In my previous post, I discussed the importance of mise en place if you’re new to baking. It’s a concept I strongly recommend you adhere to wherever you are in your baking journey. I expanded on the first principle by saying that it’s important to understand the techniques and terminology stated in a recipe.
Why is this important? It’s important because baking is an exact science. Too much or too little of an ingredient can ruin your baked goods. It’s the same for the technique required in a recipe. There are baked goods that require a lot of air in the batter or the complete opposite, and the amount of air in the batter will greatly affect the result.
Let’s look at some of the most popular techniques and terms in baking. I’ll end with a recipe that requires three of the techniques discussed in this post.
Techniques
Let’s begin with an understanding of the techniques required in the preparation stage of a recipe.
Sifting
What is sifting and when is it required?
Sifting is the process of forcing a dry ingredient through a sifter or sieve. This process will help break up clumps and aerate the ingredient, making it lighter and easier to incorporate into the batter or dough. The most popular ingredient to sift is flour, but baking soda and baking powder, brown sugar or confectioners’ sugar, and cocoa powder can also be sifted.
Since sifted ingredients are lighter than non-sifted ingredients, make sure you only sift after measuring your ingredient unless the recipe calls for the ingredient to be sifted first and measured second. There is a difference, so please read the recipe carefully.
softened
The only ingredient in recipes that needs to be softened is butter. To soften butter, take it out of your refrigerator 30-45 minutes prior to using. The butter should be between 65-72℉. You should be able to make a dent with your finger.
To speed up the process of softening your butter, cut it up into pieces and place the pieces in a bowl. You can also put the bowl in the microwave for one or two 10-second bursts, but do not leave it in the microwave longer than that. It will melt, and you’ll have wasted an ingredient.
Softened butter is used in a technique called creaming, which we’ll discuss shortly.
Side note: While it’s not a technique per se, it’s important to consider what ingredients need to be at room temperature in the preparation stage. Eggs are another ingredient that will need to be taken out prior to using. I recommend taking out your eggs 15-20 minutes before using them.
We’re going to move on to techniques used in the mixing of ingredients.
cream/creaming
Buttercream frosting and butter-based baked goods will call for creaming together butter and sugar. Creaming these two ingredients together requires softened butter, which we reviewed above.
Creaming is the process of beating softened butter and sugar with the flat beater of your standing mixer or the beaters of your handheld mixer. The result should be creamy when squished between your fingers.
This technique is used to incorporate air between the fat and sugar, which then lightens and leavens your baked goods.
peaks
This is one of my favorite techniques in baking, and it’s one you must get right. There are ways you could rescue your peaks if you messed up, but that’s beyond my current ability to explain.
When a recipe calls for soft, medium, or stiff peaks, it refers to the stiffness of whipped egg whites or whipped cream. You’ll see your egg whites or cream thicken as more air is incorporated with every whisk. I use my electric handheld mixer to whip egg whites into peaks.
Soft peaks barely hold their shape and lead to a moister cake. Medium peaks hold their shape but curl at the tip. Stiff peaks will hold their shape throughout and produce a drier cake. You can test the thickness of your peaks by lifting your beater or whisk and turning it upright.
Remember, your eggs need to be at room temperature and your cream needs to be cold to get the best result.
folding
I wasn’t familiar with this technique, and my lack of knowledge was visible in the awful Chiffon cake I made not once but twice. This is why it’s important to understand the techniques in a recipe.
When a recipe asks for you to fold one ingredient into another, it’s asking you to mix the lighter ingredient into the heavier one. For example, a Chiffon cake will require the beaten egg whites, soft peaks (lighter ingredient), to be folded into the batter (heavier ingredient).
The point of folding is to reduce gluten development and to prevent whipped egg whites or whipped cream from deflating when mixed with the heavier ingredient. Many professional bakers recommend using a light tool (e.g., rubber spatula or slotted spoon) when applying this technique.
When folding, start by adding the whipped egg whites or whipped cream slowly into the batter, using the spatula or slotted spoon to cut down through the mixture to the bottom of the bowl while you rotate the bowl. Think of it like the wax on, wax off method used by Mr. Miyagi in Karate Kid.
kneading
I’m adding this technique to the list, even though I haven’t used it yet, because a lot of people started baking bread during the pandemic. It’s a trend that hasn’t really left us.
Kneading dough when making yeast breads is an essential part for the formation of gluten. This technique is what builds strength and elasticity in your dough.
If you’re a fan of The Great British Baking Show, you will have seen the contestants kneading their doughs by hand. Kneading can be done by hand or by dough hook in your standing electric mixer. If you’re kneading by hand, it will take anywhere between 10-30 minutes to get the optimal dough. If you’re kneading with a dough hook, it will take between 8-12 minutes to get the dough just right.
Experienced bakers recommend kneading the dough on a marble surface and sprinkling flour to prevent sticking if you’re kneading the dough by hand.
