So are you growing stevia this year?

FataMorgana

Nope, not me. I love my sweet iced tea, and tried subbing in stevia for the sugar, but really didn't care for the sweet'n'lo flavor. Went back to my raw sugar.

I bought a stevia plant for my mom that has diabetes, She loves the plant and uses it for sweetening tea or drinks.
The plant survived the winter and I got some seeds from it.
. hopefully I get more plants so I can trade!

How do you use the stevia? Do you some how have to extract the sweetness from the leaves? I want it to sweeten my coffee. I tried a plant a couple years ago, but couldn't figure out how to use it.

My Mom puts some leaves in the blender and add some water then she uses that to sweeten her tea or drinks.
you can also chew on the leaves and drink after you have enough sweetness in your mouth. I have done it myself, it won't be as fun as real sugar, but it will be healthier and give you no extra calories, and won't mess up with your immune system like sugar does!

I just got a baby Stevia plant the other day from a greenhouse. I taste one of the leaves and they are not kidding about its sweetness!

I did a little research and it seems there are a few ways to use it. You can put the fresh leaves straight into hot tea or what have you.

You can dry the leaves in the sun or one some paper towels until completely dry, then make a powder to add to drinks or to even cook or bake with.

There is also a way to make a syrup out of it. Google it, but I think it said to take the fresh leaves and soak them in a jar with a lid for 24 or 48 hours(sorry can't recall).

It said it is much sweeter than sugar and to use a heaping tablespoon in a recipes as you would a whole cup of sugar. Now, I have not tested that or any of these methods, so see for yourself lol. I'm excited to experience with the plant myself. :)

Stevia has some drawbacks, including a bitter or off taste for some people, and lacking textural qualities of sugar that can be important (i.e. in baking). Some still don't think it was tested enough before approval as a sweetener.

Sugar's caloric content can be minimized - just don't eat as much. :)