Pics included for cookie tax and street cred!
As a hobby home baker (and r/baking lurker) I only bake for friends and family. They will sometimes say something along the lines of “you’re so talented” or “you should open a bakery.” While this is great for my self-esteem, my dirty little secret is that I don’t think there’s much talent involved in my bakes at all! I think my success really just comes down to a few simple tips that I wish I’d known early on in my baking journey. I see many people on this sub making the same common mistakes I’ve made, so I thought it would be fun to compile a list for the newer bakers out there! What am I missing? What’s on your list?
Use a tested recipe by a trusted baker, and follow it exactly. If Sally says the dough needs to chill before baking, then the dough needs to chill. (Side note: Sally’s Baking Recipes is life-changing. I always joke if I did open a bakery, I’d have to call it “Opentochane18’s Bakery By Sally” because I basically get all my recipes from her!)
Use high quality ingredients. It’s amazing what Penzey’s vanilla and Ghirardelli chocolate chips did for my baking.
Temperature of ingredients matters. Shortcuts like melting butter instead of properly bringing it to room temperature will absolutely impact your results. (Many cookies spread and flattened in the making of this tip!)
Buy a kitchen scale if you can. They are inexpensive and so worth it! Too much/not enough flour will destroy your bake.
Don’t over-mix! The texture of your treats will thank you.
Don’t over-bake! Nobody likes dry and crumbly goodies. I usually pull most bakes when they still look just the slightest bit underbaked.
Nothing sucks the joy out of baking faster than doing it for money. I’m so much happier baking what I want, when I want, for people I like.
by Opentochange18
41 Comments
I wish I had known sooner that the most difficult part AND the most irrelevant one when baking is aesthetics. Like you said, baking is kind of easy when following a trusted recipe, the difficulty comes later in the game when you start making experiments. Before that, the only thing that “ruined” my baked goods was they sometimes weren’t as beautiful as the inspo pic, or as I imagined them. Took me a while to accept flavour is the really important part, the visual one comes with practice and tips, mostly.
I agree with all of those. I just got a double oven and baked snickerdoodles AND banana nut bread simultaneously for my coworkers (both Sally’s recipes) today. I want to bake my way through her blog but my coworkers keep asking me to repeat bakes I’ve already brought them. Someday I’ll try everything. I have not had a SINGLE recipe go wrong from her, even the savory foods. That said, once you’ve made a recipe a few times you can tweak it. Sally says not to use extra crunchy peanut butter for her cookie recipes, but I like crunchy peanuts in my cookies and they don’t turn out too crumbly. Your photos and baked are gorgeous by the way!
When I was in high school I wanted to be a pastry chef and cake baker as a career. I’m so happy it didn’t end up that way for the reason you mention. Often times people will tell me my stuff is good enough to sell but really I don’t want to lose the joy it brings me!!
#7 all the way. I feel like as soon as I’m doing it for work, it’ll suck all the joy out of it. Butter is my love language!
My bakery would definitely be a “by Sally” bakery too 😂 honestly my learning experience this year has been that I definitely overmix. I think unless I’m whipping something or making buttercream, I need to just mix by hand. The apple pie cupcakes I just made came out so good but I think they were a little too firm (a combo of slightly overmixed and slightly over baked 😩). I think even the most experienced bakers have their downfalls though so I try to give myself some grace
In Sally we trust!
that baking by weights is much easier than baking by volume. everyone go get a scale.
I agree about following the recipe exactly for the first time, but after a few times, or if you’re baking for yourself, don’t be afraid to experiment! Some of my favorite recipes now are often recipes that I’ve tweaked over the years, either because I was out of an ingredient or I thought “what if” and decided to try it. Sometimes it fails, but most of the time, it’s a happy surprise!
I also like to take a basic recipe and add to it. For example, adding spices to a vanilla cupcake, or strawberry powder to a pancake or muffin batter.
I guess what I mean here is: have fun with it!
Mine may be kinda controversial. The freedom to modify recipes once you understand how baking itself works is a lot greater than you think.
Don’t think the cinnamon or vanilla are strong enough? Add more, the cookies will not explode. Want a richer chocolate flavor? Throw in some espresso powder. Add salt to everything. Everything. It’s a magical flavor booster in the right amounts
Cold water when baking.
Use a metal pot or bowl for whipping cream. Chill the bowl and the beaters to get them cold.
