Do your scones rise unevenly? If so, it could well be because you are twisting the cutter when cutting them out… just push straight down in one clean action for evenly-risen (good-looking) scones! read less

Roasting vegetables tonight? Throw in some extras to ensure you have leftovers to make frittata tomorrow. It will make for a very quick and easy lunch – either at home or to take with you if you are on the go!

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When using eggs always break each one into a separate small bowl or ramekin before adding to a mixture so if there is a problem with a single egg, the whole mixture won't be ruined. It's also easier to remove any broken egg shell this way.

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When making pastry, such as a shortcrust, by hand make sure you only use your fingertips to rub the butter into the flour.

Avoid using the whole of your hands as the palm is the warmest part and can melt the butter which, in turn, may cause your finished pastry to be heavy and tough. Rub the butter chunks briefly between your fingertips, breaking it into smaller, flake-like pieces while coating with the flour rather than rubbing them together.

Also remember to keep the palms of your hands facing upwards, to help with the action of breaking up the butter chunks, and lift the mixture high out of the bowl as this will aerate the mixture and help give it a light texture when baked.

This is a great technique to keep in mind when making scones and pastry.  

 

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We all know a little dusting of icing sugar can be the perfect finishing touch for our sweet baking… and when you colour it, well that’s just pure fun! To colour your icing sugar, put it in a resealable bag, add a drop of colouring gel, seal and then rub and shake with your hands until it is evenly coloured, adding more colouring if you want a stronger colour. The more colouring you add the wetter the icing sugar will become, forming lumps – but don’t worry these won’t matter once you sift the icing sugar over your baking. Coloured icing sugar is particularly good for decorating meringue-based treats like these macarons. read less

Using your food processor when making shortcrust pastry is dead easy and super quick. Follow these three simple steps:

1. Put the flour, salt, chilled butter and sugar (if the pastry is sweet) in the bowl of your food processor. Use the pulse button to process until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs.
2. Sprinkle over the water/whisked egg yolk (you’ll generally find that you need a little less than if making the pastry by hand) and then use the pulse button to process briefly until the mixture just starts to cling together. Don’t let it get to the stage that it forms a ball as you may overwork the pastry and make it ‘tough’ when baked.
3. Turn the pastry out onto a lightly floured, cool bench top and bring it together with your hands. Lightly knead the pastry with your fingertips for about 10 seconds or until comes together but isn’t completely smooth. Shape the pastry into a disc, wrap well in plastic wrap and place in the fridge to rest for 30 minutes or as directed in the recipe.

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When sifting wholemeal flour don’t throw away the husks caught in the sieve. The sifting is to remove any lumps not this valuable bran fibre so make sure you return it to the flour before continuing with your recipe.

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Most stand mixers are now sold with a range of attachments made for specific mixing jobs, including a 'paddle' one. This is what you need to use to get the best results if a recipe asks you to beat, mix, cream or combine your ingredients 'using an electric mixer'. It's not meant for 'whisking' (when you are making meringue for example) or for 'kneading' bread doughs - use the whisk or dough hook attachments for these jobs.

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When lining a shallow tin, such as a Swiss roll tin or slice tin, the simplest way to ensure that the base and all four sides are lined is to take a single piece of non-stick baking paper that is about 8cm larger than the base of the tin. Grease the tin so the paper will stick and then smooth the paper over the base to cover, pressing it into the corners. Then make a cut from one of the corners of the paper towards the centre just to the point where the paper meets the corner of the tin – this cut will allow the paper to sit neatly in the corner. Repeat with the remaining three corners. read less

Some like ‘em crisp, some like ‘em chewy. If you fall into the chewy camp with your meringues it is easy to make sure they have this hard-to-resist texture by taking them from the oven as soon as they have finished baking and cooling them at room temperature. For crisp meringues, turn off the oven, leave the door slightly ajar and leave them in the oven to cool.

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When making a pie or tart there is no need to grease the tin before you line it with pastry – the high butter content in the pastry will naturally stop it from sticking to the tin.

If you grease your tin, the pastry is more likely to slip down the sides/shrink during baking leaving you with a tart case that with very short sides and not much room for your filling.

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As soon as your cake mixture is ready, bake it straight away. If a finished cake mixture sits for too long before going into the oven you won’t get the best results –especially cakes with egg whites (they will lose volume and won’t rise as much) and those with bicarbonate of soda and/or an acidic ingredient, such as lemon juice or buttermilk (they will end up with a ‘holey’ texture).

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When whisking eggs for your baking it is always best to use the freshest eggs possible.
Here’s why:

Eggs, when fresh, are acidic and this acidity means that the egg proteins are tightly knit. You can see this egg is fresh because the yolk is plump and round and the inner white is clearly defined and is holding onto the yolk tightly – an indication that those protein bonds are keeping it from spreading on the plate.

As an egg ages, it becomes more alkaline and the proteins start to pull away from each other, causing the yolk to lose it's form and the white to become thinner and more likely to spread on a plate when cracked. 

So why is this important when whisking eggs? Less fresh eggs will whisk to a foam more quickly than fresher ones, and you’ll achieve a slightly greater volume, but the resulting foam will be less stable than one made with fresh eggs. A fresh-egg foam will be more stable thanks to the strong protein bonds and therefore more likely to holds its shape and retain the air you have incorporated through whisking.

Pic: @neelashearer 

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