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I was lucky to have Grandmas that were cookie bakers. We would make cinnamon cookies, chocolate chip cookies, and many other things together. In their memory, I’ve gathered up their 10 best baking tips to share with you.
- Everybody loves freshly baked cookies, but you don’t always have time to get all the ingredients together and make them from scratch. It’s easy to grab a tube of cookie dough at the store, but who knows what polyunsaturated hydrogenated gunk is in them? Prepare for cookie cravings by making an extra batch of dough and freezing it. Roll the dough into a log, wrap it really well in wax paper and store in a ziploc bag. Then when you NEED a fresh cookie, slice off and bake as many cookies as you want.
- Keep the chemicals out of your cookies with these healthy baking alternatives.
- If you’re a big cookie-decorating family, you probably have a ton of colored sugars, sprinkles, and so on. When it’s time to decorate, put each variety into the cup of a muffin tin. It’s easy for kids to pass around the table, and easy to stash away if you get interrupted. If you put a paper liner in the tins, you can just pick up the leftovers and pour them back in the container.
- If you just need a little flour for dusting the counter, put it in a clean spice or parmesan cheese shaker. Keep the shaker at your baking station–much easier than dragging the whole flour canister out for just a sprinkle.
- Don’t spray pans with non-stick spray on the counter or even over the sink. You’ll have an overspray of oily film to clean up! Instead, place the pan on the dishwasher door. It will clean itself with the next load of dishes.
- Did your bread forget to rise? Were the fancy sesame-seed crackers rejected by the family? Maybe there’s a few stale bites left in the cereal box. Don’t toss those crunchless creations! Break them up and put them outside for the birds. They’ll especially love any cereals with peanut butter.
- Keep brown sugar in a ziploc bag instead of in the original box. It will stay moist longer, and it’s easy to dip the measuring cup in a ziploc.
- Don’t open the oven door to peek at your creations! Each time you open, it lets 20% or more of the heat out. Stick to the timer and the oven window instead.
- Baking with kids equals guaranteed interruptions. It’s pretty easy to re-measure the flour, but you can’t re-measure anything once it’s been added to the flour. To make sure you don’t put the salt in twice, put all of your “small” ingredients (baking soda, salt, spices, etc) on a plate in separate piles. Once they’ve all been measured out, add everything to the flour at once.
- Keep an extra chopstick or handle from a broken spatula in your flour container to level off the measuring cup, instead of searching for (and dirtying) a knife or other kitchen tool.
Share your baking tips and secrets in the comments!
I have had great success with making chocolate chip, oatmeal, molasses, and chocolate crinkles ahead of time. I put them on a cookie sheet , but instead of baking, I put them in the freezer. Once frozen, I put those cookies in a ziploc bag, with the directions (baking temp. and time, greased or ungreased baking sheet) written on the outside of the bag. Now I can make as few or as many cookies as I want or need. Great when guests drop by unexpectedly. Let the frozen dough set 15 minutes on the cookie sheet before baking according to directions. The molasses and crinkles I roll in sugar after the 15 minute set time.
Thank you, these are great tips! Since I have been exploring the world of gluten free, my tip is about gluten free flours. It is not easy finding the right blend to “replace” the wheat flour in recipes. Sorgum, rice flour (brown and white), and Potato Starch are my “baking mix” which has given me the most success. Nut flours will add more protein since gluten free flours tend to have a lot more carbs. The 3 most important things when baking gluten free are Do Not Over Mix, keep the batter on the wet side, and Keep Trying.
I save butter wrappers in the freezer. Whenever I need to grease a pan, I just take one out to use. I don’t like the nasty taste the cooking sprays leave behind. If you are adding chocolate chips, nuts or dried fruit to muffins or cakes, save a tablespoon or so of your flour to toss your ‘add-ins’ in. It helps stop them from sinking to the bottom. Always keep ingredients around for a few simple and quick favorite recipes. It doesn’t have to be designer chef worthy to make someone happy, especially children. Cooking with youngsters is a very busy enterprise, but it brings wonderful memories and blessings to those whom participate. Have fun!
My tip is replacing half of the white flour in any recipe with whole wheat. Adds flavor, nutrition, and gives you a feeling of taking good care of your family. Coconut oil is great substitute for any oil or fat and adds just a hint of flavor that is pleasant! In some recipes, all of the white flour can be replaced with a healthier whole grain flour.
I can’t remember who taught me this, but I put a tiny corner of bread into my container of brown sugar (mine is a quart-sized mason jar). It keeps the sugar nice and fluffy as long as the sugar lasts. The bread gets hard, but it doesn’t get moldy. But if my brown sugar hangs around awhile, I change the bread just because it makes me feel better. Also, if the brown sugar is already hard, the bread will soften it.
My tip is not to use cooking sprays at all; their ingredients are questionable at best and they are expensive! I bought one of those oil misters, but it clogged massively so now I just use wax paper (or my hands) and smear whatever oil suits the food I am baking best. Afterwards I massage the oil into my hands where I need it most (usually around the cuticles) and wipe off the excess. The rare times I use bacon grease I wash the excess off–can’t have that dog (or husband) following me around all day.