1001 Best BakingRecipes of All TimeEmma KatieCopyright 2015 Emma Katie All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review. Table of ContentsIntroduction Baking is a method of cooking that has been used for centuries to dry out various foods, bread being the most common baked goodie. Being looked at as a household activity in its early stages, baking has climbed incredibly high mountains over the last decade, but it still remains the main activity to do and enjoy at home. Women (and men alike) across the globe gather recipes in their notebooks, try them and spoil their families with baked goodies each and every day. The very first cakes or donuts were simple mixes of flour, water and various seeds, baked on hot rocks.
Many of these products back then had religious purposes and were made only on special days. They were dens and only sweetened with honey sometimes. It was only in the XVth century that pastry chefs and bakers began to be more and more popular and baking became a profession as well. And it was then that the French took this profession to a whole new level! Pastries began to be more and more intricate and complex and even the simpler ones started to be more and more comforting. In addition to this, the XVth century marked the moment the Europeans discovered America and with it, the cocoa beans and chocolate and so it began a new era for the world of desserts and baked goodies. Modern baking however, developed much later.
Layered cakes, chocolate cakes, flaky pastries and buttery cookies are a recent addition to the dessert world, but they soon conquered the heart of every baker around the globe. Modern equipment too contributed to this development, especially after it became more and more accessible to the home cooks as well. But unlike other professions, baking is both a science and an art. And just like a science, it comes with measurements and recipes which often can only be tweaked slightly, but not completely modified. Cups, tablespoons, teaspoons and ounces are perfect to obtain moist cakes, great cookies, amazing muffins or cupcakes, delicious quick breads or fluffy yeasted doughs. This book aims to become one of the most complete cookbooks referring to desserts on the market.
It covers a wide range of desserts and a wide range of flavors, it mixes textures and interesting aromas into excellent recipes waiting to be tried out in your home kitchen. And the great thing about these recipes is that you dont need any special skills to pull it off. As long as you know how to mix, have a bowl and a whisk around, a basic round cake pan and a loaf pan or muffin tin, youre good to go. So keep reading and lets discover together the amazing world of desserts! Put your apron on and lets get start baking, lets discover how fun it is, how much joy it brings and how comforting it makes us feel! Ingredients If youre going to take the time to bake a cake or a few muffins, you should have some information about the ingredients you use and their quality. Since homemade desserts dont have stunning decoration, they need to impress with something and their taste is your best bet towards success! And the only thing that matters in the end!
Butter
The natural flavor of butter cant be replaced with just anything so margarine or shortening is rarely a substitute. Softened butter is often used in pound cakes or creams, while cold butter is mostly used when making pie crusts.
The recipes in this book call for unsalted butter since it allows you to easier control the saltiness of each baked goodies, but certain desserts, like chocolate cakes, may take advantage of a bit of extra salt, being well known the fact that salt and chocolate are great friends. But butter has one major quality that most people neglect it melts in the mouth so desserts made with good quality butter will be soft and simply flood your palate with great flavor and have an amazing texture as well.
Milk
Next to water, milk is the most important liquid used for baking. From cakes to creams, muffins or breads, milk softens up the flour and has the ability to turn any mix of ingredients into delicious desserts. Moreover, milk is the base for other products, from heavy cream, sour cream, buttermilk or cheese.
Flour
Theres just a bunch of dessert recipes that dont use flour.
Whether it is wheat flour, rye flour, almond flour or coconut flour, this powder seems to be the most used ingredient in baking. Wheat flour can be either white all-purpose flour or whole wheat. And while these two categories are pretty straight forward, it gets a bit more complicated when we look into the types of white wheat flour found on the market. The most common is all-purpose flour which is just plain white flour its the type I prefer for most recipes because its easy to find, its fairly cheap and easy to work with. But apart from this, youll also find cake flour which has a smoother texture and a lighter color its suited for cake sponges and other delicate baked goodies. Pastry flour is similar to cake flour, while self-rising flour is all-purpose flour that has been mixed with baking powder, the proportions being 1 teaspoon of baking powder per each cup of flour.
Flour categories continue with rye flour which doesnt form gluten strands, therefore its not suited for yeasted dough unless combined with other types of flour. On the other hand, rye flour has a high nutritional profile which recommends it for a healthy diet. Oat flour is made from oats and it is packed with fibers and proteins. This type of flour is mostly used in healthier baked goodies, such as muffins or quick breads and it doesnt form gluten strands either. Almond flour is made from raw or blanched almonds, while coconut flour is made from coconuts and has a higher absorption power.
Baking powder
I recommend using aluminum free baking powder because it doesnt have a bitter after taste.
Baking powder
I recommend using aluminum free baking powder because it doesnt have a bitter after taste.
Any brand of baking powder will do the trick, but keep in mind that baking powder cant be stored for more than 6 months without losing part of its properties. Baking powder is basically baking soda mixed with an acidic component, usually cream of tartar and cornstarch. This prevents lumping and brings the leavening power down slightly. Unlike baking soda, baking powder doesnt depend on the addition of an acidic element in order to react, therefore it is more versatile.
Baking soda
Baking soda is usually included in recipes that have an acidic element, such as lemon juice, vinegar or even cocoa powder, molasses, brown sugar, buttermilk, yogurt and chocolate which are acidic. Baking soda can be stored for years without losing its properties and has been proven by scientists to be effective not only in baking, but also for cleaning around the house or certain medical conditions.
However, since heat is not needed for the baking soda to react, it is recommend that the batters using it as leavening agent to be baked right away or the sodas power wears off.
Yeast
Found mostly in bread, dinner rolls and similar pastries, yeast is a natural leavening agent which acts by fermenting in the batter or dough, thus raising its volume and incorporating air.
Sugar
Sugars has been blamed for many health problems over the years, starting with obesity, but recent scientific research show that as long as you have a balanced diet and include a variety of foods in your daily eating habits, sugar is the last culprit for your health problems. I too support a balanced diet and having a dessert once in a while shouldnt be looked at as guilty pleasure, but a normal thing to do. That being said, lets see why sugar is so important in baking: It adds sweetness to baked goodies. It adds texture to desserts, making them tenderer and finer.
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