount into the palm of my hand. I did like the fact that it is granules, and not a powder form.

So I took the first mouthful of strawberries, and found that the Ideal wasn't as sweet as sugar. I ate 6 strawberries, and I was left with a slight aftertaste. It isn't as strong as the other sugar substitutes, but I didn't particularly like it.

Not giving up on the product I picked up a packet of the Ideal Brown no calorie sweetener, and turned it over. It had a recipe for Microwave Baked Apples. I love to make my apples in the oven, so I used the sweetener as they directed, and made them my way. I did make 2 with regular sugar for me, and 2 with Ideal for Len. I asked him if I could try a little of his, but again I preferred the ones with real sugar. Len was happy to have baked apples, and was pleased that he could have them. I did notice that they wasn't as sweet as using regular sugar.

Then it was time to bake, and use the Ideal Confectionery low calorie sweetener. When I saw that it was not, a no calorie product, I turned it over to see the content. It states that it is:

"Xylitol, maltodextrin, corn starch, and less than 0.05% sucralose for added sweetness. Suitable for people with diabetes".

The recipe on the back uses butter, Ideal Confectionery, and I tablespoon of strawberry preserves. I changed this to Smart Balance spread, and no sugar added strawberry jam. This way I felt more comfortable for Len to have it. I actually enjoyed this frosting, and it was a treat for Len.

This is taken from the manufacturers website:

"Ideal® No Calorie Sweetener is different from other sugar substitutes. Finally, someone delivers on the promise sugar substitutes have made for decades! Unlike the leading no calorie sweetener, Ideal® really does look, TASTE, cook and bake like sugar. In fact, the taste of Ideal® is actually PREFERRED over sugar*! With its main ingredient xylitol, Ideal® maintains its sweetness in baking and cooking, AND delivers volume and texture other sweeteners do not. Ideal® is great for people with diabetes and anyone trying to maintain a healthy lifestyle. "

When my stash of free individual packets have run out I will purchase them for Len. I see that they are $2.99 for 50 packets. If you go to their website you can download a $1 off coupon, which makes them an acceptable price. In my samples I have 5, $1 off coupons, which don't expire until 12/31/12. How sweet.

As Ideal is more than 99% natural I know that this is a good product. My weight is always were I want it to be, but for anyone wanting to cut down on their sugar intake, I feel that they would quickly get to like the taste.

Check them out at www.idealsweet.com