Helpful Baking Hints for Home Baking

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Food Site
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Measuring Flour For My Recipes

Using the Right Tools to Properly Measure the Ingredients

Be Smart Before You Start --- Use a Mise En Place

Bake at the Right Temperature

Softening Butter for Successful Results

Rotating the Pans

Melting Chocolate

Candy Thermometers

How to Frost a Cake

Using a Pastry Bag

Fixing Curdled Custards

Getting Better Lemon Juice

Freezing Cookie Dough

Making Lovely Cookie Trays

The pumpkin used to make the recipes on this site is plain canned pumpkin. Be sure you don't use pumpkin pie mix by mistake, because it contains sugar and spices and other ingredients, and is not at all the same thing. The ingredients on the label should read: “pumpkin”and nothing else. Some recipes don't use all of the pumpkin in a standard 15-ounce can, which is the smallest can of pumpkin you can buy. So I suggest making a little Pumpkin Butter with the remaining pumpkin; you'll find the recipe on the Recipes page of this site, and you can use it on muffins, pancakes, toast and biscuits.

Coarsely ground nuts should be about 3/8” to 1/2” in size; if an ingredient is simply specified as “chopped nuts” they should be about 1/8” to 1/4”; finely chopped nuts should be no larger than a grain of rice; if simply specified as “ground nuts” they should be very fine and fluffy, but not at all gooey or oily. (If your ground nuts are oily, you’ve over-processed them.)

You can use a chef’s knife, food processor, nut grinder, or mezzaluna to chop the nuts. As you chop, pay attention to how finely and evenly you are chopping the nuts.

If you are using a chef’s knife, hold the tip gently against the cutting board while using your other hand to quickly raise and lower the knife blade with a slight rocking motion. Move the knife handle to the right and back to the left continuously as you chop, to be sure you are getting all of the nuts chopped.

A food processor is an easy way to chop nuts, but you have to be careful that you don’t put too many nuts into the work bowl at the same time. If you do, your nuts won’t chop evenly. It’s easy to over-process nuts and end up with finely ground pieces when you really wanted coarsely chopped nuts, or nut butter when you wanted ground nuts.

A nut grinder, with a glass or plastic clear jar on the bottom and a bin for the nuts and rotating blades on the top, makes quick work of chopping nuts. Simply place the nuts in the top bin and turn the crank. The chopped nuts neatly fall into the jar.

To use a mezzaluna, place the nuts on a cutting board or in a shallow, broad wooden bowl and rock the mezzaluna through the nuts repeatedly until they are chopped to the consistency you desire, rotating to the right and left to make sure they are all getting chopped.

Chopping Dried Fruit

If the fruit you want to chop is large, like an apricot or prune, and you don’t want finely chopped pieces, I find it’s easiest to use a very clean pair of scissors. Lightly coat the blades of the scissors with cooking spray and cut the fruit into the desired size. Be very careful not to snip your hand with the scissors. I use this technique for cutting dried berries or cherries in half, also.

You can place dried fruit in a food processor with a little of the flour from the recipe, and pulse on/off until the fruit pieces are the size you want.

A chef’s knife coated with pan spray will also do a fine job.

Spices don't last forever. If a spice called for in a recipe has been in your spice cabinet for more than a year, chances are good it doesn't have much flavor left in it. Before you use it, give it the “sniff test.” Open the jar or can and give it a good whiff. If it doesn't have a strong, clear smell, it won't have a strong, clear taste, either, and it's time to replace it.

Making Muffins in Advance

Quickly Tempering Chocolate

There are many ways to temper chocolate, but if you are using only a small amount, say to dip the edges of a few dozen cookies, this is a simple way to do it: Place at least 4 ounces of chocolate into a microwave safe glass container and microwave the chocolate until it is mostly melted and the chocolate is 108 degrees Fahrenheit. Use an instant read thermometer to check the temperature.

There should still be a few soft lumps in it. Remove the bowl from the microwave and stir it with a fork or small whisk until it is smooth. Add about 1-1/2 ounces of chopped chocolate to the bowl for every 4 ounces of melted chocolate, and stir until it melts, continuing to stir until the chocolate drops to 90 degrees. Wrap a towel around the bowl to help retain the heat, and dip the cookies into the chocolate. Place the dipped cookies on a parchment-lined tray and set them in a cool place for several minutes to allow the chocolate to set. You can also briefly place the tray in your refrigerator for up to 5 minutes. When it is set the chocolate should be shiny and hard. Store the cookies in an airtight container in a cool, dry place.

Tempering Chocolate in a Double Boiler

Cutting Cream Cheese Brownies

The Cream Cheese Brownies in this issue are very dense and rich. Because of that, you should use a very sharp knife that’s been dipped in water to cut them. If you are using a cookie cutter, you will need to push the brownie out of the cutter from the bottom side, gently pushing around the brownie at different points, until the brownie pops out. This is because the brownies are so dense and tend to stick to the cutter. It also helps if you moisten the cutter each time before you use it.

Using Chocolate Ganache as a Coating for Small Items

Ganache is a rich, thick, wonderfully deep-flavored concoction that has many uses in the pastry kitchen. It is easily made and just as easy to use. Place the item to be coated on a serving fork over the container of warm Ganache, and use a metal spatula to “"spoon up"” Ganache and coat the item. If you intend to coat all sides of the item, you can briefly drop the item into the Ganache and lift it with the fork, and then finish coating the remaining sides. Place the coated item on waxed paper or parchment and refrigerate it until the Ganache has set. Remove the item from the parchment or waxed paper while it is cold, or the Ganache will stick to the paper.

Rolling Cookie Dough

One of the largest mistakes people make when rolling cookie dough is to handle it too harshly. There is a protein in wheat flour called gluten, and moving it around a lot after it has been moistened causes the gluten to strengthen, making your dough tough. So in order to produce tender cookies, you need to handle the dough as little as possible. One way to ensure that you don't have to re-roll the dough too often is by making sure the rolling surface is lightly but sufficiently dusted with flour so the dough doesn't stick to the surface. Another way to keep the handling of the dough to a minimum is to make sure you cut the dough so there is the least amount of waste. Cut the cookies as close as possible to each other, and there will be less leftover scraps of dough to re-roll.

Dipping Cookies in Icing

To get that shiny, smooth surface on cut-out cookies, you need to dip them upside down into icing. The icing should be thick enough that it isn’t drippy, but thin enough that it coats the top surface of the cookies. It sounds trickier than it is. The recipe for Dipping Icing for Cookies has a great consistency for this task. You may want to add a few drops of water, or another tablespoon or so of confectioners’ sugar to get the correct consistency, but the recipe itself will be very close to what you need. Pour the icing into a broad, shallow dish and cover it with damp paper towels if you are not using it right away.

To coat the cookies, drop them face down onto the surface of the icing. Grab the cookie with your thumb and middle finger, and gently sway the cookie back and forth a couple of times to be sure the entire surface is coated. Try not to get the icing on the sides of the cookie. Lift the cookie from the icing and gently shake it so the excess icing drips off. This may take a second or two. You can also use a small icing knife or table knife to help move some of the icing off. Then flip the cookie over and set it onto a cookie sheet or tray to set. The icing will settle into a smooth coating. If you are decorating the cookies with colored sprinkles or sugar, sprinkle it on before the icing starts to dry. It could take the icing an hour or more to completely set, depending on the humidity in your kitchen. Once the icing is set, you can store the cookies in an airtight container.

Using Cupcake Liners

You can decide to use paper cupcake liners or not to use them. Unless seeing the bottom of the cupcake is important in the presentation of the dessert, I suggest that you use cupcake liners, even if you are using non-stick cupcake pans. While you can certainly butter and flour each of the wells in the pan, the little cakes might still sometimes stick. It's also just plain easier to use the liners. And they also help to keep the cupcakes fresh. They aren't expensive, and you can find them in the baking aisle of any grocery store.

Filling Cupcake Pans

Buying Cupcake Pans

Unlike muffins, cupcakes aren't usually made in jumbo sizes. When you buy cupcake pans for most recipes, look for basic cupcake pans with 12 wells, unless the recipe tells you to use larger ones. Avoid buying any pans that say “"jumbo"” if you are going to use them to make standard cupcakes. Cupcake pans can be found in most grocery stores and at discount stores.

Dipping Cupcakes in Ganache

One of the easiest and, to my palate, tastiest ways to frost a cupcake is to dip it in warm Chocolate Ganache. The Ganache forms a smooth, glossy coating over the surface of the cupcake. It’s lovely. And you can decorate the Ganache coating with sprinkles, coconut, or many other things, to make it look fun and festive.

Coating Upside-Down Cupcakes with Ganache

The shiny, deep, dark chocolate coating that you see on some fancy cupcakes in upscale bakeries is actually very easy to accomplish in a home kitchen. Bake a batch of cupcakes without using cupcake liners: spray the cupcake wells generously with a non-stick spray and flour them, turning the pans upside down and tapping out any excess flour. Bake the cupcakes as directed in the recipe, setting the pans on a wire rack to cool for 5 minutes after baking. Then loosen the cupcakes gently with a kitchen knife or small spatula, and turn the pans over, so the cupcakes fall out. Set the cupcakes upright on the wire racks and cool them thoroughly before proceeding.

