Sugar

A sweetener that is most often made from processed sugar cane and sugar beets. Also referred to by its chemical name, sucrose, sugar is produced in many different forms such as granulated or white sugar, which have been highly refined and are most commonly used as a table sweetner or as a baking ingredient. When a recipe specifies sugar, it is best to use the granulated white sugar. Sugar is available in different textures, such as super-fine, confectioner's or powdered sugar, decorating or coarse, and brown sugar. Other forms of sugar include maple sugar, sorghum, fructose, glucose, lactose, and maltose. Sugar is used most often as a sweetener, but it can be useful for other purposes including to make dough tender and to add stability to mixtures, such as meringue.