7 Weird Baking Terms and What They Really Mean

One day my brother and I decided to cook a fancy dinner. We went through a bunch of cookbooks to find something challenging and delicious to make, and found something that looked good and had ingredients that we already had. We started reading the directions, and the first step was to “Caramelize the mirepoix.” Huh? What the hell is a mirepoix (pronounced meer-pwa)? Even though we both speak French, we had no idea what this meant and ditched the recipe. New cooking and baking vocabulary can turn you away from a great recipe, so here are some terms that will help you jump right in.

Cream the butter

This phrase is found in a lot of baking recipes, but what does it really mean? It’s the base for the Nestlé Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe and many others; it basically means combing the butter and sugar by beating them together. It’s easiest to do by putting the butter in the bowl and beating it on medium speed with a hand or electric mixer. Once the butter is fluffed up, add in the sugar and beat again; the result should be nice and fluffy. Make sure that you used softened butter for this! A lot of things can go wrong if the butter isn’t soft.

Bain Marie

Another French term, this is just a water bath for heating things like chocolate, eggs, and sugar. It usually includes a medium saucepan half-filled with water and put on medium heat on the stove. Then take a bowl that fits halfway in the saucepan so it’s just resting in the water, and put whatever needs to be heated in there. This is the best way to melt chocolate so it doesn’t burn, and can be used for things like meringue and bases for buttercream.

Folding

We’re not talking about laundry here; folding is a way of mixing or combining ingredients gently. This technique is used for everything from Chocolate Mousse to French Macarons. It means that you are using usually a spatula to sweep around the sides of the bowl and underneath the ingredients you are combining. It’s important to fold when it tells you to fold and not mix (circular motions that cut through the batter); folding is usually called for when you have to retain air or fluffiness in a batter. Just be gentle and you’ll be fine!

Confectioner’s Sugar

This might be an easy one, but when I first started baking I had no idea what it was. Confectioner’s sugar is just a fancy name for powdered sugar, it is not plain white or granulated sugar. If it looks like the kind of thing that’s very powdery and that you would sprinkle on a doughnut, then you’ve got the right stuff.

Alternating Additions

I think you would be most likely to see this in a recipe for cake. Typically there will be a batter or dough that is already started, and you alternate adding a liquid and a powder, usually flour or sugar, to it.

Food Processor

A food processor is usually used to chop things up or grind them into crumbs (like nuts or Oreos), but can also be used to make things like cookie dough. When I want some chopped walnuts for example, I use either my ancient Cuisinart Food Processor or a Ninja. But I’ve also made cookie dough in it too, although I prefer my KitchenAid Mixer. It depends on what you’re making, but it’s not always necessary to use one over another kitchen gadget. The food processor is nice because the lid stays on while mixing, and there’s sometimes a hole in the top that lets you add things without a mess while it’s still mixing.

Heavy Cream vs. Whipping Cream

Don’t stress if you bought one and the recipe calls for the other! They do the same thing.

 

I hope this helps you attack some new amazing recipes! Did I miss the weirdest baking term you’ve ever come across? Give me a shout, I’m definitely going to make a part 2 to this list.