When baking, it can sometimes be tricky to get the desired outcome that we want. Since baking is such a precise science, there are many things that can go wrong, producing unexpected or unwanted results. It can be really frustrating and discouraging when a recipe doesn’t turn out quite like you were hoping. It’s especially annoying after spending all that time and effort on baking something. We all want to avoid some of the headaches that come from baking disasters and mix ups. For that reason, I have created a list of essential baking tips to take into account when baking something.
Some of these tips are more universal, while others are more specific to certain situations or recipes. I cover different vital topics like measuring, adjustments, common issues, ingredient temperature, and the baking process. Hopefully my essential baking tips will help to make baking go more smoothly, so that you can get the outcome you want and a nice dish to enjoy.
Measuring
It goes without saying that measuring is one of the most basic and fundamental parts of baking. It’s often seen as such a simple first step, but it’s also a very important part of the recipe. If the measurements are off, then it can throw the whole bake off. This may have you ending up with a disappointing final result. It’s critical to take proper care when measuring your ingredients for baking. This helps to ensure that the recipe will turn out the way you want it to.
Take a look at these next two essential baking tips to become a pro at measuring.
Flour
Flour is one of the most common ingredients in baking recipes. It is often used as one of the main building blocks for baking. Naturally, if the quantity of flour is off, it can throw off the bake. You may feel tempted to rush the measuring part of the flour for a recipe. However, it’s important to do it in a slower and more careful way.
The best way to measure flour is by using a spoon to scoop it into the measuring cup. Gradually fill up the measuring cup with your spoon or scoop. Once it is slightly overfull, use a knife or some other kind of flat edge to level it off. By measuring the flour in this way, you should ensure that you’re getting an even and consistent amount every time.
If you simply dip the measuring cup into the flour, fill it up and dump it into your mixing bowl, it will be more compacted. This will likely lead to a greater amount than intended in the recipe. You may also have more irregular and inconsistent amounts each time you measure it out this way. Measuring flour properly by using a spoon and levelling it off is a simple baking tip, but it’s super important.
Weighing
Investing in a kitchen scale can be a good idea if you’re big on baking and want more precise measurements. By weighing ingredients, you will have better accuracy when following a recipe, which will likely produce better bakes. Measuring by volume (i.e. with measuring cups or spoons) can cause greater variation between the actual amount and the specified amount. Not all measuring cups or spoons are exactly the same. We also might not always fill them in the exact same way every time.
When a recipe gives the weight of the ingredients, this gives the most precise measurement. If you use a kitchen scale, you will be able to match the specified amount for the ingredients. This means that your bakes will have a greater success rate and consistency across the board.
Using a kitchen scale to measure may seem intimidating or more complicated than using measuring cups or spoons. In reality, it can actually make the process a lot simpler. You can simply place your mixing bowl on top of the scale, tare it, then begin measuring the ingredients. As you go, you could tare it after each ingredient is at the right weight. You could also add the amounts together instead. By measuring in this way, you can keep following the recipe without switching between different measuring cups and spoons. It makes the measuring process a lot simpler. It can also help reduce the amount of items that need to be cleaned afterwards, (which is a nice bonus).
Adjustments
Some environmental factors such as climate, season, and altitude can have an impact on baking. It may be necessary from time to time to make some tweaks to certain recipes based on these aspects. You might have to adjust the flour amount or the liquid amounts. This will make sure the consistency, texture, or moisture levels align with what the recipe describes. You may also need to adjust the oven temperature a bit too.
Here are some essential baking tips to help you figure out how to adjust a recipe based on certain environmental aspects.
Climate/Season
Whether you’re in a hot or cold climate and a dry or wet climate can play a part in how you balance a recipe properly. As the seasons change, these conditions may change as well. For example, the air may be drier in the winter. It may be more humid in the spring or summer. When it comes to baking, the balance between wet and dry ingredients is very important. It can change the consistency and the final outcome of your bake. This is usually most important for when you are making dough or batters. Most recipes will describe how sticky, wet or dry the dough should be. This will help you to figure out how to adjust the amount of liquid you use.
For dry conditions, you might need to add a slightly higher amount of liquid than specified in the recipe. Things often bake faster in less humid environments, so keep a close eye on your bakes in the oven. You may also find that a yeast dough may rise faster with warmer indoor temperatures.
For wet or humid conditions, you may need to use less liquid. It might also be necessary to add more flour or dry ingredients to balance out the recipe. You may also need to bake things for more time in the oven, but be careful not to add too much extra time. If it is both humid and warm, a yeast dough can quickly overproof so make sure you watch it carefully.
Altitude
Your altitude can have a major effect on how you bake and cook. At higher altitudes, the air pressure gets lower. This affects the way ingredients react to each other. You may need to increase the liquid and flour amounts that you use and even your oven temperature. You may also need to decrease the leavening agents (baking powder or baking soda), fats (butter, oil, etc.), and sugar amounts. For a more extensive guide on what exact adjustments to make based on your altitude, check out this article.
Common Issues and Tips on How to Solve Them
There are a few common issues that may be the root cause of why a recipe doesn’t turn out quite like you were expecting. When you’re aware of these potential missteps in advance, you can plan accordingly to prevent them from happening and ruining your hard work.
With these next three essential baking tips, you’ll be able to avoid common mistakes and improve your baking skills.
