Category "baking"

How does your hand/stand mixer's speed effect the texture of your cookies?

I've read many recipes asking to mix sugar and butter at medium speed for about 5 minutes. Can I use slower speed and mix it a little bit longer? Will it make a

Properly melting butter and sugar together for butterscotch bar recipe

I've been trying to make butterscotch bars. I'm not a new baker, but I don't have much experience in melting brown sugar and butter together. The recipe (inclu

Squashing cookie balls vs slicing them

I have two cookie recipes that I plan to enter into a competition. Both of them call for dropping balls of cookie dough onto the sheet pan and then squashing t

Using Sourdough Breads to reduce Fructans

Short version: How can you minimise the fructan content of a spelt sourdough loaf? Is using a freshly rebuilt starter (low acidity, low sourness) ok? Is 9-10 ho

Are there any tricks to making a light-textured "whipped cream cake"?

During a web search, I found a cake recipe that uses heavy cream instead of butter. However, when I made it, the cake texture was terrible; thick and doughy e

yeastless bread help!

My family has been trying to get away from using yeast. So I've been experimenting with using baking powder and baking soda as a leavening agent in my bread lo

What water should be used in baking bread?

Should I change the water or flour I feed my starter? I am using the same recipe provided by Chad Robertson's book 'Tartine Bread', only changing the water from

How long should I knead bread dough by hand?

Is there a general rule to the amount of time I knead dough? Some recipes will say "until it is considered soft and smooth". Regardless of what the recipe claim

Buying European flours in the United States?

Is there somewhere I can buy Grupen Meyer Danish Flour or Campaillette French Flour in the United States? Watching different videos of master bakers in Europe,

Crispy Lembas Bread Recipe

I've been taking a crack at a few variations of the Elven Lembas bread recipe from Lord of the Rings, because I'm a nerd and like to make random things. A commo

Is there any loss of nutrition when toasted?

I have heard that when you toast whole grain bread, you lose most of the nutrition. I'm wondering if this is true, and if so, do you lose the nutrients when toa

What causes a cake to sink in the center?

I just pulled an Italian specialty cake out of the oven and was disappointed to see that it has sunk badly in the middle. It's not to be frosted or layered, so

What is a non-alcoholic substitute for rum in a glaze?

I want to make an orange cake and its recipe calls for rum in the glaze. Rum, anything alcoholic, rum extract, etc. are not an option for me. Is there a way to

Is there a general rule as if should bake something at 375 or 350 degrees, or does it really matter?

When I create my own recipe, I am never sure if I should bake it at 350 or 375 degrees. I have several cookie recipes that says to bake at 350 and others say to

Does active dry yeast really expire?

I was cleaning out my spice cabinet and deep in the back I found two packages (e.g., six envelopes) of active dry Red Star yeast that expired in March 2009, 15

Can I substitute grapeseed oil with peanut oil?

I am making gluten free chocolate chip cookies. The recipe calls for 1/2 cup of grapeseed oil.Can I substitute peanut oil for grapeseed oil?

How to bake a sponge cake in a grill microwave oven

How can we bake a sponge cake in a grill microwave oven where there no preheating functionality? It's an Electrolux grill microwave oven. Is there any substitut

Failed chocolate sponge

I'm new to bakery and I can bake chiffon and angel food cake alright, but everytime(3 times) I bake chocolate sponge, I always end up with something with good m

Best vegan substitute for egg wash

What would be the best way for replacing egg wash when baking bread? I've tried unsweetened soy milk but it didn't brown that well.

Is 440° F too hot for an oven temperature?

I recently purchased a pre made casserole and the instructions stated that it should be placed in a 440* oven for 55 minutes. This seems like a very hot cooking