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Miscellaneous
frequently asked questions regarding baking and cooking:
Question: How can I reduce the fat
in my baked goods and still have a decent end product to serve?
Answer: The fact will always remain that the fat called
for does make the recipe the best! However, you can easily
reduce the fat in your baked goods by evenly replacing it
with unsweetened applesauce or prune puree (in your darker-colored
items). You may find for some recipes that this is too drastic,
and you can just eliminate 1/2 the fat and replace it with
the same amount of applesauce or prune puree if you prefer.
You can also use egg substitute instead of whole eggs for
even further fat reduction.
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Question: I want to make a pie recipe
that needs a thickening agent. I would like to freeze the
pie for later use. Which thickening agent is the most suitable?
Answer: You need to be careful when developing recipes
that require a starch thickening agent for several reasons.
Be sure not to add your acid (such as lemon juice) too early
in the process, or it will break down the gelatinization process
that you need to obtain (thickness). Each starch contains
a % of what's called amylose, which is a linear chain of glucose
molecules. This percentage needs to be greater than 20% if
you need a gel to form immediately. For freezing, starches
that form gels immediately will break down and be runny upon
thawing. Therefore, if freezing a pie, be sure and use either
tapioca (18%), Rice (17%), or waxy corn (less than 1%). This
will provide you with a thickened product upon thawing, even
though they are runny beforehand. Some of the other major
starches available, and their amylose content are corn (28%),
potato (22%), wheat (25%), and sago (27%).
You need to take all the ingredients into consideration when
developing your own recipe where a starch is used, because
many of the added items, such as sugar, acids, temperature
of liquids, fats, etc., all affect the starch, and each starch
works differently with these other factors. If ingredients
are not proper, or added properly, the desired end-result
will not be obtained.
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Question: Why is unsalted butter called
for in many recipes?
Answer: Salt is added to non-yeast baked goods chiefly
for flavor, but it also affects the hydration of the flour
proteins. A lot of this depends on how the recipe was developed.
If the recipe was developed using unsalted butter, then more
salt would be directly added. If the recipe was developed
using salted butter, chances are the salt called for in the
recipe is less to compensate for the salt in the butter. For
yeast breads that call for unsalted butter, it is especially
important to use unsalted butter. Salt inhibits the yeast
and prevents the bread from rising too fast. If too much salt
is used, however, it will prevent the yeast from working as
it should. To sum it up, if your recipe specifies unsalted
butter, you are generally better off using just that.
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Question: My recipe tells me to use
solid shortening. Can I use oil instead?
Answer: A good rule of thumb to follow is a solid for
a solid and a liquid for a liquid. If a recipe tells you to
use solid shortening, you could use solid margarine or butter
as a substitute, but a liquid fat, such as oil would not be
appropriate. Liquid fat is absorbed much more quickly by the
flour than is solid shortening. Your dough will be much too
"gooey" if using liquid oil in place of solid shortening.
Cookies will be flat and hard when done due to the runnier
dough, other baked goods will be too runny and will not have
a good texture. The same holds true the other way around.
If your recipe calls for a liquid fat (oil), you should not
use a solid shortening. The recipe needs the quick absorption
rate of a liquid fat in this case. You could use melted shortening,
butter, or margarine, but remember -- a solid for a solid
and a liquid for a liquid.
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