We’re tackling MY TOP 10 Natural Substitutes for Refined Sugar! Every sweetener here is from my pantry guys. I want to help you in case you haven’t tried them, it can be a little pricey and you don’t want to buy a big old bag of something if you’re not really ready for it. Here I’ll give you the flavor notes and highlights of each so you can start experimenting.

One of the things that help with a non-inflammatory lifestyle is lowering your sugar intake, especially refined table sugar. I think we all kinda know that at this point, right? I’m not going to bore you with a big list of the reasons why. This is all about the flavors and taste here!

So let’s dive in and talk about 10 Natural Substitutes for Refined Sugar.

One of the things I’ve got to say first, if you’re trying to go from white table sugar all the way to stevia in one shot, it’s going to be a bad time.

Why? It’ll hit different notes on your palate. Those taste buds may go into shock if you’ve never tried stevia before. If you’re used to white table sugar on a daily basis, stepping slowly down and away from the super sweet stuff over a long period of time will help kick it for good.

You can go cold turkey too, for me though….that method just makes me pissed off and angry. Then I revolt and go right back to it.

When I first started reducing and going down the sweet scale a little bit, I started with coffee. When I would order coffee from a famous coffee shop, I would do four pumps. Well, tons of sugar, right? So the first thing I did is I went down to half. Tried it, got used to that flavor. Then I switched and swapped out between honey or the two pumps and now I’m over in the xylitol zone. I’ll throw a little something in my coffee on a special occasion or a weekend. Now I’m all about grass fed butter and high grade mct oil in my morning Joe 🙂 more on that another day.

Today we’re going to break down my TOP 10 Natural Substitutes for Refined Sugar to the higher sugar, the medium, to the no sugar categories. Here we go!

Click below for the Video on the DLF YouTube Channel!

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Sweeter Natural Sugars

Honey

Honey is very similar on the sweet scale to refined sugar or high fructose corn syrup. The cool part about honey though, if you can get it local you’ll be better off. The bees are in your area and they’re going to be eating off the trees and the pollen, all in your immediate surroundings. So the concept is your micro dosing the things trees and plants you’re triggered from. (Of course, check with your doctor before you do anything). If that isn’t available raw unprocessed honey is packed full of flavor.

Grade A Maple Syrup

Now Foods Maple Syrup is another awesome pick. Maple syrup and pancakes, okay?! Grade A organic if you can find it. Deep rich maple, and thinner than a honey though. Drizzle on top of a dessert, hotcakes or have you tried it in your coffee? Do it 😉 especially with a dash of cinnamon.

Coconut Sugar

I’ve always used Big Tree, I love the flavor. The blonde version tastes very similar to a brown sugar. Almost molasses-y. It’s a bit lighter though, not as sweet as the honey or maple but the flavor profile is the there. Works great for a fruit spread like Apple Butter.

“Big Tree Farm’s coconut sugar is nature’s perfect sweetener. Unlike regular sugar, our coconut sugar is low on the glycemic index, contains more nutrients and has 16 vital amino acids making it a healthy indulgence you can feel good about. Use our coconut sugar the same way you would use regular sugar and it’s a perfect one to one ratio”

Date Sugar

Now Foods Date sugar is a new one for me in my pantry. I use regular ol’ dates quite a bit, like in my Paleo Pumpkin Date Muffins or a reduction sauce in the Paleo Thai Chicken Wings. I’m excited about the this find because literally all it is, is dates. Raw and unprocessed pulverized to a powder dates. It’s got that dark moody flavor to but it’s not as a sweet as the honey or coconut sugars, it’s another step down on the sweet spectrum.

Low Natural Sugars

This is where a lot of folks that are in the paleo, keto, low sugar space hang out when it comes to sweet alternatives. They are swapped out for sugar in recipes all the time. People are curious in this category too so if you haven’t tried them yet I’ll do my best here to help. I’ll be developing more recipes with these sugars because I have really fallen in love here so stay tuned!!

 

Xylitol

Xyla, my bag’s almost out! Xylitol is a sugar alcohol used as a cane sugar substitute. It’s white like sugar and it’s granular. It takes a little while for the granules to break down. You’ll have to put it into something hot and get it to melt for you. It’s sweet but it’s just a kiss of sugar. It’s not super heavy and to me this tastes very much like the refined sugary sister, not as intense. Use in a 1:1 ratio to sugar.

