What is the difference between normal sugar and brown sugar used in cooking?!
What is the difference between normal sugar and brown sugar used in cooking?
Answers:
Brown sugar is normal sugar mixed with molasses. It adds moisture and taste to what you are making. If you are cooking with them and don't have the brown sugar for every cup mix about 3/4 table spoon of molasses with your normal sugar. It makes a large difference. A great and simple example is chocolate chip cookies. If you don't use brown sugar they will be crunch and very very hard. But just by using more brown sugar you will have moist and chewy depending on the amount you use. Go to Foodnetwork.com and read Alton Brown's chocolate chip cookie thing. He has 3 recipies and they vary in the amount of brown sugar and the way you work the butter in.
Brown sugar is normal sugar with molasses added to it.
Molasses
Brown sugar has a whole 'nother reaction than white with other ingredients, neither can be substituted for the other. A really easy-peasy broiled frosting on a one-layer cake or coffee-cake: 4 tbs brown sugar, 2 tbs flour [combine]; 3 tbs butter or marg, work in with fork or fingers...throw in any chopped nuts or coconut or even cornflakes [! really!] and spread on the one-layer cake right after it comes out of the oven. Broil about 6-8" away from flame or element and watch closely so it doesn't over-brown...broil just until it bubbles and browns nicely. ONLY brown sugar works with this one. Tastes like you really worked hard, too...my grandma used to call this one Lazybones frosting.