Baking Advice

IF YOU’RE BAKING AT HOME AND WONDERING HOW YOU CAN IMPROVE YOUR SKILLS, THERE ARE A FEW KEY QUALITIES THAT CAN HELP YOU TO PROGRESS AS A BAKER.   1) Organisation Baking is a juggling act. This means organising everything from your ingredients to forward-thinking your way through the stages of the recipe.   Lots of thinking ahead is required when you’re a baker and you need to be considering what needs to be done in advance so that everything is ready when needed. It also means incorporating steps that aren’t necessarily in the recipe, such as cleaning down your kitchen as you go.   Weigh out your ingredients before you start, check that everything is ready to use (e.g. chopped chocolate, butter and eggs at room temperature) and that you have all the necessary equipment prepared.   It might help to write a quick timeline if your recipe is particularly complicated,

SUGARPASTE ICING IS A GREAT WAY TO ADD FLAIR AND FUN DETAILS TO YOUR CAKES WITH SUGARPASTE MODELLING. This sweet fondant is a sort of edible sugar dough and it can be used to cover cakes or to model decorations such as flowers or cut-out shapes. Tips for using sugarpaste icing   You can buy ready-to-roll white sugarpaste icing from specialist cake shops and you can add food colouring until you reach the desired shade. Use a pair of disposable kitchen gloves to knead the colour in and avoid staining your palms. Alternatively, to skip this step just buy a ready-made coloured sugarpaste. Be careful not to over-knead it. Gel or paste food colourings work much better than liquid colourings to colour sugarpaste fondant. This is because they mix more smoothly and give a more even colour without making the consistency of the sugarpaste too wet. Add gel colourings with a cocktail stick until you have the right shade of colour. Always dust the work surface and rolling pin lightly

HOME BAKERS OFTEN GET STUCK ON THIS GOOEY INGREDIENT, BUT BAKING WITH FLUFF IS A BLAST! JUST READ ON FOR HINTS AND TIPS… As a bakery dedicated to American-style goodies, we often use authentic ingredients that you'd be likely to find in an American supermarket. One such ingredient that The Hummingbird Bakers are often asked about is Marshmallow Fluff. Although Fluff is not all that familiar to most bakers, it is great for sandwiching Whoopie Pies, baking bars and topping cupcakes.   What is Marshmallow Fluff? Marshmallow Fluff is a brand of American marshmallow creme. It comes in a jar or a tub and there are several flavours of Fluff on the market. Imagine the gooey centre of a marshmallow made into a light, spreadable creme and you’re not far off. What can Marshmallow Fluff be used in? A jar of this stuff will add gooey, delicious marshmallow middles to your Whoopie Pies and is essential

FUDGY, CHOCOLATEY AND WITH A SHINY CRISP TOP; NO ONE CAN RESIST A TRAY OF BROWNIES FRESH FROM THE OVEN. FOLLOW OUR GUIDE TO HELP YOU BAKE YOUR BEST-EVER BROWNIES. Ten tips for unbeatable brownies: Use an oven thermometer to calibrate your oven. Baking at the correct temperature is essential so that you know you’re not over-cooking your brownies in the centre. Bake them in the centre of the oven for even heat. Melting the chocolate with the butter over a bain marie does double-duty. The hot water prevents the chocolate from seizing up and going grainy and melting the butter before combining into the mixture ensures you don’t incorporate air through beating, so your brownie stays fudgy rather than turning cakey. If you prefer them cakey, add more air by beating.

