Tips on my Top Ingredients & Tools for Baking

A lot of people tell me that they just can’t bake!! They love to cook but when it comes to baking it never turns out!  My first reply is you need to have patience, you can’t rush baking! The second is using the right ingredients and equipment is key to successful baking.

I want to take a moment and let you in on a few important ingredients and tools that make a huge difference when it comes to baking.

1.  Butter

When it comes to butter, don’t cheap out!! Butter is where a lot of your flavour comes from, especially in something as simple as butter cream icing. There’s nothing worse than having a delicious cake or cupcake and topping it off with weak tasting icing, eww!  Also, cheap butter breaks down poorly causing insufficient and uneven baking.  I use Stirling butter in all my baking; not only is it made here in Ontario, but the company has a lot of different varieties to choose from, all of the highest quality. Check their website out for more details.  My favourite is Stirling’s Whey Butter!!

2.  Chocolate

Chocolate can be expensive, but you get what you pay for.  I use Lindt in all my baking, from truffles to brownies to icing.  I buy Lindt’s milk, white, and 70% dark chocolate. It has a nice finish and is easy to work with. Be careful when buying chocolate and cocoa powder that you are actually buying ‘chocolate’ there is a lot of chocolate ‘melts’ out there which aren’t really chocolate but more like a wax.

3.  Milk and Cream

Always remember full fat is better!! Use full milk, cream’s and of course buttermilk.  Let’s face it, if you’re eating sweets, enjoy them!! Less fat at this point isn’t going to make a big difference in calories- only in the quality of the dessert!

4. Stand Mixer

This can be a big investment, but you won’t regret it, I promise! A good quality mixer will last you a long time and will make your life much easier in the kitchen.  My favourite is the Kitchen Aid line (KitchenAid K45SSOB Classic 4.5 Quart Stand Mixer, Onyx Black).  There are certain recipes that just won’t compare when using a weak mixer (or handheld), like meringues! My Kitchen Aid mixer helps whip up my egg whites light and fluffy in no time!

5. Ice Cream Scoops

Hit your local kitchen shop and invest in at least one large and one small ice cream scoop.  This will help with making all your batches of cupcakes, cookies, and dough consistent in size, resulting in even baking and for a more professional finish.

6. Parchment Paper

It’s a simple product but doesn’t underestimate it!! It helps cookies, brownies, and cakes from sticking to pans, plus makes for an easy clean-up.  Using parchment paper is great so you don’t have to use extra fat to line pans.  Depending on what you’re baking you can also reuse the paper. Also, you can easily fold the paper to make a piping bag!

There is a lot more we can talk about, but for now, we’ll start here.  Soon I’ll post a few more tips to help make baking a stress-free and fun pastime.  And before you’ll know it you be saying I love baking and I’m pretty good at it too!!