[Sca-cooks] black sugar

[Tara Sersen Boroson]

Decker, Terry D. wrote:

> I've heard that brown sugar is white sugar which has been mixed with
> molasses, but I have a hard time with the idea.  Molasses extraction is part
> of the refining process, why spend the extra time and money completely
> refining the sugar only to add molasses and get a product that appeared in
> an earlier stage of the refining.


Same reason they process the cocoa butter out of cacao then add it back
in later.  Or sometimes they do so with flour.  It's so they can process
and refine both portions seperately, then combine them back in
consistant proportions.  Brown sugar is not identical to turbinado
sugar.  As I recall, white and brown sugar contain a lot more invert
sugar, which is a result of the processing.  Invert sugar is treated
differently by our bodies, I don't know if it might also react
differently in some recipes.

Otherwise, why wouldn't makers of brown sugar start advertising their
product as "natural" or "turbinado" or "unrefined" sugar to take
advantage of the trend?

-Magdalena