The Little Things That Make a Better Baker
(And a More Confident One Too!)
Recently, I put out a recipe for Extra Fudgy Dark Chocolate Brownies ( you can find them here) that I’ve been obsessed with ever since. The funny thing about that is that it has taken me almost 29 years to figure out a brownie recipe that is absolutely perfect for me. I love brownies. I love them so much. While I know everyone has their own personal brownie preferences (my husband likes them more well-baked while I like them gooey and rich), I have always set out to make a brownie that hits all of my own specific criteria. And yet, any time I have gone to make a batch from scratch, they have always come out of the oven without that signature crackly top and a more cake-like texture than anything. It didn’t seem to matter what I did to the recipe. Which means I’ve resorted to mostly reaching for a box mix when I need a brownie fix (shameful of me, I know.)
So, when this particular recipe was in the development stage, I wanted to do everything in my power to conquer my perfect batch of brownies. And I finally came to a place where I thought I had it. I had it all written out on paper. I had my oven preheated. And then, all there was left to do was to actually start making them.
I grabbed my chocolate and butter and melted them down. I added my sugar and my eggs... And then came the flour.
As I added my flour, I immediately knew something wasn’t right. The “batter” was dry and clumpy. The butter was separating out of the mix. And when I went to taste it, while it was sweet, it definitely had more of a dark chocolate (AKA: bitter) flavor than I anticipated. But at this point, I was in too deep and had no choice but to toss them into the oven and pray a miracle happened while they were in there.
My favorite thing to do while I have baked goods in the oven is to sit right in front of the oven door with the light on inside and watch the transformation process happen. Or in this case, not happen. Because as the brownies baked, the only real change that occurred was that even more of the butter started to leak out. The brownies stayed just as lumpy and dry as they had before they went into the oven. And while I kept up hope for the duration of the baking process, when the oven timer went off, I knew they were a lost cause.
I pulled them from the oven, let them cool for a minute, and gave them a taste. They were hard, greasy, and crumbly all at the same time. And I’m pretty sure I let out a little growl of frustration.
After angrily texting my husband about my failed project and wallowing in my own self-loathing as a baker (because what baker can’t even make a batch of brownies?), I decided to take one more look at the recipe I had written down in my notebook.
You see, when I had gone to write the recipe down that morning, I had written down on a page that also had a recipe for my Blueberry Sourdough Muffins on it (you can find the muffins here). As I looked the page over, it hit me like lightning. I had looked at the wrong recipe when I was making my brownies and had added half of the needed sugar, and quadruple the amount of flour. Yes… QUADRUPLE.
I took a quick little face-palm moment, quickly washed up the dishes from the previous batch, and got to work redoing the recipe. This time, with the proper measurements.
And, to my delight, the batter came out perfect. Thick and smooth and sweet and rich. I was pulling it back together.
As I put them in the oven, I resumed my spot right in front of the door, peering in at them like a nosy neighbor with my face pressed up against the glass. And as the time on the oven ticked down, the transformation was happening. A shiny, crackly top was starting to form, and I knew all was well in the world again.
The brownies came out of the oven looking beautiful. They cooled beautifully. And they tasted even better. What’s better yet was that I had finally managed to check all the boxes on my perfect homemade brownie recipe and maybe I could finally start getting some sleep at night.
I say all of this just to say that, as a baker, or even just someone who likes to bake on occasion, it can be really easy to lose confidence in what you’re doing. One thing goes wrong and it can feel like you have no place in the kitchen at all. And when these fears start to mount, it can lead someone to not entering the kitchen at all. Not being willing to try. Not feeling like they’re capable in the least.
Which has led me to this post. This isn’t going to be a post full of technical skills or hard-to-grasp concepts. This post is all about the little things you can do that will give you a more consistent baking experience (while building your confidence along the way!) You’re going to make mistakes. I have been doing this for practically my whole life, and I still mess up on a weekly basis. What I want to do for you is to give you the small bits of information that will make those mess-ups fewer and further between. So, with that said, here are my top 6 basic tips for a more confident time in the kitchen!
1. Learn to Read a Recipe All the Way Through First
Raise your hand if you’ve ever been halfway through making a recipe and then get to a step that says “Chill for 6 hours”… (I’m raising my hand right along with you here.) It happens to the best of us.
This tip may seem like a no-brainer, but trust me, it is still one of the things I struggle with the most. I usually just set out, full speed ahead, trusting that I know the process a little too well and not taking into account the intricacies of each individual recipe. Reading ahead gives you a game plan. You’ll know if you need to preheat the oven, line a pan, or let ingredients come to room temp before you even reach for the flour. It also helps you mentally walk through the steps so you’re not caught off guard by anything unexpected (like whipping egg whites to stiff peaks when you’ve already dumped everything into one bowl). A little preparation goes a long way, and once you start making this a habit, you’ll feel more in control and confident every time you bake.
