Big Tree Farms Organic Coconut Sugar, 2 lb, 2 Pack

Coconut sugar begins as nectar tapped from the blossoms of the coconut palm rather than from the fruit itself. Big Tree Farms buys from thousands of smallholder farming families across Indonesia, who gather the nectar, boil it down to a soft caramel and work it by hand into fine dry crystals.

It measures cup for cup in place of white or brown sugar, so a recipe can be followed as written. The flavor runs toward caramel and toffee, which is why it suits oatmeal cookies, banana bread, granola and spice cake. The crystals carry a little moisture of their own, so baked goods tend to come out soft and chewy. It stirs into coffee, and it earns its keep in savory cooking as well: barbecue sauce, teriyaki glazes, marinades and dry rubs, where a darker sweetness sits well against soy, vinegar and heat.

Two two-pound bags give a regular baker a working supply and a spare behind it.