Country Nuts and Confections Baking Tips

Many times, I’ve been asked about baking and advice. I can’t tell you how often I’ve heard, I didn’t have a mother to teach me how to bake or cook, or my mother didn’t bake, that I wish I knew how.

Baking and cooking are simple as reading, and it really is basic math.

What Every Kitchen Should Have

Let’s begin with what you’ll need and that every kitchen should have.

First go out and buy a nice set of measuring cups, glass ones as well, and find a 1/8 cup measure because you will use it in some recipes. A coffee measuring scoop-metal is an 8th of a cup or you can use two level tablespoons.

Next get a good set of measuring spoons that also have 1/8 teaspoon in the set. In fact, buy several sets. You’ll use them when you’re baking cakes or cookies and making frosting and don’t want to take the time to wash those cups or measuring spoons out. They don’t have to be expensive and please wash them by hand. They will last longer and keep your measuring spoons on the ring that they come with. It keeps them all together and you won’t have to go looking for the right sizes later. You can unhook the ring and take off the sizes you need while baking.

You’ll need a good cookie rack for cooling your cookies and cakes on, parchment paper for lining your cookie sheets, and good cookie sheets. Buy big sheets if you have room to store them because you can get more cookies on them that way.

Always have several sizes of whisks in your baking drawer or cupboard.

Finally, go buy a leveler. It looks like a flat knife without any serrated edges. They will have a wooden handle or metal. It will come in very handy. It should be small for leveling off your flour and spices.

Finally get a mixer, either a stand mixer or a hand mixer and good mixing bowls, (not plastic). Glass Pyrex set that has three sizes and some big stainless steel metal bowls that you can use when doubling your recipe.

Getting Ready to Bake

When you make sure everything is ready, all the size measuring implements you’ll need and your flour, spices, salt, baking powder, or baking soda, along with butter, oil or shortening, and what every moisture it calls for via milk, water, sour cream, cream.

When you are set up then you are ready to begin your recipe. Measure out everything you need and put your ingredients away. Now you read your recipe.

Baking Tips - Mixing Your Ingredients

Recipes usually start with the dry ingredients first. Unless it specifically says not to mix in an ingredient, you will mix your flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, or one of those, with your spices and blend with a whisk. Set aside your dry ingredients and move on to your fat and sugars.

Recipes will either call for white sugar, brown sugar or both. If it says refined sugar, it means the white sugar, you can buy in five-pound bags. I like to use unrefined organic products because that is what I bake with but follow your recipe for the best results.

The recipe will tell you to cream your fat and sugar or sugars together. You can do that by hand or a mixer. You decide which you prefer to do, but don’t over mix. Mix until it becomes fluffy but not overwhipped.

Then you’ll add your vanilla. Always use real vanilla for the best results. Remember if you overpour your vanilla, it won’t hurt anything because vanilla makes the recipe taste delicious.

Then add your eggs. I use large because a little more yolk and egg white isn’t going to hurt your dough. Make sure that you have your eggs out and at room temperature because you never want to cook with cold eggs. It does make a difference. The same thing goes for your milk and creams unless the recipe specifically tells you to use cold cream or milk.

After you’ve creamed in your eggs you will slowly at your flour mixture. One half to a cup at a time mix slowly on your mixer just until blended. If it calls for nuts, oats or chocolate chips always mix those in by hand.

A Very Important Baking Tip

Here is a good tip and great advice:

Never bake your dough if it appears soft. Cover your bowl with plastic wrap and put it in the refrigerator for an hour or two to firm the dough up then drop your cookies on a parchment line baking sheet.

Never spray oil on your coated cookie sheets because it can ruin them and you can buy precut sheets on Amazon.

Recipes will give you a time frame in which to bake your cookies or desserts. Always know your oven. Some ovens run hotter than others, especially the older they get. So do a test cookie first and bake at the lowest cookie time. If it doesn’t appear golden brown around the edges and looks undercooked in the center at a minute or two, adjust your time. It will save you money and dough.

Remember, always cool your cookies on a wire rack. Cookies will continue to cook another 5 to 10 minutes after they come out of the oven so don’t over bake unless you want hockey pucks.

Start Simple

Finally, before you begin any recipe read your recipe several times over. Make sure you have read the instructions thoroughly. It sounds like a lot in the beginning but once you begin and you follow my advice your cookies will come out perfectly.

Start with simple recipes and work your way up. Don’t try to do the more involved recipes until you become comfortable with baking for beginners.

Teaching the Next Generation

The one thing the mothers should do is start teaching the children early on how to cook and bake, and share simple baking tips. Yes, even teach the boys. Children grow up and move out, and those skills will benefit them far more than anything else.

Teach your kids to do laundry and how to clean. Perhaps they won’t like it but in the long run they’ll be thanking you because you took the time to teach them these things.

Who knows, one day they may invie you over to their home and surprise you with a home cooked meal or dessert. Won’t you be impressed!

From Our Family to Yours

Remember at Country Nuts and Confections we are always here as family to help you with your bakery needs and if you have a question for us please feel free to contact us and we will do our best to answer any questions you may have.

God bless and happy baking,

Joyce Isaac-Brown

Ownercountrynutsandconfecftions.com