Types of Sugar

1. Barbados sugar – See raw sugar and muscovado sugar.
2. brown sugar – It is made up of sugar crystals coated with varying amounts of molasses to obtain dark or light brown sugar. This lends a slightly grainy, moist texture.
3. castor/caster sugar – Spelled both "caster" and "castor." The spelling castor sugar used to be the prevailing one, but caster sugar seems to be more usual now, perhaps because it is used by some sugar manufacturers on their packaging. See superfine sugar. UK castor/caster sugar is very finely granulated sugar (finer than U.S. granulated sugar) which allows it to dissolve almost instantly. In the United States, superfine sugar or the new Baker's sugar may be substituted. It is called "berry sugar" in British Columbia.
4. coarse sugar – Also known as pearl or decorating sugar. It is shaped into small pearl-like balls that are several times as big as granulated sugar crystals.
5. confectioners’ sugar – See powdered sugar.
6. date sugar – Date sugar is more a food than a sweetener. It is ground up from dehydrated dates, is high in fiber. Its use is limited by price and the fact it does not dissolve when added to liquids.
7. demerara sugar – See raw sugar.
8. granulated sugar – Also called table sugar or white sugar. It is the most common form of sugar and the type most frequently called for in recipes. Its main distinguishing characteristics are a paper-white color and fine crystals.
9. sugar cubes – They are made from moist granulated sugar that is pressed into molds and then dried.
10. invert sugar - Invert sugar is basically used as a sweetener, like artificial sugar substitutes or sweeteners. The term invert comes from the method used for measuring sugar syrups. Invert sugar is a liquid carbohydrate sweetener in which all or a portion of the sucrose present has been inverted: the sucrose molecule is split and converted to a mixture of glucose and fructose. Invert sugars help baked goods retain moisture and prolong shelf-life. Candy manufacturers use invert sugar to control graining. It is sweeter than sucrose and is used in baked goods to prevent food shrinkage.
    Honey, corn syrup, golden syrup, and glucose are invert sugars. It takes half as much of it to sweeten as much as regular sugar. DO NOT substitute corn syrup in a recipe, a liquid sugar, for a crystalline or dry one, such as table sugar. You can't substitute on for the other, as they each have distinctive properties and the recipe may not bake the same way that you intended.
11. Muscovado sugar – Also called Barbados sugar or moist sugar. Muscovado sugar, a British specialty brown sugar, is very dark brown and has a particularly strong molasses flavor. The crystals are slightly coarser and stickier in texture than regular brown sugar. Light and dark brown muscovado sugars contain molasses; the darker the color is, the more molasses and therefore the stronger the flavor.
12. powdered sugar – Also called confectioners’ sugar. In Britain it is called icing sugar and in France sucre glace. It is granulated sugar ground to a powder, sifted, and a small amount (3%) cornstarch has been added to prevent caking. The fineness to which the granulated sugar is ground determines the family “X: factor: The “X: designations are derived from the mesh sizes of the screens used to separate powdered sugar into various sizes. Thus, 4X would have a larger particle size, whereas 10X would have a smaller particle size.14 X is finer than 12X, and so on down through 10X, 8X, 6X, and 4X (the coarsest powdered sugar). Confectioners or powdered sugar, available at supermarkets, is usually 10X. Always sift it before using.
13. raw sugar – It is essentially the product at the point before the molasses is removed (what’s left after sugarcane has been processed and refined). Popular types of raw sugar include demerara sugar from Guyana and Barbados sugar, a moist, fine textured sugar. Turbinado sugar is raw sugar that has been steam cleaned to remove contaminates., leaving a llight molasses flavored, tan colored sugar.
14. superfine sugar – Sometimes called bar sugar and known as castor or caster sugar in Britain, and berry sugar in British Columbia.. It is similar to granulated sugar except that it has very tiny crystals. Since it dissolves quickly and completely, leaving no grainy texture, it’s the perfect choice for caramel, meringues, drinks, and fine-textured cakes.
15. Turbinado sugar – See raw sugar.