Can agave nectar be substituted for honey in baking

honeysubstitutions

The only sweetener called for in the bread recipe I want to use is honey; can I substitute 1/3 a cup of agave nectar for 1/3 a cup of honey without throwing off the proportions of the recipe? When using agave nectar as a substitute for honey in salad dressing recipes, I tend to use less agave nectar than honey called for because I find agave nectar sweeter than honey, but I don't feel confident doing the same thing in baking.

Best Answer

You can use agave nectar instead of honey or sugar if you modify your recipe a bit by lowering the amount of liquids. Agave nectar has more water than honey and is sweeter than honey (about 50% sweeter).

Honey Fructose: 41%, Glucose: 36%, Water: 18%

Agave nectar Fructose: 53%, Glucose: 15%, Water: 25%

As a starting point in modifying the recipe, keep the amount of water fixed by using less agave nectar than honey (amount of agave = 0.72 amount of honey). Also, dishes made with agave nectar will brown faster than those made with honey because of the agave's higher fructose content. Start checking a little earlier.