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.