Make a batch of Chocolate Ganache, stirring until it is perfectly smooth. Set one large or two smaller wire cooling racks on a piece of wax paper or parchment. Brush any crumbs from the bottom and sides and place each of the completely cooled cupcakes upside-down on the wire racks, trimming a bit off them if necessary so the cupcakes sit flat. Slowly pour the slightly warm ganache over a cupcake, using a small spatula to guide it so it completely covers the bottom (which is now the top) and sides of the cupcake. Allow any extra to drip onto the parchment so it can be reused. Repeat with all of the cupcakes, and let them sit, at room temperature, until the ganache is firm to the touch. Then place them in an airtight container and keep them in a cool place until you serve them.

Making Cupcakes in Specialty Shapes

It’s easy to make your cupcake trays look festive and interesting by baking some of the batter in specialty pans. After all, cupcakes are just small cakes, so you can add some interestingly shaped small cakes to your assortment.

Some of the most interesting small pans are made by the Nordicware company. They come in several different styles, and if you only fill them up 1/3 before baking, the cakes will be small enough for individual servings.

Most of the Nordicware pans are nonstick, and I have great success with these pans by simply brushing them thoroughly with softened butter before spooning in the batter. Be sure you don’t under-bake the little cakes – the sides of the cakes should start pulling away from the pan when they are done. Let the pans set on a wire rack to cool for 4 or 5 minutes, them use a small spatula to loosen the cakes and flip the pan over to release them. Let the cakes cool completely before decorating them.

Craft stores often carry 3-d icing tubes that can be used to decorate small fancy cakes, so you don’t have to go to a lot of trouble to frost them. Sprinkle some with confectioners’ sugar to vary the look.

Freezing Cupcakes

You can make cupcakes in advance and freeze them frosted or unfrosted, although I prefer to frost them after they thaw. Either way, place them in a single layer in a plastic container just large enough to hold them, making sure the tops of the cupcakes don’t touch the top of the container, seal the container so it is airtight, and place it in your freezer. The day they are to be eaten, remove the container from the freezer and leave it, uncovered, at room temperature for 30 minutes. Frost them once they have defrosted. You can freeze cupcakes for up to two months.

Flavoring Cake Batter

It's effortless to change the flavor of basic cake batter. You can add a teaspoon or so of your favorite spice, or a combination of spices; a teaspoon or two of lemon zest with the juice of half a lemon; the zest of one orange and 1/4 teaspoon of pure orange flavoring; a half cupful of ground nuts; a few tablespoonfuls of grated chocolate, which will leave lovely flecks of chocolate throughout the batter; crushed malted milk balls; or finely chopped dried fruits. Add the spices, or zests and juice or flavoring with the butter. Any solid ingredients should be tossed with the flour before adding it to the batter.

Chopping Candied (Crystallized) Ginger

Spray a clean chef’s knife with nonstick spray and chop the candied ginger on a cutting board until it is the size of short grain rice. If the ginger starts to stick to the knife, wipe it clean and spray it again, then continue chopping.

Measuring Molasses, Honey or Corn Syrup

When you are measuring thick, sticky liquids, it is difficult to get all of the liquid to pour out of the measuring cup. Before you measure any of them, spray the inside of the cup with a nonstick spray, or coat it lightly with vegetable oil. The liquid will pour more easily out of the measuring cup that way.

Freezing and Thawing Cookies

Make sure the cookies are completely cool. Then place them in pairs, back to back, wrapping each pair in plastic wrap. Put all of the wrapped cookies inside a zipper freezer bag, seal the bag, and place in the freezer for up to 2 months. When you want to use them, take out only as many cookies as you need and leave them at room temperature, wrapped in the plastic wrap, for about 30 minutes, until they are thawed. Remove the plastic wrap and serve.

Freezing and Thawing Muffins

Wrap each completely cool muffin individually in plastic wrap. Place the muffins in a zipper freezer bag or a sturdy plastic container, seal it, and place in the freezer for up to 2 months. When you want to use them, take out only as many muffins as you need and leave them at room temperature, wrapped in the plastic wrap, for about 30 minutes, until they are thawed. Remove the plastic wrap and serve.

Freezing and Thawing Quick Breads

When completely cool, wrap the bread in plastic wrap. Then place it inside a zipper freezer bag, seal the bag, and place it in the freezer for up to 2 months. When you want to use it, take the package out of the freezer and leave it at room temperature, wrapped in the plastic wrap, for about 1 hour, until it is thawed. Remove the plastic wrap and serve. You can cut the breads into smaller pieces and wrap and freeze them, also, removing and thawing only what you need as you need it.

Using Long Pepper

Long Pepper is a Thai relative of the black peppercorns we use everyday. It is milder in flavor than black peppercorns, with hints of spices. It is a lovely addition to your spice cabinet. Because of its unusual shape (a tiny, long berry that looks like a pinecone) it can’t be easily ground in a pepper mill just the way it is. Either crush the berries with a meat pounder and then grind them through a pepper mill, or grind them in a coffee mill. Long Pepper is a wonderful flavor enhancer that can be sprinkled over meats, vegetables, or used in many desserts.

Fresh Cranberries

Buy cranberries that are plump-looking and bright red, and store them in the produce drawer of your refrigerator. They’ll stay fresh for a few weeks. When you use them, rinse them well and search through them carefully for soft berries.

Coring Pears

Pears can be cored very easily by cutting them in half and using a melon balling tool to scoop out the seed core.

Leveling a Cake

Sometimes we need the top of a cake to be perfectly flat – in order to stack layers, or so the cake looks very smooth and flat when it’s frosted. When that is the case, use a long knife and, with a gentle sawing motion, cut across the top of the cake to remove the part that mounded when the cake was baked. The part you cut off can be saved and eaten as dessert, broken up over ice cream.

Using Fruit (or fruit juice) in Marshmallows

Many fresh fruit purees can be used to make marshmallows. Depending on the water content of the fruit, you may need to adjust the amount of puree you use, so you might have to experiment a little when you try something new. There are some fruits, like kiwi, mango, papaya, persimmon, and pineapple, as well as fresh ginger root, which contain an enzyme that breaks down gelatin, so if you are using those fruits, you should heat the puree before making the marshmallows. Be sure to let the puree cool before you use it. Bananas should be pureed just before using the puree, and it’s a good idea to add a teaspoon of all natural Fruit Fresh dissolved in 1 tablespoon of water to the puree before you use it. Unless you have access to local berries or stone fruits, it’s better to use frozen fruit to get a truer flavor. Press the berries through a fine sieve, or food mill, before using them to remove the seeds, because the seeds will detract from the texture of the marshmallows.

Some fruits work better than others. Apples, for instance are better used as a cider or juice when flavoring marshmallows. Just use the juice to replace the water in the marshmallows. This also applies to pears.

Pureeing Fruit

It’s easy to puree fruit. Remove any peels, and in the case of stone fruits, remove the seeds. Put the fruit in a food processor ad process until perfectly smooth. I like to strain out the seeds from berries (using a fine sieve or food mill), but many people don’t mind them once the fruit’s been pureed. It’s a personal decision.

Flavoring Marshmallows with Herbs or Spices

The texture of chopped herbs will detract from the fluffy, smooth texture of the marshmallows, and many herbs just become gray and mushy when added to marshmallows. For this reason, it’s best to use the herbs to infuse the sugar syrup before it is added to the gelatin mixture. To do this, bring the sugar and water to a boil, turn off the heat and add the chopped herb(s). Cover the pan and let the flavor infuse for 30 minutes. Remove the cover, strain the herbs out of the syrup and return the syrup to the pan. Proceed with the recipe as stated in the directions. The amount of herbs you use will depend on the herb itself and how strong you want the flavor to be. Rosemary, thyme, mint, basil, lavender and cilantro are some of the herbs that will work well. Be adventurous and try different combinations.

Spices can be added to the gelatin mixture before the syrup is beaten in. Rub the spice between your fingers to see if it is gritty. If so, it may make the texture of your marshmallows gritty, too, so you should consider using something else. Some of the ground spices that work well in Marshmallows are Saigon cinnamon, ginger, allspice, cayenne and ancho chile pepper, cardamom, white pepper, and cloves. Use your imagination to create exotic flavors in combination with fruit purees and/or liqueurs.

Flavoring Marshmallows with Cocoa and Chocolate

Melted chocolate is a little high in fat content to use in marshmallows, because it will deflate the air in the whipped sugar. So it is better to use cocoa. Sift the cocoa or whirl it for a few seconds in a food processor (the mini processors are perfect for this) and when the syrup is around 230 degrees Fahrenheit, add 1/2 cup boiling water to the cocoa, stirring with a whisk until perfectly smooth. Add this mixture to the gelatin mixture just before the hot syrup is added, mixing the cocoa paste into the gelatin for 15 seconds before adding the syrup.

Since chocolate deflates the marshmallows, the best way to use it is to drizzle melted chocolate on the beaten marshmallows, folding it in gently to marbleize the marshmallows, just before you spread the finished marshmallow mass into the pan.

Cutting Marshmallows

This is the hardest part of making marshmallows. You can lightly oil a knife or pizza cutter, and cut the marshmallows with it, or you can use a piece of wire, like the kind that is used to cut cheese. The marshmallow will be sticky, so be patient.

Coating Marshmallows with Sugar Mixtures

When you coat the marshmallows, just dip each side into the sugar mixture you are using. Then tap off the extra sugar.

