info - cooking tips

baking & other sweet things

• always read your recipe carefully before starting

If all else fails read the instructions, as the saying goes. This goes for not just baking but all cooking. Never start of half cocked. always start only after fully reading and understanding the recipe, this means both the ingredients and methods. Completing further research if needed.

• confectioners, powdered and icing sugar

All one of the same products, but simply called different things in different countries.

• stick of butter

An American term that is equivalent to 125gm. Cut the pound or 500gm of butter in half lengthwise and then in half again and voila you have 4 x 125 butter 'sticks'.

• coconut cream v coconut milk

Essentially these are one of the same, both are the juice and the flesh of the coconut blended together. Coconut cream can be thicker then the milk, but this depends on the brand.

• what is shortening?

Shortening is any fat or oil used for baking. Why is it called shortening? Because it is the fat when rubbed into flour that causes the gluten strands to shorten, there bye giving it a lighter, crumblier texture.

• what is self raising flour?

  This is simply a 'convenience' product, it is plain flour to which baking powder has already been added. To make your own and to save money, simply sieve one cup of flour with 1½ to 2 teaspoons of baking powder.

• baking powder will last forever

  False.

  It has a definite shelf life, unlike baking soda which will last almost indefinitely.

  This is because baking powder is made up of one part baking soda and two parts cream of tartar (or tartaric acid). Separate these two ingredients are quite stable, but once combined the acidity of cream of tartar and the alkalinity of baking soda will start to react with each other and cancel each other out. So if your baking doesn't rise like it should this is why, the baking powder has died. To test it out before using it, either read the use by date or put some into a little vinegar it should fizz quite well, the less it fizzes the more dead it is.

• can you make your own baking powder?

  Definitely.

  Just sieve one part baking soda and two parts cream of tartar together. But use within a week or two. Better still just sieve one teaspoon of baking soda and two teaspoons of cream of tartar together with 1½ to 2 cups of plain flour to make instant self raising flour (see below).

• when I bake lemon meringue pie, the meringue separates from the pie

  Meringue will shrink slightly when cooked, and it needs something dry to cling or anchor to. Make sure that when you spread or pipe the meringue on, it covers the edge of the pastry case so as it cooks it will adhere to the pastry

• when making meringues you must separate the eggs and on no account get any egg yolk in the whites

  Yes and no.

  Certainly if you are hand whisking the egg whites, any fat be it from the egg yolk or from unclean utensils can retard the egg whites from reaching their maximum volume. But these days with high powered electric beaters this is not so important. If it was a major factor Genoese sponge, would never be made, as this uses whole eggs beaten until they are light and frothy.

• when making meringue, tip the bowl over your head

  True

  You will know when to stop whisking when the whisked egg white adheres to the bowl and when you tip it upside down it defies gravity and remains in the bowl. As soon as it reaches this stage stop whisking immediately and use or add sugar and continuing whisking to required level.

• flour is sieved to remove lumps

  False

  Although sieving will remove any lumps, the prime reason is to aerate the flour and to evenly distribute the gluten.

• so should I always sieve flour?

  Definitely

  Doesn't matter if it is for cakes, breads, batters, crepes etc always sieve it at least twice.

• my recipe calls for fresh yeast, can I just use the same amount of dried yeast?

  No

  Use half the amount stated. But if the dried yeast containers improvers (a white powder) use the same amount stated as the fresh

• at what temperature does yeast best work and at what temperature does it die?

  Liquid used to disperse (dissolve) the yeast is best at body temperature (37°C)

  Proving temperatures for doughs are best between 22°C and 29°C

  Yeast begins to retard and die at approximately 50°C, this is why bread dough does not continue to rise in the oven. It will rise until the dough reaches 50°C and then the yeast dies and the bread is formed.

• should I prove my bread dough once or twice?

  Twice is best, never more or the yeast will die. Prove once as a dough, and the again once it has been shaped into loaves, rolls, etc.

• what does dispersing, scaling and knocking back mean when related to bread production?

  Dispersing essentially means to 'dissolve' the yeast. In fact it doesn't really dissolve as dissolving refers to non living items, like salt and sugar.

