Looking for an all natural and economical sugar-free sweetener that actually tastes good? You need to try my natural sweetener blend! I've found that by using a combination of xylitol, erythritol, and stevia I can save money while enjoying a low carb sweetener that tastes just like sugar.
Joy Filled Eats Natural Sweetener Blend - Xylitol, Erythritol, & Stevia - Low Carb, Keto, Trim Healthy Mama, Diabetic Friendly, Sugar Free
When I started the Trim Healthy Mama diet I was leery about all the recipes using stevia because I have never liked it. All of the grocery store varieties and even the flavored liquid drops have a bitter aftertaste to me. In the past when I stopped using sugar on the South Beach Diet I used artificial sweeteners to replace it. Over the years I've read more about the negative effects of artificial sweeteners and I knew I needed to give stevia another try.
I heard that the Trim Healthy Mama Gentle Sweet natural sweetener, which is a blend of xylitol, erythritol, and stevia, was a game changer so I thought I would give it a try. It really changed my perception of stevia. It had no aftertaste or bitterness.
Because we have a strict food budget I became determined to come up with my own blend of erythritol, xylitol, and stevia. I try to save as many pennies as I can when I shop. Making my own sweeteners, baking mixes, seasonings, and cooking from scratch saves the most.
These Tagalong Cupcakes are one use for my sweetener. Don't they look yummy? They are sugar-free! But you would never know. Even my husband who isn't a dessert guy loved them.
You can now mix up your own sweetener that measures just like Gentle Sweet. If you are on a tight budget this helps with this way of eating immensely. I use this sweetener in all my dessert recipes and I've subbed in it recipes from the Trim Healthy Mama Cookbook like the Trimtastic Cake.
You can make everything from Sweetened Condensed Milk to Caramel with this recipe and more.
If you grind this in a food processor it works great as a low carb powdered sugar. It is the best out of the low carb and keto sweeteners!
Ingredients in Joy Filled Eats Sweetener
Xylitol is a natural sweetener. It is a sugar alcohol made from birch trees or corncobs. It has 40% fewer calories than sugar and is a 7 on the glycemic index (white sugar is a 64). Please note that xylitol can be fatal to dogs so don't share treats containing xylitol with your furry friends.
Erythritol is a sugar alcohol like xylitol. It occurs naturally in some fruits and vegetables It has zero calories and no impact on blood sugar. It is produced from glucose by fermentation with yeast.
Stevia is a plant discovered in South America. To make stevia powder a water extraction method is typically used. Stevia is 100 to 200 times sweeter than sugar so a little goes a long way.
Where Do I Buy Sweetener Ingredients?
My natural sweetener recipe is easy and economical. There are many choices on where to order the ingredients from. And I've used several brands of these products successfully.
I personally order the ingredients for this natural sweetener from amazon, walmart, thrive market, and iherb.
Thrive Market: My Thrive Market Coupon works on everything from sweeteners and baking supplies to vitamins and beauty products! Thrive has great prices on coconut products, spices, organic health items, baby food, and more especially since they often will email codes for an additional 25-30% off your entire order. Head over to this post to see more of the latest deals at Thrive. My favorite deal is always getting Lily's Chocolate Chips for $4 a bag!
iherb:
If you are ordering from iherb you save $5 with my link. Generally, you can get the ingredients to make for under $8 a pound. Free shipping is on orders over $20.
I ordered the ingredients from iherb with free shipping. They have a lot of products that work for Keto, Low Carb, and Trim Healthy Mama eating plans. Other products they have that are compatible with THM are oat fiber, psyllium husks, whey protein powder, coconut flour, almond flour, etc. etc. This link takes you right to iherb so you can start making your own sugar free sweetener! Just put each ingredient into the search bar and add to your cart. It's cheaper to buy the 2.5 pounds but they also have 1 pound bags if you'd like to go small before you commit to a huge bag. It is very very easy.
Amazon:
With free one day and two-day Prime shipping, Amazon is where I order from most often. I can consistently get xylitol and erythritol inexpensively. I buy the largest size stevia and it lasts me about 2 years. And I bake A LOT.
I have tried all of these brands and just buy whichever is the cheapest on the day I order! No big deal.