I went to culinary school. (Don’t get to impressed 🤓worked a hotel with a bakery. The biggest lesson I learned from the chef about baking, “always remember your science.”
3 and 4 are the cornerstones of baking! I dunno about 7 though. I love my lil business, baking for strangers really makes my day! Keeps me on my toes, learning new techniques and flexing creativity for themes I’ve not seen before.
Love your list. My personal add on: let cakes cool fully before frosting. I learned the hard way that impatience leads to sliding layers and buttercream disasters. Now I just plan a day ahead and it makes everything smoother.
You’re selling yourself short OP. You can teach someone just about any skill over time but it’s impossible to teach vision and feel. Some people have got it, some people don’t but these works of art start with an artistic eye and fantastic mind and you sure have them both!
1. Baking is not nearly as scary as people think. Just follow the recipe (which are usually a LOT more detailed than savory cooking recipes tbh) and you’ll be fine.
2. Unfortunately waiting for cookie dough to chill does actually improve the final product lol. Even if its only 30 minutes, you can tell.
3. Same for waiting for your eggs to come to room temp instead of using them cold. It makes a difference.
4. Sometimes simpler is better. I like doing a salted caramel three apple crumb torte cake bar with toffee crumbles and whipped buttercream blah blah every now and then like anyone else. But classics are classic for a reason. Everyone loves a good ol fashioned apple pie.
5. LEARN THE SCIENCE. Do you need to be a molecular gastronomist to bake? Absolutely not. But understanding the difference scientifically between say baking powder vs baking soda and why one needs an acid and why one doesn’t, or why egg whites won’t rise if a yolk is mixed in, or why your frosting separates when overmixed can all just help to guarantee a successful product in the end. Plus as a former science nerd it’s just really cool.
I could’ve written this myself! Down to gamingwonton’s baking by Sally 🤣 I send Sally’s site to my friends when they ask me to bake for them and tell them to pick anything. No need to practice (unless they ask for complicated decoration), and it always comes out perfect!
the right tools for the job is big with me…the scale, the chiffon pan with feet, and my personal favorite…the rolling pin with height-guides
Don’t underestimate the power of the order.
2 is so cool im sure the other ones r too i just started looking
Omg I like all of them
What a sweet post and nice tips
I learned that if you are going to bake a vanilla flavor pastry, you better off using the imitation flavoring. Reserve the expensive real vanilla for stuff like whipped cream or frosting. I did an experiment and blind tasting with friends and fellow bakers once. The majority preferred the imitation vanilla. The flavor came through stronger and more nuanced.
But in frosting, marshmallow and custard, whipping cream and pavlova/ meringue , the real vanilla is the clear winner. So now, I used a good imitation vanilla in baking. It saves me a lot of $$$
Here’s what I tell my baking fans (friends, family and coworkers):
1. Double the vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg in any recipe.
2. Use good quality and FRESH ingredients (not the cinnamon that’s been in your cupboard for 20 years, not margarine, not fake vanilla).
3. Follow the recipe (this is for my mum who always asks for my recipes, substitutes everything in it, and complains that I must have lied becuase hers did not turn out well).
4. Temperatures do matter, for many things. Your fridge and freezer need to be an appropriate temperature, bread wants a comfortable place to rise (would you leave a baby on that cold counter?), etc.
5. Timings are just suggestions – get to know YOUR oven, your pans, etc.
6. Eggs can be warmed in a bowl of hot water (in the shell).
7. It’s worth it to have multple bowls, measuring spoons and cups, and other things so that you can knock out multiple bakes without doing dishes in between.
8. Let things cool – don’t try to move, slice, cut or frost things when they’re too warm.
9. Learn some base recipes that you can switch up with seasonal flavours, whatever fruit you have on hand, and different add-ins. Things like enriched bread dough can be millions of things, french yogurt cake can use any fruit, updside down cakes can use any fruit, etc.
10. Booze. Adding a bit of rum, cinnamon whiskey, orange liquer, etc makes a huge difference in many bakes – adds its own flavour and the alcohol boosts other flavours.
11. Toast your nuts. Toast, cool, and chop before adding – adds better texture and flavour, if you use nuts.
12. I keep a peanut free household, so we use all sorts of subtitutions – almond butter, cookie butter, sunflower seed butter, pumpkin seed butter, tahini – depending on the recipe, you have lots of peanut free options.
