Stevia is a plant believ-a-ba (believeable)!

STEVIA...

This plant is growing in popularity because of its low-caloric properties.  More folks are flocking to supermarkets to purchase the extract or the dried (sugar-like) stevia.  Folks use it as just another artificial sweetener, but truly there is hardly nothing artificial about it.  In fact, if the processed varieties of stevia make you nervous, simply buy a plant and let the leaves make you a believer.

As a child, my mom was the sugar-Nazi!  She would often say, "No sugar for YOU!"  Heck, we could hardly have all the honey we wanted, but if we were getting anything sweet, it was usually going to be honey or a stevia leaf.  She would simply drop a dried stevia leaf into our hot tea.  It was great!

Now, I must admit that a fresh leaf must be chewed in order for the sweetness to release.  It is said that the  leaf (raw or dried) is 10-15 times sweeter than sugar in its natural state and more like 200-300 times sweeter than sugar in its processed state.  Now, simply just dropping a fresh raw leaf in hot tea will not release the stevia sweetness, you'll have to blend it up with your steeping tea and strain it.  In general, folks pick the leaves from the stevia plant, dry them in the sun, and crush them up for future use.  You can also make an extract.  The following site gives the history of stevia and how to make an extract.  Buying it from stores remain an option, but it's good to know all of the options.  Stevia information site: http://www.stevia.com/Stevia_Article/Frequently_asked_questions_FAQ/2269

Letting the blended stevia and mint, along with
a handful of fresh mint steep in the sun.

On Sunday, I decided that I needed some flavored water.  As important as what we eat is what we drink.  Sometimes, we want a flavor to drink. I had a bunch of mint and peppermint growing in my container garden and I thought that mint flavor water sounded like a great idea!  I'll make flavor water and sweeten it with leaves from a stalk of my stevia plant.  So, after trimming my plants, I bought them inside and blended about a cup of mint with leaves of the stevia stalk together. I stuffed more mint into a 32 ounce jar and filled it up with water.  I then put it back in the sun so that the heat and rays of the sun could release more of the flavors. I actually didn't drain the blended peppermint or stevia from the jar until the next morning.  The taste was just what I was after, a watery mint flavor that had a subtle hint of sweet.  It was truly mint flavor water. I've been drinking it ever since, one 8 oz. glass at a time.

Enjoying a glass of mint flavor water today.

I feel as if I am getting a host of nutritional benefits, not only from the mint, but also from the stevia because stevia reduces blood sugar levels.  It has flavonoid properties, such as Kaempferols, that reduces the risk of pancreatic cancer. Therefore, it taste good and is good for you.  Google the nutritional and health benefits of the natural stevia leaf, or plant, for yourself!

There's a host of information in books and online that relate how you can cook and bake with stevia.  Though I confine my stevia to drinks, that's what I'm used to doing... and unfortunately many of us are creatures of habit.  Maybe one day, I'll bake with the dried leaves.  That will have to be an experiment for sure.

Your feedback is always welcomed.  If you like stevia as much as I do, just let me know.  In the meantime, at least enjoy a dried leaf of stevia in your tea!