Friday, February 13, 2009
Drinks / Foods Agave Nectar? Hardly Know Her!
Posted by Carrington Fox on Fri, Feb 13, 2009 at 11:24 AM
It started out as a lark: When I saw the agave nectar on the coffee-condiment bar at Whole Foods, I thought what the hell and squeezed an amber thread of the sweet extract into my dark roast. I soon found myself angling into the parallel-parking spots in the Hill Center on a regular basis, and recently I bought my own bottle of the sweetener, which is extolled for its low hypoglycemic index--whatever that means--and its intense sweetness that does not distort the flavor of whatever it is added to.
Made from the same plant that is the basic ingredient for tequila, agave nectar is great because a very small drizzle sweetens a big cup of coffee evenly, with no precipitate and no weird burnt floral taste. A tablespoon of nectar is about 60 calories, so you can get away with using 20 calories or less.
Nowhere in the literature about agave nectar have I read anything about its being addictive, but when I stopped off for coffee today in Hillsboro Village and there was no agave nectar by the two-percent milk, I was PISSED! WHERE'S THE &%$*-ing AGAVE NECTAR? I threw a chair across the room, smashed some guitars and kicked a Belmont student just for fun. I was escorted out the back door by a Nader-voting kid wearing skinny jeans and a vintage T-shirt, but I think I got my point across. I think we'll be seeing more agave nectar in more places. I think I know why I don't drink tequila anymore.
Comments (9)
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I'm still not 100% on the agave train (still using liquid stevia), but I certainly like the idea of it. Last week while in Mexico, I learned that in eastern part of the country, they're gaining more interest in the blue agave, but mostly for tequila, I think. We went past an agave farm!
I don't think you need a reason to kick a college student hanging out in a coffee joint.
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I'm still not 100% on the agave train (still using liquid stevia), but I certainly like the idea of it. Last week while in Mexico, I learned that in eastern part of the country, they're gaining more interest in the blue agave, but mostly for tequila, I think. We went past an agave farm!
I don't think you need a reason to kick a college student hanging out in a coffee joint.
Wow, I was just looking for Agave Nectar last weekend, but had no idea what it was. I made a recipe for tequila bars that called for agave nectar or honey to be drizzled on top of the dessert. (btw found the recipe on erinsfoodfiles blog - another commenter on Bites - Thanks Erin!) I couldn't find any and didn't have time to stop at Whole Foods after running all over town, so I used honey instead. I will definitely have to get some on my next WF trip.
Huge fan of agave. The best chai latte I've ever had was made with agave and almond milk. Mmmmmm.
Lesley, I have mixed feelings about stevia. I got some early versions of it about 15 years ago, and it had a bitter aftertaste, like saccharin. Has it improved?
I like agave nectar as an alterna-honey and put it on lightly buttered toast. I bought some stevia a while back and tried to use it to sweeten pudding. MISTAKE. I used it to sweeten some hot cocoa (Hershey's side of the canister recipe) and DING! Bitter taste masked by cocoa flavor. Good for somethings, not for others IMHO.
I love the agave myself..and I have to say that is the best "agave withdrawl" story I have ever read!! Made me smile.
