The Essential Guide To Baking

A cup of sugar, two of flour, a stick of butter, a couple of eggs, a dash of salt, a teaspoon

of baking soda, a little vanilla ........Ingredients to make cookies sound simple enough. But

are they?

Once upon a time, sugar was simply sugar, flour was simply flour, and butter was only butter.

Eggs are still eggs, but almost everything else has changed −− ingredients have gotten better.

We now have a choice of sugars, flours and shortenings. Ingredients are now specialized to suit

our baking needs. Granulated sugar, comes in regular grind, fine grind and extra fine grind.

We can get all−purpose flour, cake flour, bread flour and several specialized types of flour.

Instead of butter we may choose a flavored margarine with no cholesterol or an excellent

all−purpose shortening.

Your chance for successful baking has never been better. Your opportunity to create a personal

baking masterpiece is almost assured.

A mix package of cookie dough, whether in a bag, box, or frozen in a tube is a mixture of

ingredients. Granted, these mixes are great time savers, but they still demand careful

preparation in order to be special.

I have listed several tips about ingredients for baking cookies and a little information which

is just nice to know.

BAKING POWDER: Baking Powder and Baking Soda will lose its kick with age. Seal it tightly after

use to & keep out moisture and odors.

BAKING SODA: Baking soda causes cookies to spread when baked. Baking powder causes cookies to

rise and be crunchy.

SUGAR: Cookies are best when a fine−grind granulated sugar is used. Coarse sugar causes cookies

to spread excessively and crumble. Powdered sugar causes cookies to be tight−grained and dry.

FLOUR: All−purpose and pastry flour is fine for most cookies. A mixture of one third cake flour

to two thirds all−purpose flour is better. Use straight cake flour in your sugar cookies.

SHORTENING: All−purpose shortening or hydrogenated shortening will make almost any cookie.

A mixture of three−fourths all−purpose shortening and one−fourth real Butter is better tasting.

The butter should be cool, but not hard, when blending with the shortening.

EGGS: Eggs should always be fresh. The egg's size is very important. When the recipe doesn't

say −− use large eggs. Frozen eggs come in 4 packages; whole eggs, egg whites, 2 yolks to

white, and sugar yolks. If you use frozen eggs the kind that comes 2 yolks to 1 white is best.

Whole eggs are second best.

SALT: Use very little salt and add at the end of mixing, before the flour is completely mixed in.

Salt causes the flour to toughen and can make your cookies tough.

COLORING: Never use excessive food coloring. Some food coloring has a taste and may give your

cookies an off flavor.

WATER: Use very cold water in making cookies (unless the recipe reads differently). Cold water

Baking Cookies