PREPARING TINS
GREASE AND BASE-LINE A SPRINGCLIP TIN, DEEP ROUND OR SQUARE TIN OR SANDWICH TIN: Lightly and thoroughly brush the base and sides of the tin (including the rim) with melted butter. Set the tin on a sheet of baking paper and draw around it, then cut out the circle (or square) of paper and press it on to the base of the tin.
GREASE AND LINE A SPRINGCLIP TIN OR ROUND DEEP CAKE TIN: Brush the base and sides with melted butter. Cut out 2 rounds of baking paper very slightly smaller than the base of the tin (see above). Also cut out a double-thickness strip of baking paper long enough to go around the tin and wide enough to stand about 5cm above it. Make a 2.5cm fold along one edge of this strip, then snip diagonally up to the fold at 1cm intervals (so it looks like a thick fringe). Press one paper round into the base of the tin, then place the strip around the inside of the tin so the snipped edge lies flat on the base and the rest of the paper strip is pressed neatly to the sides of the tin (no creases). Brush the round on the base and the snipped edge of the side strip with a little more melted butter, then press the second round of paper on top. Lightly brush this and the strip on the sides with melted butter to hold it all in place.
GREASE AND LINE A LOAF TIN: Lightly brush the base, sides and rim of the tin with melted butter. Cut a strip of baking paper the width of the tin and long enough to cover the base and 2 short sides, then press it into the greased tin to line it – the paper will help you lift out the loaf after baking.
CHECKING IF CAKES/BAKES ARE DONE
FINGERTIP TEST: For delicate sponge cakes the most reliable way to test is to gently press the top of the sponge, in the centre, with your fingertip – the sponge is ready if it springs back into place, and has started to shrink from the sides of the tin. If a slight dent remains in the sponge after you press it, it needs to be baked for a few more minutes.
SKEWER TEST: Use this for richer, heavier cakes, fruit cakes and dense chocolate cakes. Stick a fine skewer or wooden cocktail stick into the centre of the cake. If the skewer comes out clean, rather than damp with cake mixture, the cake is ready. Note, though, that for some recipes – such as Brownies – the skewer should come out slightly sticky to avoid overcooking.
COOKING WITH CHOCOLATE
MELT CHOCOLATE: Chop or break up the chocolate into even-sized pieces so it will melt at the same rate. Put it into a heatproof bowl and set over a pan of steaming hot but not boiling water – don’t let the base of the bowl touch the water. As the chocolate starts to melt stir it gently so it melts evenly. It is ready to use as melted chocolate as soon as it is liquid and smooth, around 30°C. If the chocolate overheats and reaches 50°C it will seize up – become grainy and hard – and be unusable.
TEMPER CHOCOLATE: Melting and cooling chocolate (tempering) makes it shiny and very smooth, and will give a professional finish when you are covering or coating a cake or dessert, or when you are making decorations such as chocolate curls. First melt the chocolate (see above), then slightly increase the heat under the pan of water so the temperature of the chocolate rises to about 45°C. Keep stirring so the chocolate heats evenly. Remove the bowl from the pan and set it in a larger bowl of cold but not icy water to quickly cool the chocolate (take care not to let any water get into the chocolate bowl). Gently stir until the temperature falls to 27°C. Set the bowl over the pan of steaming hot water again and reheat the chocolate, stirring, until it reaches 29–30°C. As soon as the chocolate gets up to temperature, remove the bowl from the pan. The tempered chocolate is now ready to use.
WHISKING EGGS AND CREAM
WHISK EGG WHITES: Put the egg whites, which should be at room temperature for the best results, into a large, spotlessly clean and grease-free bowl (any trace of fat and specks of yolk stuck to the bowl or whisk will stop the whites from being beaten to their full volume). Whisk on low speed for about 30 seconds so they become frothy and the structure starts to develop. If you add a pinch of cream of tartar or vinegar or lemon juice at this point the slight acidity will help the structure to stiffen. Increase the speed and continue whisking until the mixture is a mass of tiny bubbles, with a very smooth and fine texture. The whites have reached soft peak stage when you lift the whisk and the peak of egg whites on it slightly droops down. The next stage, after more whisking, is stiff peak when the peak stands upright and you can turn the bowl upside down (without the whites falling out).
WHISK EGGS AND SUGAR: When whisking egg whites for meringues start adding the sugar when the whites reach soft peak stage. If you add the sugar too early on, it will dissolve quickly and make the mixture too wet. But don’t wait until the whites have reached stiff peak stage because their structure then won’t be elastic enough to hold the sugar and you’ll get a lumpy, blobby meringue instead of a sleek, glossy result.
WHISK TO THE RIBBON STAGE: For whisked sponges, eggs and sugar must be whisked to build up a thick mass of tiny air bubbles and thus form the structure of the cake. Use a large bowl as the initial volume of eggs and sugar will increase 5-fold. Whisk on high speed for 4–5 minutes until the mixture becomes so thick that when the whisk is lifted out of the bowl the mixture on it falls back on to the mix in the bowl to make a thick, ribbon-like trail on the surface.
