Stay away from agave nectar, folks. There is a major misconception that agave is a healthy sweetener. It’s not. It’s actually quite unhealthy.
For one thing, it is not low-glycemic, so it’s really not any different from sugar. It’s just sugar masquerading as a health food. Take off that mask, agave! You won’t fool us!
Second, it’s highly unregulated. So we really don’t know what’s in it or how it’s made – some even contain corn syrup. Yuck. Healthy is knowing what goes into our bodies.
As an alternative, cook/bake with coconut nectar or coconut crystals which are a low-glycemic option. The nectar is like syrup and the crystals are closer in texture to sugar. And if you don’t like coconut, don’t worry – these sweeteners don’t actually taste like coconut. Not at all. The Coconut Secret brand is organic, raw, gluten-free, vegan, dairy-free, and GMO-free. Yay! Buy online or look for them at Whole Foods or your local health food store.
So make sure to read labels to see if the “health” food you’re about to buy has agave in it. And if a recipe calls for agave, sub in coconut nectar instead and you’re good to go. If I tweet or pin a recipe that contains agave, I’m only endorsing the rest of the recipe as healthy and assuming that you will sub out the agave. Glad we cleared that up!
Health Coach Jillian 