Oh my gosh!!!!!!!!!! I just found this post! Dani, I am so sorry I never saw this sooner! I totally apologize....so here goes...here's what I know on Stevia.
Yes, I totally use it for baking, and it's great! Typically if a recipe calls for 1 cup of sugar, I will only end up using about a tbsp of stevia. A little goes a super long way! As far the marketing of it. It's mostly completely natural. The powdered stuff is obviously processed from the leaf and made into a powder, but a reputable all natural company will do it right. NOW foods is a good one. We carry that brand at our gym. But research has shown it to be very safe and free from harmful chemicals. In fact, stevia in its raw natural state contains over 100 phytonutrients. Even in massive amounts, it is non-toxic, has next to no calories and will not promote tooth decay. If you want it as close to nature as possible, you can get the dried stevia leaves in bulk at your health food store and put it in a tea strainer and add that to your tea or coffee for a completely natural sweetener with no aftertaste and no processing. Also I love using the liquid stevia.
Helpful tips for using Stevia:
Stevia is highly concentrated so like I said a little goes a long way.
You do not need to refridgerate stevia - it is hiighly stable and can be stored at room temperature.
Stainless steel and glass containers are best when using stevia.
There's loads of really great cookbooks out there made for cooking with stevia. one I like is called Stevia Sweet Recipes - Sugar Free - Naturally! by Jeffrey Goettemoeller.
Hope that helps. And thanks for your sweet compliment! Let me know what you think! I'm happy to help (now that I found the post!