WHIP CREAM: Make sure the cream is thoroughly chilled before you start (in warm weather chill the bowl and whisk too), to prevent the butterfat from separating and the mixture curdling. If you are going to fold the cream into another mixture, whip to a soft peak (see egg whites here). Whip to a slightly firmer peak for piping.
MAKING A PASTRY CASE
LINE A FLAN TIN: Roll out the pastry dough on a lightly floured worktop to a circle about 8cm larger than your tin. Roll up the pastry around the rolling pin and lift it over the flan tin, then unroll the pastry gently so it drapes over the tin. Flour your fingers and gently press the pastry on to the base and up the side of the tin, pressing out any pockets of air. Roll the pin over the top of the tin to cut off the excess pastry (if there are any holes in the pastry case, use this leftover dough to patch them). With your thumbs, ease the pastry up the side of the tin, just slightly higher than the rim, to allow for shrinkage during baking. Curve your forefinger inside this new rim and gently press the pastry over your finger so it curves slightly inwards – this will make it easier to unmould after baking. Prick the base of the pastry case well with a fork, then chill for 20 minutes. If you need to keep the pastry case in the fridge for any longer, loosely cover it with clingfilm to prevent the pastry from drying out.
BAKE A PASTRY CASE BLIND: Crumple up a sheet of greaseproof or baking paper, then flatten it out (this makes the paper easier to fit). Line the pastry case with the paper and fill with ceramic baking beans or dried beans. Place in the heated oven and bake for 12–15 minutes until the pastry is firm. Carefully remove the paper and beans, then return the tin to the oven and bake for a further 5–7 minutes until the pastry is thoroughly cooked and starting to colour. Pastry containing sugar needs to be watched carefully as it can burn on the edges before the base is cooked through. If this happens reduce the oven temperature slightly, or cover the rim with a long strip of foil.
When you’re making a choux dough it can be hard to tell exactly how much egg to beat in to achieve the correct consistency – if you add too little egg the pastry will be hard and dry; if you add too much the dough will be too floppy to rise and puff in the oven. An easy test is to take a small ball of the dough and stretch it between your forefinger and thumb: if the dough stretches out to 5cm then you can stop adding egg.
MAKING BREAD
KNEAD A YEASTED DOUGH: Working a dough develops the gluten (in the flour’s protein) and turns it from a messy ball into neat bundles of strands that are capable of stretching around the bubbles of carbon dioxide gas (produced by the growing yeast). The dough will then rise slowly, thanks to the yeast and gluten, and set in the oven. You can knead by hand or in a free-standing electric mixer fitted with a dough hook.
To knead by hand, first lightly dust the worktop with flour or grease with a teaspoon of oil, to prevent the dough from sticking. Turn the dough on to the surface. Stretch the ball of dough away from you by holding down one end with your hand and using the other hand to pull and stretch out the dough as if it were an elastic band. Gather the dough back into a ball again and give it a quarter turn (so you start from a different section of the dough), then repeat the stretching and gathering-back movements. As you knead you’ll notice the dough gradually changes in the way it looks and feels – it will start to feel pliable then stretchy and very elastic, and silky smooth. Most doughs need 10 minutes of thorough kneading by hand. In a mixer (set on the lowest possible speed) knead for about 5 minutes.
WINDOW-PANE TEST: You may wonder how to tell when a yeast dough has been ‘thoroughly kneaded’. Use this foolproof test (known as the ‘windowpane test’): pull off a small ball of dough and stretch it out between your fingers. If you can stretch it out so thin and fine you can just about read the recipe instructions through it, then it’s ready. But if it snaps, tears or splits give it another couple of minutes kneading and test again.
PROVE DOUGH: If you leave a yeast dough to rise in a warm place – around 28°C – the yeast will be encouraged to grow quickly. Left in a cooler spot – around 20°C – the dough will take between 30 and 50 per cent longer to rise but the flavour of the dough will be more nuanced.
BAKE A LOAF WITH A GOOD CRUST: Make sure the oven is thoroughly heated so the dough quickly puffs (called ‘oven-spring’) and then sets, bakes evenly and forms a good crust.
BAKE A LOAF WITH A CRISP CRUST: Creating a burst of steam in the oven at the start of baking will help give your loaf a crisp crust – the steam keeps the surface moist, helping the bread rise easily; once the surface has set the moisture evaporates, leaving a crisp finish. To do this, put an empty roasting tin on the floor of the oven when you turn it on to heat it. Then, immediately after you’ve put the loaf in to bake, pour cold water, or throw a handful of ice cubes, into the hot tin and quickly close the oven door to trap the resulting steam inside.
BAKE A LOAF WITH A CRISP BOTTOM CRUST: When you turn on the oven, put a baking sheet or baking stone in to heat up. Then carefully transfer your loaf (in a tin or on a sheet of baking paper) on to the hot baking sheet or stone for baking.
TEST BREAD TO SEE IF IT IS COOKED: Carefully remove the bread from the oven and turn out, upside down (thick oven gloves needed here), then tap the underside with your knuckles. If the bread sounds hollow then the loaf is cooked through; if you just get a dull ‘thud’, put the bread back into the oven, without the tin, and bake for a few more minutes, then test again. Cool on a wire rack so the steam from the loaf doesn’t condense during cooling and turn the crust soggy.
