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7 Baked Goods That Need to Be Proofed

Any baked good that contains yeast should be proofed to produce the air bubbles that make leavened foods taste light and fluffy. This includes:

1. Viennoiserie: Yeasted baked goods including French croissants and Danishes.

2. Enriched breads: Yeasted breads enriched with sugar, fat, and sometimes eggs, such as brioche and challah.

3. Yeasted breads: Including sourdough bread, whole-grain breads, rye bread, country-style bread, and even gluten-free yeasted breads.

4. Italian focaccia and pizza

5. Raised donuts

6. Cinnamon rolls

7. Morning buns

Learn more about the fundamentals of pastry making in Tipesmart.

Leaving Your Dough Out At Room Temperature: Is It Safe?

Almost all bread dough is going to overferment if left out unless you take the necessary actions to prevent it (more on this lower down), so it’s not wise to leave it out if you can store it somewhere colder, like in your refrigerator.

When talking about the general safety of leaving bread dough out overnight, it really depends on what ingredients are in the bread.

For lean bread that contains just flour, water, salt, and yeast (and oil), it’s going to last quite a while at room temperature. As long as none of your ingredients are contaminated with any form of bad bacteria, it’s fair to say that it will be safe to bake and eat after sitting out for a while in most cases.

It’s definitely not safe to let any enriched dough sit out for longer than a couple of hours. Since this dough often contains ingredients that can spoil quickly, it’s more likely to become a bacteria breeding ground, so you need to store it in your refrigerator if you want to keep it safe to eat.

Where Can You Leave Your Dough To Rise Overnight?

It’s very fair to say that storing your dough in your refrigerator overnight is your best option for optimal results, but not everyone has the space to fit a big bowl of dough in their fridge.

Worry not, there are other places you can leave your dough if you’re struggling for refrigerator space. These places can be effective, albeit somewhat strange, but with any luck, the dough won’t have overproofed.

Porch/Lobby

Cold Car

Outhouse/Garage/Shed

Next To A Window

The most important thing to consider is that you need a place that’s around the same temperature as your refrigerator. If you live in a warm country or it’s warm at the time of year that you’re reading this, these options may not work for you, unfortunately.

If you’re planning on storing it anywhere outside, be sure to wrap it very tightly.

The Benefits of Gas Ovens for Baking

Gas ovens use a gas flame to heat up an enclosed space with food inside it. The flame heats up the air in the oven and turns it into hot, dry air. This hot air circulates around the food, cooking it evenly on all sides.

The following are the benefits of using gas stoves to bake:

Gas ovens require a shorter preheating time than their electric counterparts. This not only helps them cook faster but also helps save some much-needed energy.

On average, a gas oven will need about 5 – 10 mins to warm up compared to an electric oven that will often require at least 15 mins.

Gas ovens are more environmentally friendly than electric ovens because they use gas which is a cleaner-burning fuel than electricity.

While they do release gases, natural gas is usually the cleaner-burning source of energy for your cooking because most of the electric power in the USA is generated from burning fossil fuels.

Gas ovens can be more expensive to buy and install, however they are usually cheaper in the long run given the fact that gas tank fill-ups will most likely claim less from your wallet than monthly electricity bills.

A gas oven has better temperature control and it is easier to keep the temperature constant to avoid burnt food and uneven cooking.

Due to the combustion process, gas ovens have more moisture on the inside which can be perfect for baking foods that should have a soft and moist surface.

These include bread, pies, and foods of that sort.

Gas stoves with convection ovens are also perfect for foods that don’t require moisture but rather a dry environment so that they can have crispy tops.

Using a Convection Oven for Baking

Pros:

- Because of its third heating element and fan, the hot air directly around the food is steadily maintained.

- Your food cooks quicker than with other ovens.

- Your food is cooked more evenly than with other ovens.

Cons:

- Because “convection” is typically a setting on the oven, when it’s turned off, the same issues arise as with using a conventional oven for baking — whether it’s gas or electric (convection ovens can be either).

- Ovens with a convection setting are generally more expensive than conventional ovens.

Baking Tips:

- Because it cooks the food so efficiently, lower the temperature that a recipe calls for by 25 degrees.

- Likewise, because your food tends to cook quicker, keep an eye on it, especially toward the end of the cooking time.

- To ensure the air circulates well, cook with low-sided pans.

- If you’re cooking something “fragile,” such as a soufflé, don’t use the convection setting, as the air may blow the mixture around and distort the end result.

How to use your electric oven for baking cakes

Electric ovens’ main heating element is at the bottom of the oven compartment, which provides steady heat for even cooking. The coil heats slowly and steadily and that results in fewer spikes and drops of temperature.

Follow these steps when baking cakes using an electric oven:

Make sure to preheat the oven by turning on the oven to the recommended temperature for a few minutes. You can use a thermometer to accurately set your oven at the right temperature.

Prepare cake batter according to your cake recipe.

After you have prepared your cake mixture, pour the cake mixture into a greased pan. You can either chose to use glass, metal, ceramic, or silicone pans for baking. Consider the shape of your pan and set the timer accordingly.

Place the rack in the middle of your oven to ensure balanced cooking.

Select the timer to the recommended time for your cake recipe. Cook the cake at 350°F/180°C degrees for 30-35 minutes.

Check to see if your cake is baking properly through the oven door. Make sure however not to open the whole door and let cold air into the oven. This usually has the effect of dropping the heat and in turn, affects the rising of the cake.

Finally, the timer will use a beep sound to alert you that the cake is done when the timer comes to a halt, or you either see that the cake is ready, open the door completely and take the cake out.

Make sure the cake has a golden brown appearance and when you pick it with a toothpick, it comes out clean. Try picking out at different spots.

Turn off the oven and close the door.