Room Temperature Ingredients: WHY?
Months ago, one of our readers, Ann S., emailed asking why it’s important to bring ingredients to room temperature prior to baking. Have you ever wondered the same thing? I know I have.
And I also admit, too many times I’ve ignored that direction because I’ve been in a big hurry to git ‘er done, with my end result being disappointing at best. So for those of you that would also like to know what the big deal is around bringing ingredients to room temperature, here you go. I thank professional baker, Sally (www.sallysbakingaddiction.com), for her wisdom:
She says, “You can’t rush baking…speed up cookie dough chilling, the chocolate setting…the cheesecake evenly firming…or skip a dough-proofing step. And you absolutely can’t ignore the need for room temperature ingredients by using straight-from-the-fridge instead.”
Room temperature isn’t listed next to ingredients for fun. There’s science and legitimate reason behind the importance of temperature. It’s Sally’s top baking rule; she adamantly encourages us to follow it—bring ingredients to room temperature. If we don’t, our recipe won’t live up to its potential or taste the way it should.
WHY? It’s about air. When at room temperature, eggs, butter, and other dairy ingredients form an emulsion which traps air. While baking in the oven, that trapped air expands and produces a fluffy baked good.
AND it also has to do with bonding and incorporation. Room temperature ingredients bond together very easily since they’re warmer, creating a seamless and evenly textured batter. A smooth batter = a uniformly textured baked good. Cold ingredients do not incorporate together as easily. Or even at all! This results in clumpy frosting, chunky cheesecake, dense cookies, flat breads and muffins, etc. In other words, complete recipe failures.
Many recipes start with room temperature butter creamed with sugar (beating them together until light, white, and fluffy). Sugar is just a billion little jagged-edged crystals. When beaten with butter, their edges dig out little air pockets in the butter. If your butter is too cold because you just took it out of the fridge or only gave it 10 minutes to soften, the sugar crystals can’t claw their way through the hard butter. No trapped air, no light and airy baked good.
If the butter is at room temperature, the sugar effectively aerates the butter during creaming. Then the baking powder and/or soda completes the job, helping expand those air pockets the creaming process created, and your finished baked good is light! Tender! Fluffy!
The same goes for room temperature butter in buttercream and cream cheese frostings. A beautifully creamy, fluffy frosting cannot be achieved with cold butter. The results will be clumpy, unattractive, and unappetizing.
NOTE: When butter is at room temperature, you can press your finger into it and make an indent easily, without your finger sliding anywhere. Firm, but not cold. Lightly softened without being greasy or melty in the slightest.
There’s no rocket science to bringing butter to room temperature. Plan ahead. (DUH, I’m thinking. But oh how I struggle with this step.) Remove the butter from the refrigerator 1 hour before beginning your recipe. You can also put the butter on a plate near your oven if you’re using it for something else (even just a little heat helps speed it up).
Microwave caution: If you try to use it for butter softening, be extremely careful. The slightest bit of melted butter RUINS the creaming process. Try slicing butter stick into equal pieces onto a plate, and microwaving for 2 seconds. Stop. Then 2 seconds more. Stop. But Sally urges us to just do it the old school way. The one where patience is applied. The microwave is a risky method.
Lastly, Sally’s egg advice: “It’s also VITAL for eggs to be at room temperature when the recipe calls for it. Again, it’s about air. When you beat or whisk an egg, its protein traps air bubbles. While baking, oven heat expands them. And, again, air bubbles expanding = a lighter textured baked good. Air-trapping is at its peak when the eggs are at room temperature. Notice how much easier it is to whip, beat, or whisk eggs when they’re room temperature. They come together quicker and actually whip to a higher volume!”
Air trapping isn’t the only reason to bake with room-temperature eggs. Adding cold eggs to a room temperature fat (like creamed butter and sugar) can shock, harden, and curdle fat. This ruins the creamed mixture (the entire base of your recipe). You’ll sabotage your recipe if you bake it with this ruined creamed mixture; you’ll have a bunch of little holes in your cupcakes from the hardened butter pieces.
So, to bring eggs to room temperature, simply place the eggs in a bowl or glass of warm water for 10-15 minutes. You can do this while getting other ingredients ready. Avoid piping hot water– you don’t want to cook them.
And Sally closes this helpful tutorial with: “I’ve said it a billion times and I’ll say it again: when it comes to baking, it pays off to be a perfectionist. Never rush things and pay attention to temperature. Temperature is a reason your recipe will or won’t turn out. ALWAYS follow the recipe.” [ME: With head bowed…”yes, Sally.”]
