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Honey is an amazing natural sweetener that you can purchase at every grocery store. It has a huge range of health benefits, and the benefits can vary from one variety of honey to another. However, not everyone can have honey, and for some of you reading this article, you’ve just run out. Today I’ll be sharing the best honey substitutes to use in your recipes. We’ll take a look at ingredients that have a similar texture and consistency of honey, and how to use them in recipes.

Can You Substitute Maple Syrup for Honey?

Maple syrup, made from the sap of maple trees, is a common ingredient and one of the most called upon substitutes for honey. It does have a unique flavor, and is a great alternative to honey in most cooking and baking recipes.

In terms of function, you can use maple syrup in place of honey, in equal parts (it’s a 1:1 exchange). When compared to maple syrup, one could argue that honey has a more complex flavor. What that means is: your final results will taste different than what the recipe intended for. As long as you’re OK with that, you’ll find maple to be a great addition to your recipe.

About Maple Syrup

Some say maple syrup has caramel notes whilst some feel it has a bit of a nutty flavor. More than anything, most types of maple syrup have a sweet taste. Some types, especially Grade B syrups, can have some bitter notes. It’s a popular topping for pancakes, French toast, and waffles, and is even sometimes used in salad dressings.

Real maple syrup is a delicious natural syrup that has a decent amount of body (think about how thin water is compared to maple syrup). It pairs well with a wide range of ingredients, especially some types of alcohol, pears, pecans, and walnuts. If you ever find yourself combining maple syrup with other ingredients, you should avoid adding more sugar, as this can be overly sweet.

If you’ve never experienced maple extract, find an excuse to give it a try. Honestly, it’s like someone bottled up a stack of pancakes from your childhood and put it in a jar. At least, that’s what it smells like to me (I can’t eat it due to allergies, but have developed quite a few recipes with it).

All Out of Maple Syrup? Here Are More Options

If you’re looking for a honey alternative, but you’re all out of pure maple syrup, here are more options that will work in place of maple syrup.

Agave Nectar (sometimes called agave syrup)
Apple Syrup
Brown Rice Syrup (also called rice malt syrup)
Coconut Nectar
Corn Syrup (not the same thing as high fructose corn syrup)
Date Syrup
Golden Syrup
Honey (not a vegan product)
Molasses (dark molasses, light molasses, blackstrap molasses)
Sorghum Syrup
Sweet Potato Syrup (yup, that’s a thing)
Yacon Syrup

If you need ingredients that are lower glycemic index foods, stick with other unrefined sweeteners such as coconut nectar or date syrup. Some maple syrup alternatives won’t be the best choice due to the processing of the product, or the properties of the source ingredient.

Remember, the best maple syrup substitutes will be liquid sweeteners (more on this below).

Delicious Recipes Featuring Maple Syrup

Understanding When to Use the Different Substitutes

The first thing I would encourage you to do is sample all of your liquid sweeteners, as each one has a distinct flavor. It’s a good idea to know what they taste like in small amounts so you can ask yourself a simple question: will this taste good in large amounts.

Let’s look at molasses as a great example. Sure, you can use it in place of honey or maple in a chicken dinner recipe. However, in small amounts, most people shy away from molasses. Could you imagine how potent the taste would be if you were replacing a cup of honey or a cup of maple syrup? You’d hate the recipe. Replacing a teaspoon of honey though with molasses, that’s not so bad.

As you look over what the recipe calls for, if the honey is the only form of sweetener, make sure you pick something that won’t clash with the other ingredients.

The Best Substitutes Will be Liquid Sweeteners

When you’re selecting a good substitute for honey, it’s critical to remember that it’s a liquid sweetener. There are two types of sweeteners: liquid and granulated. Granulated sweeteners are grains you can hold in your hand such as cane sugar or coconut sugar.

If you really want to see the difference in action, bake a batch of cookies. Scale the recipe down to use one cup of sugar. Make a batch with the cup of sugar and another batch with a cup of honey or a cup of maple syrup (or other liquid sweetener). The end results will blow your mind. The final texture of the cookies will be wildly different, and there’s a good chance that your liquid sweetened cookie won’t have crispy edges.

Knowing that, to get a similar consistency and similar texture when substituting, the rule is “liquid for liquid and granulated for granulated”.

Answering Your Maple Syrup & Honey Questions

Are there any vegan alternatives to honey?

I used to be able to tell vegans in need of a honey substitute all about Bee Free Honee. It was a ground breaking product made from apple, sugar, and lemon. However, they’ve gone out of business. These days, there are a few very random products you can find online, but I can’t vouch for their quality.

If you search online for “vegan honey recipe”, there seems to be a few websites sharing their version of Bee Free Honee. Just be sure to manage your expectations. What you’ll be making will have a similar body compared to honey, but the end result will have a different flavor when compared to honey.

