FOOD NEWS
The Simple Way To Upgrade The Taste Of Sugar
By Garth Clingingsmith
There are quite a few ways to upgrade the taste of white sugar, such as caramelizing or melting it down to take advantage of complex reactions that change the sugar’s structure, flavor, and sweetness. While it melts at 367 degrees Fahrenheit and starts to caramelize at only 320 degrees Fahrenheit, here’s a trick to maximize your sugar without liquifying it.
Pour the sugar into a glass or ceramic 9" x 13" pan and bake it in an oven set to 325 degrees Fahrenheit for about four hours. This is the key as that temperature doesn’t melt the sugar but will add those toasty flavors, and be sure to stir it every half hour to avoid clumps.
Store this in an airtight container indefinitely, and it can be used pound for pound in any recipe that calls for white sugar. The flavor developed via toasting is mild, so highlight it in recipes that are simply flavored, such as angel food cake or sugar cookies, or sub this for powdered sugar in whipped cream.
To go one step further, bake a smaller amount of sugar for less than half an hour on a sheet pan lined with a silicone mat in an oven preheated at 360 degrees Fahrenheit. This caramelized sugar can then be cooled to harden and blitzed until fine in a food processor, but as the sweetness lessens when the sugar melts and caramelizes, you'll need to use a larger volume of caramelized sugar.