A  couple of weeks back, I bought my first bottle of agave nectar.

I was inspired by a unusual recipe by Heidi Swanson, one of my favorite bloggers who'd posted a recipe for black bean brownies a while ago. Made with walnuts, black beans and dark chocolate, they seemed like tasty and a relatively healthy way to satisfy a chocolate craving.

But I put the recipe on the back burner, because it also called for agave nectar. At the time, that seemed a little too exotic at the time for someone who only keeps granulated white sugar and honey in the pantry.

Then I spotted a bottle of it at Trader Joe's, snapped it up, and now I'm a convert.

For those who don't already know (and I didn't till just a few days ago), agave nectar is a natural sweetener produced from the blue agave plant that thrives in the volanic soils of Southern Mexico. The same plant is also the source of tequila.

One the best things about agave nectar (sometimes called agave syrup) is that it is one of the least refined sweeteners out there.

Agave nectar has fewer calories than regular sugar and may be a healthier option for people who suffer from diabetes and hypoglycemia because it is lower lower on the glycemic index than most sweeteners. Still, as Wikipedia notes, it does contain high levels of fructose, and the glycemic index only measures glucose levels.

That said, it's very tasty. It's a bit like honey, but has its own kind of meadowish flavor. (That's better than it sounds.) To me, it isn't as sweet as honey or sugar but it does have lots of flavor. 

Fellow converts can find a handy conversion chart at allaboutagave.com, which lists substitution amounts for a variety of sugars and sweeteners. It is supposed to be great in baked goodies. 

I'm not much of a baker, but I plan to keep a bottle handy from now on. Especially after learning that it dissolves easily in cold drinks.

Now if only it would warm up enough to make some mint sun tea spiked with agave nectar.