How to Substitute Honey for Sugar in Baking & Cooking (2024)

FAQs

How to Substitute Honey for Sugar in Baking & Cooking? ›

To substitute 1 cup of sugar: Use 2/3 cup honey. Honey is sweeter than sugar, so you need to use less. Decrease other liquids in the recipe by 1/4 cup, because there's water in the honey too.

Honey does more than just add earthy sweetness to a recipe, it adds air to baked goods keeping them moist, contributes to browning, and adds chewiness and crispness. And each honey varietal imparts a different flavour to your baking.

RULE 1. Honey is largely fructose and is therefore much sweeter than refined sugar. Depending on the honey, it can be two or three times sweeter than sugar. For every 1 cup of sugar, replace it with 1/2 to 2/3 cups of honey.

What Does Honey do in Baking? Honey is a 'humectant'. This means that it retains moisture- great news for baking as it helps keep biscuits and cake moist. Honey compared with traditional refined sugar, also means you gain a richer colour and fuller flavour.

So is there a definitive answer to which is healthier, honey or sugar? Both should be consumed in limited amounts. Honey may have a slight edge, but excess consumption of either is more dangerous to your health than the advantage of choosing one over the other.

Up to one cup, honey can be substituted for sugar in equal amounts. For example, you can substitute 1/2 cup of honey for 1/2 cup of sugar called for in a recipe. Over one cup, use about 2/3-3/4 cup of honey for every cup of sugar.

Cooking or heating honey at a high temperature can change the composition of nutrients. As per a report by the National Center for Biotechnology (NCBI), cooking or heating honey can deteriorate the quality and lose its essential enzymes and nutrients.

Buckwheat Honey

It has a bolder flavor than more lighter colored varieties, sometimes described as both nutty and slightly bitter. Its strong flavor stands up well to mixing in with other flavors in a dish, making it a great choice for cooking and baking applications.

The natural sugars in honey caramelize quickly and can burn faster than white sugar.

Does honey go bad? ›

“Honey does not spoil, however for best quality, the USDA recommends storing honey for up to 12 months,” Amidor says. “After that time, it remains safe but the quality may not be as good. If the honey becomes cloudy, crystallized or solidified this is not a food safety concern.”

Used sparingly, honey can be part of a healthy, balanced diet for people living with diabetes. But it's good practice to get into the habit of limiting honey and any added sugar as much as possible. More than focussing on an individual ingredient, think about what you eat for each meal as a whole.

If it's real honey, not adulterated with corn syrup or anything, then you can probably substitute it 1:1 for sugar- I usually do so with my go-to white bread recipe. It does change the flavor somewhat, but it's an improvement in my taste.

Use the sugar from your recipe amount, not additional. If the recipe doesn't call for sugar for blooming the yeast, you can still add it. Adding 1 teaspoon of sugar to a recipe that doesn't call for it, for the purpose of feeding your yeast, won't affect the overall taste of the bread. Honey or agave syrup work too.

Does honey go bad when it crystallizes? No, honey doesn't go bad when it crystallizes. You can decrystallize honey. But if the crystallized honey starts to ferment, the flavor will change, and you won't be able to restore the honey.

With a few simple recipe modifications, honey, maple syrup, or agave nectar are all suitable replacements for brown sugar. Because these substitutions are liquid, you'll want to take into account how the extra moisture may affect the outcome of your recipe, especially when it comes to baking.