Coating Marshmallows with Tempered Chocolate

If you want to temper chocolate, you can dip the marshmallows in the tempered chocolate using a fork to balance the marshmallow on. Place the dipped marshmallows on a parchment-lined baking sheet and set it in the fridge for several minutes to help set the chocolate. Remove the pan from the fridge and store the dipped marshmallows in an airtight container away from sun, heat, and humidity.

Other Ways to Dress Up Marshmallows

You can also skip the sugar coating and roll your marshmallows in chopped nuts, toasted or untoasted coconut, colored sprinkles, cinnamon sugar, mini chips, or anything else your heart desires. Be sure not to coat the marshmallows with the confectioners’ sugar mixture, because then the other coatings won’t stick.

Try dividing the marshmallow into two or more bowls and beating a different color of food coloring into each one, and then layering the marshmallows.

Make two or more flavors of marshmallows and layer them in the pan.

Storing Marshmallows

Because they can dry out easily, be sure to store marshmallows in an airtight container.

Other Flavorings for Marshmallows

Replace some of the corn syrup with molasses.

Replace all of the corn syrup with honey.

Add some instant espresso powder or pure coffee essence to the gelatin mixture before adding the hot syrup.

Piping Marshmallows

Pipe freshly whipped marshmallow onto parchment as soon as it is finished, using a pastry bag and tube, or a zipper plastic bag that has one of the corners snipped, Let them sit out for several hours before coating them.

Using Homemade Marshmallow Fluff as Frosting

Fluff makes a great frosting for summer cupcakes; kids love it and most adults secretly harbor a childlike fondness for it. You can spread it on a cake or cupcake just as you would a frosting, or it can be piped on decoratively using a piping bag. Keep the frosted cakes in a cool place until you are ready to serve them.

Baking Soda and Baking Powder: What’s the Difference?

Many people make the mistake of thinking that these two leaveners (something that makes a baked product rise) are interchangeable, but they aren’t.

Baking soda is the main leavener used in baking, and is an alkaline substance. It requires something else in the recipe to be acidic in order for it to work. When baking soda (bicarbonate of soda) is combined with an acid in a recipe, say lemon juice or buttermilk, a chemical reaction takes place that produces carbon dioxide, which forms pockets of air in the batter. While baking, these pockets of air expand, causing the baked product to rise. At the same time, the flour, sugar and eggs are forming a structure around the air pockets. If there isn’t enough baking soda or acid in the recipe, the baked product won’t rise properly. If there is too much baking soda and acid, there will be larger air pockets and the structure formed by the eggs, sugar and flour won’t be able to support it: the cake or cookie will fall.

Baking powder is a mixture of baking soda and an acid, along with an inert substance that keeps the two from reacting in the container. Baking soda makes up only a small part of baking powder, so they cannot be substituted one for one. The main purpose of baking soda is to provide the acid for a recipe in the proper ratio for the reaction to take place.

If you change a recipe, it’s important that you replace acidic ingredients with other acids, and that you don’t use an acid in place of a non-acid ingredient, or you will throw off the balance of the recipe.

Freezing Pie Dough

After the dough has been made, flatten it into a disc and double-wrap it in plastic wrap. Place the wrapped dough into a zipper freezer bag, pressing out all of the air, and seal it. Place the dough in a freezer for up to 2 months. To thaw the dough, place it in the fridge, wrapped, for 24 hours.

Freezing Unbaked Pie Shells

After rolling out the dough, ease it into a pie pan, crimping the edges. Place the pie pan into a freezer, allowing the dough to become completely frozen. Remove the pie pan and quickly double-wrap the pan with plastic wrap, then with foil. Return the pan to a safe part of the freezer, where it will not get knocked around, for up to 2 months.

Rolling out Pie Dough

The keys to a successful pie crust are working with properly chilled dough, handling the dough gently and as little as possible, and not using too much flour when rolling it out. Work confidently and quickly, so the dough stays cool. As long as the dough is cool, you will need to use less flour to roll it out. Sprinkle the flour onto the work surface using your fingertips, allowing just a dusting to cover the work surface.

As you roll out the dough, turn it a quarter turn with each pass of the rolling pin. If the dough feels like it’s sticking, lift the dough, sprinkle a light dusting of flour on the work surface, place the dough back, and continue rolling and turning it. Work as quickly as possible.

When the dough has been rolled to the proper size, sprinkle a very light dusting of flour over it, gently spreading it around with the palm of your hand, and fold one side of the dough over to form a half-moon. Lift up the folded dough and place it in the pie pan so that the fold is in the center of the pan. Unfold the dough and ease it gently into the shape of the pan, being sure not to stretch it. Chill the shell for at least 30 minutes before baking it.

Making a Crimped Pie Shell Edge

Be sure you roll the dough out so it is 2 inches wider than the pie pan. After easing the dough into the pan, turn the overhanging dough under itself on the lip of the pan. Then, position the thumb and the first two fingers of the same hand on the folded edge so that the thumb is between the two fingers. Push your thumb firmly between the fingers to form a crimp. Move your and over and repeat until you have crimped the entire circumference of the pie shell.

Whipping Cream

I find it’s best to use a hand mixer to beat cream, because you have to stay with it the entire time. Cream can easily be over-whipped, and using a stand mixer tempts you to walk away “just for a second” while you tend to something else. It’s easy to lose track of time and forget about the cream for a minute.

Place the bowl and beater(s) in your freezer or refrigerator to chill for 15 minutes or more. Remove them when you are ready to whip the cream. Place the cream and sugar, if you are using it, into the bowl and beat on medium speed until the cream is the consistency of mayonnaise. Add any flavorings at the beginning.

Repairing Over-Whipped Cream

Sometimes you get distracted and the cream gets over-whipped. You’ll know when this happens because the cream will look curdled. If this happens, add a little unbeaten cream to it and beat gently on medium low speed until the cream becomes smooth.

The Best Pans for Baking Pies

You’ll get the best results baking pies in glass Pyrex pie pans, Corning Ware pie pans, or ceramic pie pans. Never place any of these pans on a cold surface when you remove the hot pies from the oven.

Bread for Bread Pudding

When you choose the type of bread to use, be sure you don’t use a commercial, fluffy white bread, because the resulting bread pudding will be mushy, not dense. Brioche is the first choice, but if you don’t have a bakery near you where you can get brioche, you can use a dense, home-style white bread, like the ones made by Vermont Bread Company, Arnold or Pepperidge Farms. If the brioche top crust is very dark brown, you may want to trim it off. Otherwise, use the bread with the crusts.

Using Cookie Cutters

Select cookie cutters with sharp edges and rolled tops (so your fingers don’t get cut). Dip the cutting edge of the cookie cutter into flour before you cut each cookie. Make sure you have kept a very light sprinkling of flour under the rolled dough (check often to see that the dough isn’t sticking to the rolling surface) so the cut-outs can be easily moved to the baking sheets.

Press the cutter down into the dough, trying not to move it back and forth, so the cookie shape doesn’t get distorted. Remove the cutter, and slip a large offset icing spatula under the cut shape, and move it to a parchment-lined baking sheet, leaving an inch between cookies. Try to keep the cookies on each baking sheet all the same size, so they bake in the same amount of time.

Decorating Dipped Cookies

You can make your sugar cookies look even more festive by sprinkling them with sparkling sugars, or jimmies or other tiny decorations. Let the dipped cookies sit for 4-5 minutes after dipping before sprinkling them with decorations.

Storing Baked Cookies

You can use the finest ingredients to make your cookies, but unless you store them properly, you've wasted your time, energy, and money. Always cool cookies completely before storing them. To store soft cookies, place them in an airtight container with wax paper or parchment between the layers of cookies. To store crisp cookies, place them in an airtight container.

Never mix soft and crisp cookies in the same container, because the moisture from the soft cookies will cause the crisp cookies to become soft.

Carmelizing Sugar for Crème Brulée

When making Crème Brulée, it is a simple procedure to caramelize the sugar that forms the thin, crisp crust. You will need a propane or butane torch – the kind you buy in a hardware store, or the smaller ones that are sold specifically for this purpose in kitchen shops. You can do this up to 30 minutes before the custard will be eaten. Sprinkle a thin layer of sugar evenly over the top of the custard, and, using a propane torch, heat the sugar until it browns and bubbles, up to a minute per custard, depending on the size. It is quicker if you keep the torch in one place until the sugar browns, then move the flame to another spot, continuing until the entire top has been browned.

Serve immediately or refrigerate for up to 30 minutes.

Determining the Doneness of Baked Custard

When you are baking custard, you need to remember that it will continue to cook a bit more after it has been removed from the oven. Cook it only until the edges are firm – the center will still jiggle a bit when the baking dish is gently moved.

Eileen Talanian is a member of Les Dames d'Escoffier
and the International Association of Culinary Professionals

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	How often have you started making a recipe only to find that you didn’t understand the instructions? Sometimes a few baking hints are all you need to get through a jam. I have listed here some of the baking hints that are most often requested. If you have a helpful baking hint of your own, email it to me. I will list all good hints, along with the names of the home bakers who suggest them, on this page.

