may sound different but works
Another answer
Beat with a small mallet <- (This answer isn't entirely true. It doesn't soften it. It just breaks the brown sugar into smaller, more useful pieces)
Yet Another Answer
If your using it to put ontop of something microwavable, just put the brown sugar in a container and heat it up with whatever you are heating up already (just don't keep it in for too long. About 15-25 seconds will do it.) Take it out and it will be warm and soft again.
The BEST Answer a easy!!!!!
Thanks for the microwave idea. It really works:)!!!!!! I had a brown sugar brick and no time to run to the store...yikes! The sugar had dehydrated and become hard. I took my meat tenderizer mallet and broke the brick up into pieces about the size of a grape. I placed it in the microwave in an open bag next to a coffee cup half full of water. I heated to water on high for 3 -4 minutes so the hot water created a steamy environment in the microwave. I let it cool for a few minutes. Removed it from the microwave. The brown sugar rocks were soft and easy to squeeze into granulated brown sugar. The flavor was perfect.
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To soften brown sugar that has hardened, put a piece of white bread or an orange peel into the container/bag with the amount of sugar you need to use, and seal it; it should soften in 24hrs or so.
If you need the sugar right away, put the amount you need into a container and microwave for ten to thirty seconds. Check after twenty seconds to be sure the sugar doesn't start to melt. Cover the container and shake well; the sugar should be loose. Don't microwave more than one cup of sugar at a time.
If you need only a small amount, you can just use a kitchen grater to grate off the amount you need.
The easiest way to re-soften hardened brown sugar is by using the microwave. Pull the block of hardened brown sugar out of the box, place it on a plate. Microwave on high for a few seconds, perhaps ten, depending on the wattage of your microwave. Open the microwave, poke the sugar with a spoon or fork to see if it has softened sufficiently. If it hasn't give it another ten seconds in the microwave and test with the spoon again.
Don't leave the brown sugar in the microwave for more than brief amounts of time or it could liquifying, and don't test with your finger -- sugar burns are very nasty indeed.
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microwave it for a few seconds
put a piece of bread in the container with the sugar for a day or so
put it in the microwave for 1 minute wet it and then let it sit for 5 minutes and it will be soft