You know, I could stop by and help you eat those rolls. They sure look good.
Sandra is very picky about how much sugar I eat. I told her that I do not have diabetes. She said "exactly".
David
sounds like a plan...
I don't got it either, I don't use sugar at all...
I use honey instead...
The flavor, aroma and color of honey vary with the kind of flowers from which the bees gather the nectar used to make the honey...
Generally the lighter the honey, the milder the flavor... If want stronger flavor, use a darker, stronger flavored honey...
Ordinary granulated sugar is pretty versatile... But not an especially exciting ingredient either... A natural sweetener such as honey can be so much more flavorful... Honey also helps baked goods remain moister for longer... I also think of it as healthier too... substituting honey for sugar in a recipe takes some fiddling though...
Honey is sweeter than refined sugar, so you normally won't use it as a cup-for-cup replacement...
To use honey in baking, the first thing to keep in mind would be the approximate ratio of honey to sugar. Generally, you want to use about one fourth to one third of the amount of honey to sugar, as honey in general is much more concentrated than granulated*sugar. This would leave the conversion ratios looking like this:
1 cup granulated sugar = 1/4 – 1/3 cup raw honey
To determine just how much honey will be needed is going to take some practice and consideration on what other sweeteners*are going into the product. If other sweeteners or sugary ingredients such as fruit are being used, you will not need as much. As a general rule, start with less and add more to taste. It is easier to start with less and add more to taste as undoing a mistake*is pretty much entirely impossible in these situations.
Another thing to take into consideration is the fact that swapping out sugar for honey will increase the moisture content of the overall finished product. Generally, this will not be an issue if the amount of honey used is under 1 cup.. If however, that much honey is going to be used, you may have to scale back a bit on any liquids or high moisture ingredients being used (e.g. milk, water, yogurt, sour cream, etc.)
Start with less, not more.
Be prepared to nix 20-40% of liquids in recipes requiring over 1 cup/4.5 ounces of honey.
Honey also browns more rapidly than sugar, so it's helpful to reduce your baking temperature by 25°F...
In baked goods, add ¼ teaspoon of baking soda per cup of honey if baking soda is not already included in the recipe. This will reduce the acidity of the honey, as well as increase the volume of your product.
Moisten a measuring spoon or the cup with water, oil, or an egg before measuring the honey to prevent it from sticking to the measuring utensil. Honey is heavy by weight. A 12 ounce jar equals one standard 8 ounce cup. A quart weighs 3 pounds.
American consumers buy about 400 million pounds of honey per year, but US producers only supply 150 million pounds. So foreign businesses, especially manufacturers in China, are selling honey cut with cheap sweeteners, sugar water, rice paste or high-fructose corn syrup. Some of the honey also contains unauthorized antibiotics and pesticides.
Things you will want to keep in mind when making substitutions:
Honey adds additional moisture that is not present in regular sugar.
Honey weighs more per cup and is more dense, which can make baked goods heavier.
Honey brings its own unique flavor to a finished product.
Honey brings acidity to a recipe.
Honey causes baked goods to brown more quickly.
Moisture: If you substitute honey for sugar in most baked goods, the finished product will usually end up soggy and sticky. However, by looking at the other ingredients in a recipe, we can evaluate which ingredients will help absorb some of the extra moisture from the honey and simply increase those ingredients to help compensate. Or, we can go the other way and look at which ingredients bring moisture to the recipe and reduce some of those liquids.
Density: 1 cup of honey weighs 12 ounces, 1 cup of granulated sugar weighs 8 ounces, and 1 cup of brown sugar weighs 6 ounces. So, if you substitute equal parts of honey for brown sugar, you are essentially adding twice as much food; but, that’s not all. Because honey is sweeter than brown sugar, you are also adding more sweetness to the final product. However, maple syrup weighs 11 ounces per cup and honey is only slightly sweeter, so you could substitute approximately 10% less honey than syrup.
Flavor: Honey adds its own flavor to a recipe. It generally has a light and pleasant flavor, but it can interfere with the desired taste in a recipe. There really isn’t anything you can do about it except choose a honey that you find acceptable.
Acidity:
Honey adds acidity to a recipe. If you are working with a recipe that is sensitive to this additional acid, you can neutralize it by adding a little baking soda. Adding 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda for every cup of honey is usually necessary in baked goods. It will also help to give them a little more rise.
Faster Browning: To prevent baked goods from over-browning, lower the oven temperature by about 25°F and watch carefully. When you substitute honey for sugar in baked goods, they tend to brown faster.
General Recommendations:
These recommendations are only a suggestion. The type and properties of any other ingredients in a recipe will play a role in how different sweeteners affect the final product. In order to get the type of results you are looking for, you may need to experiment a little when you substitute honey for sugar; however, these ratios should work well and still provide delicious results!
Other Cooking:
Substitute 7/8 cup of honey for every 1 cup of granulated sugar; there is usually no need to adjust other liquids in the recipe.
Substituting Honey for Other Types of Sweeteners
Molasses:*
You can use equal parts honey for molasses; however the resulting color and flavor will be a little lighter. The reverse is also true if you choose to substitute molasses for honey.
Corn Syrup:*
When substituting honey for corn syrup you can use the exact same amount; however, you will need to reduce other sweetening ingredients in the recipe because honey is much sweeter than corn syrup.
Dark Brown Sugar or Brown Sugar:*
Follow the recommendations for substituting honey for regular cane sugar, except substitute some molasses for part of the honey in order to retain this unique flavor. (Brown sugar is simply regular white sugar where some of the molasses has been left in during the refining process). However, brown sugar also attracts more moisture, so it helps keep baked goods from drying out too quickly. Also, the molasses that remains in the brown sugar adds additional moisture as well as a unique taste.
Raw Sugar or soft brown sugar:*
Raw sugar is basically very much like dark brown sugar except that it has smaller crystals. It also has more of the molasses retained during the refining process. You can follow the guidelines given above for substituting honey for brown sugar. If you want to substitute raw sugar in place of brown sugar or regular cane sugar, use approximately 20% more of the raw sugar.
Treacle:*
This is the generic name the British have for molasses or any other syrup that is made during the process of refining cane sugar. Other common names used are Black Treacle, Golden Syrup, Molasses, and Blackstrap. When substituting honey for treacle use the same guidelines given above for molasses.
