Baking Tips

Baking is a joy, not a chore, and should never be undertaken if you are feeling rushed. Use your imagination and alter the add-ins as you see fit.

1. Always read through the entire recipe before starting to Bake.

2. Start with ingredients at room temperature.

3. Always Bake bars, squares and cookies in the centre of the oven on the middle rack. If baking more than one pan at a time, place them at different angles on different racks to allow maximum circulation of heat. Alternate their placement on the racks halfway through the baking time.

4. The best pans are aluminum or metal pans that are light in colour. Dark pans will cause the base or bar to Bake and brown more quickly.

5. If using glass dishes, reduce oven temperature by 25 degrees and slightly decrease the baking time.

6. Use only the size of pan called for. The difference between an 8-inch square pan and a 9-inch square pan can mean the difference between a moist, chewy bar and an under baked, heavy failure.

7. Check baked goods at earliest time indicated. Over baking will dry out bars and squares.

8. If making a sticky or fluffy batter or base, wet your hands or spatula with water before patting or spreading the batter in the pan.

9. Let most bars cool completely before cutting. There are exceptions, however. Bars with a sticky filling need to have a knife run around the edge of the pan after being removed from the oven to prevent sticking.

10. Score chocolate-topped bars as soon as the topping is applied to prevent the chocolate from cracking later.

11. Use metal or plastic dry measures for measuring dry ingredients and glass wet measures for measuring liquid ingredients.

12. All-purpose flour does not need to be sifted. However, when a recipe calls for cake-and-pastry flour, the flour should be sifted and then measured.

13. Store nuts in the freezer to retain their freshness.