Home Baking© PDST Home Economics
Better flavour
Attractive appearance
Cheaper
No preservatives
You can control ingredients
Advantages of Home Baking
Ingredients for baking
Flour: usually wheat flour because it contains gluten
Fat:
keeps bread fresh,
butter has the best flavour,
margarine is economical
Ingredients for baking Sugar: granulated or castor
sugar can be used for sweetness,
brown sugar adds a spicy flavour,
icing sugar is used for decorating
Eggs: should be fresh and at room temperature used to trap air
Ingredients for baking
Fruit: fresh or dried used to add flavour
Liquid: water, milk, egg used to make dough
Ingredients for baking
Raising agent: makes product light and spongy, can be natural, chemical or biological
Raising Agents Raising agents make bread and cakes rise in the
oven so that they have a spongy texture
Raising agents put a gas (air and/or CO2) in the mixture
In the oven the heat makes the gas expand which
pushes up the mixture The mixture is able to stretch because of the
gluten in the flour After a while the heat in the oven sets the gluten
so that the mixture keeps the risen shape
Natural raising agent: Air
Used alone in sponge cakes and pastry or with another raising agent in other baked goods.
Air is put into mixtures by
(a) Sieving
(b) Rubbing fat into flour
(c) Creaming sugar and fat
(d) Whisking eggs with sugar
Chemical Raising Agents
These depend on a chemical reaction to make the gas in the dough.
An alkali and an acid react to make a gas called
carbon dioxide (CO2) Baking Powder + Milk = CO2 (Alkali + Acid ) + Moisture = Gas Bread Soda + Buttermilk = CO2 Alkali + (Acid + Moisture) = CO2
Biological Raising Agent
Yeast
Tiny living organisms make CO2 in the dough
In the oven the bubbles of CO2 expand and pushes up the dough, until the gluten sets the dough
The heat also kills the cells
Oven temperature
Pre-heat oven to correct temperature
Too hot – outside burns inside still raw
Too cool – gas escapes – bread doesn’t rise
Rules for Home Baking Prepare tins and oven shelves in advance. Pre-heat oven. Use fresh ingredients. Weigh and follow recipe carefully. Sieve to add air. Add liquid carefully. Handle as little as possible, knead lightly. Once wet put in oven a.s.a.p. Time carefully, avoid opening door. Test for doneness. Cool on wire tray.
Methods of bakingMethod Used for
The rub-in method.
Fat rubbed into flour.
Scones,
yeast bread, pastry
The creaming method.
Fat and sugar creamed.
Queen cakes
Madeira cakes
The all-in-one method.
All ingredients mixed together at once
Madeira cakes
Queen cakes
The whisking methodSponge cake
Meringue
The melting methodOatmeal biscuits
Ginger bread
Cake Mixes Mixture of flour, fat, sugar, raising agent, salt and
additives sieved blended and packed.
When buying check expiry date and that its sealed, store in cool place.
When using follow instructions when adding the liquid.
Advantages: Saves time & labour, simple to use, quick in emergencies.
Disadvantages: Expensive, contain additives, lack fibre,
too much salt & sugar
Cake Mixes
Pastry Mixture of flour, fat and water. Richer pastry may have egg or sugar added.
Many types, used for sweet or savoury dishes.
Shortcrust and Rich Shortcrust
Flaky and Puff pastry
Suet pastry and choux pastry
Filo pastry
Pastry ingredients Flour: plain flour only, self-raising flour makes
pastry soft.
Fat: Butter gives good flavour, hard margarine is economical and lard makes pastry light and crispy. A mixture of margarine and lard can be used.
Water: should be cold and added a little at a time to make stiff dough.
Air: makes pastry rise, the more air in the pastry the better, sieving, rubbing in, rolling and folding.
Rules for making pastry Weigh accurately. Keep ingredients and equipment cool. Introduce air. Avoid over-handling. Use knife to mix. Add water carefully. Knead & roll lightly. Relax pastry in fridge before baking. Avoid stretching pastry. Bake in hot oven so burst starch grains can soak up
melting fat.
Baking Blind
Baking a pastry case without a filling e.g. for quiche or a fruit flan.
The base of the case is marked with a fork
Grease proof paper is spread over the base and weighted down with dried beans.
Top Related