Nutritious & DeliCious
When people ask us if we have any sweets that are sugar-free, our response is, "Everything that we make is sugar-free!" Free of processed sugars, that is. So what do we use? One of the major sweeteners we use in our baked items is organic coconut nectar (or syrup). We also sometimes use organic maple syrup, organic date syrup, organic date sugar (or flour), organic coconut sugar, and occasionally sorghum molasses. The sweeteners we use have to meet the following criteria: they must have significant health benefits, be as unrefined as possible (the least processing the better), and be 100% natural (no lab-made stuff here!). The sweetener that comes out on top for all three? Raw unfiltered honey! We use this in many of our drinks that we serve in-house, but not so much for baking. Why? Well, if you're baking with raw honey it stands to reason that the honey is no longer raw and may lose some of its nutritonal value. But mainly, we avoid it simply because there's a whole debate on whether honey is okay to consume on a vegan diet or not. By opting for coconut nectar instead (which is still a pretty great sweetener option), our bakery items can be enjoyed by a greater percentage of our guests.
The late great honey debate
Speaking of honey debates, there is a ton of misinformation being spread about honey and how it's basically the same as sugar. This is simply not true. Of course, eating too much sweets is not very healthy even if honey is used in place of sugar. But saying honey is the same as sugar is like saying french fries are the same as broccoli because both are vegetables. Simply put, processed sugar is extremely bad for your health (in fact, it is referred to by some as the "white death"). Raw honey, on the other hand, is very beneficial to your health and has none of the bad characteristics of white sugar; in fact, its properties are quite the opposite. While sugar feeds cancer cells; honey has been shown to fight against cancer in several different ways. Sugar has been linked to diabetes, weight gain, heart disease, and a host of other health-related problems, while raw honey has been shown to help in blood sugar regulation, weight loss, and the strengthening of your immune system. Sugar is well known as one of the leading causes of tooth decay; raw honey actually helps in preventing tooth decay! (We could go on, but you get the picture.)
Although raw honey loses much of its nutritional value when heated to high temperatures (i.e. baking), we believe that it is still much healthier than processed sugars. Not enough studies have been done on this particular subject yet, but the ONLY baked goods our family consumed were sweetened purely with honey, so we can speak from first-hand experience.
Although raw honey loses much of its nutritional value when heated to high temperatures (i.e. baking), we believe that it is still much healthier than processed sugars. Not enough studies have been done on this particular subject yet, but the ONLY baked goods our family consumed were sweetened purely with honey, so we can speak from first-hand experience.