How to Prepare Cookies (Without Brown Sugar)

When individuals first start baking, cookies are frequently one of the first meals they try. After all, with so many different sorts of cookies and so many various methods to produce a decent cookie, cookies are immensely adaptable.

As a result, many wannabe bakers rapidly discover that in baking, almost every component plays a function.

Baking is one of the most difficult aspects of cooking since it is one of the few areas where accurate measurements truly matter.

Unless you have more baking expertise, merely mentioning a huge sprinkle of an ingredient will not be adequate to establish how much you will truly need, since each item that you add to a baking dish is likely to have a part.

Baking is really a great method to learn about the function that chemical processes play in baking and cooking in general. There are certain key components in baking that have unique use in distinct contexts.

A excellent example is that egg whites are often utilized when you need to whip up a component since egg whites are recognized for their ability to greatly increase its volume, as seen with meringue.

Returning to the subject of cookies, ambitious bakers will immediately discover that each component in the cookie has a specific purpose.

There are few occasions when you may simply avoid using an item, unless you have planned for that change and have the essential components to make up the difference.

Brown sugar is one example of an item that many people underestimate the relevance of. Many people believe that brown sugar is just an interchangeable version of regular sugar, however this is not the case. Brown sugar has a distinct purpose in cookies.

With that in mind, you may be wondering whether you can completely eliminate brown sugar from the cookie recipe.

Although you may remove almost anything from the equation and still obtain anything like a cookie, you must always replace the eliminated component with a replacement that has comparable qualities to the original.

This implies that before you look into brown sugar substitutes, you should first understand what brown sugar does in cookies and what elements to look for when selecting a replacement component.

Why Is Brown Sugar Important?

Brown sugar adds a little more to the table than ordinary white sugar does since brown sugar is made up of more elements than standard white sugar.

The majority of white sugar is pure sugar with no extra additives. Brown sugar, on the other hand, is a blend of molasses and sugar, which gives it its distinctive brown hue.

The sugar-molasses ratio varies depending on the kind of brown sugar used. The average brown sugar contains around 10% molasses, whereas darker varieties include about 20% or more.

The molasses, on the other hand, isn’t just for show. Molasses, in the context of brown sugar, serves to provide moisture to the texture of the cookies since it is a liquid, although a slow-moving one. Also, molasses is naturally somewhat acidic.

This implies that the moderate acid level will force the proteins in the cookie dough, which are generally derived from eggs and milk, to firm up a little quicker than usual.

At the same length of time that you would cook a cookie with more brown sugar than a cookie without any, the cookie with brown sugar will come out chewier.

Now that you know a little bit more about brown sugar and what it adds to your cookie on a molecular level, you can start thinking about what alternatives you can make, if any at all.

Can You Substitute Brown Sugar?

If you find yourself in the circumstance where you don’t have any brown sugar to add to your cookies, there are a few methods to manufacture brown sugar without having to make a special trip to the shop. In fact, if you really want to, you can produce your own brown sugar at home.

The simplest substitution, and the one that will come the closest to the original store-bought brown sugar, will be to make your own brown sugar at home. You’ll just need white sugar and molasses for this, and you’ll be good to go.

Of course, you won’t be able to create it at the same scale as the companies that sell brown sugar, but you can easily make your own brown sugar in a pinch by doing so.

To produce your own light brown sugar, typically combine one cup of sugar with one tablespoon of molasses. If you want a darker brown color, increase the amount of molasses to two tablespoons.

If you don’t have molasses on hand, maple syrup may give virtually the same qualities as molasses, but with a sweeter aroma.

When it comes to maple syrup, some believe that you can simply add the syrup to your cookie and it will be alright.

Adding honey, maple syrup, or agave nectar may have the same benefits as brown sugar, but keep in mind that these are all pure liquids. The quantity of liquid you put to the cookie may have an effect on the overall outcome.

The general idea is to replace each cup of brown sugar with around two-thirds of a cup of your liquid sweetener, and then decrease all other liquid sources in your recipe by one-fourth cup for every two-thirds cup of liquid sweetener you use.

Lastly, you may want to think about utilizing coconut sugar. Coconut sugar contains many of the same qualities as brown sugar, and it even has a similar color and flavor. The main difference is that since it is coconut sugar and not sugar combined with a liquid, it does not retain as much moisture.

This implies that any cookies you prepare with it may turn out drier than desired, so you may need to add a bit extra fat to your cookies to compensate.

What About No Substitutions?

The reality is that you don’t need need brown sugar, or even a brown sugar alternative, in your cookies.

Brown sugar is not one of those essential cookie components like flour or butter, and if you are ready to tolerate the flavor and texture changes that a cookie without brown sugar would bring, you may exclude it entirely from your recipe.

The most noticeable difference is that cookies produced with just white sugar will rise higher because the mild acidity of molasses does not activate the proteins in the cookie before it enters the oven.

Cookies baked with just white sugar will also be a touch crispier than your average cookie.

If you want cookies that are somewhat raised but still have the crisp and crunchy texture that many people like, omitting brown sugar from your recipe may be the best choice for you.

You won’t be making any changes to the ingredients to compensate for the absence of brown sugar in this recipe, except than not include it at all in the first place.