BASIC SKILLS IN BAKING

Baking is the process of cooking by dry, indirect heat usually in an oven and is considered the
best method of cooking to retain the nutritution value of food. The appropriate mixing method
applied for biscuit-making is called the pastry method (Rojo 1986).
Basic Baking Ingredients
1. Flour is the main ingredient or framework of baked products.
Kinds of Wheat flour
Rice flour is made into cookies
Soybean flour is made from soy beans using the same procedure in making rice flour
used for baking cookies, biscuits, pastries & cakes.
Cornmeal is coarsely ground flour used in making native cookies, quick breads &
cakes.
Cassava flour (tapioca) is made from dried slices of cassava roots which are ground
finely.
Sweet potato flour are sliced thinly, dried & ground finely to produce the flour.
Sago flour is made from the roots of sago plant
2. Water the cheapest liquid in baking, is indispensable in transforming the protein of the flour
into gluten form.
3. Milk usually pasteurized, is commonly used in baked products.
4. Sugar is made from either sugarcane or sugar beets, It may be: Refined best variety for
most light cakes; Brown - added color to baked products, is less refined; Honey is twice as
sweet as sugar; Molasses is a by-product in the manufacture of sugar from sugercane
5. Shortening refers to the fat or oil used to tenderized baked products or to fry food. It nay be:
Hog fat (lard) is best for bread, biscuits, dip crust and few types of cake; Butter -is used
mainly for cakes and cookies; Coconut oil is taken from the meat of coconuts.
6. Egg can provide the cake mixture with structural framework. Egg yolk will serve as an
emulsifier in order to make mixing of both liquid possible.
7. Leavening agents make baked products light and porous
8. Salt is used to control and regulate the fermentation process in bread making
9. Flavors and spices - are extracts from plants, seeds and aromatic vegetable products which
usually available in liquid or finely ground state.
10. Cocoa and chocolate are widely used in the production of cakes and pastries.
Cookies are tiny cakes often served as snacks or at festive occasions.
Classifications of cookies (Navaro 1985):
Drop cookies are made from butter dropped onto the baking sheet from a teaspoon
Bar cookies are made by spreading the dough on a pan, sliced into pieces and then
baking
Model cookies are those which are formed into designed shapes with the hands.
Refrigerator cookies are made from the dough which must be chilled in the
refrigerator before baking
Pinwheel is a cookie in which two portions of dough of contrasting cookies are rolled
cut to the same size
Press cookies are formed with a cookie press
Ingot cookies are made from flour, liquid, baking powder, sugar, shortening and
flavoring.
Pastry Includes a variety of products made from dough containing medium to a large amount
of fat. Ingredients include flour, fat, water, salt.
Ref: Reviewer in TLE for LET, M.Raguindin, MAEd.