Here are the items you really need for baking sweet treats in a good home kitchen.
It can be easy to get carried away with baking utensils, this list helps keep it minimalist. But feel free to disregard it!
For everything in the long run you’re better off buying the best quality you can afford. Think of it as starting a baking legacy. I have my grandmothers stand mixer and some of my Mum’s cake tins that I just adore.
oven
Most of us have to make do with what we have, but if you’re lucky enough to be building a new kitchen or it’s time for a new oven, electric is by far the best for baking.
This is because the temperature control tends to be more stable. And I personally find the air in an electric oven to be dryer and to give more even browning (but it could be my imagination).
Fan forced (or fan assisted) ovens help to make the temperature in the oven more even, although you do still get some differences. I always give my recipe times and temperatures for fan assist (unless there’s a specific reason not to). If you only have a conventional oven, add and extra 20C (or 50F) to the recipe temperatures.
While most things are fine, be careful when baking delicate things that require lots of lift like souffles and sponge cakes (any thing with whipped egg whites basically). If you open the oven door before they are cooked and the proteins are set, they are likely to sink in the middle due to the loss in temperature.
So it’s best to check as infrequently as you can. An oven with a light can be brilliant so you can check progress without opening the door!
scales
Digital scales are so inexpensive these days and make baking so much easier, I can’t recommend enough that you invest in a set. Weighing out only takes seconds and is so much more reliable than scooping into cups.
If you really don’t want to invest, I’m afraid all my recipes are based on weight but you can use the converter over here, if you must use cups.
cake tins / pans
At the very least I’d recommend investing in a good 23cm (9in) spring form pan. It’s a good medium size and I find most recipes are written to suit.
The next pan I’d invest in is a 20cm (8in) spring form pan. Good for slightly smaller cakes or a baked frittata for 2.
While I do have a set of square tins of various sizes, I use my loaf pan far more frequently It measures 24cm x 12cm (approx 9.5in x 5in).
I also inherited a set of 18cm sandwich pans which are lovely for sponge cakes and I’ve used them for brownies but that’s about it.
tart tins
I LOVE my 28cm (11in) tart tin with its removable base.
I also have a set of 12 x 8cm (3in) tiny tartlet tins with removable bases. They are fiddly to work with, but I actually use them a lot more than I thought I would.
I also have a rectangular tin that I’ve used about once and a deeper one that I use about once a year and should get rid of.
muffin tray
Only if you’re into muffins of course!
I prefer smaller, 1/2 cup capacity muffin tray rather than giant Texas sized muffins. I also prefer metal trays to silicone. I did own a silicone muffin tray but it always felt weird putting ‘plastic’ in the oven so didn’t ever use it.
If you like your muffins, muffin papers are also a great idea, but I like just making my own out of sheets of baking or parchment paper.
baking tray / baking sheet
If cookies are your thing, at least one or two flat baking trays are an excellent idea. The bigger the better, as long as they fit in your oven. They also come in handy for savoury cooking.
stand mixer OR a wire whisk
Contrary to what some people think, you don’t need a fancy Kitchen Aid stand mixer to be a great baker. While a stand mixer does make life easier when it comes to whisking egg whites and creaming butter and sugar, both these can be done with a simple wire whisk and some muscles.
food processor
Again, not essential but I do find mine super useful for both sweet and savoury cooking. Everything from grating fruit and veg for cakes, making my own nut or almond meal, mixing butter and flour for pastry or even creaming butter and sugar.
That being said, most of the recipes in the class can be made without one.
mixing bowls
I’m a big fan of simple pyrex mixing bowls that I also use for savoury cooking. One or two should do it unless you like to bake multiple sweet treats at the same time. Or decide to start and online cooking school.
disposables
Foil, good quality baking paper (parchment paper) and medium sized zip lock bags all get a workout in my kitchen.
bamboo skewers
I always have some on hand for kebabs but they double as a cake tester. But you could use a small knife instead.
cooling rack
It’s important to allow your bakery treats to cool properly because they’re still cooking as they cool down. A rack isn’t critical but it can help things cool quicker.
timer
I just use the timer on my phone, but I would be hopelessly lost without it. I have a tendency to put things in the oven then get side tracked doing other important things like Tweeting or reading my favourite blogs.
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