How Your Baking Ingredients Works
This is achieved by using the best available ingredients, procedure and recipe. Choosing the best baking ingredients will be easier for a pro that have tried different recipes and has adjusted to the best of this recipes. Ranging from the best mixing time, ingredients and their temperature.
When making cake, it is best to make sure baking ingredients are at room temperature, cold or warm ingredients will give different results compared to ingredients at room temperature.
Below are details of how your ingredients works as this might help in choosing the best one for you depending on what you want your resulting cake to be like.
• FLOUR
There are different types of flour and all these types have their base from wheat flour. Wheat flour contains proteins that react with each other when mixed with water to form GLUTEN. The difference between each types of flour is the amount of protein present in them. GLUTEN is an elastic framework that stretches to hold the air created by the expanding Leavening agents.
Based on the amount of protein present in each flour, flour with high protein content are hardwheat flour and those with lower content are referred to as soft wheat flour. Products made using hard wheat flour are tough and those made using soft wheat flour are tender.
The types of flour include bread flour, cake flour, all purpose flour, plain flour, whole wheat,etc. Bread flour is a hard wheat flour because it has a high percentage of this protein about 12%, All purpose flour has a medium content about 10.5% of this protein making it suitable to be used in all baking products, Cake flour is a soft wheat flour with 7.5% protein content and this make it suitable and probably the best for making cake to attain a tender and crumbly texture. Cake flour can be made using all purpose flour by removing 2tbsp of flour from 1 cup of all purpose flour and replacing it with 2tbsp of corn flour.
Flour helps to give structure to cake.
• FATS/OILS
Fats in solid form and oil in Liquid form enhance the flavour, texture, volume and moisture content of a cake. It also contributes to the flavour of used ingredients.
✓Butter
Butter is a good fat for cake has it gives it a fantastic mouth feel, minute crumbs, fine texture.
✓ Margarine can be used instead of butter when baking, it gives a nearly similar result with little difference. Cakes made using margarine are moist, salty, coarse textured with good flavour
✓ Shortening gives a cake a dry, crumbly, light, coarse texture and a tall height.
✓ Oil gives a tall, light, coarse and crumbly cake.
• SUGAR
Sugar gives sweetness to cake and also contributes to its moisture content. Cakes made with sufficient sugar are sweet and has a moist surface.
• EGG
Egg helps to add flavour, colour, incorporate air, contributes to cake structure, provide liquid, emulsify fats with liquid ingredients. Egg yolk contributes to the tenderness of a cake while egg whites contributes to cake volume
When making cake, it is advisable to weigh your eggs without its shell as the shells have their own weight.
• SALT
It enhances the flavour and sweetness of other ingredients. Salt can be added when using other fats/oils but should be avoided when .using margarine since margarine already have some salt in it.
• MILK
Whole Milk helps to add moisture to cake, it also contributes to cake volume and also aids Browning of cake
• LEAVENING/RAISING AGENTS
Leavening agents helps to raise our cake by expanding and creating air pockets in cake.
✓ Baking powder
Baking powder contains baking soda and an acid( e.g cream of tartar) which is enough to react with it. Before using baking always check it container to make sure it has not expired and also make sure it is still effective to avoid our cake from being at the same height before baking and after baking. Baking powder should not be added in excess when baking hence the cake has a bitter taste and collapse at the center.
The effectiveness of a baking powder can be confirmed by dissolving 1 tsp of baking powder in ½ cup of hot water, the mixture should bubble immediately if the baking powder is active.
✓Baking Soda/ Bicarbonate of Soda
Baking soda produces gas when combined with an acidic ingredients such as molasses, vinegar or lemon juice. Do not add excess baking soda when baking, it gives your cake a soapy taste.
Always make sure your baking soda hasn't expired and it is still effective before use by mixing ¼tsp of baking soda and 2 tsp of vinegar, the baking soda is effective if the mixture bubbles immediately
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