Walmart:
Over the last year or so I've been buying more and more groceries from Walmart. They offer free shipping over $35 and have many low carb products in addition to having more choices in the store.
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Joy Filled Eats Natural Sweetener - Low Carb, THM, Sugar Free
Ingredients
Weight measurements:
- 16 oz xylitol (or allulose)
- 12 oz erythritol (or allulose)
- 2 teaspoon Better Stevia or any pure stevia extract
Cup measurements:
- 2 cups plus 2 tablespoons xylitol (or allulose)
- 1 ½ cups plus 2 tablespoons erythritol (or allulose)
- 2 teaspoon Better Stevia or any pure stevia extract
Instructions
Powdered Sweetener
- Process the ingredients in the food processor for a few minutes if you are planning on using it in chocolate, beverages, or icing.
Granular Sweetener
- For baking and candy making, you can just mix the ingredients together by hand.
Notes
Nutrition
Nancy G says
I followed your directions, and weighed everything. I could not find the Better Stevia and used Sweatleaf Organic Stevia which has Organic Stevia Leaf Extract, Organic Inulin, Silica.
I do not find the mixture sweet as I have to use a whole tsp in my coffee!
HELP! I have already mixed all the Erythrotol and Xylitol. I dont want to waste it.
I'm new to Keto, sorry for all the questions
Taryn says
This is twice as sweet as sugar. How much sugar were you putting in your coffee? If you were putting a regular spoonful (about 2 tsp) it makes sense you still need 1 tsp. If you want a sweeter blend you can add more of the organic stevia.
Isabella says
Is better stevia extract different than raw stevia? Can they be swapped? Thank you
Taryn says
You need a pure stevia powder. Are there other ingredients in your raw stevia?
Sara says
I'm a little confused about the nutritional information. At the recipe you said 1tablespoon is one calorie, However, in one of your replys in the comments (on Nov 2, 2018) you said you have it set for one teaspoon. Also, what do you mean by 'I manually subtract the sugar alcohol.'? Thank you so much!
Taryn says
This basically has no nutritional value. It doesn't matter if it's a tsp or tbsp. Sugar alcohols are carbs that the body doesn't absorb. For example here are the nutrition facts for erythritol:
Erythritol has 0 carbs because you subtract the sugar alcohol (listed here as erythritol).
Audrey Albrecht says
Hi, I have read through all of the comments to hopefully avoid asking the same question but still want to clarify. For replacing sugar or erythritol, using this mixture, you decrease the amount by half but if using in place of Gentle Sweet then it is a straight swap? Do you have a conversion chart for sweeteners on Joy Filled Eats? It would be nice to have a point of reference so I don’t have to come back and read the comments again in the future if I get confused in a recipe. Thanks so much. I appreciate all the work people like you do and that you are willing to share to help others, like myself, save money and headache when cooking.
Taryn says
"For replacing sugar or erythritol, using this mixture, you decrease the amount by half but if using in place of Gentle Sweet then it is a straight swap?"
Yes and yes. I don't have a conversion chart but do put notes in my dessert recipes with tips on converting.
Cindy says
Hi,
Have you ever tried tried this with the THM stevia? I have some of that, and cannot find the NOW Better Stevia in any stores in my city. Really wanted to try this now so didn't want to order online and have to wait for it to come in.
Thanks, Cindy
Taryn says
I have had readers use thm stevia. I've heard it's a little sweetener than the now stevia so just use a pinch or two less.
Robin says
Thank you! I'm so happy to have this. My hubby gets the cooling effects from straight erithritol, so this mix is fab! I'm glad I read the comments as I have been using this for recipes substituting it for when it calls for just erithritol. I didn't realize it's double sweet. 🙃 Hubby doesn't like really sweet. I will remember that when I am not making one of your recipes.
I used Sweetleaf organic stevia leaf extract. It seemed like the same as the brand you recommended.
I made a bunch and used my Vitamix to powder part. Better than the coffee grinder.
Thanks again and Happy New Year 🎊
Ann says
Can you substitute Monk Fruit for the Xylitol? It makes me nervous to use xylitol around my pets, especially since I have a dog that likes to get into the garbage
Taryn says
If you mean a monk fruit blend like lakanto you could because both that and xylitol are 1:1 for sugar. Or you can just use all erythritol.
