Infused or blended sugars make great additions to your baking pantry. They are easy to make and add something a little special to your baking recipes.
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What are infused and blended sugars?
Infused Sugar
This is where you will add a spice, herb or fruit to your sugar. Loose tea blends are a fantastic choice for infusing sugar. You just place whatever herb/spice you have chosen into an air tight container, I really like to use glass jars for this. Then you will leave them to sit for at least a month to infuse, the longer the better.
They do tend to have a milder flavour than blends for obvious reasons.
I recommend giving the jar or whichever container you chose a good shake every so often. This helps the flavours to infuse throughout the sugar.
Once you are ready to use your sugar remove or separate the herb or spice from the sugar before adding to your recipe. If you have any leftover sugar I would leave it to infuse longer until it is needed. There isn’t a time limit for how long it infuses for.
There are a number of ways to add your spices/herbs these include:
- Tea bags, either a prefilled teabag like for instance earl grey or you can also buy empty teabags to fill with what ever flavour you have chosen. You can find these teabags here.
- Tea strainers, they do tend to be a bit more bucky than teabags. Although they are reusable and will last a long time which is makes them a really nice option.
- Loose then sieved, I have found that my sugar get the most infusion of flavour using this method. Lets use lavender for example, you would add the loose lavender flowers into the sugar dispersing them throughout. Then when you are ready to use the sugar you would use a sieve to separate the lavender from the sugar. Now there may be an odd fleck of lavender left in the sugar but that would still be fine to use.
Blended Sugars
Blends are a bit different, instead of removing the spices before use you leave them in.
With blends you will need to measure the spices or herbs and the sugar. This is so that you get the right ratios.
Some spices you may need more of where are others a little will go a long way. Like for example you would add a lot more cinnamon to sugar than you would chili powder.
Sugar blends also need to be kept in air tight containers. I love having them on hand to add into recipes. They pack a lovely punch.
Infused Sugar Ideas
Lavender I love to infuse lavender into sugar it add such a lovely delicate flavour. I suggest that you add the lavender directly into the sugar that way it infuses in better.
Lemon This makes the sugar so fresh and zingy. Making it great for sugar cookies. The easiest way to add the lemon is by using a knife to remove some of the peel and adding it to the sugar. Leave the peel to dry a bit first, do this in a low temperature oven, say 170F for an hour or two.
Vanilla If you have Vanilla bean pods then adding them into your sugar is an easy way to add vanilla your sugar. I have added the discarded pods after I have scraped out the seeds for other recipes. This is a nice way to reduce any waste.
Cinnamon Sticks if you want a milder cinnamon flavour than the intensity of a cinnamon sugar blend. Then cinnamon sticks make a great option and so easy to add in. Just add in two or three sticks to a cup of sugar and leave to infuse.
Chai Who doesn’t love this spicy blend. It is a great one to add as a tea bag or loose tea in a bag/strainer. These spice blends tend to be finer so I wouldn’t add it in loose. One of my favourite chai teas is the Stash double chai if you can find it I recommend trying it.
Thyme this is just one amazing her you can infuse sugar with. Infusing herbs into your sugars makes a wonderful change from the usual spices. They can really elevate your baking. You can add the dried or fresh herbs directly then sieve them out when ready.
Ideas for blended sugars
Cinnamon cinnamon sugar is definitely a popular sugar blend. It is easy to make wonderful to use in recipes. For a mixing ratio I suggest 1 cup of sugar to 3 tbsp Cinnamon
Cardamom this spice is really gaining in popularity. I never really liked it at first but it has grown on me so much it is now a firm favourite. It is pretty powerful so be careful with how much you add. Mixing ratio suggestion would be 1 cup sugar to 1 tbsp ground cardamom.
Cayenne chili powder this may sound quite different but spicy sugar is a game changer. Have you ever had a chili latte? No, go out and have one it will blow you away. Mixing ratio would be 1 cup Sugar to 1-2 tsp cayenne (use your own spice tolerance a your guide).
Pumpkin spice, you can use either a store bought blend or homemade spice blend. Mixing ratios would be 1 cup sugar to 2 tbsp pumpkin spice.
Cocoa, what is better than chocolatey sugar this one is another great staple to have in your pantry. Will it affect the sugar a much as the others, probably not but it is just a great blend to have on hand. 1 cup sugar to 1/4 cup cocoa powder.
Recipes for using infused or blended sugars
Here are a few recipes that I think using either infused or blended sugars in would be amazing to try out.
- Lavender creme brulee, this recipe from lavender and macarons is amazing
- Jams pretty much any recipe would work well for these sugars
- Sugar cookies, try thyme infused sugar in my lemon sugar cookies
- Cinnamon rolls, I love Lisa’s sourdough cinnamon rolls over at farmhouse on boone, she also has a chocolate roll recipe too that would work for the cocoa sugar blend
- Chocolate cayenne cookie recipe. I have one coming soon so keep watch over on the blog for that recipe.
There are so many other uses for these sugars. Why not experiment with other cookies cakes, jams, drinks or the many dessert recipes out there.
They really add some fun to your cooking and can spark wonderful creativity in your baking. Also why not make a cute display of the jars with theirs spices in them.
I hope you enjoy some inspiration and add sugar infusions and blends to your baking pantry.
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