Baking Tips

• Use stick margarine. Tub or spreads have a different consistency
• Do not substitute baking powder and baking soda. The reason is that acid proportions may be unbalanced in the recipe
• When separating eggs, do so when they are cold using an egg separator.
• When whipping the whites of eggs, do so when they are room temperature - about 30 minutes.
• When baking a cake, many recipes will call for you to flour the pan. Instead of using flour, use confectioners' sugar. This will give your cake a much better flavor.
• Keep cookies in covered container with 1-2 slices of bread to keep them moist and soft (This bread "thing" works for all soft cookies, bread gets hard; cookies stay soft).
• To keep a cake fresher longer, place half an apple into the cake tin.
• When baking anything, be careful not to make loud noises and avoid jumping. Doing either of these can make cake, cookies and bread fall.
• High humidity can cause baked foods not to rise properly. Keep that in mind when doing baking.
• When baking, try to follow the recipe as closely as possible. When cooking, feel free to experiment.
• When a recipe calls for honey, try using orange blossom honey instead of the standard clover honey. It can really bring out a better flavor and is much lighter than clover honey.
• When measuring a sticky liquid (honey), lightly coat the cup or spoon with cooking spray. Use a spatula to remove the liquid easily.
• When a recipe calls for milk, if you want to keep the dish parve, use either rice milk or soy milk. Use in the same proportions.
• To make a double boiler, take a pot and put some water in it. Put another pot inside of it so that it is somewhat immersed in the water. Heat up the water to a boil and put the food items into the smaller pot. This works best with things that burn easily like chocolate and margarine.
• To prevent a pie crust from browning too much, cover it with strips of aluminum foil for a few minutes.
• To make uniform cookies, use an ice cream scoop dipped in cold water.
• Do not store chocolate in the refrigerator.
• Baking powder loses its potency upon standing. Always store in an airtight container or in a box with a tight-fitting lid.
• Cakes are done when a toothpick stuck in the center comes out clean
• To split a cake for layering, mark the middle points on the side of the layer with toothpicks. Using the toothpicks as a guide, cut through the layer with a long, thin knife. Split the layer by pulling a piece of floss through horizontally through the layer.
• A good frosting is smooth and holds swirls. It is soft enough to spread evenly, but holds its form so as not to run down the sides
• You may thin a thick frosting by adding a few drops of water
• Frost with a light touch so as not to tear the cake
• When baking cookies, if they run and spread out more than you like, add 1-2 tablespoons of flour to the dough. Alternatively, you could refrigerate the dough
• If the cookies are too dry, stir in 1-2 tablespoons of milk or water