EVER HAD YOUR CUPCAKE RECIPE TURN OUT A FLOP? PEELING CASES, SINKING SPONGES AND OVERFLOWING MIXTURES ARE JUST SOME OF THE CUPCAKE BAKING PROBLEMS THAT CAN BE EASILY FIXED NEXT TIME YOU COME TO BAKE. Cupcake sponge problems To find solutions to dry, burnt or cracked cupcakes, visit our blog on the Top Twelve Sponge Cake Problems and How to Fix Them. The main rules for baking any sponge apply to cupcakes too. Cupcake frosting problems  If your buttercream or cream cheese frosting isn’t going so smoothly, visit our blog on Cupcake and Cake Frosting Problems Solved to troubleshoot.     Lumpy cupcake batter Use your ingredients at room temperature and they will combine more easily. Butter that is

‘TIS THE SEASON TO DUST OFF YOUR FESTIVE COOKIE CUTTERS AND BRING YOUR FAVOURITE BAKES AND DESSERTS TO THE TABLE. TO HELP MAKE THIS SEASON LESS STRESSFUL, WE HAVE A FEW TRICKS SO THAT YOU CAN ENJOY YOUR TIME IN THE KITCHEN.   1) Make a plan If Santa can make a list (and check it twice) you can apply this very same rule to your baking! Make a plan for the recipes you want to bake in advance and note down the ingredients needed along with any wrapping required, if you’re baking to give as gifts. Some ingredients you might be able to get cheaper if they are bought in bulk and some ingredients such as essences may need to be ordered online in advance. If you’re super organised or baking several things on one day, you can make a written timeline for timing of the method and preparation.   2) Do a cupboard inventory There’s nothing worse than running out of ingredients when

CLASSIC AMERICAN BAKED NEW YORK CHEESECAKE IS EVERYONE’S FAVOURITE DESSERT, WITH A CRUNCHY BISCUIT LAYER AND CREAMY, FLUFFY CHEESECAKE TOPPING WITH A HINT OF TANGINESS COOKED SLOWLY UNTIL GOLDEN. NOW WHERE DID I PUT MY FORK?! This recipe is an impressive after-dinner showstopper to have up your sleeve for guests, with lots of options for serving each silky slice with seasonal fresh fruits, sauces and compotes or decorating with crushed praline, chocolate shavings, honeycomb, chopped nuts or crunchy biscuit crumbs. But if your cheesecakes are prone to crack and crumble, you need our expert baking tips.     Top tips for the perfect baked

With fifteen years of baking experience since we first brought American cupcakes to London, we’ve selected a few things every baker should know before they bake cupcakes in order to get the tastiest bakes possible. Use a food portioning scoop Ever wondered why our cupcakes look so uniform? This is a handy tool we use for both scooping out cupcakes, but also layer cakes and frostings. It allows you to get even measurements for both the batter mixtures to bake your sponge and also your frostings so that these can be equal across the batch. It’s a lot easier than using normal spoons and the quick release mechanism ensures the scoop is nice and clean for each serving. We recommend getting your food portioning scoop from a specialist cake shop online or catering supplier. At a pinch, ice cream scoops can work too! Check your oven with an oven thermometer  Ovens often operate

LET'S TALK TINS! BAKING TINS COME IN ALL SHAPES AND SIZES, SO IN ORDER FOR YOUR BAKES TO TURN OUT PERFECTLY, PREPARATION AND CORRECT SIZING IS KEY. The golden rule for filling tins: To prevent cakes and cupcake cases from overflowing and making a mess of your oven, only fill your tins two-thirds full and this will leave plenty of room for the cake to rise. How to line a circular tin: Place the tin on top of the rolled out baking paper, bottom-side

SOMETIMES CUPCAKE FROSTING CAN GO WRONG. IT CAN TURN RUNNY, GO LUMPY OR SPLIT (GULP!). LUCKILY, WITH A LITTLE KNOW-HOW YOU CAN TURN YOUR FROSTING NIGHTMARE INTO A DREAM. Frosting mixing times:   Buttercream frosting – beat for five minutes or more, the more you whip the fluffier it gets (too much might trap air bubbles though)   Cream cheese frosting – beat for ideally around five minutes, but no more or it can go too runny or split  Frosting is too runny.  This could be because the butter was too soft or you added too much milk if it is buttercream frosting or it could be that you have overbeaten it if you’re making cream cheese frosting.