Sometimes, people tell me they are really good at cooking, but they just can’t bake. They don’t know why, but they always fail these recipes. Personally, I LOVE baking. Over the years, I got better, and I developed some tricks to make sure I rarely fail a baking recipe. Here’s a little summary of my 5 tips to be a better baker. Remember – precision is the key!

1. Measure the flour with the right technique

Are you the kind of person who scoops the flour directly from the bag with a measuring cup? If so, I recommend you keep reading!

To make sure you have the right amount of flour, follow these 3 simple steps:

1. Stir the flour to loosen it.
2. Spoon the flour into the measuring cup
3. With a flat edge (like the back of a knife), level off the flour.

Why is this so important? Because if you dip the measuring cup into the bag, it will pack the flour. That means you’ll add more flour than necessary to your recipe. That can affect the result of your baked good– it could end up being dry and dense.

2. If it says to not overmix – Do. Not. Overmix!

For some recipes, like muffins, you need to be careful when mixing the dry ingredients with the wet ingredients. You have to mix until just combined – which means that you should not overmix.

Why? Because when you mix, gluten develops. That is normal, and you want it to happen. BUT, if you overmix, the gluten will overdevelop, and you’ll end up with a heavy or dense muffin. Which is not what we want!

3. Decrease the cooking time a little bit

The cooking time can depend on many different factors, like the temperature, the oven or the humidity. For example, if I bake the exact same recipe in Quebec and in Vegas, I’ll get a different result. Crazy right?

That being said, I highly recommend decreasing the cooking time a little. That way, you’ll avoid overbaking or burning your food.

I usually start by removing 3 to 5 minutes to what is asked in the recipe. Then, I check my food: I take a look at my product, I insert a toothpick into my muffins, or I look for golden edges on my cookies, for example.

If it’s not done, I add some more time. Just be careful to not opening the door too many times since the oven temperature will drop. With time, it’ll become easier for you to see if it’s ready or not!

4. Understand the instructions

“½ cup of flaxseed, ground” and “½ cup of ground flaxseed” are two different things. In the first case, you measure the flaxseeds, and then you grind them. In the second one, you measure the ground flaxseed. Understanding this is really important to make sure you add the right amount of an ingredient into your recipe!

5. One last advice…

Never skip the first steps of the recipe: place the oven rack to a certain height, preheat the oven, grease your pan…

Is there anything more frustrating than finishing a recipe and then realizing you forgot to preheat the oven? Or even worst, spending couple of hours in the kitchen to realize your cake is stuck to the pan?

This is why I always make sure these steps are at the top of the instructions list!

Bibliography

Blais, C. (s.d.). Savez-vous bien mesurer vos ingrédients? Ricardo. https://www.ricardocuisine.com/chroniques/techniques/6-savez-vous-bien-mesurer-vos-ingredients.

Brown, A. (2015). Understanding Food : Principles and Preparation (5e éd.). Cengage Learning.