Flavoured Sugars

, from Issue #51. September, 2015
Photography by Aaron McLean.
Flavoured Sugars

These flavoured sugars have a multitude of uses and will keep for months in tightly sealed containers. Sprinkle over pancakes, waffles or crêpes; sweeten fruit salads; use in place of regular sugar in baking; sprinkle over biscuit dough before baking; use to rim cocktail glasses; add to hot or iced tea; flavour crème brulees; or use to make a simple syrup.

INGREDIENTS

Lemon Sugar
3 large lemons, zested
1 cup granulated sugar

Vanilla Bean Sugar
1 vanilla bean
2 cups granulated sugar

Cinnamon and Spice Sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon each ground nutmeg and ginger
pinch each ground allspice and cloves
1 cup granulated sugar

Lavender Sugar
1 teaspoon dried culinary lavender
1 cup granulated sugar

Raspberry Sugar
¼ cup frozen raspberries
1 cup granulated sugar

METHOD

Lemon Sugar: Preheat the oven to 120°C.

Spread the lemon zest on a lined baking tray and place in the oven for 2-3 minutes until the zest is dry but not brown. For a finer sugar, place the lemon zest and sugar in a food processor and blend together.

For a coarse sugar, crumble the zest in your fingertips and combine with the sugar. Transfer to airtight jars. Makes 1 cup

Vanilla Bean Sugar: Halve the vanilla bean lengthwise and scrape out the seeds with the tip of a knife. Cut the bean into smaller pieces and place everything in a food processor. Process until the vanilla is finely chopped, although there will still be tiny pieces in the sugar. Transfer to airtight jars. Sift out the large pieces of vanilla before using. Makes 2 cups

Cinnamon and Spice Sugar: Combine all the ingredients in a bowl then transfer to airtight jars. Makes 1 cup

Lavender Sugar: Place the lavender and sugar in a food processor and process until well combined. Transfer to airtight jars. Sift out the lavender before using the sugar. Makes 1 cup

Raspberry Sugar: Put the frozen raspberries and the sugar in a food processor and quickly pulse a few times to just break up the raspberries and combine with the sugar. If you over-process the mixture, the sugar will dissolve and be unusable.

Spread out thinly on a lined baking tray and leave somewhere warm for 1-2 days for the sugar to dry out, turning occasionally. Transfer to airtight jars. Makes about 1¼ cups