PIPING
Cupcakes and cakes are usually decorated with fabulous designs, and those designs are created by using the piping technique. Practice will make perfect, so don’t beat yourself up if you can’t produce a beautifully piped flower or rose.
Before you fill your piping bag, insert the piping tip, if you’re using one, so the tip falls to the opening. If the piping bag does not have an opening, insert the piping tip and cut according to how the tip fits at the end. You’ll want the piping tip to feel a bit snug, so don’t cut too wide an opening.
You can use your hand or you can use a tall, cylindrical container to hold your bag while you fill it. In both cases, fold the bag over your hand or the container. This will give you a wider area in which to pour your frosting or chocolate or whatever ingredient you’re using.
Once you’re finished filling the piping bag, unfold the bag and squeeze down with your hand or use a scraper to get the remaining ingredient that’s stuck at the top. Twist the bag at the top and begin piping.
The above seven techniques are important for a beginner to understand because these are the most popular techniques used in popular bakes.
I didn’t add a couple that pertain to baking pies like crimping and docking because I find making pies from scratch beyond my capability as a beginner. I also didn’t add scoring, which is a technique used in making bread, for the same reason. If you feel confident enough to bake a pie or bread from scratch, there is plenty of information on the internet on these techniques.
Terminology
Here are some popular terms you’ll hear and read as a baker:
- Aerate: to whip, sift or beat air between particles
- Batter: an unbaked mixture that is thin or thick but cannot be worked on like dough
- Chill: to place a dough or batter in the freezer or refrigerator to lower the dough or batter’s temperature
- Dust: to sprinkle lightly with sugar or flour
- Dough: a thick unbaked mixture that can be shaped by hand
- Emulsify: combining two ingredients that do not mix easily or naturally
- Fermentation: carbon dioxide produced by yeast feeding on sugars and starches present in the dough
- Glaze: to coat with a liquid before or after food is cooked/baked
- Grease: to rub fat on the surface of a pan/dish to prevent sticking
- Leaven: the process of baked goods rising
- Temper: to slowly bring up the temperature of an ingredient sensitive to heat
- Zest: grated outer skin of a citrus fruit (e.g., lemons and oranges)
recipe
As promised, here’s a recipe for a delicious Orange Apricot Chiffon cake. The recipe is courtesy of KitchenAid Recipe Collection.
Ingredients
- 2 medium-size oranges
- ½ cup water
- ½ cup canola oil
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
- ½ teaspoon orange extract
- 2¼ cups cake flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ⅔ cup packed light brown sugar
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup finely chopped dried apricots
- 4 extra-large egg yolks, at room temperature
- 8 extra-large egg whites, at room temperature
- ½ teaspoon cream of tartar
- ¼ cup packed light brown sugar
Steps
- Prepare a tube pan by cutting a round of parchment paper (don’t personally use) to fit bottom of pan; cut out a hole in middle to fit center tube of pan. Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 325℉.
- Finely grate peel from oranges over a piece of waxed or parchment paper or a small bowl (I use the bowl). Squeeze juice from oranges and place in a small saucepan. Simmer juice until it reduces to 2 tablespoons, taking care not to scorch or totally evaporate it.
- In a 2-cup liquid measure, combine water, canola oil, vanilla, orange extract, orange peel and reduced orange juice.
- Sift together cake flour and baking powder in a large mixing bowl. Add salt, brown sugar and granulated sugar, and stir together. Make a well in center of mixture by pushing dry ingredients toward sides of bowl. Add dried apricots and mixture of water, oil, extracts and egg yolks. Using a rubber spatula or a whisk, stir together until thoroughly combined (I use a spatula).
- Place egg whites in grease-free bowl of an electric stand mixer or large grease-free mixing bowl. Using wire whip attachment or a hand-held mixer, whip egg whites on medium speed until they are frothy (I use a handheld mixer). Add cream of tartar and continue to whip. Slowly sprinkle in brown sugar and continue whipping until egg whites hold glossy and firm, but not stiff, peaks, about 5 minutes. Fold egg whites into cake batter in 3 to 4 stages, blending thoroughly after each addition.
- Transfer mixture to tube pan. Use rubber spatula to smooth and even the top. Bake for 1 hour, until a cake tester inserted in center of cake comes out clean (use a toothpick or knife). Remove pan from oven and invert it over a cooling rack onto its feet or over a funnel or a thin-necked bottle. Let cake hand to cool completely. Don’t set pan on a cooling rack on its base. This will cause the cake to collapse onto itself.
- Don’t shake cake out of pan before it is cool. Once it is cool use a thin-bladed knife or flexible blade spatula to run around outer edge and inside tube to help release cake from pan. Invert cake onto a rack, then re-invert onto a serving plate. The cake will keep up to 4 days tightly wrapped in plastic wrap at room temperature.
I hope you found this post informative. If you make the cake, I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. It is a lovely, light cake that is great with coffee or tea.
Happy baking!