Baking

Ingredient Basics
Common

ingredients in all baking:

Flour-proteins and starch in flour gives most of the

structure
Liquid- Usually water or milk
Leavening agents- causes product to rise
Fats- adds tenderness, richness and flavor
Sweeteners-provides sweetness and flavor, makes
product tender, and helps crust brown
Eggs- help form the structure and binds
Flavoring- extract flavors, spices, herb, vegetables,
nuts

Flour
When flour and liquid are mixed together, the gluten in
flour develops, or becomes strong and elastic.
- Gluten is a protein that affects the texture of a baked
product and helps determines the structure
- Over mixing will form too much gluten, which will lead
to a tough consistency with long narrow tunnels
Gluten is like a steel bridge, it provides the
support/structure for all other components of the
recipe

Leavening Agents
Leavening

agent is a substance that triggers a

chemical action causing a baked product to
rise
Types of leavening agents:
Air: trapped air in mixture expands when the
product is heated. Ex: Angel food is mainly leaven
by beaten egg whites
Steam: As a product bakes, temperature of the
water rises and steam is formed. The steam
expands which causes product to rise. Ex: Cream
puffs

Continue
Yeast: is an alive microorganism that
produces carbon dioxide gas as it grows.
Yeast requires food, liquid and warm
temperatures in order to act as a leavening
agent
Baking soda: leavening agent used with
acidic liquids, such as buttermilk, yogurt or
sour milk. Baking soda produces carbon
dioxide gas when activated by the acidic liquid
Baking powder: Made of baking soda and a
powered acid (ex: cream of tarter).

Batters and Doughs

The amount of
liquid in relation to
the amount of flour
determines
whether a mixture
is a batter or a
dough. Batters
have more liquid
than doughs.

Batters and Doughs

Four kinds of batters and doughs are:

1. Pour batters: thin enough to pour in a steady
stream. Ex: Cakes, pancakes, waffles
2. Drop batters: are thick and are usually spooned
into pans. Ex: some quick breads and cookies
3. Soft doughs: are soft and sticky but can be
touched and handled. Ex: rolled biscuits, yeast
breads and rolls, and some cookies start with soft
doughs
4. Stiff doughs: are firm to the touch, easy to work
with and cut. Ex: Piecrust and some cookies

Quick Breads
Quick

breads are quick and easy to make.

They dont require kneading and usually use
baking powder as a leavening agent.
High in carbohydrates, protein, B vitamins
and iron. Some quick breads can be high in
fat
Examples of quick breads are muffins,
biscuits, pancakes, corn bread,
and fruit breads

Muffin Method
Muffin

method- Mix all dry ingredients in

one bowl and make a well in the center.
Mix all liquid ingredients in separate
bowl and then pour them in the dry
ingredient bowl.
Do not over mix
Mixture should be lumpy
A properly mixed muffin should have a
rounded, pebbly top

Loaf Breads
Many

quick loaf breads are mixed in the

same manner as muffins.
Usually baked in greased loaf pans
If bread contains fruits or
nuts, the bottom of the
pan should be lined with
parchment paper

Biscuits
Biscuits

are delicate, crisp crust and peels

apart in tender layers
2 kinds of biscuits:
Rolled- rolling out dough inch thick and cutting
with a biscuit cutter. If you do not have a biscuit
cutter, use the rim of a water glass.
Dropped- dough is dropped with spoon. Contain
more liquid and are too sticky to roll.
- Both are made using the pastry and biscuit method
of mixing

Pastry and Biscuit Methods

In

the pastry and

biscuit method the
fat is cut into the
flour. To cut in
means to mix solid
fat and flour using a
pastry blender or 2
knives in a cutting
direction.

Cookies

Cookies vary in texture, shapes, and

sizes. There are six basic kinds of
cookies:

1. Bar Cookies: Are baked in square or

rectangular pans and then cut into bars,
squares or diamonds. Textures vary from
cakelike to chewy. Ex: Brownies
2. Drop cookies: Made from soft dough that is
dropped from teaspoon onto cookie sheet.
Ex: Chocolate chip cookie

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3. Rolled cookies: Also called cut-out cookie.
Are made from stiff dough that is rolled out
and cut out.
Ex: Sugar cookies
4. Molded cookies: Are formed by shaping the
dough by hand into balls. Can be rolled in nuts
or can be flatten with a fork before baking. Ex:
Peanut butter cookies

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5. Pressed cookies: Are made by
pushing dough through a cookie
press, which can create a variety
of shapes. Ex: Spritz cookies
6. Sliced cookies: Also called refrigerator
cookies. They are made by forming a soft
dough into a long roll and refrigerating it. When
roll is chilled and firm, cookies are sliced and
baked