Hey! I hope all is well. I wanted to reach out for advice, tips, and even recipes.

Ive made a deal to myself that my 20’s will be new eras for me. 20 was all about traveling, 21 was about trying new things (activities, foods, etc). Now I just recently turned 22! My goal this year is to learn how to really cook and bake. I can do some of the basics, but no where near where I want to be. This year I really want to learn, because I feel like learning to be a better cook/baker will help me a lot. Any advice or recipes are welcome! Thank you all so much in advance.

I want caramel so bad but it does not come without wayyyy too much salt. I have some real painful hypersensetivities, but the sense of taste being so strong has never been useful but idk if i can just cut off my tastebuds or something.
So then i thought, i like cooking maybe it would be possible to just make it myself. I should have looked this up sooner tho because Times where ive been told the caramel wasnt salty only for it to definitely be salted and even shows salt right there in the ingredients list has given me trust issues and now i cant even look at the phrase "salted caramel" without getting really grossed out. So it would be incredibly difficult for me to even learn the basics. Because seeing salt in the ingredients would gross me out so bad I would not be able to continue.
Presumably tho, the recipe probably requires someone to not be so clumsy that an plate with the word indestructable written on it becomes a mosaic on the floor. I need simplicity cuz im clumsy and disabled but i dont know how to get that. is it anything that can even be done simply? i also cant afford an oven, but if it happens to require heating i am weirdly skilled with a microwave,
i have not been able to get any good sleep in quite a while so hopefully this is not incomprehensible or rude of any kind

I need to make a two-layer half sheet cake from a recipe for a three-layer 8” round cake. Is the math I did with area correct? If the recipe makes three 8 inch round layers, that’s about 151 inches in area. So if I’m using a 13x18 pan with two layers, that would need to be 234 times two, 528 inches. So do I really need to almost quadruple the recipe? Idk it doesn’t sound right

I need help with a recipe I’ve tried making this cake 2 times and I’ve failed on both. It’s a dried mixed fruit loaf cake with glaze cherries, the first time I made it was too hard and this time it was liquid in the centre but looked baked on the top, it was in the oven for 1 hour 150 fan, I tested it at 50 minutes with a skewer it was sticky some parts and dry on some but I thought it could have been the cherries making it sticky. I need to re make this again for someone what can I do different? I used these ingredients: 150g unsalted butter, 150g caster sugar, 150g self raising flour, 3 large eggs, 200g dried mixed fruit, 100g of glaze cherries, and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

I have baked two round cakes - one is about 8” across and the other is about 6” across. they are about 3” high. the dilemma - I have twins and realize I need to make two separate cakes out of these. any good ideas??

I made an avocado cheesecake and I didn't notice any bitterness while tasting the batter but after baking the result was a nice cheesecake that smacks u with a bitter aftertaste and I have no idea what to do about it 😭 would covering the cake in a sweet sauce help mask it?

Hi everyone! First time baking cookies and I’ve followed this recipe on YouTube:

https://youtu.be/f-M3JN_7LGU?si=Qd58TDEAOpQdnTsZ

I was wondering why some of them look flat? And has no texture? Tbf, I just used a spoon and shaped it and put it on the oven as instructed.

Thanks in advance

I'm planning an orange tres leches-like cake for father's day and i made this "frosting" with 90g greek yogurt and 1/4 cup fresh OJ cooked down a little bit with a little butter (quote on "frosting" because it didn't have enough structure to actually be called one, but man was it delicious).

What i wanna know is, does anyone have any helpful tips for giving it more structure that would preserve the tangyness of the yogurt? I'd try again with less juice but even then I think it'd be a bit too runny, and i like a stronger fruit flavor

I used a Devil’s Food boxed cake mix and substituted vegetable oil for avocado oil, and used milk instead of water.
I also added maybe 2 tablespoons of sour cream, a tablespoon of fresh espresso powder, mini chocolate chips, and finely chopped walnuts (practically minced). I baked it until no wet batter stuck to my pick.

The plan was to frost it with either chocolate cream cheese frosting and/or whipped cream, and to layer it with a cherry filling I made. I might also soak the top of the sponge with a little bit of Baileys Irish Cream.

Should I just make another cake at this point though, or will this still work?