  Scaling means cutting large amounts of dough into even amounts, so your bread rolls. etc are all the same size

  Knocking back means to punch the proven dough so the CO2 is knocked out and the yeast is evenly dispersed

• does it really matter what flour I use to make pastry?

  Most definitely.

  Flours are designed for certain uses based on their gluten content. The more delicate the final texture the lower gluten content is required.

  For delicate (short) pastries, sponges, crepes and shortbreads a flour low in gluten content is required, these flours are called cake flours, soft flours or hi ratio.

  For items like batters, pancakes, muffins, scones and most biscuits a flour with a medium content is ok. These are known as all purpose flours.

  For products that require a lot of handling, kneading or elasticity such as breads, puff pastry, croissants and Danish pastries a flour with a high gluten content is required.

  For pastas a very high gluten content is best, but bread flour will work. Pasta flour is normally sold as durum wheat flour or semolina flour.

• what is gluten?

  In fact flour doesn't really contain gluten, it contains two proteins called glutenin and glaidin. That when combined with water forms a different protein we call gluten. It is the gluten that gives it that stickiness, bonding capabilities, elasticity or 'strength'.

  Long, developed strands of gluten are required for the likes of pasta and breads, where a springiness or elasticity is required.

  Shorter strands of gluten are required for a melt in the mouth texture pastries or biscuits.

• so a short pastry or shortbread refers to short gluten strands?

Exactly

• how can I ensure my short pastry, etc has short gluten strands?

1. Make sure you use a low gluten content flour
2. Certain recipes will call for a certain amount of cornflour as this is gluten free
3. Allow the pastry, dough or batter to rest after handling (making, kneading, rolling etc). Because every time it is handled the gluten strands develop and lengthen (rest for approx. 30 minutes after each handling)
4. A little lemon juice helps to force it to relax and shrink back

• I pre-baked pastry case, and it came out shrunken, puffy, and misshapen

  The pastry was not rested sufficiently. The gluten strands that form when making pastry are like rubber bands, as you knead, roll or handle the pastry the gluten strands stretch and they must be allowed to shrink back before baking. If not they will shrink on cooking. Allow a minimum of 20 minutes of resting each time after making, kneading or rolling

• what does it mean to dock pastry?

  Docking is a culinary tern meaning to pierce with a fork, this prevents any air bubbles forming and the pastry swelling when you bake it.

• when can I open the door to test a cake?

  A general guideline is not until after two-thirds of the recommended cooking time has lapsed. Especially relevant to light sponges, as the sudden rush of cold air can cause the cake to collapse

• how can you tell if a cake is fully cooked?

  Take a thin bladed knife and put it all the way through the middle, and remove, If it is fully cooked it should come out clean, if some batter sticks to the blade it needs more cooking

• do I really have to make sure I do not slam the oven door shut when baking cakes?

  Most definitely, as slamming the door can make delicate sponges collapse.

• I followed all the previous tips and my cake was not cooked, but it was browned

  To start with I always recommend put an empty tray on the top shelf to deflect the heat from falling directly onto the cake. If it is still too brown, have a lightly oiled tin foil lid at the ready before you test it, and just rest it on the top.

  To make the tin foil lid, have a double layer of tin foil, twice the width of the cake tin and roll the edges to form a circle just slightly larger than the cake tin. The heavy rolled edges will prevent it moving, flying off if your oven is fan assisted.

• cakes browning too quickly

  Cakes are normally baked in the centre of the oven for even distribution of heat, but heat will still fall directly onto the top of the cake causing them to brown before they are cooked.

  Place a tray on the top shelf prior to baking to deflect this direct heat, also have a tin foil lid at the ready to place on top of the cake if the browning process needs to be slowed further.

• how do you bake a homemade cake to come out level like the ones in the bakers?

  Bake the cake, remove from the tin and turn upside down to cool. What was the totally flat base is now the totally flat top and the top is now the base.

  Of course if the cake has risen unevenly, you may need to trim it so it sits evenly, otherwise gravity will do the work for you.

• scones

  Unlike muffins, scones are not meant to rise dramatically. The baking powder is there more as an aeration agent then a rising agent. If you want high scones, cut them thick to start with.