Oven Temperature
All ovens vary: some may work better at keeping a desired temperature than others, while others may have cold spots. It may be a good idea to try to calibrate the oven, if possible. Otherwise, you may want to look in to buying an oven thermometer. You will be able to ensure the proper temperature is reached. Otherwise, this could have a major impact on the dish’s outcome (ex. over or undercooked, or a mix of both).
Overmixing
It can be quite easy to get carried away with the mixing process. We don’t want to overmix, especially when specified in some recipes. Overmixing can cause gluten development and affect how the dish will turn out. Try your best to be mindful when mixing the ingredients while baking. You’ll typically want to mix until the ingredients have just combined or until a desired consistency is reached.
Improper Substitutions
If you’re unsure about a substitution that isn’t specified in the recipe, it’s best to err on the side of caution. Substitutions generally need to be an equal match (ie. dry for dry, wet for wet). It may also be necessary to make some other changes to balance out the recipe. For example, a weight difference between the original ingredient and the substitution may require adding more of another element like flour, liquid or fats.
Temperature of Ingredients
Some recipes give a note on the proper temperature for a particular item. Not following this direction can majorly affect the outcome of the dish. You should always make sure that you don’t skip the process of allowing items to get to the right temperature when instructed to.
Check out these next four essential baking tips to learn more about the importance of how temperature can affect ingredients.
Room Temperature
If a recipe specifies that certain ingredients should be room temperature when used, then it shouldn’t be ignored or taken lightly. It could cause a change in how the dish rises, bakes, or its overall outcome. Make sure you plan to take items out of the fridge in advance. Leave them out long enough to reach room temperature when instructed to do so.
Softened Butter
Unless a recipe specifically calls for cold butter — like when making biscuits, for example — then it’s important to use softened butter. If you don’t want to wait for it to soften naturally by leaving it out for a while, then you can gradually microwave it. It should be done in small intervals of time (about 5–10 seconds at a time). Check it after each time to make sure it doesn’t melt. Otherwise, you will need to leave the butter out for a few hours (2–5), depending on your room’s temperature.
Water Temperature for Yeast
When using warm water to bloom yeast, it should not be too hot. This can cause the yeast to die. This means it will not work as effectively, which will affect the proofing and the outcome of the bake. The water should be lukewarm (105 – 115°F) and not scalding hot or boiling (140°F or higher).
Refrigerated Dough
Refrigerating dough when specified in a recipe is an important step as it will have an effect on the end result. When it comes to something like cookies, using chilled dough will affect how they spread or rise in the oven. Be sure to follow this step and allow the dough to chill for at least the minimum specified time.
Baking Process
There are many aspects to the baking process that we may overlook. However, they may be very important to the outcome of a baked good. It’s easy to brush off an extra step that seems tedious and unnecessary in the interest of saving time. However, some of these processes can have a major impact on how a recipe turns out. Take care to put in the extra work of following the directions of a baking recipe. This way you will end up with the best result.
Take a look at these four essential baking tips. They will not only help better your baking, but also show the reasons behind these processes.
Wet vs. Dry Ingredients
Mixing dry and wet ingredients separately is often quite important in baking. One of the main reasons for doing this is to prevent build ups of certain ingredients in your mixture. When you mix them with similar items, they will distribute more evenly and consistently. No one wants to bite into a clump of flour or salt when eating a baked good. Make sure you follow a recipe’s directions to mix the dry and wet ingredients together. This will help to avoid unwanted lumps and to prevent overmixing.
Sifting
One of the main reasons why a recipe may tell you to sift something is to prevent lumps. Things like flour, icing sugar, and cocoa powder have a tendency to get clumpy. By using a sifter, you will avoid having lumps of these ingredients, creating a smoother mixture. Sifting can also create a lighter texture in your bake. This can be useful when making cakes, especially angel food cakes or other light cakes. If you don’t have a sifter, you can try either whisking the ingredients or passing them through a fine-mesh sieve.
Spacing
The amount of space between items on a baking sheet can have an impact on your bake as well. When a recipe specifies how much space should be between the items, try your best to follow it. This can be particularly important for things like cookies. If there’s not enough space between cookies, then they can spread into each other creating giant smooshed cookies. Always make sure you leave lots of space between cookies, at least a few inches or so. This may require you to do more batches, but it’s worth it. Remember it’s better to have more room than necessary than not enough space.
Butter: Salted or Unsalted?
The answer to this age old question boils down to control. In baking, we want to be able to control the salt level, especially in terms of the flavour. It’s not really possible to make a change to the saltiness of something after it’s already been baked. In cooking, the salt level can be adjusted more easily and the salted butter is used here for flavour purposes.
Final Tips
Don’t be discouraged if something doesn’t turn out quite right on the first attempt. Remember that baking is a science, so the slightest misstep can cause changes to the final outcome. We learn to make adjustments based on practice and what we have available. Some ovens may operate differently. Some ingredients might be somewhat different. Our measuring tools may be slightly different. We may not always be aware of the impact of our surrounding environment (temperature, climate, altitude) and how to adjust accordingly.
Whether you’re a beginner or a pro, sometimes things don’t work out like we expect, especially in baking. Even a tried-and-true recipe may fail from time to time unexpectedly. The most important thing is not to give up and to try again. Every experience offers a chance to learn something for the next time. This way, we can improve our skills and knowledge. We will also realize how to make certain adjustments or changes or how to adapt things based on certain situations. I hope my essential baking tips helped you learn something new to apply to your baking.
