Cakes and cookies
6 short explainers. Read them in order, or jump to the question you have right now.
- 145Weigh flour for bakingFlour settles into a dense mass in its bag. Dipping a cup straight in compresses it, so you take out more flour than the recipe writer did. More flour…
- 146What eggs do in cakeRaw egg proteins are folded into tight coils. Heat unfolds them, and they bond into a net that sets around the air bubbles and starch in the batter. That…
- 147What sugar does in cakeSugar grabs water and holds on. With less free water, flour proteins form less gluten, and egg and starch need more heat to set. The cake keeps rising…
- 148Oil cake vs. butter cakeButter is about 80 percent fat and goes solid in the fridge. Vegetable oil stays liquid even when cold. So a chilled oil cake keeps a soft crumb, while a…
- 149Don't open the oven earlyEarly in the bake, steam, air bubbles and leavening gas swell the batter. But the egg and starch network around those bubbles is still soft. Open the door…
- 150Chewy or crisp cookiesBrown sugar carries molasses, which holds water, so cookies stay moist and chewy. White sugar holds less water and melts into the dough as it heats, so the…
