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Baked goods often look like works of art. However, creating these delicate confections is a science. Each ingredient and instruction in a recipe is an important part of achieving the right texture and flavor. The precision, patience, and attention to detail required in baking are what make it so tricky. If you’re struggling to make cakes, cookies, and other desserts correctly, you might be making at least one of a few common baking mistakes. Following just a few easy tips for baking from the experienced team at Frost can significantly improve the quality of your desserts.
1.
Not Reading the Whole Recipe First
The very first thing you should do before baking is read through a recipe in full. Jumping into baking before fully reading the recipe makes it easy to overlook an ingredient, miss an instruction, or fail to properly prep before baking.
2.
Using Ingredients at the Wrong Temperature
A lot of baking recipes will call for things like melted butter, room temperature eggs, or chilled dough. These temperature qualifiers aren’t just suggestions. Because baking is chemistry, ignoring the temperature of ingredients will impact the end results, and usually not for the better. As you read through a recipe, look out for these descriptions and make sure ingredients are the right temperature before you start adding them together.
3.
Not Adding Ingredients in the Correct Order
Baking recipes are very particular about separating ingredients and combining them appropriately. Just because every ingredient ends up mixed together in the end doesn’t mean you can toss everything together at the start. Ingredients react with each other differently and recipes account for this.
4.
Measuring Incorrectly
Inaccurate measurements are one of the main reasons desserts don’t come out as expected. A common mistake novice bakers make is overpacking dry ingredients like flour or sugar by scooping ingredients with measuring cups straight from a container. This causes the measuring cup to become too densely packed with ingredients, often resulting in denser, dryer desserts than intended. Instead, use the spoon and level method when measuring these ingredients. Spoon each dry ingredient into the measuring cup and level it off once the cup is full.
5.
Not Sifting Dry Ingredients
While often viewed as an optional step, sifting dry ingredients is key to a soft, airy dessert. Sifting removes clumps and aerates dry ingredients, distributing them more evenly and making them easier to mix with wet ingredients. Without sifting, you could end up with a tougher dough or batter that ends up a little denser than intended.
6.
Overmixing Batters and Doughs
A good mixing technique is important for combining wet and dry ingredients together and building up gluten structure for greater strength and elasticity. However, it’s very possible to overmix and build up too much gluten, which creates a stiffer dough. If you’re using a mixer, keep the setting at lower speeds and use a rubber or silicone spatula to incorporate the remaining contents from the side of the bowl. If mixing by hand, gently fold in ingredients and stop mixing or kneading when flour streaks disappear.
7.
Not Greasing Pans
Greasing a pan creates a barrier between the batter or dough and the pan. This keeps baked goods from sticking, which can cause them to tear or break when you take them out. If you don’t want to use butter or a spray to grease your pans, use parchment paper instead.
8.
Baking at the Wrong Temperature
Temperature is critical for good desserts. However, it can be difficult to maintain proper temperature. First, don’t add anything to your oven until it preheats to the right temperature. Once you have pans in the oven, try not to open the door too much. Frequently opening the door can cause temperatures to fluctuate, affecting texture.
Visit Frost Artisan Bakery
At Frost, we love talking dessert with our customers. Next time you place a custom order or pick up a tasty treat from our display case, we’d be happy to answer any questions you have!
