Yacon Syrup

Yacon syrup is a sweetening agent extracted from the tuberous roots of the yacon plant, Smallanthus sonchifolius, native to the Andes mountains and used since the time of the Incas. It is rich in fructooligosaccharides, with the root providing roughly 35 percent free fructose, and is produced with standard evaporating equipment much like that used to make maple syrup, yielding a taste similar to molasses or caramelized sugar. Across the Andes it serves different purposes by country: in Peru the root is valued for its low calorie and sugar content, in Bolivia it is eaten by people managing diabetes or other digestive and renal disorders, and in Brazil its dried leaves are brewed into a tea said to be antidiabetic.