Brown Sugar vs. Table Sugar

[TimEggers]

Anyone use brown sugar in your crust or sauce?  What flavors does it lend to each compared to white table sugar?

[Mystic Pizza]

We use a little of both white sugar and brown sugar in our sauce. The only way I can describe the added brown sugar is that it gives the sauce a rich full - bodied sweetness. We use it in our pizza, manicotti, and spaghetti sauces.

Mike

[TimEggers]

Thank you Mike for the information!  I might have to try some brown sugar in my crust recipe someday...

[Mystic Pizza]

TimEggers,
 
Alot of pizza shops in my area use honey in their dough recipes. The honey gives the crust a fantastic flavor and helps with the browning process. If you try brown sugar in your dough recipe please let us know how it worked for you...

Mike

[alasdair]

I used brown sugar in a dough last week.

I made a 2 hour rise pete-zzas Papa johns clone dough.
Ive made the dough plenty of times before and for this version the only change I made was to use the same amount of brn sugar(5%) that I normally use of regular sugar.

You could def. tell there was brn sugar in the dough; whereas with regular sugar I cant tell sugar is in there.

I normally like brn sugar but in the dough I was less than impressed.(It tasted like pizza someone sprinkled brn sugar on.)

P.S. I know this is an old thread and the original poster hasnt been on the board in 3 years. Maybe others were curious about brn sugar.

[Pete-zza]

Alasdair,

Thanks for telling us your experience using brown sugar.

Brown sugar is basically sucrose (table sugar) with about 3.5-6.5% molasses (depending on whether you are using light or brown sugar). The molasses contains some simple sugars and minerals that are usable by the yeast, but the sucrose takes a fair amount of time to be broken down into simple sugars to be usable by the yeast. That is why I substitute honey for sugar in the two-hour Papa John's clone dough.

Peter

[Art]

I've always used a small amount of Turbinado (raw) sugar in my dough since I always have it on hand for my BBQ rubs. Not sure it makes a big difference, but my crust tastes good and achieves nice browning.  Art

[cranky]

Alasdair,

Thanks for telling us your experience using brown sugar.

Brown sugar is basically sucrose (table sugar) with about 3.5-6.5% molasses (depending on whether you are using light or brown sugar). The molasses contains some simple sugars and minerals that are usable by the yeast, but the sucrose takes a fair amount of time to be broken down into simple sugars to be usable by the yeast. That is why I substitute honey for sugar in the two-hour Papa John's clone dough.

Peter

Peter,
Do you know if honey is mainly mono or disaccharides?  Honey may also have some enzymes that impact yeast development and crust flavor. 

[Pete-zza]

cranky,

According to Wikipedia at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honey, honey gets its sweetness from monosaccharides.

There is an interesting discussion on honey and enzymes in a series of posts at the PMQ Think Tank starting at http://thinktank.pmq.com/viewtopic.php?p=26883#p26883.

Peter

[cranky]

cranky,

According to Wikipedia at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honey, honey gets its sweetness from monosaccharides.

There is an interesting discussion on honey and enzymes in a series of posts at the PMQ Think Tank starting at http://thinktank.pmq.com/viewtopic.php?p=26883#p26883.

Peter

That is interesting.  I used to be a bee keeper.  I am not a chemist however.  Monosaccharides have a molecular weight of 180.  Disaccs are double that, obviopusly.  I believe it is the size of the molecule that determines how long it takes to be assimilated.  The smallest ones flow through semipermeable membrane walls faster.  When we consume a sugary drink we get a spike or sugar jolt, because all the sugars are small and rush into our blood through intestines.  When we consume something with monosacs, disacs, complex carbs, the different size molecules enter our blood at different rates and the energy boost is prolonged rather than spikes.  I suspect yeast works the same way.  As enzymes break down bigger more complex molecules into smaller pieces the nutrients become available.  Enzymes generally work fast though.  Carbohydrate chains that are broken are worked on by enzymes.  All the carbs and protein do not get consumed by the yeast even in long fermentations.  My guess is the enzymes in the honey do the same thing as enzymes in malt.  It is probably not the flavor of malt or honey that gives the flavor/texture difference in crust, but the action of the enzymes, that sugar lacks, on the flour.

[alasdair]

Alasdair,

Thanks for telling us your experience using brown sugar.

Brown sugar is basically sucrose (table sugar) with about 3.5-6.5% molasses (depending on whether you are using light or brown sugar). The molasses contains some simple sugars and minerals that are usable by the yeast, but the sucrose takes a fair amount of time to be broken down into simple sugars to be usable by the yeast. That is why I substitute honey for sugar in the two-hour Papa John's clone dough.

Peter

I knew there was a reason you used honey instead of sugar...it just slipped my mind I guess. I went by memory making that dough.

Tonight I will attempt a PJ clone dough with an overnight rise and brown sugar(A different version of petes PJ dough I have saved on my computer calls for sugar, but I will try brn sugar instead.)...to see if the long rise takes away some of the brn sugar taste.

Ill report back by 1201AM monday.
I fear it will still have that (dare I say) gross taste of brn sugar from my first attempt.

[alasdair]

My guess is the enzymes in the honey do the same thing as enzymes in malt.  It is probably not the flavor of malt or honey that gives the flavor/texture difference in crust, but the action of the enzymes, that sugar lacks, on the flour.

That seems reasonable to me considering Ive used malted barley in three doughs(An Alton Brown recipe) and honey in 4 doughs and never once did I taste barley or honey.
I did however taste brn sugar possibly because that batch didnt rise long enough for the yeast to consume a majority of the brn sugar, therefore reducing the taste somewhat.

[Tscarborough]

I have not been able to notice a difference between processed sugar, brown sugar, turbino sugar, or honey.  For that matter, I have not noticed a difference with NO sugar in my normal dough recipe

[Pete-zza]

I have not been able to notice a difference between processed sugar, brown sugar, turbino sugar, or honey.  For that matter, I have not noticed a difference with NO sugar in my normal dough recipe

Tscarborough,

Different people have  different sensitivities to sugar, but to detect crust sweetness on the palate you need a fair amount of sugar in the dough, perhaps something greater than about 4-5%. That would be something like a Papa  John's crust.

Peter

[Tscarborough]

So the 2 teaspoons that I use makes no real difference (in 4-1/2 cups of flour)?

[Pete-zza]

So the 2 teaspoons that I use makes no real difference (in 4-1/2 cups of flour)?

Tscarborough,

That would be around 1.45% for a typical flour weighing around 4.3 ounces per cup.

Peter

[Tscarborough]

So should I increase it or just delete it?

[Pete-zza]

So should I increase it or just delete it?

Tscarborough,

It depends on your dough formulation and what you are trying to achieve. Sugar has many purposes--it serves as food for the yeast, especially for long fermentations, it contributes to crust coloration, and, in large enough quantities, it adds sweetness to the crust (as earlier noted). If a large amount of sugar is also accompanied by a large amount (several percent) of oil or other fat, the combination can provide a soft and tender crust. Some forms of sugar, like honey and nondiastatic barley malt syrup and maple syrup, can have a dark hue and impart color to the crust and crumb, if such is desired.

Peter