Any time you head into the kitchen to embark on a baking frenzy, there’s one ingredient that you’ll undoubtedly need and that’s brown sugar. And if you’re anything like us, the moment you realize you need brown sugar is also the moment you realize you’re out of brown sugar. What’s a baker to do? Luckily, there are a few options if you need a brown sugar substitute. Here’s what you can do.
Make Your Own
The easiest way to find a brown sugar substitute is to make it yourself. That’s right – you can easily whip up a batch of brown sugar right in their own kitchen. Mix 1 cup of white granulated sugar mixed with 1 Tablespoon of molasses. Use a fork or a blender to mix the two ingredients well. Don’t have molasses? YOu wouldn’t be alone. Plenty of people don’t have any stashed away in their pantry. The good news is that you can also mix white granulated sugar with maple syrup or agave syrup to get a similar – albeit slightly different flavored – concoction.
Granulated Sugar
If you’re really in a bind and don’t have the necessary items to make your own brown sugar, you can actually use regular ‘ole granulated sugar. Be prepared for the taste to be slightly different than it would be if you used brown sugar, and the texture will be noticeably different. However, it can still work well in a pinch. To use granulated sugar as a brown sugar substitute, use a 1:1 ratio.
Coconut Sugar
While these last two are a little more exotic, if you do happen to have these different types of sugars in your cabinets, you can certainly use them as a replacement too. Coconut sugar (also called palm sugar) is a type of sugar made from the sap of coconut palm buds. It’s more commonly used in Southeast Asia, but it’s still readily available to people living in the West. Use it the same way you’d use granulated sugar as a replacement, with a 1:1 ratio of coconut sugar for brown sugar.
Beet Sugar
Like coconut sugar, beet sugar is also an option for replacing brown sugar in a recipe. Beet sugar is a type of sugar made from beets, and while it may seem more exotic, almost 30% of the world’s sugar is actually already made from beets. In fact, if you don’t pay attention when you’re buying white granulated sugar, you may end up buying beet sugar instead of cane sugar. Interesting, right? Like the other brown sugar substitutes, use a 1:1 ratio.
Do you have any other tips for using a brown sugar substitute while cooking? Which replacement do you prefer to cook with, and why? Share your tips with us in the comments!
