One cookie recipe specified superfine sugar. Now I have a lot left. Recently I read about experimenting with using superfine sugar in place of regular granulated sugar. Are they interchangeable? Do I need to make any adjustments?
It’s a question that came up recently during our weekly live chat, where we help you improve your cooking skills. Here’s what you need to know about superfine sugar and how it compares to standard granulated sugar.
Superfine sugar is granulated sugar with a finer texture, but its smaller crystals dissolve more quickly and easily than regular granulated sugar. You can make your own superfine sugar by blending regular granulated sugar in the food processor for a minute or two. Don’t overdo it, otherwise you’ll end up with something more akin to confectioners’ (powdered) sugar.
Superfine, which may also be labeled as powdered, bar, or even baker’s sugar, is ideal for situations where you really want to make sure the sugar dissolves, such as a delicate angel food cake, meringue, or frosting. butter cream. Beverages are another great use for superfine sugar, especially because sugar dissolves easily, even in cold liquid.
If you are looking for a finer texture and more lightness in your cookies, consider replacing ultrafine sugar with granulated sugar. The smaller crystals of ultrafine sugar trap more air when sugar and butter are beaten together during creaming, explains Rose Levy Beranbaum in “The Cookie Bible.” The finer sugar also means the dough is less likely to crack during baking. For cookies rolled in sugar before baking, superfine provides a delicate and uniform coating.
Replacing granulated sugar with superfine sugar isn’t always ideal for textural reasons, but you can substitute granulated sugar for granulated sugar without a problem. As I have often written, I always prefer to measure baking ingredients by weight. But is there a difference between the weight of a cup of superfine sugar and a cup of granulated sugar? It depends who you ask, but the bottom line isn’t really the case – we’re talking maybe a margin of around 10 grams per cup, which isn’t an appreciable difference. If the recipe specifies weight and you have a scale, by all means replace the same number of grams of superfine with pellets. If you’re working with volume only, swap out an equal amount of cups (or tablespoons).
Recipes with ultrafine sugar
