How to Make Brown Sugar

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Brown sugar is one of those pantry staples that is super easy to make. Learn how to make brown sugar with two simple ingredients.

You might be wondering why you'd ever want to make your own brown sugar when it is so easily available in the store. There are lots of reasons.

The first reason is if you are either out of brown sugar or don't have enough brown sugar when you are making a recipe. I know for me, the closest grocery store is the next town over. If I'm baking or cooking, I don't like to stop halfway through to get ingredients. So, if you make some homemade brown sugar, you don't have to, you can just make up a batch real quick and finish your recipe.

Another reason is because you might not want to keep brown sugar on hand. If you're like me, you may not have a pantry or a lot of storage room in your kitchen. If I just need to keep some molasses and granulated sugar, it's easy enough to make brown sugar when needed. One less thing to store.

Another reason might be that you like your ingredients to be organic. Have you checked prices lately? Store bought brown sugar that is organic can not only be hard to find, but also expensive! Stock up on organic granulated sugar and organic molasses as the base ingredients and you can save a bit of money by making your own.

So, you'll want to make sure you have this brown sugar recipe in your recipe binder incase you need to whip up some brown sugar. Read on to see our homemade brown sugar recipe.

What is Brown Sugar Made up of?

You may have noticed that brown sugar tastes different than white granulated sugar. Brown sugar has more of a deep, almost caramel like flavor, while white sugar has a more pure sugary flavor.

This is because brown sugar also has the flavor of molasses in it. Brown sugar is molasses and white sugar.

What is the purpose of brown sugar?

Brown sugar is added to all sorts of recipes including many baking recipes, marinade or sauces and to different types of meats.

It is added to recipes to add extra flavoring and is also can make certain dishes more moist.

Some of our favorite recipes, such as these chocolate chip cookies use brown sugar.

Dark vs Light Brown Sugar

There are two types of brown sugar that you typically find at the grocery store: light brown sugar and dark brown sugar.

The difference between these two types is how much molasses is in it. The dark brown sugar has more molasses compared to the light brown sugar.

Not only does the dark brown sugar have more molasses, but it also has more molasses flavor.

Many times I use dark brown sugar in recipes that call for light brown sugar. It just adds a deeper flavor that my family loves.

How to Store Homemade Brown Sugar

You can store the homemade brown sugar in sugar canisters. An airtight container for storage is even better.

Homemade brown sugar should last as long as normal brown sugar lasts, which means indefinitely. I would suggest using it within a year, just so it stays soft and the texture and taste stays the same.

How to Soften Brown Sugar

If your brown sugar gets hard, you have a few options on how to soften it back up.

You can stick it in a microwave safe bowl and stick it in the microwave for about 10 seconds.

You can also place a slice of bread in your sugar container on top of the brown sugar. Leave it for at least a few hours and your sugar should soften up.

Equipment

Bowl

Blender, stand mixer, or mixing bowl and whisk

Ingredients

Molasses

Granulated Sugar

How to make Brown Sugar

The ratio of sugar and molasses is 1 cup of sugar to one tablespoon of molasses for light brown sugar.

If you want to make dark brown sugar it is 1 cup of sugar to two tablespoons of molasses.

You can mix this in a blender, stand mixer, or food processor. Just combine the white sugar and molasses and mix on medium speed until completely incorporated. Make sure to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl so all the molasses gets mixed in.

If you are going to mix by hand. You can add the sugar and molasses to a large bowl and either use a whisk or fork to mix it together.

Either use your homemade brown sugar in a recipe or store in an airtight container for later.

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Other homemade ingredient recipes:

Marshmallow Fluff

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