Reducing Sugar in Cupcakes

This post may contain affiliate links. Read our disclosure policy.

If you’ve ever wondered how reducing sugar in cupcakes works, this article is for you!

I am frequently asked about sugar, its role in baking, and whether or not lowering the sugar in a recipe is possible.

I previously conducted experiments using my viral Soft & Chewy Sugar Cookies recipe, where I reduced the sugar by 50% and also increased the sugar by 25%, comparing the batches side-by-side with the original recipe. The results were super interesting!

So, I decided to take to the kitchen once more and experiment with my control cupcake recipe, to see how changing the sugar levels would impact the results.

Check out the results below, along with some baking science insights into sugar’s surprising role in your favorite recipes.

Quick disclaimer: This post is intended to give insight into the science of sugar’s role in baking. It is not intended to serve as a guide for people who must reduce sugar intake due to medical diagnoses or for weight loss. Here at Handle the Heat, we use sugar, dairy, eggs, and wheat in the majority of our recipes and fully believe dessert is a delightful part of enjoying life!

Reducing Sugar in Baking

Why is Sugar Important in Baking?

You might be thinking, “Sugar is the sweetener. THAT is sugar’s role in baking.” … but that’s not the whole story. Here are some of the other important factors sugar contributes:

Moisture: Sugar is a key component in lending moisture to baked goods. It binds with the water content of your dough or batter to lock in moisture. This also helps extend shelf life, meaning your baked goods will stay moist and fresh for longer.
Tenderness: Sugar contributes to the tender texture of baked goods.
Leavening: When creamed with butter, sugar can also assist in leavening recipes like cakes and cupcakes, for a light and fluffy texture. In some recipes, sugar also increases spread.
Caramelization: Sugar is crucial in the process of producing caramelized tastes and textures. This is how your baked goods develop their golden brown color and, in some cases, crisp exterior.

Sugar’s Role in Cupcakes

When baking cupcakes, sugar works with the other ingredients to contribute moisture, caramelization, height, lightness, and fluffiness, as well as sweetness. This is why altering the sugar in a recipe can have widespread consequences!

Experimenting with Sugar Levels in Cupcakes

We took to the kitchen, armed with my control cupcake recipe, to demonstrate the effects of decreasing the amount of sugar called for by 50% and also increasing the sugar by 25%. The exact same recipe was used for each batch. The only difference between batches was the amount of sugar used.

The control recipe was made exactly as written and baked for 15 minutes, yielding cupcakes that were soft, tender, and described by everyone in the studio as “perfect”.

What Happens if You Lower The Amount Of Sugar Called For in Cupcakes?

For this experiment, we decreased the sugar in the control cupcake recipe by 50%.

The batter texture was light and fluffy, but the batter taste was more flour and butter forward. This batch needed 3 minutes longer than the control batch (18 minutes total) to fully bake through.

Results: This batch of cupcakes was, of course, less sweet than the control batch – but they were also significantly drier, denser, bland, and doughy. Brendan, our food stylist, said these cupcakes reminded him of a Kringle cookie in texture. Emily, from Team HTH, said they reminded her of the biscuit part in strawberry shortcake – slightly dense but still light in mouth-feel, and they lacked flavor. These cupcakes didn’t stick to the liners at all. It was also interesting to note that decreasing the sugar yielded 2 fewer cupcakes.

What Happens if You Increase The Amount Of Sugar Called For In Cupcakes?

Here, we increased the sugar in the control cupcake recipe by 25%.

In this batch, the batter was smoother and more aerated, and the sugar was more visible in the batter than in the other batches. These cupcakes needed 5 minutes longer than the control batch (20 minutes total) to fully bake through.

Results: This batch of cupcakes was sweeter and developed a crunchy top and edges, where they were also the sweetest – almost as if all the sugar went to the top and edges! The cupcakes were slightly more speckled on top and sank slightly in the middle once cooled. These cupcakes stuck to their liners. Interestingly, this batch did not yield any additional cupcakes.

The Bottom Line

Sugar is a crucial ingredient in baking. It contributes so much to baked goods, and when the balance of each ingredient is correct, the texture, height, and flavor will be perfect. Too much sugar and your cupcakes may develop a thick, sweet crust on the top and sides and lack a balance of flavor. Too little sugar and your cupcakes will be dense, bland, and unpleasant to eat. Reducing sugar in cupcakes will not only alter sweetness, but texture too.

How Can I Reduce the Sweetness Without Lowering the Sugar?

Of course, you’re always free to experiment with reducing sugar in cupcakes as you wish – just take the above into consideration and know that your final taste and texture will change as a result. I always recommend making a new recipe as written once so you have a baseline to compare to, and then make changes one at a time, little by little until you’re happy with the result.

Here are a couple of pointers for reducing sweetness while maintaining the sugar level:

Salt: Increase the salt level to help balance sweetness. Also, be sure you’re using the right type of salt in your recipe. Learn more about different types of salt here.
Chocolate: In any recipe using chocolate chips, use dark chocolate, bittersweet chocolate, or even unsweetened chocolate to help balance the sweetness.
Acid: Balance with ingredients that lend bitterness or acidity, such as citrus zest or buttermilk. Never substitute those ingredients, and look for recipes that use them for a better depth of flavor.

Have you ever experimented with reducing the sugar in cupcakes? Let me know how it went in the comments below!