	Be Smart Before You Start --- Use a Mise En Place Baking Soda and Baking Powder Basic Hints: • Bake at the Right Temperature • Candy Thermometers • Measuring Flour For My Recipes • Measuring Molasses, Honey or Corn Syrup • Rotating the Pans • Using the Right Tools to Properly Measure the Ingredients Bread for Bread Pudding Cakes: • Flavoring Cake Batter • How to Frost a Cake • Leveling a Cake • Rotating the Pans Carmelizing Sugar for Crème Brulée Chocolate: • Melting Chocolate • Quickly Tempering Chocolate • Tempering Chocolate in a Double Boiler • Using Chocolate Ganache as a Coating for Small Items Chopping Candied Ginger Chopping Dried Fruit Chopping Nuts Cookies: • Cutting Cream Cheese Brownies • Decorating Dipped Cookies • Dipping Cookies in Icing • Freezing and Thawing Cookies • Freezing Cookie Dough • Making Lovely Cookie Tray • Rolling Cookie Dough • Storing Baked Cookies • Using Cookie Cutters Coring Pears Cupcakes: • Buying Cupcake Pans • Coating Upside-Down Cupcakes with Ganache • Dipping Cupcakes in Ganache • Filling Cupcake Pans • Freezing Cupcakes • Making Cupcakes in Specialty Shapes • Using Cupcake Liners Determining the Doneness of Baked Custard Fixing Curdled Custards Fresh Cranberries Getting Better Lemon Juice Marshmallows: • Using Fruit (or fruit juice) in Marshmallows • Pureeing Fruit • Flavoring Marshmallows with Herbs or Spices • Flavoring Marshmallows with Cocoa and Chocolate • Cutting Marshmallows • Coating Marshmallows with Sugar Mixtures • Coating Marshmallows with Tempered Chocolate • Other Ways to Dress Up Marshmallows • Storing Marshmallows • Other Flavorings for Marshmallows • Piping Marshmallows • Using Homemade Marshmallow Fluff as Frosting Muffins: • Freezing and Thawing Muffins • Making Muffins in Advance Pies: • The Best Pans for Baking Pies • Freezing Pie Dough • Freezing Unbaked Pie Shells • Rolling out Pie Dough Pumpkin Softening Butter for Successful Results Spices Using a Pastry Bag Using Long Pepper Whipped Cream: • Whipping Cream • Repairing Over-Whipped Cream

	Measuring Flour For My Recipes There are several ways used to measure flour, and not all of them will result in the same amount of flour. For all of the recipes on this web site, the flour is always measured in the following way: Use a large spoon to stir the flour. Then spoon the flour into the dry measuring cup until it is overflowing. Scrape the side of a straight-edged utensil, such as an icing spatula, across the cup so the contents of the measuring cup are level with the top of the cup. Do not tap the cup on the work surface while you are filling it, or the contents will settle and you will end up with more flour than you need for the recipe.

	Using the Right Tools to Properly Measure the Ingredients Don’t use dry measuring cups for liquids, or liquid measuring cups for dry ingredients. Be sure to use a straight-edge, like a long spatula, to scrape off a level surface on the dry ingredients. Make sure the liquids are even with the correct measure amount in the measuring cups. Do this at eye level, or use the great new Oxo Angled Measuring Cups to do this effortlessly.

	Be Smart Before You Start --- Use a Mise En Place A mise en place (pronounced mee zon plahs) is a practice used by chefs that refers to having all of the ingredients ready and measured “in their place” before you begin preparing the recipe. An easy way to set up a “mise” is to place a piece of deli paper on your work surface and write the names of all of the small ingredients (salt, baking soda, etc.) on it, then measure these ingredients, placing them on the paper next to their names. Make a separate paper for each group of items that is added at the same time. You can also put each ingredient into a small separate dish. Measure larger items into small bowls. Set all of the measured ingredients on your work surface near the mixer or area where you will be mixing. Setting up a mise is an essential habit to develop, and you'll feel totally organized and in control of your baking if you do it. This simple step takes only a few minutes, but will save you from adding something twice or not adding something at all. If you get interrupted while you are making the recipe, you will be able to tell just where you left off.

	Bake at the Right Temperature Be sure your oven temperature is correct. An oven that is too hot or too cold can cause your delicious baked items to be less than a success, and many times can totally ruin them. Most ovens are off anywhere from 5 to 50 degrees, sometimes more, and this can ruin a batch of cookies or cause a cake to fall or peak in the center. Place an oven thermometer in the center of the oven while it is preheating, and check it before you place your pastry in the oven. If your oven is set at 350 degrees, for example, but the thermometer in the oven reads only 325, then you will need to turn up your dial 25 degrees to make up the difference. It’s cheaper and easier to use a thermometer to be sure your oven is the right temperature than to lose a batch of cookies or a delicate cake. Your oven should be at the correct temperature before you put your pastry in to bake.

	Softening Butter for Successful Results If your recipe calls for butter at cool room temperature, set your butter out an hour or so before you begin baking. If you have forgotten to do so, you can soften the butter by cutting it into small pieces and letting it sit for several minutes to start to soften. Then mash it with a large fork or rubber spatula to soften it the rest of the way.

	Rotating the Pans I often direct you to “rotate the pans halfway through the baking time.” This step is necessary to help your baked goods bake evenly. Many ovens produce uneven heat, so when you rotate the pans you help to compensate for that. When rotating one pan, just turn it around 180 degrees so the part of the pan that was in the back is now in the front. If using two pans in the oven at the same time, remove the one on the top and place it briefly on the oven door, turning it around 180 degrees as you do so. Then move the pan that is on the bottom up to the top, turning it around 180 degrees as you do so. Try to so this as quickly as possible so you don’t lose too much oven heat.

	Melting Chocolate Melting chocolate is a fairly easy process if you have a microwave oven. Just be sure the dish you use to melt the chocolate in is absolutely dry, because the chocolate will turn into a hard, grainy lump if even a drop of water gets into the chocolate. This method will work for quantities of one ounce or more. Chop the desired amount of chocolate and place it in a glass dish. Microwave the chocolate, uncovered, for 45 seconds. Remove the dish and check to see that most, but not all, of the chocolate has melted. If most of the chocolate is still solid, return the dish to the microwave oven for another 30 seconds and check it again. When most of the chocolate has been melted, use a small whisk to stir the chocolate until all of the lumps melt. Chocolate burns very easily, so you don’t want to try to totally melt the chocolate in the microwave. White chocolate needs to be handled more carefully than any other chocolate, because it melts at a lower temperature and burns very easily. To melt white chocolate, bring a kettle of water to boil. Set a wide metal bowl into a baking dish large enough to hold it. Place the white chocolate, broken or chopped into small bits, into the bowl, cover it tightly with plastic wrap, and pour as much boiling water into the baking dish as possible. Let the bowl of white chocolate remain in the hot water for 5 or 10 minutes, then remove it, pull back the plastic wrap, being careful not to get even one drop of water in the chocolate, and stir with a rubber spatula until all of the chunks of chocolate have melted and the chocolate is very smooth. If necessary, tightly re-wrap the bowl and place it back into the hot water for a few more minutes to further melt the chunks.

	Candy Thermometers You will need a candy thermometer to make the Lemon Buttercream. I use the variety that looks like a long glass tube with a thermometer inside. It has a clip on it to attach the thermometer to the pan. There are now some electronic and instant-read varieties designed for candy making, and you should use what type you like and can afford. Not all thermometers register to a high enough temperature for use with cooking sugar syrups, and that's why you need a candy thermometer. So check that the thermometer you will be using registers a temperature of at least 260 degrees, or you will not be able to measure the sugar syrup for the Buttercream. The right kind of thermometers will say they are for candy making.

	How to Frost a Cake When frosting a cake, trim the rounded tops off with a knife so the cake layers are level. (See the photo on the top left corner of this page.) Then place the bottom layer so the cut side is facing up. Spread the filling using an icing knife evenly on the cut surface, and then place the top layer onto the filling with the cut surface facing down. Frost the sides of the cake first. It is really helpful if you have a small lazy Susan that you can place the cake on, so it will turn easily while you frost it. Use an offset spatula and grab a heaping amount of frosting on it. Hold it next to the side of the cake and spread it firmly against the cake while moving the spatula along the side. Keep the spatula parallel to the side of the cake while you do this. Frost part of the side of the cake, turn the cake, and frost some more, continuing in this manner until all of the sides are frosted. Spoon frosting on the top of the cake in the center, and spread it out to the sides with smooth, even strokes. This will help to keep the crumbs out of the frosting.

