Never used it but I do use organic cane sugar, which is evaporated cane juice. Imagining that's similar?

I have used piloncillo sugar, but it's a bit difficult because I have to break it into pieces (chisel it up) and then I pound it in a mortar and pestle.

For me, it is the same as raw sugar, and I also use raw coconut sugar that is granulated and much easier to use.

I agree that piloncillo is cane sugar that is less refined - it is not like brown sugar but is very similar to raw sugar that you can buy that is granulated, and I have used that also.

You can use it in baking most cookies in place of white sugar, but it will add some raw sugar flavor, which is fine for most cookies. It should not change the sweetness or texture of the cookies. I've used it in coffee cakes.

Why use them? What's the upside?

White, bleached sugar basically has no flavor other than sweet. Less refined sugars have more flavor, which some people enjoy..

I've used it in the past. Mostly when learning some skills. White sugar is bland and sweet, stuff been taken out and it's spun. Brown sugar has some of the flavor added back in after it's spin and is moist if kept sealed. Some raw sugars haven't had the stuff taken out, but still have undergone the crystalization spin process. Cone sugar hasn't had the flavor stuff taken out, it's a bit more intense. It also is straight poured, and does not go through the spin process. So its crystal structure is a bit different than many other sugars. Not huge, but it can make a difference to some akin to how some folks utilize different salt structures in their cooking.

The cookie recipe just hit my inbox. The intro leaves me very curious to try these!

Piloncillo, unrefined whole-cane sugar, is the key ingredient of these richly nuanced cookies. Known as piloncillo in Mexico; chancaca in Chile, Bolivia and Peru; or panela in other Latin American countries, it is commonly used in both sweet and savory dishes and is made by crushing, extracting and boiling down the juice from sugar cane to caramelize the sugars. It adds notes of caramel, butterscotch and molasses to everything from cakes to barbecue sauce. In this cookie, the grated piloncillo complements the bittersweet chocolate and adds the nutty flavor of the toasted milk solids in browned butter, but without any of the work. It is a bit of a chore to grate, but the flavor it adds is well worth it.

I thought the description above amusing in that you would use this form of sugar to avoid "all the work" of browning butter while the work of grating the sugar is a "bit of a chore".

It is a distinctive flavor not typically found in the store bought molasses. I dont know why that molasses is so wrong but if you ever had cane syrup made the old fashioned way by being cooked off in a pan it is truly a wonderful flavor. My Grannie used to grow a patch of cane so that we could participate in the molasses making done by her extended family. Very ticky work to cook it just right. You did not want it to sugar or burn. Perhaps when sugar is made the liquid that is spun off is put back through the process over and over? That would make the syrup different I suppose. To get the good flavor from your sugar would be a plus.

Just got the cookie recipe, too, and wondered about the sugar.

My verdict, the sugar is delicious. I found myself eating it like candy as I was grating it!

Oh, and the cookies aren’t half bad, either. It’ll be a challenge to make these last!

Can anyone please share that recipe here for those w/o a NYT subscription?

FOAS - thanks for sharing the recipe. I use a tablet and haven't figured out how to save and post a link.

Thanks! Saved 😀