So, before you start, take 30 seconds and read the recipe. Know the steps before you make any moves. (And it doesn’t hurt to read as you go as well)
2. Get Comfortable with Your Ingredients (And What They Actually Do)
This one is crucial. Knowing the roles of each ingredient not only helps you understand a recipe more fully, but opens the door to troubleshooting recipes that didn’t turn out, and even allows for you to begin your own recipe development.
Baking isn’t just about following a recipe—it’s about understanding why each ingredient is there in the first place. Ever wonder why your cookies spread too much? Or why your cake turned out dry? Most of the time, the answer is hidden in the balance of your ingredients. Learning the role of each one helps you bake with intention rather than just hoping for the best.
Flour, sugar, eggs, butter—these aren’t just things you mix together and throw in the oven. Each one has a purpose. Flour gives structure, sugar affects texture and moisture, eggs bind and provide richness, and butter adds flavor and tenderness. Once you start paying attention to how these ingredients interact, baking becomes a whole lot less intimidating. You’ll stop seeing recipes as strict formulas and start seeing them as guidelines you can tweak to get the results you want.
If you’re unfamiliar with the role of each ingredient, here is a little cheat sheet for you:
Basic Baking Ingredients and What They Do:
Flour – Provides structure. More gluten (like in bread flour) means a chewier texture, while less gluten (like in cake flour) creates a softer, more delicate crumb.
Sugar – Sweetens, adds moisture, and helps with browning. It also contributes to tenderness by weakening gluten formation.
Eggs – Help bind ingredients together, add moisture, provide structure, and can even help with leavening when whipped.
Butter/Fats – Add richness, moisture, and tenderness. They also contribute to flakiness in pastries and cookies.
Baking Powder & Baking Soda – Leavening agents that create rise. Baking soda needs an acid to activate, while baking powder contains its own acid.
Salt – Enhances flavor and balances sweetness. It also strengthens gluten and helps control yeast fermentation in bread.
Milk/Buttermilk – Adds moisture, affects texture, and can contribute to tenderness. Buttermilk’s acidity can activate baking soda and create a softer crumb.
Yeast – A leavening agent that produces gas to make bread rise, giving it that classic airy texture.
Understanding these ingredients makes baking less of a mystery and more of a skill you can refine. The more you experiment, the more you’ll see how small changes can make a big impact!
3. Room Temperature Ingredients Make a Difference (But It’s Not the End of the World If You Forget)
I feel like this is the one that typically makes people roll their eyes. And I get it. Room temperature ingredients seem like just one extra step that doesn’t usually feel completely necessary. But, unfortunately, that doesn’t mean that it isn’t the best practice. Can you get away with it if your butter is still cold? Absolutely. Does this mean you can never just bake on a whim ever again, always having to think ahead so your ingredients have time to come to temperature? Absolutely not.
Room temperature ingredients are one of those little details in baking that can make a big difference, but don’t worry—forgetting to set out your butter doesn’t mean your cake is doomed. The reason so many recipes call for room temperature ingredients is all about consistency. When butter, eggs, and dairy are at the same temperature, they mix together smoothly, creating an even batter. Cold ingredients, on the other hand, can cause the batter to curdle or mix unevenly, which might lead to dense cakes, sunken muffins, or cookies that don’t spread properly.
That being said, life happens. If you forgot to take out the butter, you don’t need to scrap your plans and start over. There are plenty of quick fixes. Butter can be cut into small cubes to soften faster, or you can place it near (but not in) a warm oven for a few minutes. Also… Microwaving for 10 second intervals has never failed me. Eggs can be placed in a bowl of warm water for 5–10 minutes to take the chill off. And while it’s ideal to have everything at the same temperature, most of the time, your baked goods will still turn out fine if you mix carefully and don’t overwork the batter.
The biggest takeaway here? Try to do your best, but don’t stress. Room temperature ingredients help make the baking process easier and more predictable, but they’re not the difference between success and total failure. If you’re in a rush, use a few tricks to bring ingredients to temperature quickly, and if you forget, just roll with it. Remember, we’re doing this for fun! No stress allowed.
4. Measuring Correctly Is the Biggest Deal
Baking. Is. A. Science. Drill that into your brain. Each ingredient listed above has a part to play and chemical reactions to carry out when heat is applied. Which means, if you’ve got them in all the wrong quantities, you’re more likely to end up with an actual science experiment than a chocolate chip cookie. It may seem like a small detail, but getting your measurements just right can make a big difference in the final product. Too much or too little of something can throw off the whole balance of a recipe, leading to flat cookies, dense cakes, or uneven dough. If my brownies at the beginning of this post aren’t a testament to this, then I don’t know what is.
