It's Really Only a Purple World

How Sweet It Is!  Truvia - A Review and Giveaway!!!

Got a chance to try out the new no calorie sweetener Truvia recently and I must say I am quite impressed!  Unlike the other alternative sweeteners out there, Truvia actually is granular just like sugar and for me that is a major appeal.  I really dislike the powdery consistency of some of the other brands so this was a real plus for me!

Here is some information the people who represent Truvia sent me that I thought was pretty interesting and really speaks to why Truvia is a pretty unique product:

INGREDIENTS

Truvia natural sweetener is made from rebiana, erythritol, and natural flavors:

• Rebiana comes from the leaves of the stevia plant, which was discovered more than 200 years ago in South America and has been used as a sweetener in various parts of the world for more than three decades. Truvia rebiana is different from most stevia sold today because it consists of only the best-tasting components of the stevia leaf.

• Erythritol is a sugar alcohol found naturally in various fruits such as grapes and melons. Erythritol is an all-natural, non-caloric sweetener, used as an ingredient that provides bulk for Truvia™ natural sweetener.

• Natural flavors are used to bring out the best of Truvia natural sweetener, like pepper or salt or any other spice that would be used to heighten the taste of food.

SAFETY



• Truvia rebiana is safe. Government agencies in the United States and around the world, including FDA and the World Health Organization, have recognized its safety.

• Truvia natural sweetener is safe for people with diabetes, because it has no effect on the glycemic index (it does not raise or lower your blood sugar).




LOOK FOR THE LEAF

Truvia rebiana is also used as an ingredient in foods and beverages. Look for this leaf symbol to indicate that the product has been naturally sweetened with Truvia rebiana.

Current products include:

• Glaceau vitaminwater10 and vitaminwater zero
• Coca Cola Sprite Green

• Odwalla Reduced-Calorie Quencher

• Kraft Crystal Light Pure Fitness

• True Lemon Naturally Sweet

• Kraft Nature’s Splash

• All Sport Naturally Zero

• Hansen’s Natural Lo-Cal Juices

• Blue Sky Free sodas

• Minute Maid Premium Pomegranate Tea

• Breyers YoCrunch 100 Calorie Pack

• Velamints breath mints

• Dippin’ Dots ice cream

I am loving some of the recipes from the website as well..check this one out!


Sweet Potato Pie with Truvia Natural Sweetener

Pastry for single-crust 9-inch pie 


3 medium sweet potatoes

¼ cup unsalted butter

16 packets Truvia natural sweetener

¾ cup skim milk

3 eggs, large

2 tsp vanilla extract

¼ tsp salt

½ tsp cinnamon, ground

½ tsp nutmeg, ground

1/8 tsp allspice, ground

Light whipped topping, optional



Procedure

1. Assemble all ingredients; preheat oven to 400°F.

2. Wash exterior of each potato, prick several times with a fork and bake until tender 60-75 minutes. Cool potatoes to room temperature.

3. Scoop interior flesh of baked potatoes into a medium bowl (no skin). Mash potatoes until smooth.

4. Melt butter and add to sweet potatoes.

5. In a separate small bowl, whisk together Truvia natural sweetener, skim milk, eggs, vanilla, salt and spices.

6. Add spice-egg mixture to potatoes.

7. Mix until well combined smooth mixture.

8. Carefully transfer pie to oven* and bake on bottom rack until filling is just set approx 35-45 min. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

*For an extra crisp bottom crust, preheat a shallow baking pan in oven for a few minutes before placing unbaked pie on it to bake. Optional: Garnish with light whipped topping

Nutrition Facts per servingCalories 260; Total Fat, 15g; Saturated Fat, 7g; Trans Fat, 0g; Cholesterol, 135mg; Sodium, 300mg; Total Carbohydrate, 32g; Dietary Fiber, 2g; Sugars, 5g; Erythritol, 7g: Protein, 5g; Vitamin A, 220% DV; Vitamin C, 15% DV; Calcium, 6% DV; Iron, 6% DV.

* This sweet potato pie has 260 calories and 5 grams of sugar per serving as compared to regular sweet potato pie that has 370 calories and 33 grams of sugar per serving.

And if you have read all the way to this point, then you will know that it is time for the giveaway of a box of Truvia for you to try too!

If you want to win, however, here is what you have to do:

1) You MUST be a Google Friend Connect follower of my blog ( this will be verified)


AND

(2) You MUST tell me which recipe from the Truvia site you would like to try

BOTH (1) and (2) MUST be done for your initial entry! Leave me ONE comment stating that both items were completed

If you already subscribe to my blog please just let me know in that mandatory first comment as well.

If you want additional entries:

(3) Follow me on Twitter

(4) Tweet about this giveaway ( leave one comment with a link to your tweet)

(5) Subscribe to my site via Feedburner ( look on the side of my blog for the place to leave your email address)

(6) Blog about this giveaway and leave me a comment with a link to your post and link back to this give-a-way post as well!

Give-a-way to run until 11:59 pm EST on June 29th, 2010. Winner will be chosen via Random.org. Email will be sent to winner with a response needed within 72 hours of winning email with shipping information. If winner does not respond to email, an alternate winner will be chosen. Good only within the continental USA. Make sure you leave a contact email within your post or check to make sure that I can email you via your blogger profile.


Disclaimer: Truvia provided me with a free sample of this product to review, and I was under no obligation to review it if I so chose. Nor was I under any obligation to write a positive review or sponsor a product giveaway in return for the free product.