6 delicious ways to use sparkling sugar

Pie

Brush piecrust with milk, and sprinkle heavily with sparkling sugar.

Summertime Peach Pie will have a lovely, sweet/crunchy top crust.

Scones

Brush shaped scone dough with milk or cream.

Sprinkle with sparkling sugar.

Cut into wedges.

Bake and enjoy Simple Scones!

Roll out cookies

Sprinkle sparkling sugar on a clean work surface.

Place rollout cookie dough on top, turning it over so both sides are coated.

Roll thin, for extra-crunchy cookies.

Voilà! Crystal Diamond Sugar Cookies.

Drop cookies

Roll cookie dough into balls, and shake in a pan of sparkling sugar.

Bake into delicious gingerbread cookies.

Muffins

Scoop muffin batter into paper-lined muffin cups and sprinkle with sparkling sugar.

Bake into tender, moist Blueberry Muffins.

Sweet focaccia

And let’s not forget yeast breads. This delightful raisin focaccia is topped with sparkling sugar just before it goes into the oven. Serve it warm, for a special breakfast treat.

Prepare the focaccia dough as directed in Golden Focaccia. Spray a large baking sheet (about 18" x 13") with non-stick vegetable oil spray, but don’t drizzle it with olive oil. Shape the dough into a rough rectangle, and place it on a lightly greased work surface. Spread the dough with about 1 1/3 cups golden raisins, leaving about 1" bare all around the edges. Fold two opposite edges into the center, like you’re folding a letter; then fold the two ends into the center, again like a letter. You will have made a raisin-filled square. Gently press to flatten.

Place the raisin-filled focaccia onto the prepared pan, and gently flatten it some more. Wait 15 minutes, and flatten again, pressing it as flat as you can without exposing the raisins; you should be able to press this soft dough over much of the surface of the pan. Allow the focaccia to rise, covered, for 2 to 3 hours. Towards the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 400°F.

Just before baking, spritz the focaccia heavily with warm water, and sprinkle with 1/2 cup white sparkling sugar. Bake as directed.