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Baking
Baking is cooking by dry heat and an art form all on its own. Attributed to the Babylonians, baking food has been around since as far back as 3,000 BC.
4,738 Questions
What impact could inconsistent size have in baking?
Different baking times. And if you're selling the goods all for the same cost, some people with the smaller goods may feel "ripped off".
Why have baked beans become so expensive?
In the nineties the term "superfoods" was discovered/seized upon. With the vitamin, fibre and mineral content of Baked Beans being reasonably high, they went overnight from cheap student food, to healthy superfood. Since this point they've steadily increased in price.
When a recipe says it yields x amount, that means how many servings it makes. For example, if a cookie recipe says "yields two dozen" that means the recipe makes two dozen (24) cookies.
Why do your apple pies drip and cause the oven to smoke?
Some apples have more moisture in them and cook down more. You may be over filling the crust and not getting it sealed around the edges.
How do you substitute cocoa butter to cocoa powder?
You cannot; they are very different things. Cocoa butter is a pure solid fat, not unlike unfractionated coconut oil. It is the primary constituent of (good) white chocolate (along with sugar). Cocoa butter is not at all chocolatey in taste; it's white in colour and commonly used in moisturisers. Cocoa powder is the chocolate part of the cocoa bean, usually used for baking. Cocoa powder and cocoa butter both have very different properties and uses; they are not interchangeable.
What can happen if you put too little flour in a recipe?
This depends on the recipe and how much less you put in.
If its a tricky recipe using yeast like croissants or just yeast dough then the yeast molecules may not have enough starch and the dough may not rise as much.
If its in anything else and its not a huge amount (less than a quarter of a cup) then just use less liquid. Keep the solid to liquid ratio equal.
If its more than a quarter of a cup just make half a recipe.
If the flour is whole wheat, it won't keep as long as all-purpose flour because whole wheat flour oxidizes. If your flour is kept in a dark, cool place, it should keep for up to 2 years, and even then it should be discarded. It isn't exactly like sugar which you can keep indefinitely.
Why is yeast dough set aside before baking?
It has to rise, then is worked into product (buns, loaf bread), proof (more rising), then baked.
How do you test the purity of milk using Archimedes principle?
Lactometer is a device used for finding the purity of a milk sample. It works on the principle of Archimede's principle that a solid suspended in a fluid will be buoyed up by a force equal to the weight of the fluid displaced. If the milk sample is pure, then the lactometer floats on it and if it is adulterated or impure, then the lactometer sinks.
What country does creme brulee come from?
Creme Brulee originates from the Catalonia region in France near the French/Spanish border.
To use salted or unsalted butter for crab legs?
It doesn't matter too much. Mostly, it will depend on personal taste.
When do you retire from being a baker?
You retire from being a baker like you would with any other job. You can give a two week notice, collect any money that could be coming to you from vacation time, sick leave, and then you walk out the door.
What are the disadvantages of rice for caterers?
It goes cold quickly and also sets in lumps. This makes it difficult to use for catering.
How long do you cook a Crackerbarrel sugared ham?
The sugar cured whole ham offered by Crackerbarrel, weighs between 14 and 16 pounds. The half sugar cured ham weighs between 7 and 9 pounds. The hams come already cooked. Just heat them up and serve. It has been suggested that if the ham is already cooked, it should take between 5-10 minutes per pound to warm up.
Can you make cupcakes with 2 eggs?
Jiffy mixes only take one egg, but if you make two boxes you can use two eggs. If you use more than one egg when a recipe calls for a single egg, it will just make the cupcake a little on the heavy side, The cupcake will still be edible. When baking, it requires careful measurement of all the ingredients for success and best results.
What is the difference between ordinary granulated sugar and brewing sugar?
As far as I can make out brewing sugar is dextrose and ordinary granulated sugar is mainly sucrose.
Apparently sucrose is a disaccharide and the dextrose is a monosaccharide. The yeast first has to use enzyme action to break up the sucrose molecules before it can ferment them to produce the alcohol so fermentation is quicker with dextrose.
There are some reports of the fermentation being cleaner i.e. less residue during the fermentation but I cannot see how this works. Some people report a slight difference in taste.
If a recipe calls for whole eggs - it means the yolk & the white (albumen). Some recipes ask for you to just use the yolks.
Why does altitude affect baking?
Because as height increases, pressure decreases and therefore less temperature is needed to produce the same effects.
For example, at sea level, water boils at 100C but on top of Mt Everest, water boils at around 70C.
What could you use instead shortening?
You can use butter, lard, cooking spray or stick margarine as a substitute.
Depending on the recipe, you could also use either apple sauce or prune puree.
Why does this muffin have a crater in it?
The oven mightn't have been hot enough, or there might've been too much liquid in the mix.