	Using a Pastry Bag You can pipe frosting onto the Lemon Cake and Cupcakes to make them look more festive, or pipe a lovely edge around the bottoms of the cake. Using a pastry bag may seem intimidating if you have never worked with one, but with just a little practice you will find that it is a surprisingly easy task. You will need a pastry bag, a plastic 2-piece coupler, and a metal or plastic pastry tip. Most brand new pastry bags need to have their openings trimmed so the coupler will fit, sticking about 1/2 inch out of the opening. When you do this, be sure to trim off only a very small amount. Then try the tube to see if it fits. If the opening is still too small, trim off another very narrow sliver. Keep doing this until the coupler fits into the bag with about 1/3 of the coupler sticking out of the opening in the bag. If you cut off too much, the coupler will push all the way through, and the bag will not work for piping, so be careful. You can buy either disposable bags or reusable bags. The reusable bags are washable and will last for many uses. The size and design of the tip will depend on what you are piping. When you use a large pastry tip you don’t need to use the coupler. Insert the pastry tube into the pastry bag, so that about 1/2 inch of the tube is sticking out if the bag. Place the bag (with the tip inserted) into a 2-cup measuring cup or a large iced tea glass for support. Fold the top of the bag halfway down. Use a spoon or rubber spatula to fill the bag with what you will be piping. When you have filled the bag halfway, remove it from the glass or measuring cup, unfold the top of the bag, and hold it firmly in your right hand (left if you are left-handed) in the curve between your index finger and your thumb, just above the contents of the bag. Gently twist the bag so that any air comes out and the contents of the bag start to emerge from the tip. Keep your hand around the bag where it is twisted, and be sure to keep twisting the bag gently as you pipe so that the contents of the bag stays down at the tip. Hold the bag this way with your right hand (or with your left hand if you are left-handed) and place the tip onto the parchment-lined baking sheet. Using your left hand to steady the bag (or right hand if you are left-handed), gently squeeze the bag as you hold it at the twist. As the dough comes out of the tip, raise the tip slightly from the parchment, releasing pressure from the bag and pressing down very slightly with the tip when the cookie is the size you want it to be. Practice this a few times, returning the piped dough to the mixing bowl, until you feel comfortable with the process. Then pipe the cookies onto the baking sheets as directed in the recipe. When the bag becomes empty, flatten it on your work surface and use a spatula on the outside of the bag to push the dough that is clinging to the inside of the bag down to the tip. Then open the bag, place it in the glass or measuring cup, fold down the top, and repeat the filling and piping process, until all of the dough has been used up. Wash the bag and the tip in warm, soapy water. Be sure to dry the tip thoroughly or it may rust.

	Fixing Curdled Custards If your Lemon Curd is cooked too quickly or at too hot a temperature, or if you don't stir it while it is cooking, chances are good that it will become curdled. If this happens, processing it in a blender or a food processor for several seconds should bring it back to a usable condition.

	Getting Better Lemon Juice Juicing citrus fruits is a fairly quick and easy task. A handy tool for this is the reamer, which is a fluted, pointed teardrop-shaped tool. Reamers come as hand tools or countertop tools. Use the hand reamer by pushing the pointed end into the cut side of a lemon, lime or orange, turning the reamer back and forth over a bowl or measuring cup until you have extracted all of the juice. The countertop reamers are designed with rims or cups that catch the juice as you push the cut end of the fruit down on the top of the fluted part of the reamer, and turn back and forth. Be sure to strain your lemon juice to get the most concentrated flavor. The pulp and seeds will be eliminated so all you get is pure juice. Use any kitchen strainer to strain the juice.

	Freezing Cookie Dough Some people like to make a huge batch of one kind of dough and shape it into many different shapes. That’s fine, but you will get a much more spectacular effect if you actually make different recipes of dough, each with a unique texture, flavor, color and appearance. The most convenient way I have found to bake a wide variety of holiday cookies is to mix, shape and freeze the dough ahead. If wrapped airtight and placed in a very cold (0 degrees F) freezer, the shaped dough will keep for 2 months or more. So every time you have an hour that you can spend on this project, you can make a different kind of dough, shape it and get it into the freezer. You will be surprised at how many kinds of dough you can prepare this way. Then when you are ready to bake them, you just take out what you need, bake and garnish as desired, and you will have a most impressive assortment. To freeze ahead, just mix and shape the dough, placing the shaped pieces of dough as close to each other on a baking sheet as possible. Then pop the baking sheet, uncovered, into the freezer until the dough is frozen. This usually takes a couple of hours. Remove the baking sheet from the freezer and carefully place the shaped dough into a zip top plastic freezer bag or an airtight freezer container, and return the shaped dough to the freezer, being careful to put it where it won’t get crushed or damaged. When you are ready to bake, you can remove the amount of shaped dough you want, and return the rest to the freezer if you aren’t baking all of the dough at the same time. Bake the dough according to each recipe’s directions. This is so easy, and will make your holidays a breeze! You can also freeze piecrusts this way. Just mix and roll the crust, fitting it into the pie plate, and place it in the freezer. When frozen, wrap it airtight and keep it in the freezer until you are ready to use it. If you are freezing more than one, you can line a pie plate with plastic wrap before the piecrust is fitted into it, then freeze it. Subsequent crusts can be frozen and stacked inside the previous crust, with the plastic liner between crusts. I find it’s best to have more than one pie plate when you do this: one that holds the first crust and another to freeze each subsequent crust.

	Making Lovely Cookie Trays When you are taking the time and making the effort to bake a lot of cookies, you want it to have the best impact possible. It helps to keep a few things in mind when choosing the cookies you will include. Try to have a variety of shapes: one or two drop cookies, a hand-molded cookie (like a snowball or a crescent – or both), a rolled and cut cookie, a bar or two, a mini tart (like a tassie), colorful cookies that have holiday jimmies or holiday colored candies, cookies with jam (thumbprints), a cookie covered in cinnamon-sugar or confectioners’ sugar, and piped or spritz cookies. Choose varieties that have different dough colors, like one that’s chocolate, one with ground nuts running through it, light colors (like coconut macaroons), dark colors (like spice cookies). Especially for the holidays, it makes an interesting tray if some of the cookies are iced and/or decorated with some of the fun holiday trims that are available at many grocery stores and kitchen shops.

	Pumpkin The pumpkin used to make the recipes on this site is plain canned pumpkin. Be sure you don't use pumpkin pie mix by mistake, because it contains sugar and spices and other ingredients, and is not at all the same thing. The ingredients on the label should read: “pumpkin”and nothing else. Some recipes don't use all of the pumpkin in a standard 15-ounce can, which is the smallest can of pumpkin you can buy. So I suggest making a little Pumpkin Butter with the remaining pumpkin; you'll find the recipe on the Recipes page of this site, and you can use it on muffins, pancakes, toast and biscuits.

	Chopping Nuts Coarsely ground nuts should be about 3/8” to 1/2” in size; if an ingredient is simply specified as “chopped nuts” they should be about 1/8” to 1/4”; finely chopped nuts should be no larger than a grain of rice; if simply specified as “ground nuts” they should be very fine and fluffy, but not at all gooey or oily. (If your ground nuts are oily, you’ve over-processed them.) You can use a chef’s knife, food processor, nut grinder, or mezzaluna to chop the nuts. As you chop, pay attention to how finely and evenly you are chopping the nuts. If you are using a chef’s knife, hold the tip gently against the cutting board while using your other hand to quickly raise and lower the knife blade with a slight rocking motion. Move the knife handle to the right and back to the left continuously as you chop, to be sure you are getting all of the nuts chopped. A food processor is an easy way to chop nuts, but you have to be careful that you don’t put too many nuts into the work bowl at the same time. If you do, your nuts won’t chop evenly. It’s easy to over-process nuts and end up with finely ground pieces when you really wanted coarsely chopped nuts, or nut butter when you wanted ground nuts. A nut grinder, with a glass or plastic clear jar on the bottom and a bin for the nuts and rotating blades on the top, makes quick work of chopping nuts. Simply place the nuts in the top bin and turn the crank. The chopped nuts neatly fall into the jar. To use a mezzaluna, place the nuts on a cutting board or in a shallow, broad wooden bowl and rock the mezzaluna through the nuts repeatedly until they are chopped to the consistency you desire, rotating to the right and left to make sure they are all getting chopped.

	Chopping Dried Fruit If the fruit you want to chop is large, like an apricot or prune, and you don’t want finely chopped pieces, I find it’s easiest to use a very clean pair of scissors. Lightly coat the blades of the scissors with cooking spray and cut the fruit into the desired size. Be very careful not to snip your hand with the scissors. I use this technique for cutting dried berries or cherries in half, also. You can place dried fruit in a food processor with a little of the flour from the recipe, and pulse on/off until the fruit pieces are the size you want. A chef’s knife coated with pan spray will also do a fine job.
	Spices Spices don't last forever. If a spice called for in a recipe has been in your spice cabinet for more than a year, chances are good it doesn't have much flavor left in it. Before you use it, give it the “sniff test.” Open the jar or can and give it a good whiff. If it doesn't have a strong, clear smell, it won't have a strong, clear taste, either, and it's time to replace it.

	Making Muffins in Advance You can of course make any of the muffin recipes in their entirety the same morning you will be serving the muffins. But if you are doing it in two parts, here is the schedule I suggest for preparing and mixing the night before and baking any of these muffin recipes in the morning: · Combine all of the wet ingredients in a mixing bowl and beat them with a wire whisk until they are smooth and evenly blended. Cover with plastic wrap and put in the frig overnight. Combine the dry ingredients in another bowl, cover with plastic wrap and place on the countertop for use in the morning. · Remove the wet ingredients (that you combined the night before) from the frig so they can come to room temperature, placing the bowl of wet ingredients inside another larger bowl or pan that is partially filled with warm water, to help the ingredients warm to room temperature quickly. · Turn on the oven and set it to the proper temperature, then set the oven rack as described in the muffin recipe. Spray the muffin cups with non-stick spray. · Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients, and pour the room temperature wet ingredients into it. Stir, and fill the muffin cups according to the recipe. · Bake the muffins according to the directions in the muffin recipes, being sure you remember to turn the oven temperature down as soon as you put the muffin pan into the oven. · While the muffins are baking, make a pot of coffee or tea. Set the table, or set some small plates on the counter, along with butter and/or jam if you will be serving that with the muffins. · When the muffins are done, remove them from the oven, and flip the muffin pan upside down to turn the muffins out of the pan. Turn all of the muffins upright on a wire cooling rack, and let them cool a few minutes so you don't have any burned mouths. Call your family to be sure they are awake, in the unlikely event that the wonderful aroma of baking muffins didn't wake them. Sit down with your warm muffins and freshly made coffee or tea, and enjoy a leisurely breakfast.