Jessica says
So, would you use the Lakanto sweetener instead of this sweetener? OR would you replace the Xylitol in the mix with Lakanto monkfruit? (This last one doesn't seem right because it already has erythritol.)
I think my body has a bad reaction to the Xylitol - which truly sucks because I love this blend! - I was just wondering about mixing pure monkfruit, erythritol, and stevia together in the right ratio. Thanks!
Taryn says
If you want to use less of the monk fruit sweetener you can add stevia to that. It would be 1 tsp to 14 oz.
Rosemary says
Hi Taryn, can I make GS using lakanto monkfruit sweetener and xylitol since I don’t have Erythritol and the lakanto sweetener already has it added in and if so how much xylitol to a cup of the lakanto sweetener? Thanks you!
Taryn says
I think that will work. It would be the same amount of lakanto to my amount of erythritol since they are both 1:1 for sugar.
Fara says
I am confused with the different brands of sweeteners. I have been trying several and not happy with any really. So a blend might help. I haven't bought erythritol or xylitol. Do these come under another brands? Does Swerve work for your amount of erythritol? I have a bag of stevia in the raw. Will this work for your amount of stevia?
Also I bought monkfruit powder pure. It is so dense and strong that it doesn't work so can I mix these or should I just toss them? There is no way I could use this 1:1 ratio.
Taryn says
Xylitol and erythritol are the generic names.
Swerve should work for the erythritol amount. Do you fave the powder or granulated?
I'm not familiar with stevia in the raw. Does that have added ingredients?
Do you like the swerve? You could try mixing the monk fruit powder into that. It would be the same ratio as above. 1/2 tsp monk fruit to 7 oz swerve.
I've tried just about every sweetener out there and I prefer the blend of my 3 ingredients to all of them. The links are clickable to brands I've tried.
Veronica Sebastian says
Hi! I’m curious if you or anyone else has tried making a kind of simple syrup from this sweetener blend? I also usually store my regular simple syrups in the fridge, so I’m wondering how this might effect it, as well. I’m thinking it might be nice to have on hand for something like iced tea.
Taryn says
This works for simple syrup but does crystallize in the fridge. It's better used fresh.
Sheryl says
Do you have a DIY sweetener blend or store bought product that mimics Super Sweet?
Taryn says
They have it right in their sweetener chart: https://trimhealthymama.com/#usefulinfo
Melani orzabal says
I tried to make your magic cookies using just erythritol and I can’t stand the “cold” taste. I had also tried brownies once with just xylitol and suffered the “potty sidedfects” that can occur. I really want to find a mix that works but I’m so afraid of xylitol now. Have you or had anyone else said anything about xylitol side effects from your mix? Thank you so much for your time and yummy recipes.
Taryn says
I personally do not have tummy trouble with any sweeteners but I know some of my readers can tolerate a xylitol blend better than xylitol straight.
Victoria says
Does your sweetener blend cause that "cooling" effect?
Taryn says
Very slightly. Anything with erythritol does. It's much less pronounced than just using erythritol.
M. Johnson says
Thank you for the recipe! If avoiding xylitol due to having dogs in the house... what measurements would you recommend for blending only stevia and erythritol?
I prefer THM's Gentle Sweet over the Super Sweet.
Taryn says
It would be the same as above with just erythritol. So 28 oz erythritol to 2 tsp stevia.
Mindy says
Oh, awesome! And do you get powdered erythritol or granulated erythritol?
Taryn says
Granulated. Much cheaper! I splurge and buy the powdered sometimes for icings. When I grind my own it's not quite as fine as the professionally ground.
Karla says
This is the result that I’ve gotten also. I was searching your comments for a note re: grittiness in icings using your sweetener blend. I’ve been using xylitol and Pyure for the erythritol/stevia and blending in a mini food processor. So, you have purchased powdered erythritol when making the sweetener for icings? Do you use the same xylitol and stevia?
Taryn says
No, I just use the powdered erythritol for icing. If I'm just making a dessert for me I don't mind the slight grittiness of grinding my own sweetener. But for more special desserts the powdered erythritol works better in icing.
