One of the designations for today, November 21st, is National Gingerbread Cookie Day. The main ingredient of gingerbread is molasses, which is from the juice of sugar cane or sugar beets that is boiled down to remove the sugar crystals. Those gingerbread recipes say "do not use blackstrap molasses". And that leads to today's trivia question, "What's the difference between regular molasses and blackstrap molasses?" Is it because blackstrap molasses is from sugar cane in the deep South? Is it because the cane juice is boiled more times? Or is it because blackstrap molasses is from dark sugar cane?
Answer:
You wouldn't use blackstrap molasses in recipes for gingerbread because the taste is too intense. It would overwhelm the other flavors. There is no difference between sugar cane grown in mid Missouri and sugar cane grown in southern Mississippi. That first statement is not the answer. And there is no such thing as dark sugar cane. Dark or brown sugar is brown because it's refined white sugar with about 10% molasses added. Blackstrap molasses is made the same way as regular molasses except, instead of being boiled twice, it's boiled three separate times. That makes all the difference in the strength of the molasses. Blackstrap molasses is rather bitter. As far as recipes, it's often used in baked beans and barbecue sauce, not in gingerbread.
And it also has many health benefits. Unlike refined sugar, which has no nutritional value, blackstrap molasses provides about 20% of the daily minimum requirement of iron, 10% of daily calcium and magnesium, and 9% of the daily requirement for potassium. It also provides 18 amino acids. Because of its nutritional make-up, blackstrap molasses may help prevent anemia, may treat constipation in children, and it may promote bone health. The high content of iron may help promote healthy hair. Iron deficiency is common in women with hair loss, and iron deficiency may play a part in hair turning gray early. Those likely benefits are why you can find bottles of blackstrap molasses in health stores and many grocery stores, sometimes marked either by "full flavor" or "mild flavor". The statement that the molasses is unsulfured means that no sulfur dioxide gas was used in its production.
One word of warning: Blackstrap molasses is high in acrylamide, a chemical formed in foods when sugars and the amino acid asparagine are subjected to certain high heat cooking methods. Some studies have found possible associations between acrylamide consumption and increased risk of certain cancers, but more research is needed. Other foods high in acrylamides include barbecued meats, french fries, and potato chips.
Where does the term 'blackstrap' come from? Black comes from the dark, almost black color, which results from the extreme caramelization the syrup undergoes from repeated boiling at high temperatures. The strap part is from the Dutch word 'stroop', which means syrup.
