Baking is often considered an art. For the beauty every baked product is turned into, be it a cake or a cookie; no wonder the unrestricted domain of baking makes it an art. But at the same time, baking is also no less a science. From following the recipe with right measurement of ingredient to keeping the check on exact time, nothing in baking can be let go of even to the minutest degree.
One of the important aspects of baking is the temperature of ingredients in baking. Unless the temperature of ingredients in baking is brought to appropriate, they would not give character to the baked products.
Take this quick guide on the impact of temperature of ingredients on the flavour and structure of baked products.
Butter
Three different things happen when you use butter varying in temperature:
Fridge-cold butter: When the fridge-cold butter is used in baking, it doesn’t mix with the other ingredients appropriately. You could see butter breaking down to smaller clumps and bits but not adequately enough for the mixture to blend completely. This ultimately, could leave good-sized holes in the cake base.
Warm butter: The soft texture of the butter would fail to hold the batter of sugar, milk and other dry ingredients together but would rather make it runny and loose. This ultimately, makes the cake chewier as the melted butter doesn’t cause the formation of air bubbles for a fluffier cake base.
Room Temperature Butter: Butter at room temperature works best in baking. Scientifically, butter is essential not just for flavour but also because it carries an important process of emulsification. Emulsification actually means mixing two ingredients which do not ordinarily mix together. Butter pushes the process of joining fats and liquids of baking ingredients.
Eggs
Cold Eggs: Cold eggs would not mix with the butter but tend to curdle. This would cause the cake to get flaky and crumbly.
Eggs at Room Temperature: Eggs’ room temperature makes the mixture smooth and satiny contributing appreciably to the emulsification in the process of baking.
Milk
Cold milk: It is a secret of flaky layer in cookies and biscuits but for cakes it is a strict no-no. Cold milk tends to make cakes crumbly.
Milk At Room Temperature: Milk at room temperature speeds up the process of emulsification that traps air bubbles and causes the cake to rise. Milk at room temperature is advised to be mixed simultaneously while mixing the batter.
Flour
Icy Cold Flour: It behaves the same way as cold eggs or butter.
Baking requires a lot of precision and temperature of ingredients is one of the most essential causes of your recipe to work or not.
Happy Baking!