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And I also admit, too many times I’ve ignored that direction because I’ve been in a big hurry to git ‘er done, with my end result being disappointing at best. So for those of you that would also like to know what the big deal is around bringing ingredients to room temperature, here you go. I thank professional baker, Sally (www.sallysbakingaddiction.com), for her wisdom:
She says, “You can’t rush baking…speed up cookie dough chilling, the chocolate setting…the cheesecake evenly firming…or skip a dough-proofing step. And you absolutely can’t ignore the need for room temperature ingredients by using straight-from-the-fridge instead.”
Room temperature isn’t listed next to ingredients for fun. There’s science and legitimate reason behind the importance of temperature. It’s Sally’s top baking rule; she adamantly encourages us to follow it—bring ingredients to room temperature. If we don’t, our recipe won’t live up to its potential or taste the way it should.
WHY? It’s about air. When at room temperature, eggs, butter, and other dairy ingredients form an emulsion which traps air. While baking in the oven, that trapped air expands and produces a fluffy baked good.
AND it also has to do with bonding and incorporation. Room temperature ingredients bond together very easily since they’re warmer, creating a seamless and evenly textured batter. A smooth batter = a uniformly textured baked good. Cold ingredients do not incorporate together as easily. Or even at all! This results in clumpy frosting, chunky cheesecake, dense cookies, flat breads and muffins, etc. In other words, complete recipe failures.
Many recipes start with room temperature butter creamed with sugar (beating them together until light, white, and fluffy). Sugar is just a billion little jagged-edged crystals. When beaten with butter, their edges dig out little air pockets in the butter. If your butter is too cold because you just took it out of the fridge or only gave it 10 minutes to soften, the sugar crystals can’t claw their way through the hard butter. No trapped air, no light and airy baked good.
If the butter is at room temperature, the sugar effectively aerates the butter during creaming. Then the baking powder and/or soda completes the job, helping expand those air pockets the creaming process created, and your finished baked good is light! Tender! Fluffy!
The same goes for room temperature butter in buttercream and cream cheese frostings. A beautifully creamy, fluffy frosting cannot be achieved with cold butter. The results will be clumpy, unattractive, and unappetizing.
NOTE: When butter is at room temperature, you can press your finger into it and make an indent easily, without your finger sliding anywhere. Firm, but not cold. Lightly softened without being greasy or melty in the slightest.
There’s no rocket science to bringing butter to room temperature. Plan ahead. (DUH, I’m thinking. But oh how I struggle with this step.) Remove the butter from the refrigerator 1 hour before beginning your recipe. You can also put the butter on a plate near your oven if you’re using it for something else (even just a little heat helps speed it up).
Microwave caution: If you try to use it for butter softening, be extremely careful. The slightest bit of melted butter RUINS the creaming process. Try slicing butter stick into equal pieces onto a plate, and microwaving for 2 seconds. Stop. Then 2 seconds more. Stop. But Sally urges us to just do it the old school way. The one where patience is applied. The microwave is a risky method.
Lastly, Sally’s egg advice: “It’s also VITAL for eggs to be at room temperature when the recipe calls for it. Again, it’s about air. When you beat or whisk an egg, its protein traps air bubbles. While baking, oven heat expands them. And, again, air bubbles expanding = a lighter textured baked good. Air-trapping is at its peak when the eggs are at room temperature. Notice how much easier it is to whip, beat, or whisk eggs when they’re room temperature. They come together quicker and actually whip to a higher volume!”
Air trapping isn’t the only reason to bake with room-temperature eggs. Adding cold eggs to a room temperature fat (like creamed butter and sugar) can shock, harden, and curdle fat. This ruins the creamed mixture (the entire base of your recipe). You’ll sabotage your recipe if you bake it with this ruined creamed mixture; you’ll have a bunch of little holes in your cupcakes from the hardened butter pieces.
So, to bring eggs to room temperature, simply place the eggs in a bowl or glass of warm water for 10-15 minutes. You can do this while getting other ingredients ready. Avoid piping hot water– you don’t want to cook them.
And Sally closes this helpful tutorial with: “I’ve said it a billion times and I’ll say it again: when it comes to baking, it pays off to be a perfectionist. Never rush things and pay attention to temperature. Temperature is a reason your recipe will or won’t turn out. ALWAYS follow the recipe.” [ME: With head bowed…”yes, Sally.”]
Sources:
- www.alwayseatdessert.com
- www.thecakeblog.com
- www.delishably.com
- www.sallysbakingaddiction.com
- www.sugargeekshow.com
Alice Osborne
Weekly Newsletter Contributor since 2006
Email the author! alice@dvo.com