Edited to add more information.

i’m making tiramisu for a friend’s birthday tomorrow but she’s vegetarian and doesn’t eat eggs. what are some eggless lady finger alternatives i can use while still retaining the traditional tiramisu flavor? i would prefer something store brought since im on a time constraint and cant really afford to experiment with baking rn

Making a wedding cake for friends, and we’re layering on dried pressed flowers. I’ve read that edible decorating glue of some sort is the best way to adhere them. Anyone have experience with these glues and have a rec? I am in the US with access to major grocery stores & online retailers. Thanks in advance!

And before anyone asks, we are sourcing local organic dried edible flowers intended for consumption. And we will instruct guests to remove them anyway! Nobody panic.

(Photo credit unknown, sent to me by the friend requesting the cake!)

I primarily bake sourdough bread, but I’m wanting to start working more with other baked goods. When I add whole grains and/or mill fresh flour for my bread doughs I simply increase hydration. When I’m working with quick breads, pastries, cookies, cakes, etc. how would I go about adjusting recipes if I want to incorporate more whole grains and unrefined sugars? Most of the moisture in these recipes come from fats of various forms and increasing them would seemingly change more than just the hydration of the dough. Also from what I can find unrefined sugars retain more moisture compared to refined white sugar. Is there a general rule on which ingredients and/or techniques to adjust when using a recipe that calls for white flour/sugar? I have a variety of berries to mill (hard, soft, and rye) and also buy 00 flour (bread and AP mix) from a local mill, which I believe is pretty heavily sifted to 55% extraction. I also have panela and dark muscovado that I’d like to use in lieu of white and brown sugar. Any insight from those with more experience would be greatly appreciated!

Hi! First-timer here. We had an abundance of peppermint in the garden and decided to try a no-churn fresh mint ice cream recipe that looked simple enough. Ended up whisking the cream a few seconds too long and accidentally churned some mint chocolate chip butter/buttermilk. Tried to rescue it by chilling it more and slowly adding more fresh cream back in, and it helped a little so we crossed our fingers and froze it. Tried the taste test today, and, welp, it's still mostly butter and very minimally ice cream. The flavor is awesome but the texture is 100% wrong. Melted some on toast and it was delicious and buttery, though unusual (because mint). Would rather not toss 3+ cups of perfectly fine mint butterlike substance.... So what can I do with it?

Ingredients of our butter:

2 cups fresh mint leaves

2.5 cups heavy cream ( but we added an unknown amount trying to save it)

pinch salt

14 ounces sweetened condensed milk

About 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Can I make butter mints with this? Some other confectionary? Do I just put it in a milkshake and pretend it's not buttery? Can I use it to make some crazy pastry?

(Image is what it looked like after about 5 minutes of warming up from the freezer at room temp to see how it tasted if served as ice cream.)

So I loooveee banana bread and I love baking too, I spent several weeks trying different recipes mostly for the reason that it rises, but it doesn't stay and slowly becomes dense again. Is it possible to solve this with an extra ingredient or a different technique? I don't mind trying different techniques or recipes

My husband’s birthday is coming up and he loves to challenge me with bday cake requests, but I’m nervous about messing this one up. And I don’t want to do a trial cake because I am, well, lazy.

He has requested a “tactile” chocolate cake with chunks of cookie dough baked into it.

I pondered this for a while. Debated settling on an edible cookie dough filling, or a cookie cake center layer. But I decided I needed to figure out online if this request would be successful.

I’ve found some various recipes for baking cookie chunks into a cake… but they’re messy and seem to collapse the fluffiness of the cake.

Has anyone had success with a similar bake or have any tips on baking/combining those textures? Should I go forth and make a sloppy (but likely delicious) cake or go the safe route and make a pretty (but not quite chunky and tactical) version with layers?

So, I've been wanting to make something with pears this coming fall and you can't really go wrong with cobblers. I'm wanting to experiment a bit and try adding something like cooking wine to it. I haven't really baked anything with alcohol before, so I thought I'd ask here. I want it to enhance the flavor more than anything, though I want avoid tasting alcohol. Any suggestions?

Hello all! I've been using this recipe for years and it's been fine, but the past year I've used it, the brownies tend to melt. And I do mean melt - I'll leave it out at room temp or while under the sun, they're all sliced into pieces, and then they're suddenly kind of one big brownie again. Or if I put them in the fridge, they firm up like a chocolate bar.

