So, you’ve probably noticed that I tend to only use stevia here, and you’ve probably wondered to yourself, “why would she use a sweetener in baked goods that doesn’t mimic the texture of sugar?” Yeah, I know. Sugar does more than just sweeten: it adds moisture, helps to bind, browns and aids in the texture of baked goods. A lot of artificial sweeteners (like Splenda) do those things, too. Stevia… does not.

So, why am I not sprinkling sucralose and aspartame all over every keto cookie recipe? Well, put simply, because I don’t necessarily think it’s the healthiest choice. Why not? Well, if you want to read the details, you can check out my post on my more nutrition-centric blog, but if you just want a bulleted list, here you go…

Artificial sweeteners…

• tend to make individuals eat more than sugar-sweetened foods, leading to weight gain
• disrupt your body’s hormones
• have been shown in studies to be neuro-toxins
• kill the good bacteria in your gut, impeding digestion and leading to weight gain
• have been show to be carcinogenic in studies

So, that’s why when baking low carb treats, I’d rather err on the side of working around a texture issue than using artificial sweeteners.