“Sweeter, healthier, smarter. 40% fewer calories than sugar, 75% fewer carbs than sugar. Sweetening for over 100 years. Xyla is a natural sweetener derived from a 100% North American hardwood with many benefits and it’s a popular sweetener widely used in Europe, Scandinavia and many other countries for its similarity to sugar in taste and texture. It’s low glycemic. It is metabolized independently of insulin and is safe for diabetics or anyone seeking a healthier lifestyle. Leaves no aftertaste, dissolves quickly, one part xylitol, one part sugar.”

Monkfruit Blend

Lakanto Golden is another favorite! Erythritol is another sugar alcohol used as a cane sugar substitute. Very similar to golden brown sugar, it has a lovely flavor. According to my taste buds (everyone is different!) the ratio of monk fruit to erythritol here in their blend has zero aftertaste. It’s nice and smooth, super light yet sugary sweet.

“Born from a proprietary mixture of high purity monk fruit extract and non-GMO erythritol, Lakanto is delicious, zero calorie, zero glycemic sweetener with a sumptuous rich taste of sugar. Lakanto’s sweetness and taste matches regular sugar, use it directly to replace it in your favorite dish.”  

 

Erythritol

Swerve is very, very popular in the keto world. It’s super finely ground Erythritol with a nice light sweet. There is a little tiny bit of bitter on the back, very subtle but it is there. How it is with my pallet, might be different than yours. You might be a little more towards the monk fruit and stevia for sweetners than I am. Honestly haven’t played with it that as much in dishes other than my coffee, getting there! This is the zone I am exploring more of for sure.

“Swerve is great tasting natural sweetener that measures cup for cup just like sugar. It’s perfect for baking, cooking and sweetening. It’s a unique blend of non-GMO ingredients that’s derived from fruits and vegetables. Contains no artificial ingredients, preservatives or flavors. Join the Swerve-o-lution.”

No Sugar Natural Sweetners

Honestly, I don’t want you to think that these taste like sugar, because they don’t.

Sweet, YES. Sugar like you know it? NO. They’re derived predominately from either monk or stevia leaf. These sweeteners are all going to hit your pallet a little differently than all we’ve talked about so far.

I mean yes, there is a sweet note and you get the sweet vibe from it, but they’re not going to be like a sugar. You have to, I would say, be willing to kind of open your mind a little bit and think of the benefits of not getting any sugar into your body. 

When it comes to me cooking and preparing food for my family, this area is a no go.

You might get some hesitation here of you’re cooking a dish with these sweeteners. Just food for thought. Family and friends that use table sugar regularly may not dig that paleo pancake mix as much as you do 🙂

Stevia Erythritol Blend

Truvia is a combination of erythritol and stevia. I just got mine in little packets because I put it in my coffee sometimes and Truvia dissolves nicely. You get the erythritol the sweet, and the stevia is very gentle. It’s not an in your face stevia pow. Great to keep in your purse for those restaurant moments for tea, coffee or sprinkled on fruit.

Monk Fruit

Monk Fruit in the Raw is straight up monk fruit, that’s it! Nice for coffee too, you can use it as an alternative. To me, this kind of has a flavor like an artificial sweetener would be. If you are an artificial sweetener lover, this little orange packet could be a good one for you! There is a little bit of bitter to it but it is incredibly sweet and potent. Just a dab’ll do ya.

Stevia

Sweetleaf is stevia powder. Stevia is a leaf that is ground up and pulverized into this fine white powder. It doesn’t take much you guys! A little tiny, tiny bit goes a long way. It’s a fine, fine powder and it’s super potent and sweet.

I haven’t found a brand or a product that doesn’t have a little bit of a bitter aftertaste, it goes with the territory of this zero sugar natural sweetener. Sweetleaf also has a liquid stevia and different flavors like vanilla, hazelnut etc. and I have read on multiple forums that Sweetleaf is predominately the go to brand for stevia products.

So there you have it. You’ve got 10 Natural Substitutes for Refined Sugar to pick from. Dive in where you think you’re at on the scale and give them a try!

*All items that are linked are affiliate links. I may get a small commission from a sale of the product. This is not a paid ad or endorsement of any kind with the companies and items listed. All thoughts and opinions are my own based on my experiences.