Page 62 - Hummingbird Bakery Valentine's Day Cakes and Bake

BAKING ESSENTIALS

Before you get into the kitchen and start baking, take a minute or so to read
through some useful advice that will help ensure your homemade cakes are as

delicious and lovely as the ones in our shops. Baking is fun and you don’t have to
be an expert to do it, just get to know the basics, prepare yourself with the right
ingredients and equipment, and your Hummingbird cakes will be perfect! Even if
you’re well-practised at baking, our tips and shortcuts can help save time and
make your cakes even better, so read on for some wise words from the

Hummingbird bakers.

INGREDIENTS

• The better your ingredients, the better your cakes will look and taste. Buy the
best you can afford and try not to skimp on quality.

• Our recipes give quantities and measures in metric and imperial, so that

everyone can follow them, no matter what type of equipment or oven they
have. Always use the same system throughout a recipe – never mix the two. We
recommend a set of digital scales, for measuring exact amounts. It really is
essential that your measuring is precise, especially for frosting, else the finished
results may not be as good as hoped, or the cakes might not turn out quite like
the photographs.

• All spoon measurements are level, unless otherwise stated.

• Butter should always be unsalted, as salt can affect the flavour of the cake. It

needs to be very soft, so get it out of the fridge long in advance (or soften for a
few seconds in the microwave if necessary).

• When using dairy products like milk, cream or cream cheese, always use the
whole or full-fat varieties for best results. For all recipes that require cream
cheese, we recommend using full-fat Philadelphia.

• All eggs should be large and at room temperature.

• Use a really good-quality cocoa powder (such as Green & Blacks) and good-
quality chocolate with a minimum of 70% cocoa solids.

• Baking powder and bicarbonate of soda have important jobs to do, helping
cakes to rise and creating the right texture, so make sure they haven’t passed
their best-before dates, or they may not be effective. Also, if a recipe calls for
plain flour, never substitute self-raising flour, as this contains raising agents and
will affect the outcome.

• It’s good practice to sift flour, cocoa powder and icing sugar before use. This
removes lumps and improves the texture of the finished cake. If combining dry

ingredients like these, it is easiest to simply sift them together, then mix them
by hand with a spoon (avoid mixing them with a machine as this raises a dust