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| A sweet baked food made from a dough or thick batter usually containing flour and sugar and often shortening, eggs, and a leavening agent (such as baking powder). |
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| A semiliquid mixture containing flour, liquid, and other ingredients. Unlike a dough, which is stiff but pliable, a batter is usually thin enough to be poured. A batter typically has more fat and sugar than a dough. |
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| Often referred to as creamed cakes; the fat often used in these cakes is a solid fat like butter or shortening. High-fat cakes are often creamed when mixed. Examples of high-fat cakes include butter cake and pound cake. |
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| These cakes often contain no fat or a small amount of liquid fat like melted butter or oil, and they often contain some form of eggs (usually whole eggs or separated eggs). Some egg-foam cakes use only the yolks or the whites of the eggs. Examples of egg-foam cakes include angel food cake, sponge cake, chiffon cake, or genoise (an Italian sponge cake). |
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| Method for preparing cake batter in which the fat and sugar are creamed together to produce a very fine crumb and a dense, rich texture. A yellow butter cake is an example of a cake made with the creaming method. |
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| Method for preparing cake batter in which a foam of whole eggs, yolks only, or whites only provides the structure for cakes with a light texture, such as angel food and chiffon cakes. |
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| Method for preparing cake batter in which a softened or melted shortening is combined with the dry ingredients, one-half of the recipe’s liquid is then added and blended in, and the remaining liquid is then gradually added to the mixture. High-ratio cakes made using the two-stage method have a very fine crumb and are quite moist. Devil’s food cake is one popular item prepared with the two-stage method. |
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| Cakes that contain more sugar than flour in the recipe. In other words, there is a higher ratio of sugar to flour than in other doughs and batters. |
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| Also called frostings, these are sweet coatings for cakes and other baked goods. Icings have three main functions: (1) they improve the keeping qualities of the cake by forming a protective coating around it, (2) they contribute flavor and richness, and (3) they improve appearance. |
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| A very popular icing made of sugar and fat (usually butter or shortening, although shortening often has an unpleasant mouthfeel). Buttercream is most often used on cakes in different colors and flavors. It should be used at room temperature. |
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| Also called boiled icing, foam icing is made with hot sugar syrup. Bakers often use it on cakes such as lemon or chocolate. It should be used the day it is made and is applied in thick layers. |
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| Smooth and creamy icing that is cooked by combining sugar, water, and a glucose or a corn syrup. It becomes a shiny, nonsticky coating when dried. Often purchased as a convenience product, fondant is available in different thicknesses. |
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| Icing made using cocoa/chocolate, sugar, butter, and a liquid (water or milk). Fudge icing should be applied while it is still warm. Fudge holds well in storage. |
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| A French term referring to a smooth mixture of chocolate and cream. Ganache is used to cover cakes or tortes, and is also used to make truffles. |
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| This icing can be a simple corn syrup glaze, or it can include a fruit or chocolate. Glazes add moisture, shine, and sometimes flavor to bakery products. They are usually drizzled rather than spread. Glaze icing is often purchased as a convenience product. |
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| Also called decorator’s icing, royal icing is almost always used only for decorations. It dries brittle and is an uncooked icing. It is made from confectioners’ sugar and egg whites, and is colored with food coloring if desired. |
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| A basic pie dough that gets its name because it is made of three parts flour, two parts fat, and one part water (by weight). When it is properly made, the crust is flaky and crisp and often referred to as pâte brisée (paht breeze-AY). |
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| The procedure for preparing a prebaked pie shell. Dough is prepared, rolled out, fit into the pan, and then docked (or pierced) in several places with a fork or docker. It is then covered with parchment paper and baked with an empty pie pan, baking weights, or even dry rice or beans on top of it to keep the crust nice and flat as it bakes. Once the pie shell is baked, it can be filled with custard, pudding, or fresh fruit filling. |
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| Pierced with a fork before baking; pie crusts are docked in order to let the steam escape, so that the crust does not puff up while baking. |
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| Also called laminated dough; with this method, the dough is rolled into a rectangle, folded into thirds, spread with butter, chilled, and then rolled again. Roll-in dough is used to make Danish, croissants, and puff pastry. |
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| An elegant bakery product, also called pâte feuilletée (paht PHOO-e-tay), made with roll-in (or laminated) dough. Puff pastry can be used in both sweet and savory applications. |
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| Pâte feuilletée (paht PHOO-e-tay) |
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| Another name for puff pastry; used in both sweet and savory applications. Feuilletée means squares. |
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| A very thin, unleavened dough used for pastries such as baklava. |
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| Pâte à choux (paht ah shoe) |
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| A pastry dough made by combining water (or another liquid), butter, flour, and eggs into a smooth batter. Some familiar desserts that use pâte à choux include éclairs, cream puffs, and profiteroles (pro-FIT-uh-rolls). |
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| Profiteroles (pro-FIT-uh-rolls) |
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| Small round pastries made from pâte à choux filled with ice cream. |
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