One of the easiest ways to measure correctly is to use the right tools for the job. A kitchen scale is a great investment if you bake often, especially for ingredients like flour or sugar, which can easily be over or under-measured by volume. But if you’re using measuring cups, make sure you’re leveling off dry ingredients like flour with a flat edge. For wet ingredients, use a liquid measuring cup for accurate readings. Just use common sense. If the recipe calls for a teaspoon of baking soda, a heaping teaspoon is going to be more like a teaspoon and a half.
Measuring correctly isn’t just about getting it right once—it’s about building confidence in your baking skills. When you consistently measure your ingredients accurately, you'll start to notice patterns in how certain ingredients behave and how they come together in a recipe. You'll be able to tweak things with more confidence, and your bakes will become even more reliable. This is the thing that distinguishes baking from cooking. It’s also the thing that will make or break a baked good the most. If you want to be confident, know what your ingredients do, and exactly how much you need of them.
5. Trust Your Senses, Not Just the Timer
It’s so easy to get excited when your oven timer goes off, telling you that your cookies are ready. But before you blindly trust your appliance, there are a few things to keep in mind.
Every oven is different, and baking times can really vary depending on the one you're using. Recipes usually give you a general idea of how long to bake, but your oven might be hotter or cooler than the one the recipe was tested in. That’s why it’s so important to pay attention to your bake as it goes along and adjust when needed. With time, you'll get the hang of how your oven works, and your baked goods will turn out better and better each time.
To tell when your bake is done, look for signs that match what you’re making. For cakes, gently press the center—if it springs back, it’s ready. With cookies, look for set edges and soft centers. That’s when they’re perfect—still chewy but not raw. And with bread, tap the bottom of the loaf; if it sounds hollow, it’s good to go. These little checks can help make sure you don’t underbake or overbake your goodies.
And hey, it’s totally fine to open the oven door and check on things! While it might feel like you shouldn’t interrupt the baking process, peeking inside can help you know exactly where your treats are at. Just make sure to keep it quick to avoid losing too much heat. Getting to know your oven and looking for these signs will give you more control and help you feel confident that your baked goods are done just right.
6. The More You Bake, The More Confident You’ll Get… Duh.
I don’t know if I can really consider this one a tip, but it is just a good little piece of common sense.
The best way to gain confidence in your baking is to, well… Bake.
Baking is like any other skill—practice makes progress. The more you bake, the more familiar you become with the process, the ingredients, and how everything works together. In the beginning, it might feel like you need a recipe for everything, and you’ll likely measure every ingredient precisely. But as you bake more often, you’ll start recognizing the subtle differences in dough textures, the right way to gauge whether something is done, and how your oven behaves. With enough repetition, your intuition will guide you, and you won’t have to follow the instructions so closely.
Think about your grandma’s biscuits (or pies or cookies or breads). If you've ever watched her bake, you probably noticed that she doesn’t measure a thing. She’s done it a thousand times, so she knows exactly what the dough should look and feel like. This kind of confidence doesn’t come overnight, but it’s built slowly, one bake at a time. The more you bake, the more you develop a mental library of how different recipes should behave, which will make you more comfortable experimenting and adjusting on the fly.
So, the key is to just start. Don’t worry if your first few attempts don’t turn out perfectly—everyone has those “oops” moments. It’s part of the journey. Keep going, learn from your mistakes, and enjoy the process. The more you embrace the experience of baking, the more confident and creative you’ll become. And soon enough, you’ll be baking without a recipe in hand, just like grandma!
Baking doesn’t have to be complicated, and you definitely don’t need to be an expert to make something delicious! Whether you're a beginner or someone who's baked for years, the key is to embrace the process and have fun. Mistakes will happen, and that's perfectly okay. They’re part of the learning experience, and even if things don’t go exactly as planned, the results are often still tasty. The more you bake, the more confident you’ll become in your skills, so don’t be afraid to experiment and try new things!
This week, why not try a new recipe with zero fear of failure? Pick something that excites you and dive in, knowing that it’s all about enjoying the process. Even if things don’t turn out perfectly, you’ll have learned something new, and that’s what matters most. Plus, each new recipe you try brings you one step closer to becoming a baking pro. There’s no pressure—just a chance to create something wonderful in the kitchen!
And if all else fails? Slap some frosting on it, call it “rustic,” and serve it anyway! Seriously, no one will mind. Baking is about bringing joy to yourself and those you share it with, so keep a light heart and enjoy the ride. The best part of baking is the love and care you put into it, and that’s something that can never go wrong. You’ve got this!