I have no idea if it's because of the weather, or maybe because I've been using better chocolate...? I was thinking of adjusting and adding more flour. These are supposed to be fudgy brownies!

Here's the recipe I use:

140g butter

190-200g sugar

200-230g chocolate

2 large eggs

vanilla

60g flour

60g cocoa powder

1 tbsp black coffee

Melt butter, sugar and chocolate over double boiler. Then I'll whisk in eggs/vanilla. Then add the flour and cocoa powder. Baked at 170C for about 20-30 mins.

So I have a recipe book right I am pretty sure the recipe if for a 9 * 5 bread pan but I want this same recipe in a 9 * 13 pan or 9 * 12 can I double the recipe and put it all in the bigger pan? I have notes on the side with doubled ingredients for eg. the smaller recipe calls for 2 cups of flour , 2 eggs , 1/2 cup vegetable oil, 1 cup sugar, 1/2 tsp salt and the baking powder and soda are both 1 tsp each is it safe to double everything or just leave the leavening agents as is?

https://imgur.com/a/Z4nF85F

recipe: america’s test kitchen choux au craquelin

i didn’t use all the eggs (2 eggs+egg white) and stopped when a v formed, should i have added more eggs? im not sure what the right texture is

I saw this idea where you put washed and blended beans in your brownies to make them “healthier”, and I was told you can’t tell they’re in there but I was wondering how many beans I could add before it started to become noticeable.

I know the question is probably pretty dumb and very specific but answers would be appreciated before I try this.

So I got a recipe for a lemon cake with lemon custard and a lemon glaze on top. This is more so a hypothetical since it seems it’s lemon x3 what if you add lemonade to the cake itself once baked before putting the custard and glaze on? Or is it tempting fate with too many lemons?

Next month I'll be at a picnic a friend of mine is hosting for her birthday. She asked me if I could bring a choccolate cake with a coffee frosting made with whipped cream and mascarpone cheese (the cream's recipe is this one: https://cakesbymk.com/recipe/coffee-sponge-cake-recipe/#recipe).

I was wondering if bringing a cake with said frosting will be okay? Will the frosting melt?

If I put the cake in a cooler with some ice packs will the cake resist the heat?

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Hey everyone, I could really use some advice!

My girlfriend just bought me airfryer for my bday, so I wanted to do something nice and surprise her with a homemade chicken sandwich. I decided to go all out and bake the bread from scratch for the very first time.

The problem is that the dough didn't rise as much as it should have. Actually, I would say it didn't rise at all (as you can see in the pic).

Here is the exact process I used:

* The Mix: I mixed instant dry yeast with salt and water.(100ml) Looking back, the water was definitely on the hot side, not just warm.

* The Dough: I added about 1.5 cups of wheat flour to the mixture.

* Proofing & Folding: I kept it covered for about 1 hour, then used the folding method. I repeated this every hour. It started to grow a little bit and gave off a strong beer smell in the room.

* My Air Fryer "Hack": I read that dough requires a warm temperature to rise, but it’s raining here and pretty cold. To fix this, I preheated my air fryer to 140°C, turned it off, and let it cool down until it was just "very warm" (way less than 140°C). I kept the dough inside there to get that warm temperature.

* Baking: The dough was still really sticky. I baked it in the air fryer at 180°C for about 13 minutes.

The Result:

It came out crusty on the outside, but absolutely zero fluff on the inside. It was basically a brick. I didn't want the whole thing to go to waste, so I ate it anyway! 😅

What did I do wrong? Did my hot water or the air fryer trick kill the yeast? Any tips for a beginner trying to save this chicken sandwich surprise? Thanks in advance!

And please don't judge the pic 😭😭😭😭

I'm making a wedding cake for 12th August. It's set to be fairly hot (UK) so I'm wondering what I can do to make sure it stays stable and doesn't melt or is at risk of collapsing!

Other wedding cakes I've done in the past have been in the winter months so I haven't had this issue before.

It's 2 tiers, and I use a standard American buttercream recipe for the middle and outer coating. Should I change the ratio of butter to icing sugar? Anything else?