On Making Brown Sugar

This afternoon, my babe and I made brown sugar from scratch.

Ever since reading this absolute marvel of a book:

MARVEL, I tell you, I have been smitten with the joy of making everyday staples right here in my own kitchen.  I love that I can make simple recipes with my little ones and teach them the basics behind things like yogurt, mayonnaise and sandwich bread.  I love feeding them food that is as natural as possible and that tastes as good as it possibly can.  My four year-old has started to eat the crusts on his sandwiches!  Again, marvel!  As an aside, I love the stories that accompany each recipe in this book.  It reads as both a cookbook and a book of short stories.   Delicious all around.  Which brings me back to brown sugar.

A friend asked me if there is any benefit to making your own brown sugar as opposed to buying it at the store.  I had to think about that for a minute.  Here is what I came up with:  the benefits include watching your toddler’s delight as you pour sweet sticky molasses into measuring spoons, hearing the tinkling of the wire whisk as it tap, tap, taps the edge of the mixing bowl, folding that delicious molasses into a cloud of white sugar, enjoying the delicious aroma of molasses and baby giggles as the sugar beats ’round and ’round and starts to take form, eating the brown sugar by the spoonful, right out of the bowl, without guilt.

And of course, you get to lick the beater.

Have I convinced you?  Here are the incredibly easy directions for making delicious brown sugar of your very own.

Brown sugar has life outside of baking.  My boys love to eat warm buttered toast, sprinkled with brown sugar.  It is grand in coffee or in place of jam on a peanut butter sandwich.