Saturday, January 01, 2011

A piece of cake

I recently spotted an ad that proclaimed, "Show off Your Baking Skills. Shop Brand Name Bakeware Online Now!"

Baking skills and baking equipment are two entirely separate things. Baking can be done in or on just about anything: cookie sheets, clean terra cotta flower pots, mason jars. Baking can occur in brick ovens, on barbecue grills, in toaster ovens, in a pan on the stove (tortillas, pancakes), in a crock pot, and even in the microwave.

Given a functional heat source, everything else in baking matters more than the equipment. If you don't bake often or don't have much experience, here are a few pointers that I promise will make more difference to your baking than all the "Brand Name Bakeware" in the world.

  • Use fresh ingredients. Stuff like flour and baking powder will keep for a good long time in the pantry, but not indefinitely. Using up your baking ingredients regularly is the best way to keep them fresh.
  • Follow a recipe and measure exactly. There are tons of recipes online, and many have ratings or comments that will guide you in choosing a good one.
  • Do not over-mix quick breads (anything with baking powder or baking soda in it). Mix only enough to blend the dry ingredients with the wet. Ignore the lumps, unless they're huge.
  • Fat and salt are in baked recipes for a reason. Don't omit them because they might be Bad For You. Besides adding flavor and (in the case of fats) improving texture, they are often necessary for the chemistry that makes baking work.
  • Preheat the oven. Place what you are baking inside (don't crowd too many things), and then keep the oven door closed until the end of the cooking time.
  • Practice. Even with a recipe, there is such a thing as a "feel" for baking. This feel is how you will eventually judge if your batter is a bit too wet or dry, how long to knead yeasted breads, and when your bread has risen enough. It is also what will eventually let you adjust and experiment.

Happy baking, with whatever equipment you prefer.

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21 Comments:

Anonymous Jeff Moore said...

Dvortygirl- If you get this, and if you have a chance, could you send me an e-mail? The last address I have for you doesn't appear to be working any more.

Thanks.

Jeff Moore
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13 February, 2011 18:48  
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Anonymous Bridger Bishop said...

You can have your cake and eat it too, that was a cake walk, Cake Eaters (Edina, MN residents). Why can't you have a birthday wish written on a pie? I prefer pie and I feel like the cake industry has just convinced everybody that to celebrate a birthday/anniversary/wedding/graduation/retirement/getting paroled/Big Steve related milestones/The end of a church service(thank god that is over, let's go talk and eat cake and drink cofee in a smaller room) you need to have a cake to properly celebrate. How could you celbrate without the sugar and nutrition that cake provides in very high levels and the fact that it requires just a little round plate, a little napkin and a fork to enjoy. But Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter, and March 14th (or National Potato Chip Day) I bet are celebrated with pie more than cake. Do we think that Jesus was a pie guy and that Indians look down upon cake?

What happened to the Blog? Could you just not figure out how to follow a cake entry? An entry about the band Cake might have worked and then you just go from there. (The band Cake>Song American Pie>What else happened the day Buddy Holly died>American Airlines Electra crashes in NY's East River, killing 65>Who is Lammie Chevalier?

Hope you get over your writers block soon.

Did you see that Jeff Moore from Elko, NV needs your email address? And maids Michigan would be very interested in talking about cake and learning more about it, seems fascinated by the subject. I want a girl with a short skirt and a lonnnnggggggggg jacket....

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