Leaveners, creaming, ratios, pie dough, custards, and troubleshooting baking.
39 cards · basic cards · AI-written, checked twice. Edit anything.
- What does the creaming method do to butter and sugar?
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Incorporates air into the butter and dissolves sugar to create a light, fluffy, aerated mixture.- How does baking soda differ from baking powder?
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Baking soda requires an acid to activate; baking powder contains its own acid and needs moisture, not necessarily an added acid.- In baker's percentage, what ingredient always equals 100?
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Flour. All other ingredients are expressed as a percentage of the flour weight.- Why is cold butter important in pie dough?
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Cold butter creates pockets that steam when baked, producing a flaky, layered texture.- How do eggs thicken a custard?
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Egg proteins coagulate when heated, transitioning from liquid to solid and thickening the custard.- Dense cake usually results from which factor?
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Overmixing the batter, which overdevelops gluten and breaks down air bubbles.- Single-acting baking powder releases CO2 when?
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Only when wet, not when heated. It must be used immediately after mixing.- Cream butter and sugar at approximately what temperature?
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Room temperature, typically 68-72 Fahrenheit (20-22 Celsius), soft enough to incorporate air.- Pie dough typically uses a flour-to-fat ratio of approximately what?
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About 3 to 1, meaning 3 parts flour to 1 part fat.- How does yeast leaven dough differently from baking soda or baking powder?
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Yeast ferments sugars and produces CO2 gas over hours; chemical leaveners react instantly when wet or heated.- Blind baking primarily prevents which problem?
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A soggy bottom crust by pre-baking the crust partially or fully before adding filling.- Crème pâtissière is which type of cream?
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A pastry cream made with milk, eggs, and cornstarch or flour, thickened on the stovetop until thick enough to hold its shape.- Tough cookies usually result from which error?
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Too much gluten development from overmixing or too much flour.- Why should pie dough rest in the refrigerator before rolling?
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To relax the gluten and keep the fat cold and firm, both essential for flakiness.- How long should you cream butter and sugar together?
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About 3 to 5 minutes, until the mixture is light, fluffy, and pale.
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