Maple Soda
Stop by Dutch Hill Preserves’ booth this week to sample maple soda! If you resolved this year to quit commercial soda beverages, making your own fizzy drink is a great alternative. Maple soda is simply maple syrup and carbonated water. What sets maple syrup apart from refined sugar is the benefit of minerals and antioxidants in maple syrup.
The Facts about Syrup vs. Sugar
• 100 grams of maple syrup contain: 7% of the recommended daily allowance of calcium, 6% of potassium, 7% of manganese, 28% of zinc, and 165% of manganese.
• The darker syrups (like Grade B) contain more of these beneficial antioxidants than the lighter syrups.
• One study estimates that replacing all the refined sugar in the average diet with “alternative” sweeteners like maple syrup will increase the total antioxidant load of the diet similar to eating a single serving of nuts or berries.
• The glycemic index of maple syrup is around 54, compared to table sugar which has a glycemic index of around 65 (6). Therefore maple syrup raises blood sugar slower than regular sugar.
• The benefit of sweetening your soda with syrup versus sugar is, YOU control the amount of sweetener that goes into your beverage!