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10 Secrets to mastering the art of baking and pastry

"Expert Tips for Perfecting Your Baking and Pastry Skills"

admin July 29, 2024

0 6 11 minutes read

Baking and making pastries are special skills. They need precision, creativity, and knowing the science of ingredients. If you love baking at home or are new to making baked goods¹, we have tips to improve your skills. These 10 secrets come from Kyle Bartone, a famous pastry chef at Eataly Downtown in New York City. They will make your baking better and help you be a great cook.

Baking and Pastry

Key Takeaways

Precise ingredient measurement is crucial for successful baking
Using milk powder can make flavors better and help with browning
Soaking layer cakes in simple syrup keeps them moist and stops them from drying out
Freezing dough before baking stops it from spreading too much
Using vanilla bean powder instead of beans can save money

Measure Ingredients by Weight, Not by Volume

For baking to be a success, you need to measure ingredients with precision. Experts say the best way is to weigh them, not use volume. A digital scale gives you consistent and accurate results. This is because the weight of an ingredient doesn’t change with humidity or storage².

It’s very important for recipes like breads and pastries that need certain ingredient ratios². You can get a digital scale for under $20. This makes it a great investment for better baking².

The Advantages of Weighing Ingredients

Weighing ingredients has many benefits over measuring by volume²³. Each ingredient has its own weight, even if they take up the same amount of space. For example, 1 cup of flour is 130 grams, but 1 cup of sugar is 200 grams². This can really affect your baking, leading to bad results if not measured right.

Experts in baking love measuring by weight for its precision and consistency². They use grams in the U.S. because it’s easy and avoids confusion between weight and volume².

Ingredient	Volume	Weight
All-Purpose Flour	1 cup	125 grams
Granulated Sugar	1 cup	200 grams
Water	1 cup	236 grams

Using a digital scale and weighing your ingredients means you get accurate and consistent measurements. This leads to better baking results²³. Digital scales are easy to use and not expensive, so there’s no excuse not to use them².

kitchen scale

Use Cocoa Powder Instead of Flour for Rolling Out Chocolate Doughs

When making chocolate dough, try using cocoa powder instead of flour. This trick helps avoid a dull finish and boosts the chocolate taste⁴. Cocoa powder also stops the dough from sticking, making it easier to work with.

Start with about 10% cocoa powder to flour for chocolate doughs⁴. But, remember, adding sugar can make the dough dense⁴. Adding 15% chocolate chips to flour can make the chocolate flavor even better⁴.

Some like mixing Dutch-process and black cocoa for taste and color⁴. They aim for a temperature of 190°F to know when the chocolate bread is done⁴. But, the dark color of chocolate dough can make it hard to tell when it’s baked enough, so watch closely⁴.

Use about 1/4 cup of cocoa for every 2 tablespoons of flour⁵. If you swap out half the flour with cocoa, you might need more sugar⁵. Try different cocoa, flour, and sugar mixes to get it right in chocolate cakes, brownies, and spice cakes⁵.

Using cocoa powder for rolling out chocolate dough makes your desserts rich and chocolatey. This trick can take your chocolate baking to the next level. It’s a great way to improve your skills with these tasty doughs.

Add Milk Powder to Batter or Dough for Richness and Browning

Professional pastry chefs use milk powder to make their baked goods taste better and look great⁶. You can find it in the baking aisle of most stores. It adds a special dairy flavor to cookies, cakes, and breads, making them brown evenly⁶. Bartone, a skilled pastry chef, suggests adding a tablespoon of milk powder to your cookies for a boost⁶.

The Benefits of Milk Powder in Baking

Milk powder makes baked goods better in many ways⁶. It helps yeasted breads rise and become softer⁶. Adding 2-5% of it to ice cream makes it creamier⁶. For thick yogurt, 2 tablespoons of milk powder per cup of milk makes it firmer⁶.

Don’t swap milk powder for fresh milk, or your dough or batter might get too wet⁶. But, mixing 1 cup of water with 1/4 cup of milk powder works well in many recipes, like cakes⁶.

Milk powder also makes baked goods look and taste better⁷. It browns and adds flavor during cooking, giving about 1-2% of the milk’s volume⁷. Full-fat milk powder tastes richer than non-fat⁷. Adding dry toasted milk powder to recipes like cookies gives a nutty flavor⁷.

Be careful not to burn the milk powder when toasting it⁷. A good mix for brown butter recipes is 8 tablespoons of butter with 1/4 cup of dried milk⁷. This mix makes many recipes taste better, from rice krispies treats to frostings⁷.

milk powder in baking

Milk powder is a great addition to many baked goods. It improves texture, color, and flavor. Adding it to bread, ice cream, or cookies can make your baking look and taste professional.

Soak Layer Cakes in Simple Syrup Before Assembling

Making moist and tasty layer cakes is an art. Bakers use a secret to keep their cakes tender and juicy. They soak the cake layers in simple syrup before putting the dessert together⁸. This easy trick turns a dry cake into a rich, moist treat.

