The avid bakers amongst you may have noticed that it’s currently National Baking Week! Any excuse to get the mixing bowl out is fine with us, but who’s baking the celebratory cake?
National Baking Week was launched in 2008 and since then it has reinvigorated baking and has encouraged the nation to put on their pinny and get baking. It’s the perfect chance to put into practice all those tips and tricks picked up from watching The Great British Bake Off.
Beginners baking tips
If your cakes usually come out like biscuits and your biscuits like cakes, here are some basic tips for a baker:
Read the recipe
Easy, right? This will make you mindful of all of the steps and make sure that you won’t overlook any. As you read the recipe tick off all the ingredients you have – you don’t want to get half way through baking and realise you’ve ran out of sugar. And if a recipe calls for a specific ingredient such as self-raising or strong flour, use the right one, there’s a reason why.
Before you start
There are some simple steps you should always follow before starting the recipe:
- Pre-heat the oven
- Prepare cooking sheets or cake tins
- Get ingredients to room temperature
Mix it up
All bakes require some sort of mixing, aka ‘the fun bit’. But don’t just tip all the ingredients in in one go; it sounds obvious but add each ingredient one at a time. For any dry ingredients like flour, sift them to improve the texture – nobody wants a lump of flour in their sponge.
Make it pretty
After following the recipe and admiring your wonderful creation. The finishing touches can be where you really put your mark on a creation (and even cover up a not so perfect top).
Be inspired by our range of sweet and savoury delights, and try your hand at baking during National Baking Week. For us, the baking never stops but we don’t mind cause baking is what we love!
If you have any questions about our range or catering services call us today on 01536 203682.