Our Recommended Sweeteners for Iced Teeccino

Why is it that iced drinks in particular seem to slide down your throat and quench your thirst better if they are sweetened? I drink my hot cup of Teeccino completely unsweetened but give me a glass of iced Teeccino and my sweet sensors compel me to add some sweetness.

It turns out that our taste buds can detect sweetness in hot drinks better than cold drinks. Coldness suppresses the taste receptors in our mouth that bind to sweet-tasting molecules. Who knew? You may have noticed that warm sodas taste sweeter than cold ones and now we know why. No wonder there are so many grams of sugar added to sodas!

Optimal health requires a careful consideration for the source of added sweetness. Here are some favorite liquid sweeteners to quickly add sweetness to your iced glass of Teeccino:

Best Non-Caloric Liquid Sweeteners:

Monk Fruit: A number of brands have a liquid monk fruit sweetener made from the juice of the naturally sweet monk fruit, which grows in the rural mountains of Southern China. Monk fruit has a sweetness curve similar to cane sugar. We recommend the Lakanto brand of monk fruit because they work closely with their Chinese growers in rural areas and have a sustainable program for reforestation as well.

Stevia: Though some people find the taste of stevia unpleasant, there are more and more brands combining stevia with other non-caloric sweeteners to produce a better tasting sweetener. Stevia, which comes from the leaf of a South American plant, has a sharp, extremely intense sweetness that can leave an unpleasant aftertaste so blending it has produced better results. Whole Earth brand markets a liquid stevia & monk fruit non-caloric sweetener.

Nature’s Best Sweeteners

Maple syrup: My personal favorite to add to a tall glass of chilled Teeccino. One tablespoon adds a delicious maple flavor but it also adds 52 calories, so this isn’t a good choice if you’re trying to lose weight. Maple syrup is heavy so be sure to stir it up after adding to liquid Teeccino.

Honey: Honey is nature’s amazing super food. It contains antioxidants, enzymes, and anti-inflammatory boosting compounds that help protect the heart. No bad bacteria can survive in honey! A tablespoon contains 66 calories. Honey is 50% glucose and 50% fructose. It is best to add to hot Teeccino before chilling so it blends well into the liquid. Buy local honey whenever possible to support local beekeepers and to get the best quality honey that hasn’t been adulterated or over-heated like commercial honey, which can kill many of its beneficial properties.

Dates: Medjool dates can be blended with chilled Teeccino for added sweetness and fiber. A single date contains 66.5 calories and 1.6 grams of fiber to slow the absorption of the sugars. One date should be plenty per serving. Dates are rich in minerals like potassium and full of antioxidants. The liquid will be denser due to the date fiber but nevertheless, it makes a very delightful beverage!

Sweeteners to Avoid

Refined sugar: White sugar, brown sugar, even “raw” sugar all spike your blood sugar because they have no fiber content and are highly purified sucrose and fructose. 48 calories per tablespoon.

**Agave syrup: **It contains about 85% fructose. Too much fructose not bound in fiber like it is in fruit can cause fatty liver disease and contribute to high triglycerides, insulin resistance and heart disease. Although it won’t spike your blood sugar, the liver has a hard time processing refined fructose and so it turns it into fat. The heat processing that the natural agave nectar from the cactus undergoes changes the chemical composition to create this purified, refined fructose sweetener.

High fructose corn syrup: Extracted by a chemical enzymatic process, this sweetener is not a natural food. For the same reasons that agave syrup is not recommended, this sweetener should be avoided.