Denise says
What is the conversion chart if I’m making a recipe and it calls for sugar and I want to use this instead
Taryn says
Use half the amount.
Tammy says
If you are making one of your recipes that calls for your mixture do you follow the amount in your recipe or cut it in half?
Taryn says
Follow the amount listed in the recipe. That is the correct amount for a sweetener that is twice as sweet as sugar.
Tiffany says
Thank you! I knew there hadto be a recipe to DIY the sweetener blend! Can't wait to try it!
Did I understand correctly, I can blend up a batch and store tightly in a jar?
TIA 😍
Taryn says
Yup! I mix about 5 pounds at a time. It keeps indefinitely 🙂
Marianne says
I was hoping for a bit more information in the nutritional info chart. Is one serving equal to a tablespoon? And what is the carb count? This sweetener blend sounds very good and I will probably give it a try. Thanks in advance!
Taryn says
The carb count is 0. I manually subtract the sugar alcohol. The calories are basically 0 too unless you use a ton. I have it set for 1 teaspoon.
Lynda says
I made this blend and need to understand more about it. I've put part of it in a coffee grinder and made a powder for using in icing or other recipes that call for a powdered sweetener and it seems to work fine. However, when I use it in the granulate form it does not sweeten the recipe like I would like. I do not like the cooling effects of erythritol and neither does my family. For instance if a recipe calls for 1/4 cup of erythritol how much of this blend should I use? I used 1 Tbl+1tsp (which is more than I thought the conversion would be) last night making blueberry muffins and they were not sweet at all.
Taryn says
Hi Lynda, 1/4 cup erythritol is 4 tablespoons. You would have need 2 tablespoons of this blend. So you actually used a little less than you needed. There is no reason you can't use it powdered all the time if that is working better for you. I hope that helps!
Julie says
Monkfruit sweetener works great! It measures like sugar, tastes like sugar with no after taste, does not affect blood sugar and is all natural and keto friendly. It also comes in brown sugar
Taryn says
Yes, I like monk fruit blends too! It can be expensive though. Monk fruit measures 1:1 for sugar and is $8-10 a pound. My sweetener is twice a sweet as sugar so you use less and it is about $6 a pound.
Mary says
I am scared to death to use xylitol with having 2 inside dogs and unfortunately, I’m a messy cook😬😢. If not using xylitol what would be your recommendations for your baked goods if I omit the xylitol?
Taryn says
You can make this using all erythritol.
Angie says
How does it alter the taste? I also have dogs.
Taryn says
The only problem is using all erythritol can give you that odd minty cooling sensation.
Lynnita says
I know what u mean!!!Imade a muffin and set down for a few secs. My chiuaha are it. This being 11:30 at night I had to take him to an emergency clinic 50 miles away. He is fine but this free baby wound up costing me $500. I still use xylitol but mix it in another room
Shawna says
How recently have you had people able to use the Thrive coupon? I clicked on the deal and entered my email. Put over $50 in my cart, but no discount. Checked my email, no coupon received if it's supposed to be that way. It does show on the initial screen the offer itself as being $20 off the first 3 orders over $49.99, but once I entered my email and added stuff to cart, at checkout nothing is discounted...I even took a screenshot of the page where it initially shows the $20 off coupon if that will help at some point, but no success
I have been using your recipe for the sweetener 1:1 replacement since I first started low carb. It is a life saver and works without any aftertaste at all.
Question: when you powder this mixture, does it ever get completely powdered? I have a little graininess in frosting because I don't get a completely powdered result. I've been using a coffee grinder. I've also used the bullet type attachment to my ninja blender. I have a cuisinart food processor but I've never tried powdering sweetener in it before. Does it really get powdered in your food processor?
Taryn says
As far as I know my coupon has been working but I can check tomorrow. I'd try a different browser. If it still doesn't work you could call thrive. They have great customer service.
My sweetener is always a little grainier than regular powdered sugar. I think it's just hard to replicate that with home appliances. I bet if you tried to grind cane sugar the same thing would happen.
Tammy says
The Vitamix grinds it to a powdered state.