Brown sugar is a key ingredient in many cookie and cake recipes, but its consistency can make or break the entire baking experience. Whether you’re preparing a make-ahead dessert for a dinner party or have a sudden craving for something sweet, cracking open the brown sugar container and finding a brick that you have to…
Why Does Brown Sugar Harden?
First, let’s look at what causes those bricks to form. The reason brown sugar hardens is a lack of moisture. Brown sugar is a mix of molasses and white sugar crystals, and the molasses’ moisture tends to evaporate quickly, especially when exposed to air. This results in a dry, rock-hard block that’s so frustrating when it comes time to make your favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe.
How To Keep Brown Sugar Soft
Brown sugar is prone to hardening, but keeping it soft is not as impossible as it seems — and the solution might already be hiding amid your other baking supplies. To keep brown sugar from clumping (and save your wrists from having to chip away at the brick of hardened crystals), place two or three marshmallows in the container with the sugar. We know it sounds bizarre, but it really works.
Marshmallows are effective because they contain a lot of moisture that’s gradually released into the air when stored in an enclosed container. By placing marshmallows in a container with brown sugar, you can rehydrate the sugar in a day or two, or keep a fresh bag scoopable for several months. Just be sure to replace the marshmallows when they begin to harden or dry out themselves.
If you don’t have marshmallows on hand, a slice of bread can also revive clumpy brown sugar. Bread has excellent moisture levels that can humidify your brown sugar without melting it. Let the slice of bread mingle with the brown sugar for eight to 24 hours before removing it. That brick will turn into soft, workable sugar. Alternatively, you can always pick up a brown sugar saver disc the next time you’re adding to your Amazon cart.
