Q: Do you know why in angel food cake formulas part of the sugar is sifted with the flour?
M.X., Scottsdale, Ariz.

A: Some of the sugar is sifted with the cake flour to reduce the tendency of the cake flour to roll into little balls of dry flour as it is folded into the egg foam. Thus, the flour can be distributed more easily throughout the foam and minimize the loss of air from the foam.

Q: Why is non-pasteurized milk usually heated to 158°F (70°C) or higher in bread production?
M.H., South Bend, Ind.

A: If milk is not scalded in bread production, the dough may soften during fermentation and the baked bread will have a decreased volume, open grain and coarse texture. The scalding process kills bacteria that might interfere with regeneration of the yeast. The heat also inactivates certain proteins that may have a negative effect on the yeast. Pasteurized and evaporated milk need only to be warmed, not scalded, as they have already been heat processed.

Q: Why do our cream puffs sometimes fail to rise?
Lawrence, via e-mail

A: Failure to rise may be attributed to the following:

• Too little water in the batter. This may occur when too much moisture is evaporated during the cooking of the paste. Either the fat and water are boiled too long or the flour, fat and water mixture is cooked too long. The resulting batter is too stiff and not enough free water is available to form steam to leaven the product.

• Too much water in the batter. The paste is too fluid to retain the steam.

• Too little fat results in a paste that cannot expand.

• Too much fat allows too much steam to escape.

• Insufficient oven temperature.

Q: Why are foam cakes usually baked in ungreased tube pans?
R.C., Eugene, Ore.

A: Foam cakes are baked in ungreased pans so as the batter rises, it can adhere to the sides of the pan until the structure sets. The tube in the center of the pan allows circulation of heat during baking and helps support the delicate structure of the rising cake. The method is thought to produce a cake of greater volume.

Q: When substituting one type of flour for another, should we go by the weight or the measurement?
D.R., Yorktown, N.Y.

A: Wheat flours should be substituted on the basis of weight to obtain the most accurate amount as differences in composition and milling procedures may cause variations in volume per weight of the different types of flour. Flours may vary in composition due to the particular strain of wheat, whether it is hard or soft wheat. For example, hard wheat has a higher protein content, which affects its weight per volume. Variations in composition results in the different types of flours having different densities. Bread flour is denser than all-purpose flour, which is denser than cake flour. Different milling methods also result in variations in weight per volume. The greater the degree of extraction, the greater the weight of the flour per cup.

Q: What is the purpose of soaking dried fruit before baking? When is the sugar added?
J.G., St. Ansgar, Iowa

A: Soaking dried fruit allows the rehydration of the fruit. Adequate rehydration can be obtained by soaking the fruit in 176°F (80°C) water for one hour. Cooking then softens the rehydrated fruit. Sugar is added after the fruit has been cooked to the desired degree of softness. If the sugar were added before the fruit had softened, it would interfere with water absorption and toughen the cell wall.

Q: Can you explain how the presence of sugar in a frozen dessert mixture alters the freezing point?
Steven, via e-mail

A: The greater the amount of sugar in the mixture, the lower the freezing point of the mixture. Sugar acts as solute in a water solution and lowers the freezing point of that solution. As the mixture starts to freeze, some of the water changes to ice, leaving less free water to act as a solvent for the sugar molecules. The solution becomes more and more concentrated, thus lowering the freezing point even further. The result is a progressive decrease in freezing temperature that correlates with the increasing concentration of the frozen dessert mixture.

Q: I was taught never to use the leaves of the rhubarb, but don't remember why.
A.M., Las Vegas

A: Rhubarb contains toxic oxalic acid. While the rhubarb stalks are safe to eat in moderate amounts, the leaves must never be used in baking. Oxalic acid binds to vital nutrients, such as calcium, inhibiting its absorption by the human body. To weaken this effect, rhubarb is usually served with dairy product rich in calcium, like milk, cream or ice cream. However, the acid in rhubarb may cause some dairy products to curdle when served together.

Q: What kind of coconut should we use to make coconut macaroons, and can you provide a simple formula?
P.O., Las Vegas

A: For macaroons, I like to use desiccated coconut, which is unsweetened dried coconut with a moisture content of up to 5 percent. Combine one part granulated sugar with two parts egg whites, and blend over low heat until the sugar is dissolved. Do not heat the mixture over 100°F (38°C). Add enough desiccated coconut to form a batter of medium/stiff consistency. Deposit onto prepared sheet pans. The macaroons can be piped or spooned. Bake at 375°F (190°C) until golden brown, about 10 to 12 minutes.

Q: We operate a small retail bakery in Idaho where several of our local farmers are growing teff, a tiny, round grain. What is this grain used for?
Clint, via e-mail

A: Teff has been widely cultivated and used in Eritrea, Ethiopia, India and its colonies, Australia and now the U.S., especially Idaho. It has an attractive nutrition profile: high in dietary fiber and iron, and provides some protein and calcium. It contains no gluten, so it is appropriate for those with gluten intolerance or Celiac disease. Teff flour is used to produce Injera, a pancake-like bread that is used as an eating utensil to scoop up meat and vegetable stews. Injera compares to the French crepe, the South Indian dosa and the Mexican tortilla, as all are flatbreads cooked in a circle and used as a base for other foods. A short period of fermentation gives Injera an airy, bubbly texture, and also a slightly sour flavor.

