Collection: FAQ'S

It’s recommended to use unsalted butter in baked goods, because you can control the total amount of salt in the recipe. However, if you do not have unsalted butter and don’t want to make a trip to the store, simply use your salted butter, but omit the salt in the recipe.

Salt is a super important ingredient in baked goods, as it is a flavor enhancer. And, typically, only a finishing salt is actually used to make things taste salty (like a sprinkle of the flaky stuff on a chocolate chip cookie). Instead, salt is called for in baking recipes to make other flavors pop (chocolate desserts taste more chocolate-y, vanilla ones, more vanilla-y) and you want to be able to control how the salt operates in your baked goods. If a recipe calls for unsalted butter and you use salted instead, you won’t know exactly how much salt you are adding, and you run the risk of not only a salty baked good, but also one in which the careful balance of flavors is off.

Yes, you can omit espresso powder. Coffee typically enhances the flavor of chocolate, which is why you see it included in some brownie and chocolate cake recipes. It usually is not prominent, but if you don’t want to use it, you can omit it. Substituting for freshly brewed coffee depends on the amount called for. If it’s a tablespoon or two, you can omit or substitute vanilla extract. If it’s any more than that, I would recommend substituting hot water so that the final texture isn’t affected.

To test if baking powder is still good, combine 1 teaspoon baking powder with 1/3 cup hot water. If it bubbles, it’s still good! To test baking soda, put 2 tablespoons of white vinegar into a small bowl and add 1 teaspoon of baking soda. If it fizzes immediately, it’s still good!

The short answer is that they differ primarily based on protein content, which affects the final texture of the baked good you are making. All-purpose flour has 10-12% protein. Cake flour has 6-8% protein. If you don’t have cake flour, you can substitute ¾ cup sifted all-purpose flour plus 2 tablespoons cornstarch. Bread flour has 12-14% protein; the high protein content causes the bread to rise and gives it shape and structure. Some recipes (bagels, for example) call for high-gluten flour, which has an even higher protein content than bread flour and gives baked goods like bagels its characteristic chewy texture.

It is recommended to use whatever type of fat is called for in a given recipe because they each have different properties, and butter especially lends a great flavor. Using a liquid oil in place of butter will also affect the final texture of the baked good.

This could be caused by a couple of different factors. The first thing to check is your oven temperature. An oven thermometer is helpful to make sure that your oven is at the correct temperature. The wrong temperature can cause the cake to rise too far and collapse on itself. The second thing is to ensure that the cake is cooked through by using a skewer or thin knife inserted in the center and seeing that it comes out clean. If the cake is undercooked in the middle, it will cave in.

There are a few things that can cause cookies to turn out flat. A few of the most common reasons are: The butter is too warm when you add it to the batter; try refrigerating the dough for 30 minutes before baking. The baking powder or baking soda is old. The oven temperature may be off (again, oven thermometer helps). Too much extra butter or shortening from greasing a baking sheet; instead of greasing, use parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

The short answer is yes. If a recipe calls for room temperature ingredients it is because the finished texture of the baked good relies on how effortlessly the ingredients meld together when creamed. Even the most powerful of stand mixers cannot smoothly combine cold eggs (or sour cream or a big glug of chilled buttermilk) with a fluffy, room temp mixture of butter and sugar. In short, when you use cold ingredients, any hard-earned “airiness” that you’ve worked into the batter is compromised, resulting in a dense, cake or cookie.

Creaming butter with sugar aerates it, filling the mixture with tiny air bubbles. The heat of the oven then causes the air bubbles to expand, resulting in a treat with a soft, fluffy or tender texture, depending on the baked good. But only softened or room temperature butter can be aerated. Cold butter cannot, which means no air bubbles and no lovely texture.

No. When a recipe calls for cake flour, it is because the baked good requires a soft, tender crumb, like a white cake, a biscuit or certain cookies. Cake flour has a lower protein content than all-purpose, which means it produces less gluten. A baked good made with all-purpose flour might have a little chew, the obvious example being bread, whereas a treat made with cake flour, like an angel food cake, is light and airy and almost melts-in-your-mouth. As for sifting, cake flour (like cocoa powder and baking soda) clumps easily due to its delicate and fine grain. Sifting ensures errant pockets of stark white; uncooked flour don’t end up surprising you as you slice into your cake.

Yes. Resting cookie dough really does improve the look, flavor and texture of the finished product. The rest allows the flour to hydrate, and hydrated flour makes for a cookie that browns beautifully, spreads less and is more caramel in flavor. If a cookie recipe asks you to rest the dough pre-bake, it is wise to follow suit if you want the cookie to have all of the unique characteristics that its developer intended.

Ice-cold water is a non-negotiable ingredient in a flaky pie crust. A tender crust relies on cold, visible layers or bits of fat (butter, lard or shortening) that expand and evaporate when baked. Although the fat may start out cold, as you begin to knead it into the flour, your hands and/or the temperature of the kitchen begin to warm it. Ice-water ensures the fat stays cold during the kneading and shaping/fluting process, resulting in a crust with that coveted flakiness.

Indeed. Chilling the dough before rolling it contributes to its flakiness, as the gluten in the dough has time to relax, preventing a tough texture. Moreover, the liquid in the dough is redistributed during resting which contributes to its buttery taste. As for freezing the pre-baked crust, doing so hardens its fat, preventing the crust from slumping and shrinking when baked.

• Not realizing the difference between light and dark-coated pans. In a nutshell, baked goods (and even roasted vegetables) will cook more quickly in dark coated pans than in their light-colored counterparts.

• Using wet and dry measuring cups with the wrong ingredients － The difference may seem small, but wet and dry measuring cups don’t result in the same measurements and can have a big impact on baking results.

• Measuring flour improperly － Scooping directly into the flour will compress it and lead to too much flour being used. It might seem fussy, but take a spoon, fluff up the flour, and then spoon the flour a little at a time into the measuring cup. Then, level off the top with the straight edge of a knife.

• Over-mixing the batter － Mixing or beating ingredients too much tends to make the gluten in the flour tough and dense. This can lead to a chewier end result and is especially important for cakes, which we want to be light, airy, tender, and moist.

• Baking in an oven that isn’t preheated － This can mess with the general chemistry of the baked good. Specifically, putting batter in an oven that hasn’t come to temperature can lead to insufficient rise and further effect details like crumb consistency and cooking time.

• Opening the oven door frequently － The occasional check is generally fine, but a sudden drop in temperature can affect rise, and more delicate baked goods may collapse or sink.

• Forgetting to set the timer － We think we will remember… More times than not, if a baked good is dry, it is because it was baked too long. On that note, always check a recipe early the first time you make it. All ovens vary, and recipes can be wrong.

• Substituting baking powder for baking soda (and vice-versa) － These ingredients are both leaveners, but they are chemically very different. They are chosen to react with the acid in a recipe (or make up for lack of acid in a recipe) in order to create the proper rise. The wrong choice can also create a metallic aftertaste.

• Not waiting for cakes and cupcakes to cool completely before frosting － Cakes are more fragile when hot, so spreading the icing then is likely to create crumbs and even breakage. Also, if the cake is hot, the icing may slide off or melt into the cake.

• Not greasing pans properly － Non-stick vegetable oil spray or melted shortening will work better than butter. The milk solids in butter can act like glue, encouraging cake batter to stick to the pan. When spraying a pan, especially a Bundt pan, do it just before adding the batter, as the oil can run down the sides and pool at the bottom over time. Parchment paper is especially helpful with round, square, and rectangular pans. Some recipes will tell you to grease the parchment, but this is unnecessary when using a good parchment paper.