How to Make Confectioners’ Sugar

A few months ago a blog reader and Twitter friend tweeted that she was able to save her cake by making her own confectioners’ sugar.  I replied that I didn’t know you could do such a thing, and then squirreled that bit of info in the back of my mind.

Then, I was elbow deep in The Pioneer Woman’s scones when I realized I was out of confectioners’ sugar for the icing.  And it was Easter morning.  So, I made my own!  Who knew I would need to call upon that nugget of information so soon!?

How do you accomplish such a feat?  It’s easy.

• Add 2 tablespoons of corn starch to every cup of granular sugar that you need, and pulse very well in a chopper, food processor or blender.
• You’ll need to pulse it quite a bit to get it to the right consistency.

That’s all it takes!  I was so surprised by how you make this ingredient that I decided I should research it a bit more.  I dug into my Food Lover’s Companion book and found the definition.

Confectioners’ sugar (or powdered sugar) is indeed a granulated sugar that has been crushed into a fine powder.  To prevent clumping, a small amount (about 3 percent) of cornstarch is added.  Often used to make icings or candy, or for dessert dusting, one and three-quarters cup of this ingredient is equal to one cup of granulated sugar.  It is also helpful to know that one pound of confectioners’ sugar is equal to 3 and three-quarters cup.

Now you know what I know about confectioners’ sugar.  As long as you have granulated sugar and cornstarch on hand, fear not about running out of the sweet stuff!

Did you know that you could make your own powdered sugar?  Have you ever tried it?