DEBRA'S ANSWER:

I totally understand. My first experience with stevia was an attempt to make brownies and they were horrible.

I wouldn't recommend using the product Stevia Extract In The Raw. There is nothing raw about it, in either sense of the word. It's not uncooked, and it's not without any additions. The "in the raw" part of the name is just because it is made by the "Sugar In The Raw" company (which is also not uncooked, but is straight sugar).

Their website states that in their Packet Product,"The stevia extract is blended with dextrose, a natural carbohydrate derived from corn" and in their Cup For Cup “Baker’s Bag” Product, "Stevia extract is blended with maltodextrin, a natural carbohydrate derived from corn." How a corn sweetener is zero calorie, I don't know. But basically what is happening here is that highly refined corn extracts are being combined with highly refined stevia extracts to make a fractionated sweetener that is no more "whole" than refined white sugar.

I used to recommend stevia drops until I decided to use only whole food sweeteners. I do recommend whole stevia herb leaves, which can be eaten fresh off the plant, or used fresh or dried in hot and cold tea blends for sweetness, or brewed alone to make a sweet tea that can then be used as a liquid sweetener.

But stevia lacks the bulk of sugar and so is not very practical for baked goods.

Sorry I can't give you any tips on how to make stevia brownies.

Debra :-)

DEBRA'S ANSWER:

The website says that this is "a 'first crystallization' sugar made directly from the original cane juice," that it is light brown in color and can be used to replace white sugar.

Sucanat and Rapadura are not crystalized, but rather more like a fine powder. They are simply dehydrated and can replace brown sugar, but not white.

Debra :-)

DEBRA'S ANSWER:

If it's a white powder (I've never seen it), it's just as refined as white cane sugar, not a whole food.

Whole leaf stevia is easy to brew, like making tea. You can't use it cup-for-cup as a replacement for white sugar, but you can add it for sweetness to things like smoothies and salad dressings, or soak fruit in it, and especially make iced herbal tea. I have it growing in my garden and I just pull leaves of mint and stevia and make tea for a very refreshing beverage.

Debra :-)