25 Sep Joey Learns to Bake
I want to learn to bake - Now What?
If you’re asking yourself this question, then you can probably relate to my story.
I was quarantined with my family- binge-watching old seasons of The British Baking Show on Netflix – and I quickly caught the baking bug. I downloaded the first “science of baking” book I could find and spent a day or two immersing myself in different types of flour and the important characteristics of eggs.
Despite my best intentions, the studying didn’t last much longer, and I started searching for something to bake. I landed on chocolate chip coffee cake (my parents’ request), picked a random recipe, and basically threw together my first cake. No big surprise, it was just meh.
Well, crap. Baking might be easier said than done.
When you’re baking a cake, there’s a recipe to follow. A set of step-by-step instructions leading you down the path to your ultimate goal – soft, sweet, airy layers piled high with rich and fluffy frosting. There might even be pictures and videos to guide you through the tricky parts. Unfortunately, there’s no recipe to guide you through the hows and whys of baking.
But I was hooked and determined to stay the course. So, I had to come up with a plan for learning the basics that didn’t involve me heading off to pastry school. I took a step back from the kitchen and dove into learning more about the techniques and principles that are unique to bakers. Let’s be honest, I started googling. I read through recipes, then through comments, and steadily followed my fingers down the rabbit-hole that is the internet. The more I read though, the more questions I had.
- What does “cream together the butter and sugar” mean, and how long is it supposed to take?
- What is the difference between baking soda and baking powder, and what happens if I mix them up?
- Do I need to go out and buy a bunch of tools or expensive electrics to make even some simple recipes?
I found myself landing on dozens of different sites and constantly having to re-google or rephrase my questions to get to the core of a concept and understand the necessary fundamentals in a way that was easy for my beginner-brain to follow. There didn’t seem to be any single resource to answer the basic questions.
And as they say, when you need something done right, do it yourself.
So here I am, to share my experience with all of you and create a space dedicated to the questions and concerns that all new bakers face. We’ll finally have an easy to follow, easy to navigate, and easy to access resource for those of us who are newbies in this magical world of batter and dough. Fill up the comments with all your questions, no matter how small or trivial they may seem, and I’ll do the leg-work to get us all the answers we’re craving. See you in the kitchen!