
What Is Sanding Sugar?
By: Bob's Red Mill | February 17 2018Sugar is a very important ingredient in baking, not only for its power to sweeten yummy desserts, but also for its ability to help get a lovely rise in yeasted breads and rolls. Most of the time when you hear the word sugar, you think of the four and five pound bags often found in local grocery stores.
This type of sugar is used primarily for making baked goods and sweetening up teas and coffees. It may also be used as an added dash of sweetener to bowls of cereal or oatmeal in the morning, or as a tasty topping on a batch of fresh strawberries. Really, there is no end to the uses of sugar!
However, there is a wide world of sugar out there, and different types of sugar are used for a variety of different things. Sanding sugar, in particular, is especially fun and versatile.
Sanding sugar is a large crystal sugar that's great for decorating because it won't dissolve with heat. It also creates a sparkly effect because of the large size of the crystals that reflect light. It's great for decorating treats like cookies, cakes, scones, muffins, and even candies. This coarse and often sparkling sugar helps to add a special crunch and extra flair to even the simplest of offerings. This makes sanding sugar an excellent addition to your holiday baking arsenal, because you can dress up your deserts as festively or as simply as you like.
You can even make your own colors of sanding sugar, if you’re feeling particularly industrious and motivated. Perhaps a bit of bright pink and dazzling red for Valentine’s day? The sky’s the limit!
Powdered sugar, sometimes called confectioners' sugar, is basically white granulated sugar that is been ground to a fine powder. It's usually mixed with cornstarch to prevent it from caking, and it is the most common type of sugar used in frostings and glazes.
Ultra-fine sugar is a version of regular white granulated sugar with smaller crystals, although it’s not quite as fine as powdered sugar. It works well in delicate desserts like puddings and mousse, largely because it doesn't need heat in order to dissolve properly. This makes it ideal for mixing into cold drinks as well, especially if you hate it when your sugar doesn’t dissolve!
After reading about the different types of sugar, I have a question for you I hope you can answer. I have and old cookies recipe made with graham crackers, butter, sugar and pecans. You melt the butter and add the sugar and boil for several minutes. The recipe was great years ago, but now when I make it the cookies are soggy. The sugar butter glaze does not get transparent. I have tried beet sugar, and cane sugar . Was wondering if one of the above sugars would be better. They are my 94 year old Mother in law’s favorite treat. Thanks
It looks like you're saying that sanding sugar is made from evaporated sugar syrup; would this be possible to do at home with a concentrated simple syrup made from regular cane sugar/granulated sugar? Like in the old days when we'd make "rock candy" on a string or a stick?
(The rock candy never came out quite as pretty as the store bought kind, with its big shiny crystals, so maybe there's a trick to getting those nice big reflective crystals?)
Or does sanding sugar have to be made from the actual cane juice or something? Thanks for your time; I live right next to the middle of nowhere, so I either have to mail order, make myself, or do without. :-)