I am so excited to share with you the depth of baking knowledge. In this Fundamental module, we will introduce you to the approach that will take over the next few modules.

Over the many years of teaching, we find that people learn best when we break baking down into the three main categories – breads, pastries and cake. We hope that this knowledge helps you to grow your business and increase your skills and love for baking.

The first category is Breads. Breads are an important staple food for many people around the world.

Breads takes the longest time and most patience to make compared to other baked products, because it requires perfect conditions and time for the fermentation process to rise and form the dough before baking.

Next category is Pastries. Pastries are delightfully light, flaky and tasty. Just the sheer variety of pastries available are so exciting. They can be made sweet or savoury, flaky or crumbly.

Pastries differ from breads because of its high fat content, giving it its light, airy and fatty texture. Using the same ingredients, the variation of pastries is made possible by using different ratios and techniques.

Examples of pastries include Shortcrust pastry, filo pastry, choux pastry, puff pastry, flaky pastry and sweet pastry.

Another product under this category is Cookies. Although they are a different product from pastries, we place them in the same category as they both use All Purpose Flour.

Lastly, we have Cakes. I love cakes because they can be made into so many different types, flavours and designs. And not just that, cakes are almost always made for a celebration, so it gives feelings of warmth and joy whenever we eat them.

For cake makers, mastering the key methods of cake making, such as the creaming method and the sponge method, will give you endless possibilities.

To create the light and fluffy texture in cakes, air is introduced into the cake batter using baking powder and baking soda.

By appreciating the techniques and ingredients that go into each category of baked products, you will have the fundamentals to further develop your skills and create the best products for your customers.

There are so many factors that could influence your baked products and by knowing the science behind baking, you will be able to test and produce better baked goods.

We have narrowed down two main fundamentals in the following chapters : Ingredients and Equipments to help you understand them better before creating your desired baked products.

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