The Power of Simple Syrup

A simple syrup made with sugar and water is key⁹. You can add flavors like citrus zest, juice, or vanilla to it⁹. After the cake cools, brush or drizzle the syrup on top, letting it soak in⁹.

This method keeps cakes moist and can fix dry or crumbly layers⁸. The syrup adds flavor and makes the cake tender and cohesive⁸. But don’t soak the layers too much, or the cake might fall apart⁸.

Soaking layers in syrup is great for any cake, from birthdays to weddings⁸. It makes each bite moist, tasty, and wonderful⁸. Remember this trick next time you bake a layered cake – your guests will love it!

Soaking Cakes

Freeze Cookie or Pie Doughs Before Baking to Prevent Spreading

Learning to bake well is all about knowing the science behind it. Freezing your cookie or pie dough before baking is a great trick. It helps stop them from spreading too much and keeps their shape.

Experts say freezing the dough for 15 minutes makes the butter firm up¹⁰. This is key to stopping cookies from spreading. If you bake dough that’s at room temperature, the butter will melt. This makes the cookies spread out too much. Freezing helps the butter get hard, so the dough keeps its shape while baking.

This method works for cookies and pie doughs¹⁰. Cookie dough can be frozen for up to 3 months, and so can baked cookies¹⁰. It’s best to shape the dough into balls or logs before freezing. This makes it easy to bake a few at a time from the freezer¹⁰.

But not all doughs do well in the freezer¹¹. Things like French macarons and lace cookies might lose their texture¹¹. But for cookies like chocolate chip or peanut butter, freezing before baking helps stop them from spreading.

Freezing cookie dough

So, when making cookies or pie, remember to freeze the dough for a bit. It’s a simple step that greatly improves your baked goods¹⁰¹¹.

Baked Good	Freezing Time	Freezing Instructions
Cookie Dough	Up to 3 months	Form into balls or logs, label with recipe details
Baked Cookies	Up to 3 months	Wrap individually or in airtight containers
Delicate Batters (Macarons, Madeleines, Lace Cookies)	Not recommended	Freeze not advised, may affect texture and definition
Pie Dough	Up to 3 months	Wrap in plastic, label with recipe details

“Freezing cookie dough allows for flexibility in baking, as it can be used to bake just 1 or 2 cookies at a time.”

Use Plastic Wrap Instead of Parchment Paper for Blind Baking

Blind baking your pie crusts? Try using plastic wrap instead of parchment paper. Plastic wrap helps prevent wrinkles in the dough during blind baking, a problem with parchment paper¹².

Parchment paper can be too stiff. It doesn’t press down evenly, causing wrinkles in the crust¹³. Plastic wrap fits the dough better, making the crust smooth¹³. But, make sure the plastic wrap is safe for the oven and not for high heat¹².

Freeze the pie crust for at least 30 minutes before baking to keep its shape¹³.
Fill the foil-lined crust with pie weights or beans/rice during baking to stop it from shrinking or slumping¹³.
Bake the crust at 425°F for 20-25 minutes until it looks fully baked and lightly browned¹³.
If you’re making a no-bake filling, bake the crust for 5-10 more minutes to dry the bottom¹³.
Brush the crust edges with egg wash before baking for a shiny, golden look¹³.

Using plastic wrap for blind baking gives you a smooth, perfectly baked pie crust.

blind baking pie crust

Substitute Vanilla Bean Powder for Vanilla Beans to Cut Costs

Making tasty baked goods often needs vanilla, a favorite and sweet-smelling ingredient. But, fresh vanilla beans can be expensive, especially for chefs and home bakers. Thankfully, there’s an affordable alternative that delivers the same rich vanilla flavor: vanilla bean powder.

Vanilla bean powder is made by grinding the whole vanilla pod into a fine powder. It gives the same warm, sweet smell as fresh beans but costs much less¹⁴. Unlike fake vanilla extracts, which can taste bitter, vanilla bean powder tastes pure and true. It’s great in many baked goods, like cakes, cookies, custards, and frostings.

To replace fresh vanilla beans with vanilla bean powder, use about 1/2 teaspoon of powder for every bean needed in a recipe¹⁵. This saves money and makes baking easier by avoiding the need to split and scrape the beans.

Using vanilla bean powder also has other benefits¹⁵. It doesn’t evaporate much during baking, so your vanilla flavor stays strong. Plus, it adds beautiful vanilla bean specks to your food, making them look as good as they taste.

For both professional chefs and home bakers, using vanilla bean powder is a smart choice. It lets you enjoy the rich, sweet taste of vanilla without spending a lot.

vanilla bean powder

So, next time a recipe asks for vanilla beans, try vanilla bean powder instead. Your wallet and your taste buds will be happy¹⁴¹⁵.