Q: Do you have a formula for chocolate that we can form into decorations for our cakes?
C.S., Winston-Salem, N.C.

A: Here is one of the simplest formulas to get you started. Melt 2 lbs. of semi-sweet chocolate (no less than 55% cocoa) in either the microwave or over a bain marie. Add one cup of light corn syrup; mix with a rubber spatula until no more shinny spots are visible and the mixture forms a thick ball. Spread ½-in. thick onto parchment paper, and rest uncovered for two hours. Use as needed or store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to two weeks.

Q: Our cakes are pulling away from the sides of the cake pan during baking. What is causing this?
W.B., Bala Cynwyd, Pa.

A: The “shrinkage” of your cakes could be due to several factors: too little batter in pan, the cake pans are greased too heavily, the cake pans are too close together during baking, the batter is extremely over-mixed, too much liquid has been added to the batter, the cakes are over-baked, the oven temperature was too hot, or the cakes were baked too long. Try to eliminate one cause at a time.

Q: Why is “creaming” an important technique for quality-shortened cakes?
Melanie, via e-mail

A: Creaming is a process of working the fat and sugar to incorporate air bubbles and results in a heavy foam. Ideally, the air bubbles are uniform, small and surrounded by fat. These bits of fat are then dispersed throughout the liquid batter. The air bubbles contribute to the leavening of the cake and subsequent increase in volume, serving as cells where steam and carbon dioxide can collect and expand during baking.

Q: We added a small coffee shop to our bakery. While we trained our servers, we want to make them aware of allergy concerns. Do you have any trick we can use to remember the dishes we should caution our customers about?
A.G., McLean, Va.

A: Most allergies can be attributed to eight items: tree nuts, peanuts, dairy products, wheat, eggs, fish, shellfish and soybeans. A simple memory device will assist your staff in remembering the “big eight”.

Never (nuts)

Prepare (peanuts)

Menu's (milk)

Without (wheat)

Explaining (eggs)

Food (fish)

Components (crustaceans / shellfish)

to Servers (soybeans)

Q: We would love to use hazelnuts in our assortment of cookies and would appreciate a formula.
Jennifer, via e-mail

A: I've always found this formula to work well.

Hazelnut cookies

Ingredients	Lbs	Ozs.	Metric
Butter	1	1.5	500 g
Granulated sugar	0	10.5	300 g
Vanilla extract	0	0.5	15 ml
Egg yolks (10)	0	7	200 ml
Pastry flour	0	14	400 g
Baking powder	0	0.5	15 g
Ground hazelnuts	1	2.5	525 g
Whole hazelnuts, as needed for garnish
Total appr. wt.	4	4.5	1.955 kg

Method: Cream the softened butter, sugar and vanilla extract until the mixture is pale and fluffy. Add the egg yolks, and beat until smooth. Combine the flour, baking powder and the ground nuts, and add to the butter mixture. Stir gently to mix. Divide the dough into about 0.5-oz. (15-g) pieces, and roll them into small balls. Place the balls on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, leaving some space between them. Flatten the balls slightly using a wide palette knife or a spatula. Press one whole hazelnut in the center of each cookie. Bake the cookies at 435°F (225 °C) for about 6 minutes or until they are lightly browned. This formula yields about 10 dozen cookies.

Q: We would like a formula for a rich shortbread.
Tara, via e-mail

A: Below is a great formula from Scotland.

Scottish shortbread

Ingredients	Lbs	Ozs.	Metric
Pastry flour	3	12	1420 g
Almonds, ground	0	4	115 g
Margarine	1	0	450 g
Butter	1	0	450 g
Confectioners' sugar	1	8	680 g
Total appr. wt.	7	8	3.115 kg

Method: Sift the flour and combine with the ground almonds. Cream together fats and sugar, and add the sifted flour and almonds; blend thoroughly. Scale into 17-oz. pieces and roll out to 6 ins. diameter. Notch the edge and dock the center. Bake in rings moulds to prevent the edges from scorching. Bake at 375°F (190°C) until golden brown, about 12 to 15 minutes. Cut into wedge-shaped pieces while still hot. Dust with fine confectioners' sugar.

Q: We want to expend our menu by offering a light lemon mousse to use our locally grown lemons. Do you have a formula?
D.B., Huron Calif.

A: If the lemon juice is too acidic for your customers, increase the amount of water and decrease the amount of lemon juice. As long as there is 35 ozs. (1 L) of water and juice when combined, this formula will turn out beautifully.

