GIVE US SOME SUGAR, HON!

It used to be you had two choices: sugar or artificial sweetener that left a bad taste in your mouth. Then the artificial sweeteners began to proliferate: the pink packet, the yellow packet, the blue packet, the green packet…. (Ok, we made up that last one. Or at least we think we made it up. If your company makes a green packet, let us know.)

But that was then, and this is now. Check out these new alternatives:

Date sugar is made by grinding dried dates into granulated “sugar” crystals. High in fiber, this is also filled with other vitamins and minerals. Mostly you can use this to replace brown sugar in recipes. Note,however, that date sugar does not melt nor dissolve like regular sugar.

Demerara is a relatively rare sugar. It originally came from Demerara, Guyana, hence the name. It has a heavy flavor, sort of like molasses. It is good in baked goods. Do NOT confuse this product with London Demarara which is totally not the same thing. London Demarara is refined white sugar with added molasses.

Maple sugar is made from dried and crushed maple syrup. It has a light color and a texture like soft fudge. It is a very sweet product, much sweeter than “normal” sugar. The taste is maple like (gosh, that’s a big surprise). It can be used to replace brown sugar. It also has a very long shelf life and can be dissolved in liquids.

Enjoy!