Tips for Everyday Baking
Tips for Everyday Baking
To bake something exceptionally well and decadent, you can't rush through the steps. Instead, the care and love you put into the process are what make your bakes taste the best.
There's no question that I enjoy baking. While you may not want to spend as much time in the kitchen as I do, I want to equip you with the basic knowledge and tips for everyday baked goods like cakes and cookies so that you impress yourself when you step into the kitchen. So in every recipe, I share here on Vee the Baker I include tips specific to that recipe to help you achieve optimal taste and appearance.
The truth is, becoming a good baker takes a little patience and effort to perfect technique.
Learn your oven
How acquainted are you with your oven? Are you as familiar with it as you are with the back of your hand? Just because a recipe may direct you to set your range at 350 degrees Fahrenheit doesn't mean you have to. You may have observed that the outside of your cake gets brown faster than you desire, while the inside of your cake is just right. That perfect golden outer on cakes is achievable once you get familiar with your oven.
Generally, recipes use 350 degrees as the standard to cook or bake at a moderate temperature without burning your food. Baking (and cooking, for that matter) at 350 degrees or moderate is an age-old temperature setting used long before our grandparents were born. But, we are not using the same ovens that our ancestors were using, let alone some of our grandparents. Over the years, ranges have significantly improved with better calibration, temperature-controlled, and becoming technologically advanced.
Once you are familiar with your oven, you can improve your baking experience by reducing your temperature and allowing your food to cook slower. Also, you can utilize two racks in the oven; using the rules of thirds, start baking the cake on the bottom rack. For example, when baking the cakes (other than bundt cakes), place the bottom rack in Position 2 and the top rack at Position 4. Start by baking the cakes on the bottom rack for most of the time, and then move the pans to the top rack to finish baking for the remaining 5-7 minutes.
Ingredients at room temperature
There is much truth in that the temperature of your ingredients affects the result of your baked goods. This proven fact primarily applies to dairy ingredients, such as butter, eggs, milk, sour cream, and buttermilk, to name the most common. If the recipe instructs you explicitly to use any of the ingredients mentioned above cold, follow the instructions.
My general rule of thumb is to set out butter, if refrigerated, the night before. If your butter is frozen, allow it to thaw in the refrigerator overnight or for at least 6 to 7 hours. Then set it on the counter to reach room temperature.
Invest in extracts
High-quality extracts allow for your desserts to taste better and smell better. The same applies to flavorings, also. Unfortunately, low-quality extracts and flavorings tend to contain some alcohol level in their base, resulting in seeping out during the baking process. Nevertheless, quality extracts and flavor are worth the investment and will carry you a long way.
Dry ingredients
Before starting any recipe, it is wise to gather and prepare or measure out all of your ingredients (mise en place, if you want to be fancy) to help ensure you do not leave anything out when you begin the mixing process.
Scoop or spoon and level your flour. Packing your measuring cup by scooping the flour directly out of the bag/package can result in retrieving more flour than the recipe requires. Overpacking the measuring cup is not ideal.
When making a cake, sift all dry ingredients together (i.e., flour, spices, baking powder, baking soda, cornstarch, etc.)
Before baking
Generously coat your cake baking pans with nonstick baking spray or shortening & flour. Alternatively, if using a round or square baking pan, you use parchment paper. Wax and parchment paper are often interchangeable when baking, particularly under 400 degrees (450 degrees if you're feeling a bit adventurous). If baking at temperatures higher than 450, use parchment paper. The low porosity of wax paper will cause it to melt at such high temperatures.
Cookies, specifically
Since we are on the topic of cookies, let's discuss their appearance. When transferring cookie dough to the baking pan, use a cookie or ice cream scoop to measure out your cookie dough. By doing this, all the cookies will bake out evenly for the same amount of time. If your cookies vary in size, the smaller ones may cook faster than the larger ones when they're on the same baking pan.
When making cookies, allow your dough to rest for at least ten minutes before scooping and placing it on the baking pan. This rest period will allow the sugar to dissolve, mainly if any liquid ingredients are used.
After the oven
Allow cakes to cool in their pans for 7-10 minutes before flipping them out of the pan. Always allow them to cool completely before moving on to the next step unless you add a glaze to cover the cake. Freezing your cake layers before stacking & frosting will help keep crumbs out of the frosting, or at least reduce the number of crumbs.
I hope that these tips help you bake your cakes and cookies beautifully. We know that when desserts look appetizing and delicious, our friends and family will reach for them gladly with quickness. So, if you use one or more of the tips I have provided, come back and let us know how it worked out for you. Happy Baking!
