Are my breads, cookies, or cakes ready to come out of the oven?
The ability to tell when products are baked properly seems to cause more trouble than almost any other phase of baking. And it’s critical. Over-baked cookies are dry and hard; under-baked bread is soggy. But you can get it right. In this post, we will give you the techniques and pointers to bake your goods to perfection.
Yeast Breads — Internal Temperature
The tendency is to under-bake yeast breads. The internal temperature of most yeast breads should be 210 degrees and must be at least 185 degrees. Soft sandwich breads often baked to 190 to 200 degrees. The only way to reliably tell what is going on inside a loaf is with a probe-type thermometer. Remove the bread from the pan and insert the thermometer through the bottom crust into the center of the loaf. (If you are going to bake bread and you don’t have a thermometer, we strongly recommend that you purchase one. You will need it to test the temperature of the water, the dough, and the finished bread. You can buy one on our site.)
Yeast Breads–Color
When the bread is done, the crust color will range from a golden brown to a deep brown for artisan breads baked in a hot oven. Breads with a higher sugar content or in a hot oven will tend to brown more rapidly as the sugar caramelizes. If the bread is browning too rapidly, make a tent of aluminum foil and cover the top of the loaf. In light colored pans, the bottom crust is the last to brown. With a done loaf, the bottom will color even in a light-colored pan.
Yeast Breads–Sound
My mother was a bread baker. She tested doneness by tapping the loaf with her finger–a done loaf will sound hollow when tapped. I don’t remember her ever making a mistake. Though she taught me to do the same, I’m not as good as she was. Out of habit, I still tap the loaf but I nearly always follow with a thermometer probe and sometimes the thermometer proves me wrong.
Cookies
Cookies—Under-Baking
If the tendency is to under-bake breads, the tendency is to over-bake cookies. Take them out just before you think they are done and you won’t be wrong often. My father was a consummate cookie baker. If you were to ask him what his secret is, he would tell you: “I don’t over-bake cookies.” The difference between a just right cookie and an over baked one is dramatic.
Cookies—Uniform Size and Quantity.
Make cookies uniform in size. Not only are they more attractive but different sizes of cookies take different times to bake. Put the same number of cookies on a sheet each time. The more cookies on a sheet, the longer it takes to bake them. It seems that the last sheet of the batch has six cookies instead of twelve. If so, reduce your baking time by at least a minute. Don’t let you cookie dough get warm while you’re waiting for the earlier batches to bake. The butter should be a solid, not melted. Put your mixing bowl in the refrigerator while you’re waiting.
Cookies—Taking Them Off the Sheet
Many recipe writers tell you to leave the cookies on the sheet for a minute or two. Cookies continue to bake on a hot baking sheet. Sometimes that’s necessary for an easy release but for most recipes, remove the cookies as quickly as we can. Most of the time, we bake on parchment paper and slide the parchment paper off the pan as soon as the cookies come from the oven. If the cookies look a little soggy in the middle, then leave them on the sheet for a few minutes and they will firm up.
Cookies–Color
Most cookies should be gold in color, not brown. Put the first cookie on a cooling rack, lift the rack and peak at the underside of the cookie. If it’s brown, it’s cooked too long.
Both the amount of sugar and soda in the recipe will affect how fast a cookie browns.
Cookies—Chocolate and Bar Cookies
Chocolate cookies represent another challenge: you can’t tell if they are browning. If you are baking with a new recipe, bake a few cookies and check them for doneness before baking the entire batch. Chocolate cookies will tend to lose their “wet” look when done.
Many bar cookies will have a dry, shiny crust when done.
Cakes
Cakes–Timing
For most baked goods–but especially cakes–it is best to set the timer for a few minutes less than directed in the recipe—different ovens or even different positions in the oven bake differently. A dark pan bakes more quickly than a light pan. When you find your cake not quite done and want to continue baking, set the timer for three or four minutes and check again.
A toothpick inserted in the center of the cake will come out clean when done. “Clean” means a few crumbs. If there is wet looking batter clinging to the toothpick, it’s not done.
If you don’t want to poke a hole in the center of the cake, check for doneness with your finger. There should be some resiliency to the touch and the cake should spring back. When done, the cake will usually have a golden-brown color to the top though different recipes will brown more or less quickly. When done, the cake will tend to pull away from the edges.
Quick Breads
Quick breads are basically cakes in a loaf pan. The same tests that you use on cakes can be used with quick breads. Stick the toothpick or skewer right in an open crack in the center of the bread. The area under that crack seems to be the last area in the loaf to set up.
Incidentally, quick breads release from the pan easier if left to cool for few minutes before removing. Because of the larger mass, a loaf does not dry out as quickly as cookies do.
Once the loaves have cooled, wrap them and store them in refrigerator. Quick breads are less crumbly usually best the second day.
Custard Pies
Custard pies—including pumpkin pies—are a special problem. It takes quite a while for the protein in the eggs to set and make the pie firm. Often, the crust is becoming too brown before the eggs set. If so, cover the crust with strips of aluminum foil to retard further browning. When a custard pie is done, a knife inserted in the center of the pie will come out clean. If you don’t want a cut mark in the center of your pie, use the jiggle test. Pick the pie up with two hot pads or mitts and gently shake the pie back and forth. If done, all but the center should be firm—there will be a little jiggle in the center. The center will continue to cook and firm up after you remove the pie from the oven. We hope these guidelines help. With practice and observation, you’ll soon become very proficient at judging when your bread or cookies are baked to perfection. Your baked goods will then be irresistible.
The ability to tell when products are baked properly seems to cause more trouble than almost any other phase of baking. And it’s critical. Over-baked cookies are dry and hard; under-baked bread is soggy. But you can get it right. In this post, we will give you the techniques and pointers to bake your goods to perfection.
The tendency is to under-bake yeast breads. The internal temperature of most yeast breads should be 210 degrees and must be at least 185 degrees. Soft sandwich breads often baked to 190 to 200 degrees. The only way to reliably tell what is going on inside a loaf is with a probe-type thermometer. Remove the bread from the pan and insert the thermometer through the bottom crust into the center of the loaf. (If you are going to bake bread and you don’t have a thermometer, we strongly recommend that you purchase one. You will need it to test the temperature of the water, the dough, and the finished bread. You can buy one on our site.)
