Baking and you

[gunnyswife]

When baking, are there any tricks you use to get that perfect result you want?

For me, it's all about the substitute of one ingredient or another. If I don't have cream, I'll make a substitute that works. If I can't use sugar, I'll use Stevia as the package directs. Eggs can be subbed with vinegar of all things! So tell me, please, what are your kitchen tricks?

[Rattyhatty]

Kitchen tricks? I don't have any that I know of. I know I prefer butter to using margarine when it comes to baking. The texture just seems to come out better that way.
But here is something interesting : eggs and oil together can also be substituted with mayonnaise. If you think about it, it does make sense. The result you would have a moist taste. Like muffins or cupcakes. (I make my own mayonnaise.)

[gunnyswife]

Ooh, that's really cool! I'd never have thought of that, and it's awesome that you make your own mayo.

[Cate winslet]

I love cakes... so I never leave my baking recipes...

[Rattyhatty]

Well, homemade mayonnaise doesn't have any of the added preservatives and additives you'd find in store bought mayonnaise. So on one side your homemade mayonnaise isn't as sour while on the other hand, store-bought lasts longer.

Another thing I do when I make pies or mini pies is that I use normal dough. I don't have any fondness for puff pastry due to its messiness. Also, normal dough seems to taste better to me.
Maybe at some point I'll see if I can make homemade puff pastry...

[munajimah25]

its good to bake your own but i dont really like baking, moreover i knw how to bake but just feel lazy doing that...
i normally like pie,cupcakes and chips

[SparklesonPages]

That’s brilliant, I’ve never thought to make my own mayo.
I make my own buttermilk because it’s so easy and is fresh when needed. It’s simply 2tbsp lemon juice to every cup of milk, let sit for 15-20 mins. It curdles a bit and is devine for buttermilk biscuits.

[oocynthia]

I always used the old fashioned ways so altering them have never crossed my mind.

[P0tt3ry]

Unsweetened applesauce instead of oil in cakes and cookies actually makes them moister and lower in calories. We also like to substitute Greek yogurt for butter in baking; just remember to factor in the tangy taste.

[Elizabeth Pass]

My mother would always use half shortening and half butter in her baking. My husband was vegan for a while and I became the master of substitutes. I found a substitute doesn't always work depending on what you're making. Apple sauce work great to substitute eggs in pancakes but not so much in brownies.

[lbhatters]

I have this thing called a garlic twister. You just put the garlic cloves in and twist them. It works really well and you don't have to cut up tiny pieces and risk cutting your fingers.

[Jackie Holycross]

I found a recipe that makes pie crust in the blender. It's so much easier than the cutting in method and I think it's tasty.

[nikkyteewhy]

Kitchen tricks? I don't have any that I know of. I know I prefer butter to using margarine when it comes to baking. The texture just seems to come out better that way.
But here is something interesting : eggs and oil together can also be substituted with mayonnaise. If you think about it, it does make sense. The result you would have a moist taste. Like muffins or cupcakes. (I make my own mayonnaise.)

Nice way to make your own Mayo. I have to get creative in the kitchen and find my own tricks too. Thanks for sharing this though.

[dtb]

The best "trick" I ever learned was that when baking at elevation, the dough rises too fast sometimes because of a lack of atmospheric pressure. What I learned was that while it reses, it should be in a location that is a little less warm. The texture is improved.

[thaservices1]

I do the mayo substitute for eggs and oil quite a bit, great for when you eat up all the eggs for breakfast and don't want to do a store run. I've been playing with cream cheese a lot in my baking lately, I used half butter half cream cheese in a pastry, it came out puffier than usual but was richer and smoother. I used some in a chewy cookie recipe with great results too. I also played around with coconut oil pastry and cookies. With those you treat the coconut oil as an oil not a solid like butter. All the coconut oil subs I tried came out excellent. The pastry is not super flaky just as with other oil dough recipes but has a better flavor, the cookies come out super moist and chewy. The giant bag of Sunmaid raisins has an oatmeal cookie recipe on the back that I modified endlessly with the coconut oil. One of the best I subbed drained chopped pineapple and shredded coconut for the raisins, none of that batch made it to the morning.