Nov 15 2009
Baking Tips – part 1
1.Stop cheesecake from cracking. Cheesecakes often crack on the top because they lose moisture while they cook. If you’re adding a topping it doesn’t matter, but if you’re serving the cake without anything on top it’s nice to have it looking perfect. Avoid cracking by putting a small dish of water on the rack beside your cake while it is cooking. This will keep it moist and crack-free!
2.Make sure your yeast is fresh. Yeast is a living organism. And in order for it to work to it needs to be alive when you use it. To test whether yeast is active, combine it with the amount of warm water asked for in the recipe. Then add a small amount of sugar (1/8 of a teaspoon is all that’s needed). The sugar acts as food for the yeast and if it’s alive it will begin to bubble within approximately 10 minutes. If there is no bubbling then you know the yeast is no good.
3.The key to great pastry is cold ingredients. Making your own pastry can sometimes be a challenge. But once you master it you’ll enjoy having it as part of your baking repertoire. To get really fabulous pastry, the key is to make sure ALL of the ingredients are cold before you mix them together – including the flour! Then once you’ve formed the dough, refrigerate it for at least 30 minutes to make it easier to roll.