	Quickly Tempering Chocolate There are many ways to temper chocolate, but if you are using only a small amount, say to dip the edges of a few dozen cookies, this is a simple way to do it: Place at least 4 ounces of chocolate into a microwave safe glass container and microwave the chocolate until it is mostly melted and the chocolate is 108 degrees Fahrenheit. Use an instant read thermometer to check the temperature. There should still be a few soft lumps in it. Remove the bowl from the microwave and stir it with a fork or small whisk until it is smooth. Add about 1-1/2 ounces of chopped chocolate to the bowl for every 4 ounces of melted chocolate, and stir until it melts, continuing to stir until the chocolate drops to 90 degrees. Wrap a towel around the bowl to help retain the heat, and dip the cookies into the chocolate. Place the dipped cookies on a parchment-lined tray and set them in a cool place for several minutes to allow the chocolate to set. You can also briefly place the tray in your refrigerator for up to 5 minutes. When it is set the chocolate should be shiny and hard. Store the cookies in an airtight container in a cool, dry place.

	Tempering Chocolate in a Double Boiler Do not attempt to temper chocolate on a humid day unless you are in an air-conditioned room. It’s best to keep the temperature of the room down to between 60 and 68 degrees Fahrenheit. To do this you will need: At least 2 pounds of the chocolate you want to temper, chopped into small pieces; a heating pad; a clean bath towel or two or three clean kitchen towels; a bowl that is fairly narrow (so all of the heat doesn’t escape from the bowl too quickly), but deep enough so it can hold the chocolate easily, and will sit on the rim of the saucepan; a saucepan filled with an inch of water that allows the bowl to sit on the rim of the pan without touching the water and without letting any steam into the bowl; a rubber spatula; a wire whisk; a candy thermometer, an instant read thermometer, or a digital thermometer; parchment paper on which to place your coated items. NEVER ALLOW EVEN A DROP OF WATER TO GET INTO THE CHOCOLATE during the tempering process, or the chocolate will seize into a hard, ruined mass. Make sure the steam from the water doesn’t reach the chocolate, and use only absolutely dry bowls and utensils. Here are the tempering instructions: Turn the heating pad on low and cover it with a double thickness of towel(s). Fill the pan with an inch or more of water. Place the bowl on the rim of the saucepan, making sure the bottom of the bowl doesn’t touch the water in the pan. Set aside about one-fourth of the chopped chocolate. Put the remaining chopped chocolate into the bowl. (The smaller you have chopped the chocolate, the faster the melting procedure will take place.) Bring the water in the pan to a boil and immediately reduce the heat so the water just simmers; the chocolate will start to melt. Insert the thermometer. Stir the chocolate often with the spatula, until the temperature reaches between 115 and 120 degrees Fahrenheit. Remove the bowl from the saucepan and place it on a counter or other work surface for about 10 minutes. Add about half of the reserved chopped chocolate to the melted chocolate and stir gently with the spatula until the temperature reaches between 88 and 90 degrees, being careful not to beat any air into the chocolate. As it melts, continue to add small amounts of chopped chocolate, until you have reached the correct temperature. (You may not need to add all of the chocolate.) If the correct temperature has not been reached and all of the reserved chocolate has been used, chop more chocolate and add it as needed to reach the desired temperature. Once the temperature has been reached, use a rubber spatula to stir the chocolate slowly until it is completely smooth. Move the bowl to the warm, towel-topped heating pad, bringing the towel up and around the sides of the bowl as insulation. You are now ready to use the tempered chocolate. Keep a close eye on the thermometer; take the bowl off the heating pad if it goes up to 90 degrees Fahrenheit. Stir the chocolate occasionally to keep the chocolate at the correct temperature. If the temperature falls below 88 degrees Fahrenheit, turn the heating pad up to the next setting until the chocolate again reaches between 88 and 90 degrees, then return the setting to low.

	Cutting Cream Cheese Brownies The Cream Cheese Brownies in this issue are very dense and rich. Because of that, you should use a very sharp knife that’s been dipped in water to cut them. If you are using a cookie cutter, you will need to push the brownie out of the cutter from the bottom side, gently pushing around the brownie at different points, until the brownie pops out. This is because the brownies are so dense and tend to stick to the cutter. It also helps if you moisten the cutter each time before you use it.

	Using Chocolate Ganache as a Coating for Small Items Ganache is a rich, thick, wonderfully deep-flavored concoction that has many uses in the pastry kitchen. It is easily made and just as easy to use. Place the item to be coated on a serving fork over the container of warm Ganache, and use a metal spatula to “"spoon up"” Ganache and coat the item. If you intend to coat all sides of the item, you can briefly drop the item into the Ganache and lift it with the fork, and then finish coating the remaining sides. Place the coated item on waxed paper or parchment and refrigerate it until the Ganache has set. Remove the item from the parchment or waxed paper while it is cold, or the Ganache will stick to the paper.

	Rolling Cookie Dough One of the largest mistakes people make when rolling cookie dough is to handle it too harshly. There is a protein in wheat flour called gluten, and moving it around a lot after it has been moistened causes the gluten to strengthen, making your dough tough. So in order to produce tender cookies, you need to handle the dough as little as possible. One way to ensure that you don't have to re-roll the dough too often is by making sure the rolling surface is lightly but sufficiently dusted with flour so the dough doesn't stick to the surface. Another way to keep the handling of the dough to a minimum is to make sure you cut the dough so there is the least amount of waste. Cut the cookies as close as possible to each other, and there will be less leftover scraps of dough to re-roll.

	Dipping Cookies in Icing To get that shiny, smooth surface on cut-out cookies, you need to dip them upside down into icing. The icing should be thick enough that it isn’t drippy, but thin enough that it coats the top surface of the cookies. It sounds trickier than it is. The recipe for Dipping Icing for Cookies has a great consistency for this task. You may want to add a few drops of water, or another tablespoon or so of confectioners’ sugar to get the correct consistency, but the recipe itself will be very close to what you need. Pour the icing into a broad, shallow dish and cover it with damp paper towels if you are not using it right away. To coat the cookies, drop them face down onto the surface of the icing. Grab the cookie with your thumb and middle finger, and gently sway the cookie back and forth a couple of times to be sure the entire surface is coated. Try not to get the icing on the sides of the cookie. Lift the cookie from the icing and gently shake it so the excess icing drips off. This may take a second or two. You can also use a small icing knife or table knife to help move some of the icing off. Then flip the cookie over and set it onto a cookie sheet or tray to set. The icing will settle into a smooth coating. If you are decorating the cookies with colored sprinkles or sugar, sprinkle it on before the icing starts to dry. It could take the icing an hour or more to completely set, depending on the humidity in your kitchen. Once the icing is set, you can store the cookies in an airtight container.

	Using Cupcake Liners You can decide to use paper cupcake liners or not to use them. Unless seeing the bottom of the cupcake is important in the presentation of the dessert, I suggest that you use cupcake liners, even if you are using non-stick cupcake pans. While you can certainly butter and flour each of the wells in the pan, the little cakes might still sometimes stick. It's also just plain easier to use the liners. And they also help to keep the cupcakes fresh. They aren't expensive, and you can find them in the baking aisle of any grocery store.

	Filling Cupcake Pans It's really tempting to fill the cupcake wells almost up to the top, hoping to have high-rising cupcakes, but all you will get is a nasty mess of batter that overflows the wells and produces really ugly cupcakes. Don't confuse cupcakes with muffins; cupcakes should be just slightly rounded on the tops, while muffins have a more pronounced dome. So, unless a recipe tells you to fill the cupcake wells higher, fill the wells 1/2 to 2/3 full. The easiest way to gauge how much batter is needed for each cupcake is to use a standard size cupcake pan (unless the recipe specifies otherwise) and make exactly the number of cupcakes that the recipe tells you it should make.
	Buying Cupcake Pans Unlike muffins, cupcakes aren't usually made in jumbo sizes. When you buy cupcake pans for most recipes, look for basic cupcake pans with 12 wells, unless the recipe tells you to use larger ones. Avoid buying any pans that say “"jumbo"” if you are going to use them to make standard cupcakes. Cupcake pans can be found in most grocery stores and at discount stores.