Lemon mousse

Ingredients	Lbs	Ozs.	Metric
Egg yolks	0	7	200 ml
Granulated sugar	1	1.5	500 g
Corn starch	0	1.75	50 g
Lemon juice	1	1.5	500 ml
Water	1	1.5	500 ml
Lemon zest, 5 each
Butter, unsalted	0	5.25	150 g
Egg white	0	5.25	150 ml
Total appr. wt.	4	7.75	2.05 kg

Method: Whisk together the egg yolks and the sugar until ribbons form. Add the cornstarch through a sieve and mix well. Place the lemon juice, the water and the lemon zest in a small saucepan, and heat slowly until it almost boils. Gradually pour the hot mixture into the egg-sugar mixture, whisking continually. Pour back into the saucepan, and bring to a boil rapidly, stirring continually. Cook until the mixture has thickened, stirring continually. Strain it into a bowl. Add the butter, and mix until it has melted. Place the bowl in a cold water bath, and whisk the batter until it has cooled down. Beat the egg whites to medium peak. Gently fold the egg whites into the lemon mixture a little at a time until somewhat smooth. Divide the mixture into individual serving dishes, cover with plastic and refrigerate for one to two hours, or until the mixture sets.

Q: We just returned from a trip to France and Italy where we ate nougat with nuts, which we now want to offer our bakery. Do you have a formula
Lizhu, via e-mail

A: Nougat is a traditional sweet in France, Italy (where it is called torrone), Spain (where it's called turrón) and the Middle East, where it's often made with rose water and pistachios. Some authorities say that the original recipe was brought to Europe via the Middle East, although others say it originated in Greece.

Nougat

Ingredients	Lbs	Ozs.	Metric
Honey	1	6	625 g
Egg whites	0	10.5	300 ml
Confectioners' sugar	1	6	625 g
Vanilla extract	0	0.35	10 ml
Almonds, whole and blanched	1	1.5	500 g
Hazelnuts	0	13.25	375 g
Pistachios	0	13.25	375 g
Total appr. wt.	6	2.85 oz	2810 g

Method: Toast all the nuts until lightly browned, and cool completely. Place the honey, sugar and egg whites in a large bowl; stir over a double boiler until it thickens and turns ivory white, about 20 minutes. To prevent the mixture from coagulating or burning, constantly stir the mixture with a heat-resistant rubber spatula. To test whether the nougat mixture has cooked sufficiently, drop a small amount of it into ice cold water — if it immediately hardens, the nougat is done. Remove the saucepan from heat, and quickly stir in the vanilla extract, almonds, hazelnuts and pistachios. Cover a work surface with confectioners' sugar, pour the nougat on to it and quickly form it into a ball. Then, press the nougat tightly into a sheet pan lined with lightly oiled parchment paper. Cover with another piece of parchment paper, weight it and cool completely. Cut the cold nougat into bars and sell tightly wrapped.

Q: What conversion should we use when using dry whole eggs to make liquid whole eggs?
Keryn, via e-mail

A: I normally use 25 percent dry whole eggs and 75 percent water to get the equivalent of liquid eggs.

Example: 250 g dry whole eggs and 750 ml water or 4 ozs. dry whole eggs and 12 ozs. water.

Q: What flour do you recommend we should use to for croissants?
D.A., Boston

A: I achieve very good results with unbleached, unbromated bread flour with 11.2% to 12.2% protein and around 0.5% ash content.

Q: How do you make Ceylon macaroons, and do they include ground rice?
L.B., Batavia, Ill.

A: Ceylon macaroons are not only made with ground rice, but also with coconut flour that contains loads of dietary fiber.

Ceylon macaroons

Ingredients	Lbs	Ozs.	Metric
Confectioners' sugar	4		1.815 kg
Coconut flour	4		1.815 kg
Ground rice	1		455 g
Whole eggs	2		0910 ml
Total appr. wt.	11		4.995 kg

Method: Combine the confectioners' sugar and whole eggs (pasteurized) in a large bowl and warm to 140°F (60°C). Stir in the ground rice and coconut flour, and mix until well combined. Pipe with large star tip on silicone mats, and air dry before baking at 350°F (177°C) until golden brown. Sandwich the cookies with buttercream when cool.

Q: Our bakery has very large ice cream sales. I am looking for an unusual way to serve fresh pineapple with our homemade vanilla ice cream.
C. A., Holualoa, Hawaii

A: How about peppered pineapples? The peppercorns will add a slightly fruity flavor to the dish and balance surprisingly well with the fresh pineapple.

Peppered pineapples

8 slices of fresh pineapple

½ - 1 Tbsp dry green peppercorns

½ - 2 Tbsp (brown) sugar

350 ml orange juice

½ - 1 Tbsp honey

100 ml rum

Method: Coarsely crush the peppercorns with a back of a spoon. Rub the pineapple slices with the pepper and sprinkle with sugar. Place the slices in a very hot skillet with the sugared side down. Cook until the sugar forms a caramel coating on the pineapple slices. Flip the slices over, and add the juice, honey and rum in the skillet. Cook until the pineapple slices are heated through. Place the slices on serving plates, and continue cooking the liquid in the pan briskly, until it is caramelized. Drizzle the sauce over the pineapple slices and serve with vanilla ice cream.

Klaus Tenbergen is certified as a Master Baker in Germany, South Africa and the United States. He is currently an assistant professor at California State University in Fresno, teaching classes in Culinology®-the blending of culinary arts and the science of food. For more information, call 559/278-2164 or contact Klaus Tenbergen at ktenbergen@csufresno.edu.