I really like trying to eat healthier, without having to totally give up on my food vices. When it comes to sweeteners, I rarely use plain old granulated sugar anymore, and try to use something that adds more nutrients and complex flavors as well. Some of my favorites are fruit juices, honey and molasses, all of which give their own unique character to the dish, as well as bringing in a wide variety of nutrients.

When I do use sugar, I try to go with organic turbinado as my first choice, which is the raw cane juice with the molasses removed, but no further refining or bleaching. This leaves a lot of nutrients and minerals that are removed in white sugar, though still in small amounts. It's still sugar, but at least there is some benefit as well.