	Dipping Cupcakes in Ganache One of the easiest and, to my palate, tastiest ways to frost a cupcake is to dip it in warm Chocolate Ganache. The Ganache forms a smooth, glossy coating over the surface of the cupcake. It’s lovely. And you can decorate the Ganache coating with sprinkles, coconut, or many other things, to make it look fun and festive. To coat a cupcake with Ganache, turn the cupcake upside down and dip it into a bowl of warm Ganache. (The Ganache can be freshly made, or it can be made ahead and warmed so it is thin enough to coat the cupcake top.) Note that the Ganache will thicken as it cools, so if the coating is too thin for your tastes, just let the Ganache cool slightly and then try dipping another cupcake. Once they are dipped, turn the cupcakes upright and let them sit uncovered, at room temperature, until the Ganache firms up. Try not to eat all of the cupcakes as you coat them – it will be hard not to!
	Coating Upside-Down Cupcakes with Ganache The shiny, deep, dark chocolate coating that you see on some fancy cupcakes in upscale bakeries is actually very easy to accomplish in a home kitchen. Bake a batch of cupcakes without using cupcake liners: spray the cupcake wells generously with a non-stick spray and flour them, turning the pans upside down and tapping out any excess flour. Bake the cupcakes as directed in the recipe, setting the pans on a wire rack to cool for 5 minutes after baking. Then loosen the cupcakes gently with a kitchen knife or small spatula, and turn the pans over, so the cupcakes fall out. Set the cupcakes upright on the wire racks and cool them thoroughly before proceeding. Make a batch of Chocolate Ganache, stirring until it is perfectly smooth. Set one large or two smaller wire cooling racks on a piece of wax paper or parchment. Brush any crumbs from the bottom and sides and place each of the completely cooled cupcakes upside-down on the wire racks, trimming a bit off them if necessary so the cupcakes sit flat. Slowly pour the slightly warm ganache over a cupcake, using a small spatula to guide it so it completely covers the bottom (which is now the top) and sides of the cupcake. Allow any extra to drip onto the parchment so it can be reused. Repeat with all of the cupcakes, and let them sit, at room temperature, until the ganache is firm to the touch. Then place them in an airtight container and keep them in a cool place until you serve them. Making Cupcakes in Specialty Shapes It’s easy to make your cupcake trays look festive and interesting by baking some of the batter in specialty pans. After all, cupcakes are just small cakes, so you can add some interestingly shaped small cakes to your assortment. Some of the most interesting small pans are made by the Nordicware company. They come in several different styles, and if you only fill them up 1/3 before baking, the cakes will be small enough for individual servings. Most of the Nordicware pans are nonstick, and I have great success with these pans by simply brushing them thoroughly with softened butter before spooning in the batter. Be sure you don’t under-bake the little cakes – the sides of the cakes should start pulling away from the pan when they are done. Let the pans set on a wire rack to cool for 4 or 5 minutes, them use a small spatula to loosen the cakes and flip the pan over to release them. Let the cakes cool completely before decorating them. Craft stores often carry 3-d icing tubes that can be used to decorate small fancy cakes, so you don’t have to go to a lot of trouble to frost them. Sprinkle some with confectioners’ sugar to vary the look. Freezing Cupcakes You can make cupcakes in advance and freeze them frosted or unfrosted, although I prefer to frost them after they thaw. Either way, place them in a single layer in a plastic container just large enough to hold them, making sure the tops of the cupcakes don’t touch the top of the container, seal the container so it is airtight, and place it in your freezer. The day they are to be eaten, remove the container from the freezer and leave it, uncovered, at room temperature for 30 minutes. Frost them once they have defrosted. You can freeze cupcakes for up to two months.
	Flavoring Cake Batter It's effortless to change the flavor of basic cake batter. You can add a teaspoon or so of your favorite spice, or a combination of spices; a teaspoon or two of lemon zest with the juice of half a lemon; the zest of one orange and 1/4 teaspoon of pure orange flavoring; a half cupful of ground nuts; a few tablespoonfuls of grated chocolate, which will leave lovely flecks of chocolate throughout the batter; crushed malted milk balls; or finely chopped dried fruits. Add the spices, or zests and juice or flavoring with the butter. Any solid ingredients should be tossed with the flour before adding it to the batter.

	Chopping Candied (Crystallized) Ginger Spray a clean chef’s knife with nonstick spray and chop the candied ginger on a cutting board until it is the size of short grain rice. If the ginger starts to stick to the knife, wipe it clean and spray it again, then continue chopping.

Measuring Molasses, Honey or Corn Syrup When you are measuring thick, sticky liquids, it is difficult to get all of the liquid to pour out of the measuring cup. Before you measure any of them, spray the inside of the cup with a nonstick spray, or coat it lightly with vegetable oil. The liquid will pour more easily out of the measuring cup that way.

Freezing and Thawing Cookies Make sure the cookies are completely cool. Then place them in pairs, back to back, wrapping each pair in plastic wrap. Put all of the wrapped cookies inside a zipper freezer bag, seal the bag, and place in the freezer for up to 2 months. When you want to use them, take out only as many cookies as you need and leave them at room temperature, wrapped in the plastic wrap, for about 30 minutes, until they are thawed. Remove the plastic wrap and serve.
Freezing and Thawing Muffins Wrap each completely cool muffin individually in plastic wrap. Place the muffins in a zipper freezer bag or a sturdy plastic container, seal it, and place in the freezer for up to 2 months. When you want to use them, take out only as many muffins as you need and leave them at room temperature, wrapped in the plastic wrap, for about 30 minutes, until they are thawed. Remove the plastic wrap and serve.

Freezing and Thawing Quick Breads When completely cool, wrap the bread in plastic wrap. Then place it inside a zipper freezer bag, seal the bag, and place it in the freezer for up to 2 months. When you want to use it, take the package out of the freezer and leave it at room temperature, wrapped in the plastic wrap, for about 1 hour, until it is thawed. Remove the plastic wrap and serve. You can cut the breads into smaller pieces and wrap and freeze them, also, removing and thawing only what you need as you need it.