Would barley malt syrup be an ideal substitute for honey in a recipe?

It’s going to depend on how much honey you’re replacing. In small amounts up up 2 Tablespoons, barley malt syrup could be an excellent alternative in your recipe. That assumes you enjoy the taste of barley malt syrup and know that it won’t clash with the rest of the recipe.

In larger amounts (think a cup of honey), no, it won’t be a good substitute. You’ll want to choose something else that’s a bit more versatile such as brown rice syrup, agave, date syrup, or coconut nectar. Malt does have light, sweet, and almost grainy flavour to it. If you really want to have that flavour present in your recipe, use a bit of malt along with another liquid sweetener.

Would date paste work in place of honey in baked goods?

Personally, I don’t think date paste would be a good option because of the texture. If you can use date syrup instead, that would yield better results. Date paste is more of a semi-solid puréed fruit, and won’t dissolve into the other ingredients the same way honey or date syrup would.

Can I use light corn syrup or dark corn syrup in place of honey in a dinner recipe?

I don’t suggest making that swap. At least, not if the recipe calls for more than a few Tablespoons of honey. You’re probably working with a chicken, pork, or beef recipe. Corn syrup would be a great option in sweet dishes, but not so much in savory meals. The level of sweetness would be too high and corn syrup lacks the depth of flavour the honey brings.

In a savory recipe, a great honey substitute would be date syrup or sweet potato syrup. These are both going to have a nice level of sweetness paired with earthy notes that will compliment the recipe.

Can I make a brown sugar syrup and use that in place of honey in a recipe?

It depends. A brown sugar syrup is a type of simple syrup and can be a great alternative to honey in beverages. Traditionally, simple syrups are used more as glazes, as they have a different viscosity when compared to a full bodied liquid sweetener such as honey or maple syrup. If you’re using it as a glaze, it can be applied to fruit, vegetables, meat, cakes, and anything else you’d impart a richer, sweeter flavour to.

Additionally, in terms of sweetness, you may find that a simple syrup in large amounts is too much to handle. Rather than use a brown sugar syrup, I’d opt for something like date syrup or coconut nectar (sometimes called coconut syrup). Both of these will have a deeper, richer flavour, a good level of sweetness, and the body you’re aiming to replace.

If I’m out of honey and maple syrup, can I use pancake syrup as a substitute?

In terms of function, technically, yes you could. Pancake syrup wouldn’t throw off the ratios of your liquid ingredients. In terms of flavor and everything else, I wouldn’t say this is a great substitute. Personally, I’d make a trip to the store to pick up honey or maple syrup for the recipe. However, if you can’t do that, and you really want to make said recipe, you could do it. Just know that your final result will have a high sugar content due to the ingredients in pancake syrup. The final taste will also be significantly different from what the recipe intended.

My recipe calls for a cup of honey. Can I use a cup of brown sugar in its place?

Using a cup of granulated sugar (white sugar, brown sugar, date sugar, etc.) will not work in place of honey, especially in baked sweet recipes. If you’re making a sauce of some sort, a granulated sweetener will work since it dissolves and mixes in. However, the sweetness level will change quite a bit and you should start with half the amount and add more as needed.

In baked goods, this swap absolutely will not work. You need to swap liquid sweeteners for liquid sweeteners. The best options in this case would be maple syrup, date syrup, agave, and coconut nectar.

I have to monitor my sugar intake. Would something like liquid Stevia work in place of honey?

When you’re making sweet treats (especially baked), no, something like liquid Stevia and other sugar drops won’t work in place of honey. Whilst they will provide a sweet flavor, they lack volume and body. Liquid Stevia drops would work well in a beverage where texture is very forgivable. In some savory recipes, it could work as well.

If you’re trying to make a cookie for example, it would be better to use an unrefined sweetener that you generally tolerate well, then make small portions of your baked goods. If you need more help on this, I suggest going to the manufacturer’s website of your sugar drops. They usually have recipes on their website and you can use the ingredients you have on hand (plus really get a feel for how the ratios work with that type of product).

If a recipe calls for honey, can I use raw honey? Or should it be regular honey?

Yes, you can use any type of honey. All honeys will have the same function in a recipe. However, their flavor is what will vary wildly. If you’ve ever had the opportunity to sample honey, you’ll know that local raw honey tastes much different compared to say, Manuka honey.

That difference is what you’ll need to account for. If you love your raw honey and know that it will taste good in the recipe, go for it. If you think your raw honey is too strong for the recipe, you’ll need to purchase a more mild tasting honey. Your local farmer’s market is a great place to find new and exciting honey varieties that can work well in recipes.

How to Substitute Maple Syrup for Honey (& Other Alternatives)