Baking and Pastry Perfection with Lemon Juice

Making meringues can be tricky. Bakers often struggle to get egg whites fluffy. But, there’s a secret: lemon juice¹⁶.

Lemon Juice: The Meringue Whisperer

Even a tiny bit of fat can ruin egg whites. Lemon juice fixes this. Rub some fresh lemon juice on the bowl before adding egg whites¹⁶. This makes sure the egg whites get fluffy.

Bartone, a pro pastry chef, suggests adding a tablespoon of lemon juice¹⁶. This trick makes meringues turn out just right. It’s key for baking and pastry success.

Tip	Benefit
Use lemon juice to clean the mixing bowl	Helps break down residual fat, ensuring egg whites whip up properly
Add about 1 tablespoon of lemon juice to the bowl	Provides the perfect amount of acidity to stabilize the egg whites
Whip the egg whites immediately after adding the lemon juice	Maximizes the effectiveness of the lemon juice in creating light, airy meringues

This lemon juice trick can take your meringues to the next level¹⁶. It’s perfect for lemon meringue pie or delicate macarons. Lemon juice makes all the difference in baking and pastry.

Lemon Juice for Meringue

Swap All-Purpose Flour for Cake Flour for Airier Cakes

Are you tired of dense, heavy cakes? Want a light, airy texture instead? The secret is to use cake flour instead of all-purpose flour¹⁷.

Cake flour changes the game in baking. It has less gluten than all-purpose flour, with 7-9% protein¹⁷. This makes cakes more delicate and tender. All-purpose flour, with 10-13% protein, can make cakes heavy and chewy.

To make your cakes light and fluffy, swap cake flour for all-purpose flour. Use 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons of cake flour for every cup of all-purpose flour¹⁷. If you’re using all-purpose flour instead of cake flour, cut down by 2 tablespoons per cup and add 2 tablespoons of cornstarch¹⁸.

Don’t want to buy cake flour? No worries! Make your own by mixing all-purpose flour and cornstarch¹⁸. Just sift the mix well before using for a smooth texture¹⁸.

With this easy swap, you’ll bake cakes that are light, airy, and professional-quality¹⁷¹⁸.

Conclusion

Professional chef Kyle Bartone shared 10 expert baking and pastry tips. These tips help home bakers make delicious treats. They teach how to measure ingredients right and decorate creatively¹⁹.

These tips help anyone, from beginners to experts, get better at baking. Baking brings joy and connects us with cultures around the world¹⁹. As new tech and tastes change, these tips help home cooks stay ahead.

The baking world is full of new chances for those who love it²⁰. You could be a top leading industry expert in Bakery or a Food Stylist. This guide gives you the tools to grow your baking skills and explore new tastes¹⁹²¹.

So, use these 10 secrets to improve your baking. Make treats that delight everyone, including yourself.

FAQ

Why do some people avoid gluten?

Some people avoid gluten because it can cause stomach problems. Others have celiac disease, which hurts the small intestine.

What is the importance of measuring ingredients by weight for baking?

Measuring by weight is key for baking success. Small mistakes in measuring can change the whole recipe. A digital scale gives you accurate and consistent results. This is vital for treats that need exact ingredient ratios.

How can cocoa powder be used for rolling out chocolate doughs?

Cocoa powder makes rolling out chocolate doughs better. It stops the dough from leaving a dull finish. It also adds more chocolate taste to your treats.

What are the benefits of adding milk powder to batter or dough?

Milk powder is a secret pro chefs use to boost dessert flavors and looks. It adds more dairy taste to cookies and cakes. It also makes breads brown evenly.

How can soaking layer cakes in simple syrup improve their texture?

Soaking cakes in simple syrup keeps them moist and fresh. It’s great for cakes made ahead or left out. This method locks in moisture and improves the cake’s texture.

Why is it important to freeze cookie or pie doughs before baking?

Freezing dough for 15 minutes firms up the butter. This prevents the dough from spreading too much in the oven. Without freezing, the butter melts too fast, ruining the shape of pastries.

What are the advantages of using plastic wrap instead of parchment paper for blind baking?

Plastic wrap is better than parchment paper for blind baking. It doesn’t cause wrinkles in the crust. It fits the dough shape better, unlike parchment paper which can be too stiff.

How can vanilla bean powder be used as a cost-effective substitute for vanilla beans?

Vanilla bean powder is cheaper than real vanilla beans but tastes just as good. Bartone suggests using 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla bean powder for one bean in recipes.

What is the role of lemon juice in making perfect meringues?

Lemon juice removes fat from the mixing bowl. This helps egg whites whip up fluffy. Bartone adds a tablespoon of lemon juice before whipping egg whites for meringues.

How can swapping all-purpose flour for cake flour improve the texture of homemade cakes?

Cake flour has less protein than all-purpose flour. This means less gluten and a tender crumb in cakes. Using cake flour or a homemade substitute makes cakes light and fluffy.

10 Secrets to mastering the art of baking and pastry