Using Long Pepper Long Pepper is a Thai relative of the black peppercorns we use everyday. It is milder in flavor than black peppercorns, with hints of spices. It is a lovely addition to your spice cabinet. Because of its unusual shape (a tiny, long berry that looks like a pinecone) it can’t be easily ground in a pepper mill just the way it is. Either crush the berries with a meat pounder and then grind them through a pepper mill, or grind them in a coffee mill. Long Pepper is a wonderful flavor enhancer that can be sprinkled over meats, vegetables, or used in many desserts. Fresh Cranberries Buy cranberries that are plump-looking and bright red, and store them in the produce drawer of your refrigerator. They’ll stay fresh for a few weeks. When you use them, rinse them well and search through them carefully for soft berries. Coring Pears Pears can be cored very easily by cutting them in half and using a melon balling tool to scoop out the seed core. Leveling a Cake Sometimes we need the top of a cake to be perfectly flat – in order to stack layers, or so the cake looks very smooth and flat when it’s frosted. When that is the case, use a long knife and, with a gentle sawing motion, cut across the top of the cake to remove the part that mounded when the cake was baked. The part you cut off can be saved and eaten as dessert, broken up over ice cream. Using Fruit (or fruit juice) in Marshmallows Many fresh fruit purees can be used to make marshmallows. Depending on the water content of the fruit, you may need to adjust the amount of puree you use, so you might have to experiment a little when you try something new. There are some fruits, like kiwi, mango, papaya, persimmon, and pineapple, as well as fresh ginger root, which contain an enzyme that breaks down gelatin, so if you are using those fruits, you should heat the puree before making the marshmallows. Be sure to let the puree cool before you use it. Bananas should be pureed just before using the puree, and it’s a good idea to add a teaspoon of all natural Fruit Fresh dissolved in 1 tablespoon of water to the puree before you use it. Unless you have access to local berries or stone fruits, it’s better to use frozen fruit to get a truer flavor. Press the berries through a fine sieve, or food mill, before using them to remove the seeds, because the seeds will detract from the texture of the marshmallows. Some fruits work better than others. Apples, for instance are better used as a cider or juice when flavoring marshmallows. Just use the juice to replace the water in the marshmallows. This also applies to pears. Pureeing Fruit It’s easy to puree fruit. Remove any peels, and in the case of stone fruits, remove the seeds. Put the fruit in a food processor ad process until perfectly smooth. I like to strain out the seeds from berries (using a fine sieve or food mill), but many people don’t mind them once the fruit’s been pureed. It’s a personal decision. Flavoring Marshmallows with Herbs or Spices The texture of chopped herbs will detract from the fluffy, smooth texture of the marshmallows, and many herbs just become gray and mushy when added to marshmallows. For this reason, it’s best to use the herbs to infuse the sugar syrup before it is added to the gelatin mixture. To do this, bring the sugar and water to a boil, turn off the heat and add the chopped herb(s). Cover the pan and let the flavor infuse for 30 minutes. Remove the cover, strain the herbs out of the syrup and return the syrup to the pan. Proceed with the recipe as stated in the directions. The amount of herbs you use will depend on the herb itself and how strong you want the flavor to be. Rosemary, thyme, mint, basil, lavender and cilantro are some of the herbs that will work well. Be adventurous and try different combinations. Spices can be added to the gelatin mixture before the syrup is beaten in. Rub the spice between your fingers to see if it is gritty. If so, it may make the texture of your marshmallows gritty, too, so you should consider using something else. Some of the ground spices that work well in Marshmallows are Saigon cinnamon, ginger, allspice, cayenne and ancho chile pepper, cardamom, white pepper, and cloves. Use your imagination to create exotic flavors in combination with fruit purees and/or liqueurs. Flavoring Marshmallows with Cocoa and Chocolate Melted chocolate is a little high in fat content to use in marshmallows, because it will deflate the air in the whipped sugar. So it is better to use cocoa. Sift the cocoa or whirl it for a few seconds in a food processor (the mini processors are perfect for this) and when the syrup is around 230 degrees Fahrenheit, add 1/2 cup boiling water to the cocoa, stirring with a whisk until perfectly smooth. Add this mixture to the gelatin mixture just before the hot syrup is added, mixing the cocoa paste into the gelatin for 15 seconds before adding the syrup. Since chocolate deflates the marshmallows, the best way to use it is to drizzle melted chocolate on the beaten marshmallows, folding it in gently to marbleize the marshmallows, just before you spread the finished marshmallow mass into the pan. Cutting Marshmallows This is the hardest part of making marshmallows. You can lightly oil a knife or pizza cutter, and cut the marshmallows with it, or you can use a piece of wire, like the kind that is used to cut cheese. The marshmallow will be sticky, so be patient. Coating Marshmallows with Sugar Mixtures When you coat the marshmallows, just dip each side into the sugar mixture you are using. Then tap off the extra sugar. Coating Marshmallows with Tempered Chocolate If you want to temper chocolate, you can dip the marshmallows in the tempered chocolate using a fork to balance the marshmallow on. Place the dipped marshmallows on a parchment-lined baking sheet and set it in the fridge for several minutes to help set the chocolate. Remove the pan from the fridge and store the dipped marshmallows in an airtight container away from sun, heat, and humidity. Other Ways to Dress Up Marshmallows You can also skip the sugar coating and roll your marshmallows in chopped nuts, toasted or untoasted coconut, colored sprinkles, cinnamon sugar, mini chips, or anything else your heart desires. Be sure not to coat the marshmallows with the confectioners’ sugar mixture, because then the other coatings won’t stick. Try dividing the marshmallow into two or more bowls and beating a different color of food coloring into each one, and then layering the marshmallows. Make two or more flavors of marshmallows and layer them in the pan. Storing Marshmallows Because they can dry out easily, be sure to store marshmallows in an airtight container. Other Flavorings for Marshmallows Replace some of the corn syrup with molasses. Replace all of the corn syrup with honey. Add some instant espresso powder or pure coffee essence to the gelatin mixture before adding the hot syrup. Piping Marshmallows Pipe freshly whipped marshmallow onto parchment as soon as it is finished, using a pastry bag and tube, or a zipper plastic bag that has one of the corners snipped, Let them sit out for several hours before coating them. Using Homemade Marshmallow Fluff as Frosting Fluff makes a great frosting for summer cupcakes; kids love it and most adults secretly harbor a childlike fondness for it. You can spread it on a cake or cupcake just as you would a frosting, or it can be piped on decoratively using a piping bag. Keep the frosted cakes in a cool place until you are ready to serve them. Baking Soda and Baking Powder: What’s the Difference? Many people make the mistake of thinking that these two leaveners (something that makes a baked product rise) are interchangeable, but they aren’t. Baking soda is the main leavener used in baking, and is an alkaline substance. It requires something else in the recipe to be acidic in order for it to work. When baking soda (bicarbonate of soda) is combined with an acid in a recipe, say lemon juice or buttermilk, a chemical reaction takes place that produces carbon dioxide, which forms pockets of air in the batter. While baking, these pockets of air expand, causing the baked product to rise. At the same time, the flour, sugar and eggs are forming a structure around the air pockets. If there isn’t enough baking soda or acid in the recipe, the baked product won’t rise properly. If there is too much baking soda and acid, there will be larger air pockets and the structure formed by the eggs, sugar and flour won’t be able to support it: the cake or cookie will fall. Baking powder is a mixture of baking soda and an acid, along with an inert substance that keeps the two from reacting in the container. Baking soda makes up only a small part of baking powder, so they cannot be substituted one for one. The main purpose of baking soda is to provide the acid for a recipe in the proper ratio for the reaction to take place. If you change a recipe, it’s important that you replace acidic ingredients with other acids, and that you don’t use an acid in place of a non-acid ingredient, or you will throw off the balance of the recipe. Freezing Pie Dough After the dough has been made, flatten it into a disc and double-wrap it in plastic wrap. Place the wrapped dough into a zipper freezer bag, pressing out all of the air, and seal it. Place the dough in a freezer for up to 2 months. To thaw the dough, place it in the fridge, wrapped, for 24 hours. Freezing Unbaked Pie Shells After rolling out the dough, ease it into a pie pan, crimping the edges. Place the pie pan into a freezer, allowing the dough to become completely frozen. Remove the pie pan and quickly double-wrap the pan with plastic wrap, then with foil. Return the pan to a safe part of the freezer, where it will not get knocked around, for up to 2 months. Rolling out Pie Dough The keys to a successful pie crust are working with properly chilled dough, handling the dough gently and as little as possible, and not using too much flour when rolling it out. Work confidently and quickly, so the dough stays cool. As long as the dough is cool, you will need to use less flour to roll it out. Sprinkle the flour onto the work surface using your fingertips, allowing just a dusting to cover the work surface. As you roll out the dough, turn it a quarter turn with each pass of the rolling pin. If the dough feels like it’s sticking, lift the dough, sprinkle a light dusting of flour on the work surface, place the dough back, and continue rolling and turning it. Work as quickly as possible. When the dough has been rolled to the proper size, sprinkle a very light dusting of flour over it, gently spreading it around with the palm of your hand, and fold one side of the dough over to form a half-moon. Lift up the folded dough and place it in the pie pan so that the fold is in the center of the pan. Unfold the dough and ease it gently into the shape of the pan, being sure not to stretch it. Chill the shell for at least 30 minutes before baking it. Making a Crimped Pie Shell Edge Be sure you roll the dough out so it is 2 inches wider than the pie pan. After easing the dough into the pan, turn the overhanging dough under itself on the lip of the pan. Then, position the thumb and the first two fingers of the same hand on the folded edge so that the thumb is between the two fingers. Push your thumb firmly between the fingers to form a crimp. Move your and over and repeat until you have crimped the entire circumference of the pie shell. Whipping Cream I find it’s best to use a hand mixer to beat cream, because you have to stay with it the entire time. Cream can easily be over-whipped, and using a stand mixer tempts you to walk away “just for a second” while you tend to something else. It’s easy to lose track of time and forget about the cream for a minute. Place the bowl and beater(s) in your freezer or refrigerator to chill for 15 minutes or more. Remove them when you are ready to whip the cream. Place the cream and sugar, if you are using it, into the bowl and beat on medium speed until the cream is the consistency of mayonnaise. Add any flavorings at the beginning. Repairing Over-Whipped Cream Sometimes you get distracted and the cream gets over-whipped. You’ll know when this happens because the cream will look curdled. If this happens, add a little unbeaten cream to it and beat gently on medium low speed until the cream becomes smooth. The Best Pans for Baking Pies You’ll get the best results baking pies in glass Pyrex pie pans, Corning Ware pie pans, or ceramic pie pans. Never place any of these pans on a cold surface when you remove the hot pies from the oven. Bread for Bread Pudding When you choose the type of bread to use, be sure you don’t use a commercial, fluffy white bread, because the resulting bread pudding will be mushy, not dense. Brioche is the first choice, but if you don’t have a bakery near you where you can get brioche, you can use a dense, home-style white bread, like the ones made by Vermont Bread Company, Arnold or Pepperidge Farms. If the brioche top crust is very dark brown, you may want to trim it off. Otherwise, use the bread with the crusts. Using Cookie Cutters Select cookie cutters with sharp edges and rolled tops (so your fingers don’t get cut). Dip the cutting edge of the cookie cutter into flour before you cut each cookie. Make sure you have kept a very light sprinkling of flour under the rolled dough (check often to see that the dough isn’t sticking to the rolling surface) so the cut-outs can be easily moved to the baking sheets. Press the cutter down into the dough, trying not to move it back and forth, so the cookie shape doesn’t get distorted. Remove the cutter, and slip a large offset icing spatula under the cut shape, and move it to a parchment-lined baking sheet, leaving an inch between cookies. Try to keep the cookies on each baking sheet all the same size, so they bake in the same amount of time. Decorating Dipped Cookies You can make your sugar cookies look even more festive by sprinkling them with sparkling sugars, or jimmies or other tiny decorations. Let the dipped cookies sit for 4-5 minutes after dipping before sprinkling them with decorations. Storing Baked Cookies You can use the finest ingredients to make your cookies, but unless you store them properly, you've wasted your time, energy, and money. Always cool cookies completely before storing them. To store soft cookies, place them in an airtight container with wax paper or parchment between the layers of cookies. To store crisp cookies, place them in an airtight container. Never mix soft and crisp cookies in the same container, because the moisture from the soft cookies will cause the crisp cookies to become soft. Carmelizing Sugar for Crème Brulée When making Crème Brulée, it is a simple procedure to caramelize the sugar that forms the thin, crisp crust. You will need a propane or butane torch – the kind you buy in a hardware store, or the smaller ones that are sold specifically for this purpose in kitchen shops. You can do this up to 30 minutes before the custard will be eaten. Sprinkle a thin layer of sugar evenly over the top of the custard, and, using a propane torch, heat the sugar until it browns and bubbles, up to a minute per custard, depending on the size. It is quicker if you keep the torch in one place until the sugar browns, then move the flame to another spot, continuing until the entire top has been browned. Serve immediately or refrigerate for up to 30 minutes. Determining the Doneness of Baked Custard When you are baking custard, you need to remember that it will continue to cook a bit more after it has been removed from the oven. Cook it only until the edges are firm – the center will still jiggle a bit when the baking dish is gently moved.