How-To: Keep Brown Sugar Soft

Don't you hate when you go to use your brown sugar, and it is hard as a rock? You try to break off pieces with a knife, cursing the whole time, but no matter what, it is still a sugary brick. BAH!!

So what do you do? Well I have some tricks, some may be a bit crazy sounding (ok.. really crazy) but they work I swear.

But first, ever wonder why brown sugar gets so hard? Well it is because of the molasses in it. Yep, brown sugar has molasses in it, that is why it has such a dark brown color. And the darker the sugar, the more molasses it contains. So the reason the sugar becomes a brick is because the liquid in the molasses evaporates. Go figure.

I know there are multiple ways to soften the brown stuff, but these 3 are ones that I have used multiple times and have had great success with. So lets battle the block together and try these at home.

Trick 1: Zap it Soft. 
This trick is for when you need to use your brown sugar right away. Put some sugar in a container in the microwave and put a bowl of water in the microwave beside it. Zap it on high for about a 1 minute. Still hard? Put it in for another 30 seconds, continue this until soft.

Trick 2: The Pulse and Grind. 
Also good for when you need brown sugar right away. Put some in a food processor/blender/coffee grinder and pulse until it is a usable texture.

Trick 3: The Bread Trick (WARNING: Crazy Alert!)
Yes, extreme warning. This sounds crazy. I honestly didn't think it was crazy the first time I heard it, I thought it was nifty and I have been using this trick ever since. The crazyness comes from my friends reaction when they look at me like I am a nutball for putting bread in my brown sugar jar. Ya that is all you have to do! Put a slice a bread in your brown sugar jar and leave over night, I swear to you it will be soft and luxurious the next morning. Seriously...just try it. Don't hate.

Cheers to soft brown sugar!