Kitchen Wisdom

A few simple tips to a better baking experience based on lessons learned in the kitchen. Ahh, the kitchen wisdom I've learned through trial and error and few good cookbooks! These tips should save you some effort when working in the kitchen; the substitutes should help you save some cash by avoid the overstocking of your shelves with ingredients rarely used.

Meringue: For the stiffest of egg peaks, beat your eggs whites in a well-chilled metallic bowl rather than a plastic bowl.

Cheesecake: Avoid having your cheesecake crack as it cools by running the knife around the edge of the pan as soon as you remove it from the oven to cool.

Buttermilk. If you don't have buttermilk on hand, use the following substitute. For every one cup of buttermilk needed, mix one cup of milk with 1 tablespoon of vinegar.

Ledges on Edges. -Eliminate the unwanted rims around the edges of muffins and breads. Grease your pans on the bottom and half way up the sides of the pans.

Flaky Pastry. For the lightest, flakiest dough, use butter not margarine. Make sure the butter is well chilled. And grate your butter rather than use pastry knifes.

Chocolate Substitutes. Always best to use the type of chocolate called for in a recipe. In a pinch, use one of these substitutes: (1) 1 ounce unsweetened = 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder + 1 tablespoon cooking oil. (2) 1 ounce semisweet = use 1 ounce unsweetened chocolate & 1 tablespoon sugar.

Melting Chocolate. Make sure the bowl you're using to melt the chocolate is clean and completely dry. Else, you're likely to create to lumps.

Soft/Stale Crackers. They make great cracker crumbs. Crush them, place them in an air tight container, keep them on hand in the freezer to use as a topping on casseroles or a coating for baked chicken or fish.

Cracker Crumbs: Save yourself the headache of clean up. Crush your crackers in a plastic ziploc bag and by using a rolling pin or a large drinking glass. Leave the bag open so a bit of air can escape as you complete the rolling.

Baking Pan Substitutions. I try to minimize the number of pans that I own. Here's how to manage your inventory of pans by using substitutes. - 10" bundt= (2) 8" x 2" rounds

- 10' x 2" round = 9" x 9"x 2" square

- 12 cup muffin tin = 8" x 4"x 2" loaf pan = 9" round = 8" square

(Note: baking times will vary depending on pan size, so you may need to adjust times slightly).

Check out Getting Serious with Baking Substitutes for additional tips on ingredient substitutes.