Can you replace brown sugar with maple syrup?

These days, more consumers are switching onto the benefits of natural, organic products.

Maple syrup has won over plenty of fans as a healthier alternative to refined sugar or artificial sweeteners – but is it a good replacement for brown sugar?

The short answer is that yes, you can swap brown sugar for maple syrup in your recipes.
There is a little more to it than that, and in this article, we will run you through how to make the adjustment, before offering a few parting tips.

How to adjust your recipe

Maple syrup comes in liquid form, and brown sugar is dry. For that reason, there are other measurements you might need to change when making the swap for baking – to keep your batter or dough from getting too wet.

Reduce liquids

If you are using maple syrup instead of brown sugar, you are advised to remove 3 to 4 tablespoons of other liquids – whether that’s water, milk or oil – for every tablespoon of brown sugar you replace. Think about what the liquids offer to the recipe, and take out the least essential.

Lower the temperature

Drop your oven temperature by about 15°C. This is necessary because the sugars in maple syrup cause baked goods to brown and caramelise much faster.

Tips for success

So, once you factor in the simple adjustments outlined above, replacing brown sugar with maple syrup is a pretty easy operation. Still, we won’t let you leave empty handed. Here are a couple of pointers:

Flavour – both sweeteners share a warm, caramel-like note, but maple syrup brings a distinct earthy taste.

Texture – note that maple syrup works best in muffins, quick bread and pancakes. It is not recommended for cookies that rely on creaming solid sugar and butter together.

So, there you have it. If you’ve pondered exchanging brown sugar for maple syrup, it is entirely doable – just get your measurements right!