Raw Sugar

There are many different types and forms of caloric sweeteners that we collectively call “sugar.” Some sugars come in granulated form, such as table sugar. Table sugar is sucrose, a disaccharide made of equal parts of two monosaccharides: glucose and fructose. Other sugars, such as high fructose corn syrup?, come in liquid form as a mixture of the monosaccharides glucose and fructose.

Raw sugar, also known as turbinado sugar?, is light brown in color and comes in crystalized form. It is primarily sucrose (96-99%) and a small amount of molasses.

Raw sugar contains about the same number of calories per teaspoon as table sugar. Although it may impart a slightly different flavor than table sugar because it contains molasses, raw sugar can be used like table sugar for baking or sweetening coffee and tea.

The number of steps involved in the sugar-cane-refining process can affect the color of a sugar’s end product. While table sugar is white, raw sugar is light brown because it is less refined and, as a result, contains more of the natural molasses present in sugar cane. Table sugar that is made from sugar cane undergoes additional refining to remove molasses.

Raw sugar does not dissolve as easily as refined sugar. It holds its shape when heated, making it good for crunchy toppings on sugar cookies or muffins, but not so great in cakes or puddings where smoothness and moisture is desired.

Raw sugars are also called?turbinado, demerara, evaporated cane juice, dried cane syrup, dehydrated cane juice, less processed cane sugar, washed sugar, natural cane sugar, and single-crystallization sugar