Sugar is the sweetner for all our desserts. It adds moisture and texture to our food. It comes in all different forms and although you can interchange the texture of the goods can change. Lets sweet talk about them.

The RAW variety is the unrefined sugar which has been processed into crystals. It has a delicate caramel flavor. If you use this for your tea and coffee it would give it a richer flavor. I was the most familiar with this kind when I was in India.

The GRANULATED sugar is derived from the sugar cane and sugar beet juice. It is then processed. It has a sweet flavor and is best for baking.Its granules create tiny air bubbles when mixed in batter creating a tenderizing effect.

The POWDERED form is the granulated form pulverized to give it a talc texture. The taste is similar to the mother granulated sugar. This variety mixes and melts in your mouth. It is a garnish for baked goods and also used in icings and frosting. For all these reasons it is also called CONFECTIONER'S sugar.

The BROWN light and dark variety of sugar is white sugar semi refined with molasses reintorduced.The light variety has less molasses giving it a caramel flavor good for all purpose baking. Use this variety of sugar for chewy cookies. It has a moist texture which helps ingredients bond well during baking.

Of course we also see the colored sugar which is essential for decorating. You can make your own by adding food coloring to regular sugar and shaking and kneading well for even color.

The brown sugar must be kept in airtight jars. Altjough sugar left open does soak up moisture, the brown variety is the worst. If you have to revive a clumped brown variety then just place it in the microwave for 25-30 seconds.  Stored properly you can keep the sweet stuff for years.

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