• muffins

  The most common problem when making muffins is that they do not rise properly, or may be heavy in texture. This occurs from over mixing, the mixture is best lightly blended, leaving a few flour globules visible (these will disappear on baking).

  If you do over mix and they do not rose properly and / or are heavy, just ice them and call them cup cakes!

• what is a pound cake?

  This cake was so named as it was made with equal quantities (or in this case one imperial pound each) of flour, butter, sugar and eggs, two tsp of baking powder (plus any flavouring like vanilla essence) which has to be the easiest cake recipe amounts to remember.

  And the method is just as easy : cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, beat in the eggs, mix in the flour. Place into a greased cake tin (s) and bake at 170°C until cooked

• hard fruits in fruit cakes, muffins and scones

  Soak them for a while or overnight in fruit juice, tea or other liquid to soften and rehydrate. When drained the excess liquid can be used in the recipe.

• dried fruits sinking to the bottom of cakes

  Dusting them with flour will prevent them sinking in the batter. This helps them form a bond within the batter.

• chocolate bars with a white powdery like covering should be discarded

  False

  This is called sugar bloom. It is caused by the chocolate being stored at chilled temperatures and then coming back to room temperature, the chocolate sweats out beads of liquid sugar that then dries and causes the white powdery coating.

  It is perfectly okay to eat, but may have a granular mouth feel. If it is cooking chocolate, it may seize when melted.

• melting chocolate is difficult

  False

Simply break the chocolate up (if not using buttons) place into a microwaveable bowl and microwave for 20 second bursts, stirring each time until melted and smooth. But be careful not to over do it and burn it.

If preferred it can be placed in a heatproof bowl, and place over a small pan of water that has just come to the boil, remove the pan from the heat and stir until melted and smooth. The water should not be allowed to come into contact with the base of the bowl.

Melting chocolate does not like water, any water in the bowl, from utensils or steam condensing from the pan can cause the chocolate to seize. Seizing means it will revert back to a solid and cannot be melted again (do not throw out though, add 1/3 the amount of cream and heat to form a 'ganache', that can be used to make truffles with. This seizing is likely to occur if dipping fruits into the melted chocolate, so they need to be thoroughly patted dry and best if the chocolate is split into small bowls to prevent it all from seizing.

• what is ganache?

  Ganache is a chocolate preparation used for a multitude of things from filling cakes to making chocolate truffles. The word literally translates as 'fool' , legend says the chef called the trainee a ganache! when he 'ruined' the melting chocolate by spilling cream into it.

  To make ganache simply bring some cream to the boil and pour over chopped chocolate and the mixture is stirred until velvety smooth and then allow to cool and set.

  The proportions of chocolate to cream can vary depending on its use:

Dark, milk, or white chocolate can be used to make ganache and different flavourings can be added such as liqueurs and extracts.

Butter, oil, or corn syrup can also be added when a dark shiny glaze is desired.

The taste and quality of the ganache is naturally dependent on the quality of chocolate, A chocolate with a higher cocoa butter content will produce a ganache that is firmer than one made with a chocolate that has a low cocoa butter content. A chocolate with a velvety smooth texture will produce a ganache that is velvety smooth.

• butterscotch & caramel are the same

  False

  In simple terms caramel is sugar and water, dissolved and heated together to reach a certain stage. Butterscotch is a sauce derived from caramel and has the addition of butter and or cream.

• how to make caramel

  Caramel is simply melted sugar, cooked to certain temperatures, depending on its intended use. A good stand by recipe is five parts water, to one part sugar, to one part corn syrup. The corn syrup stabilises the mix and gives a far more user friendly product

  Simply combine the ingredients and place over a medium heat and allow to come to a simmer without stirring it. It then has to simmer to evaporate the water content off and attain a certain temperature, so a sugar thermometer is needed if one wants to be accurate

  Once the temperature required has been reached, the pan must be removed from the heat source and the pan placed into a bowl of cold water to stop the cooking process ( removing from the heat a few degrees below the requirement is best, as even with the cold water bath the temperature can increase by a few degrees Celsius before it will stop.

Due to the very nature of caramel, it will need to be made up in small batches. For spun sugar cages boil the sugar mix until it reaches 145°C, remove from heat and allow to cool for three minutes before using.

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