On food and cooking the science and lore of the kitchen ( PDFDrive ) 1253

noncaloricsweetener.Itis180–200times
sweeterthantablesugar,sothatthoughit
carriesthesamenumberofcaloriesinagiven
weight,muchsmalleramountsareneeded.
Aspartame’sdisadvantageisthatitisbroken
downbyheatandbyacidityandtherefore
can’tbeusedincookedpreparations.
ModernLicorice
Today licorice is seldom used as a
sweetener.Therootofthelicoriceplantis
extracted with ammonia to produce an
ammonium salt of the sweet-tasting
glycyrrhizic acid. The extract is much
more expensive than molasses (the source
of blackness in traditional licorice
candies), sugar, gelatin, starch, and other
ingredients in licorice candy, so it’s used
mainly as an aromatic flavoring. Licorice
is especially popular in Denmark, where
it’sstrangelycombinedincandieswithsalt
and with ammonia. Glycyrrhizin also has


effects on the hormone system that
controlsbloodpressureandvolume,andso
in large doses can cause high blood
pressureandswelling.
SweetnessInhibitorsNotonlyarethere
artificialsweeteners:therearealsosubstances
thatblockusfromexperiencingthesweetness
ofsugars.Thesetasteinhibitorsareusefulfor

reducingthesweetnessofapreparationwhose
texturedependsonahighsugarconcentration.
Lactisole(tradenameCypha)isaphenolic
compoundfoundinsmallquantitiesinroasted
coffee,patentedasaflavormodifierin1985,
andusedinconfectioneryandsnacks.Invery
smallamountsitreducestheapparent
sweetnessofsugarbytwo-thirds.
SugarsandSyrups