What brown sugar does
Brown sugar is an ingredient most often used in baked goods, such as cookies, bars and cakes. It tends to bring a rich caramel flavour, lots of moisture because of its molasses content, and a chewy texture.
How to substitute it
- With white sugar: If you don’t have any brown sugar on hand, white sugar will work just fine. For every 1 cup of brown sugar the recipe calls for, replace it with 1 cup of white sugar. While your recipe, such as a cookie, for example, might be crisp rather than chewy, have less of a caramel-like sweetness and be a bit thinner, it’ll still make for a tasty treat.
- If you happen to have any molasses on hand, however, you can add 2 tablespoons (30 ml) to the white sugar; mix well and add to your recipe. This combination will provide the richness and complex sweetness that brown sugar normally brings, such as in a pumpkin cake.
- With honey: Given that savoury recipes requiring brown sugar, such as glazed salmon or a sweet and sour chicken, only need a small amount of it, a drizzle of honey or some maple sugar will suffice.
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