Stop Searching - Here are the 12 Best Brown Sugar Substitutes

What is Brown Sugar?

Brown sugar is made from white sugar that has been combined with molasses. It comes in both light and dark varieties; the darker the sugar, the more intense the flavor.

Light brown sugar has a mild molasses flavor and a pale golden color, while dark brown sugar has an intense molasses flavor and a deep caramel color.

Both types are perfect for baking as they add moisture and can help enhance flavors in cakes, cookies, pies, and muffins—you name it!

Uses for Brown Sugar

Brown sugars have many uses beyond baking! They add sweetness to oatmeal or yogurt bowls, give pancakes a boost of flavor, or can even be sprinkled on top of French toast before serving.

You can also use them to sweeten your morning coffee or tea by adding it directly into your mug or using it as an alternative sweetener for recipes like lattes or chai teas.

And because it adds such great moisture content to baked goods, you can use it for anything from banana bread to cookies to scones!

List of 12 Best Brown Sugar Substitutes

Running out of brown sugar can be a real bummer when you’re in the middle of baking something delicious. Don’t worry though—there’s an easy solution!

1. DIY Brown Sugar

Make your own brown sugar by combining white granulated sugar with molasses to make your own homemade version of brown sugar.

1. To make light brown sugar, mix 1 cup (200g) of white granulated sugar with 1 tablespoon (15 ml) of molasses.
2. To make dark brown sugar mix 1 cup (200g) of white granulated sugar with 2 tablespoons (30ml)of molasses. 

2. Coconut sugar

Coconut sugar is made by boiling down the sap extracted from the flower buds of coconut palms. The boiled-down liquid slowly crystallizes into granules that resemble light brown sugar.

It has an earthy flavor and a subtle hint of molasses. It’s perfect for baking cakes, cookies, muffins, and other desserts. For best results, use it in combination with honey or maple syrup when replacing brown sugar in recipes. 

3. Date sugar

Date sugar is dried dates that have been ground into a fine powder. It has a rich caramel flavor that pairs well with oatmeal cookies and banana bread.

Date sugar can be used as an exact replacement for brown sugar in most recipes without any alterations needed. Its coarse texture makes it difficult to dissolve in cold beverages, so it’s best used as an additive to baked goods instead of cold drinks like smoothies or shakes. 

4. Demerara sugar

Demerara Sugar is made from evaporated cane juice that has been lightly filtered and pressed into crystals before being dried out completely.

It’s got large grains with golden-brown color and a mild molasses flavor that adds just the right amount of sweetness to oatmeal or muesli bowls. Demerara works especially well when sprinkled on top of cakes as decoration since its crunchy texture contrasts the softness of cakes and other desserts!

5. Sucanat (unrefined cane sugar)

Sucanat is created by pressing freshly harvested cane juice until it forms large granules with golden-brown coloration and a full-bodied flavor profile.

Since this type of sugar isn’t refined like regular white sugars are, its taste remains much closer to the natural flavor of raw cane juice than other types of sweeteners do—making it ideal for baking pies or cobblers where you want more pronounced flavors than what conventional white sugars offer! 

6. Turbinado sugar

Turbinado is a type of raw cane sugar from freshly harvested cane plants. It is minimally processed and lightly refined, giving it a unique flavor and texture you won’t get from regular granulated sugars.

It is slightly coarser than standard white sugars and has a light golden hue with hints of molasses flavor. Turbinado is an excellent substitute for brown sugar because of its similar texture and sweet flavor. When using it as a substitute for brown sugar, use twice or one and a half times as much turbinado as you would normally use brown sugar to get the same level of sweetness.  

7. Muscovado sugar

Muscovado is another type of raw cane sugar that has been minimally processed but has more molasses than turbinado or other types of raw cane sugars.

The result is a deep golden color with intense molasses flavors, making this an excellent choice for baking with strong flavor profiles like chocolate or gingerbread.

It also has some interesting health benefits since it contains minerals like potassium and magnesium, which are beneficial for general health maintenance.

To replace brown sugar with muscovado sugar, use the same amount when substituting muscovado for granulated white sugar or half the amount when using it as a dark brown sugar substitute

8. Palm Sugar

Palm sugar comes from the sap of certain palm trees species such as Toddy palms or Palmyra palms in India and Southeast Asia. This sap is boiled until it crystallizes into small grains which are then dried into what we know as palm sugar granules (or flakes).

Palm sugars have a unique flavor profile with caramel notes combined with mild floral notes which makes them perfect substitutes for light or dark brown sugars in baking recipes like cakes or breads where they can really shine through!

To substitute palm sugars in place of regular white sugars, use twice as much while to substitute them in place of light/dark brown sugars use half as much (as per recommendations above).  

9. Jaggery

Jaggery is another type of unrefined cane sugar made from boiling down sap from various species of palm trees until crystals form (similar to palm sugar).

The difference between jaggery and other types of unrefined cane sugars lies in its production process – jaggery does not require any additional refining steps so its flavor is more robust than other types of unrefined cane sugars due to its higher content of minerals like iron, calcium, and zinc along with vitamins B1 & B2 present naturally in its raw form!

Jaggery works well as an alternative to both light/dark brown sugars when used at half the amount recommended by recipe instructions (again according to instructions above).  

10. Honey, Agave nectar, or Maple syrup

These three sweeteners are all great alternatives to use in place of brown sugar. All three are naturally occurring sugars, so they add flavor as well as sweetness.

They also lend moisture to baked goods like cakes, cookies, and muffins. When substituting these for brown sugar in recipes, reduce the other liquid ingredients by ¼ cup for every 1 cup of honey/agave/maple syrup. 

11. Blackstrap molasses

This dark syrup is made during the process of refining sugarcane into table sugar and adds a unique depth of flavor to recipes. Blackstrap molasses adds color and richness, making desserts like gingerbread stand out from the rest.

It’s best used in small amounts when substituted for brown sugar since it has such a strong flavor and can easily overpower other ingredients if not used carefully.

To substitute blackstrap molasses for brown sugar in recipes, replace each 1 cup of light or dark brown sugar with ¾ cup blackstrap molasses and reduce the liquid ingredients by 3 tablespoons per ¾ cup of blackstrap molasses used. 

12. Brown Rice Syrup or Barley

Both of these products have complex flavors that pair perfectly with fruit-based recipes like streusels, pies, crumbles, cobblers, and jams.

Brown rice syrup has more nutritional value than many other sweeteners because it contains minerals like manganese and zinc while barley syrup adds a mild maltiness to desserts like blondies and oatmeal bars.

To substitute either one for brown sugar in recipes, replace each 1 cup of light or dark brown sugar with 1¼ cups barley or rice syrup and reduce other liquids by 3 tablespoons per 1¼ cups barley/rice syrup used.

Wrap Up: Brown Sugar Substitute

• When it comes to substituting brown sugar in recipes, there are many options available.
• Whether you choose white sugars, jaggery, honey or agave nectar, maple syrup blackstrap molasses, or barley and rice syrups, each can uniquely flavor your dishes.
• However, make sure that when using any of these alternatives for brown sugar, the liquid ingredients should be reduced accordingly per the instructions above.
• Additionally, store brown sugar properly if looking to preserve its quality over time, and avoid consuming it if bug contamination is present on the product surface.
• Finally, remember that nutritionally speaking both white and brown sugars have similar properties so neither one provides health benefits over the other.