I love Sally’s recipes! I recently got her new Baking 101 cookbook and it is AMAZING. Like you said, just follow the recipe exactly. My biggest goods come from forgetting an ingredient, so I always triple check that before adding to the mix. Nothing worse than getting bread dough ready to rise and realizing you forgot to add the egg. Only way to add that is more kneading, and then it’s gonna be tough from overdeveloped gluten. 😭
Two of my favorite tips:
That bake didn’t come out looking as good as you hoped? A nice dusting of confectioners sugar on top covers many sins!
Even though you greased and floured and gooped your pan, your cake is stuck in there? Layers of broken up cake in a tall glass alternating with layers of whipped cream is going to be the parfait of your dreams.
Sometimes I wish I’d learned earlier is that decorating is only half the battle-storing is the other. Airtight containers and layering with parchment save you from bleeding colors and stale adges. It’s not glamorous advice, but it makes all the difference when you’re gifting or selling.
How do you achieve that side sprinkles plus upper/lower buttercream situation on the cake in your pictures? Is there a name for this technique?
to take your time. i used to rush decorating cakes but it never ends well & use frozen layers it makes it so much easier and CRUMB COAT, its so important it makes the final product so much better and smoother. i know some people dont but singe i started i physically cannot work without one.
Sally’s Baking Addiction? I haven’t ever tried. I learned most of what I know about recipes from Shirley Corriher. But I do come at it from a scientific background. I’ll have to take a look at Sally.
If you think you’ve memorized a recipe, then that’s the time to get sloppy. Twice, I made my famous, memorized banana bread and….put the pan in the oven WITHOUT THE FLOUR.
Good lord!!
So even when you think you don’t need to look, just double check the ingredients, say them out loud. Don’t get cocky!
I just took a baking class and the most important thing I learned was…be patient and take your time. For example, cream the butter and sugar until it’s really smooth; I always stopped too soon because I was impatient. Don’t stir when making caramel. Take an extra minute to portion cookies equally; don’t just blob them onto the cookie sheet.
Scrape the sides of the bowl often. More often than you think. Scrape all around the paddle too, to avoid unmixed butter/flour etc.
I’ll add mine to this.
* Give yourself time to bake. Especially if you’re baking something for the first time. Nothing ruins the baking experience (and result) more than running out of time, getting flustered and cutting corners. Allow twice the recommended preparation time for a new recipe.
My biggest lesson in the last couple years: vegan baking CAN be tasty and doesn’t have to be just no bake granola lol!
I love to bake and went into a deep depression when my younger son was diagnosed with egg and milk allergy thinking I could never bake my favorite desserts again…I tried using substitutes in regular recipes but it just didn’t work. Luckily I discovered https://www.noracooks.com and her vegan bakes are the BOMB. Some of her cakes and muffins are tastier than standard recipes I used to make.
I’m a Red Seal baker and my go-to is Sally’s! I also agree with all your other tips.
Baking by weight is easier / more reliable, but be prepared for converting a volume-based recipe to weight-based to have uneven results because you really don’t know how much flour someone used when they say “3 cups of flour.”
Write down the weights of your frequently-used bowls so you can portion out batter by weight after it’s made.
Annotate the crap out of your recipes! What worked, what didn’t, what you tried, all of it.
Whip your sugar and butter for 10 minutes.
It changed everything.
Former pastry chef here. I only use Valrhona cocoa powder. I like Callebaut chocolate because I know how it’s going to “behave” in recipes. Changing chocolates can change the outcome, and I’m accustomed to Callebaut. I only use kosher salt. I trust touch more than anything to determine when something is done. The more you do something, the better you’ll get at it. Muscle memory is real (like rolling out dough). The order of adding ingredients is very important. Don’t switch it up. Temperature of ingredients is important. And finally, the best way to learn is to have someone show you. In my first job, I had someone senior to me show me over and over so that I could see what she was seeing, and feel what she was feeling. Your senses are so important when cooking.
I love Penzey’s! Never thought I’d see a mention here!!
Don’t be afraid to get messy and use your hands as a tool. For example, when my cookie scoop broke. I plopped my full bowl of dough on the food scale, fared to zero, grabbed some dough, adjust as necessary, drop, repeat. After a few you start grabbing the right amount pretty consistently and it’s way easier and faster and more reliable than a cookie scoop so I never replaced mt broken one. I’ve added a weight for each cookie ball to all my recipes now (weight tends to vary by recipe..some have a couple different sizes)