When thinking about substituting sugar in a recipe, it's important to remember that sugar provides not only sweetness to gluten-free baked goods, it provides structure, texture, and flavor, adds a pleasing moistness, and contributes to browning.

Replacing sugar, therefore, can be a delicate dance with ingredients.

Read on for alternatives to the usual suspects.

Agave: Organic raw agave nectar is a vegan fructose sweetener made from the agave cactus with a subtle sweetness and a lower glycemic impact on blood sugar levels (it is approved for limited use in the South Beach Diet later phases, and may be a possible choice for those who need to monitor their blood sugar levels; agave may not be appropriate for everyone, however-- see notes below).

Raw organic agave is the least refined type of agave and has a mild, neutral taste. It is produced at temperatures below 118 °F (48 °C) to protect the natural enzymes, making it an appropriate sweetener for those eating raw foods. Raw agave contains iron, calcium, potassium and magnesium Bordeaux.

Agave nectar works well in baking. Use 1/3 to 1/2 cup of raw organic agave nectar (not the super-refined "agave") for every 1 cup of sugar in the original recipe and lessen the liquid called for by 3 tablespoons. Agave is humectant and adds moisture and binding to gluten-free recipes- especially if you're baking egg-free. Note that using too much agave in a baked goods recipe with a lot of gluten-free starch can sometimes lead to gumminess Flower delivery service.

Some cooks also reduce the oven temperature by 25° F when baking agave recipes, but I have not bothered to do this.

You may want to experiment with using a smaller loaf pan  when you replace the sugar with less agave (volume is affected). Use an 8x4-inch loaf pan rather than a 9x5-inch loaf pan, for instance property hk.