Rose Levy Beranbaum & Woody Wolston | The Cake Bible: 35th Anniversary Edition | Talks at Google

Rose Levy Beranbaum and Woody Wolston discuss the 35th Anniversary Edition of ‘The Cake Bible,’ highlighting key improvements and insights gained over the years. The discussion delves into various baking techniques and ingredients, emphasizing the importance of accuracy and understanding the science behind baking. The authors emphasize a strong baking community where ideas and innovations are shared, and they advocate for the use of scales for accurate measurements and a better understanding of how ingredients interact.

Egg Whites & Cream of Tartar

• 00:03:39 Rose discovered that adding 1/8 teaspoon of cream of tartar per egg white prevents separation during beating. The authors highlight the impact of larger egg whites on baking and encourage testing for optimal results. They recommend never leaving mixers unattended during use and share a trick for preventing mixer falls.

Reverse Creaming Method

• 00:11:03 The reverse creaming method, which combines dry ingredients before wet ones, results in a more tender crumb and a gentler cake dome. Rose explains that it was commonly used with shortening during wartime and has now been adopted for butter. It prevents gluten formation, which is beneficial for cakes but not breads.

Importance of Accurate Measurements

• 00:13:13 Rose strongly advocates for using a scale for baking, emphasizing accuracy over measuring cups. Different methods of measuring flour with cups can lead to significant variations in the amount of flour used, which can result in dry cakes. The speakers believe this is a critical aspect of successful cake baking.

Egg Size & Quality

• 00:18:17 The size of egg yolks has significantly decreased over the years, resulting in a higher proportion of egg whites. This change affects baking results because egg yolks act as emulsifiers, distributing ingredients more evenly. Rose shares an example of a cake texture changing from fine to coarse due to reduced yolk content in a recipe.

Flour Type & Bleaching

• 00:39:01 Rose discusses the difference between bleached and unbleached flour, noting that bleached flour is preferred for cakes due to its smooth texture. Unbleached flour results in a coarser texture and a cake that dips in the center. The authors explain the bleaching process for cake flour and all-purpose flour and highlight the use of heat-treated flour as a viable alternative.