We will discuss this week specific concerns about some baked goods and how to make their texture and taste better, which we know all of you will learn from.  Read on.

Hi Jun Jun and Adoree. I tried one of your old recipes published in the Manila Bulletin about baked cheesecake. But it became a bit dry and its texture was not what I wanted to have in a creamy cake.  Can I add in some cream?  Please let me know what I can do with the recipe. (Bam Gelano of Paranaque)

Jun Jun:  Thank you for using the recipes that we publish as part of this column.  A cheesecake must always be baked in bain-marie so that the filling won’t boil and it will not be crumbly. I think you over-baked the cheesecake. Next time, make sure that it is baked until the middle part is just set.  Cool it well and refrigerate; do not remove from the container until it is completely chilled.  Adding cream will not make it creamier but will only prolong the baking time. 

Adoree:  There are actually quite a number of cheesecake recipes and each one has a corresponding characteristic.  If a recipe uses a lot of cream cheese, the cheesecake will be denser and richer.  If a recipe has less cream cheese but has heavy cream or sour cream, the cheesecake will be on the creamy side.  Some recipes even have flour in it; too much flour will make the cheesecake crumbly.  Bam, I suggest you do your cheesecake again and follow Jun Jun’s advice of not overbaking it. If the cheesecake is still crumbly, you might have to alter the recipe a little by following the guidelines I mentioned.

Hi! If the recipe calls for white sugar and brown sugar, can I just substitute it with molasses and corn syrup, what’s the proportion?  I am making brownies and food for the gods. (Rossini from Quezon City)

Jun Jun:  Molasses and corn syrup can not be used to substitute white and brown sugar. Although they have the same function to sweeten a baked product, they have some textural difference.  Since mollases and corn syrup are invert sugars and are liquid in form, they give a chewy structure to the mixture. They will not give the volume as well as body for the baked product, unlike granular forms of sugar. Brown sugar which still has some molasses will give you this in brownies and bars.  Please do not substitute them since you might just be wasting very expensive ingredients. 

Adoree: Hi, Rossini. Sorry to say, but corn syrup and molasses cannot be used to substitute sugar and brown sugar, respectively.

Hi Jun Jun and Adoree. I make one of the best brownies in town and the recipe came from you. I have a question. With a hand mix method, there are times that certain spots on the brownies are  bitter, some are just right, some are lacking in flavor. What really happens here?  (Bambi of San Juan)

Jun Jun: I am very happy that you are using that recipe.  It was probably written three years ago. This column has really captured a lot of readers, thank you very much. The recipe is really good and moist, also very easy to make.  I believe the bitterness comes from the cocoa powder. Make sure to add it when some of the melted butter has cooled and no longer very hot. The cocoa powder gets cooked when the butter is still hot, causing it to be bitter. Also, make sure to mix it thoroughly so that you don’t have dry ingredients floating in the batter. 

Adoree:  Since your brownie has an uneven taste, you should mix your dry ingredients thorougly before you add in the liquid ingredients.  The rule of thumb is not to overmix the batter so you have to incorporate both the dry ingredients and liquid ingredients first before combining both mixtures.

What is the right amount of water being added into a rubbed in or cut in mixture of butter and flour?  Should it be in tbsps or can we add more at a time?  I noticed that the dough gets a bit tough when this is done.  What is the right way? (CJ of Taguig)

Jun Jun: When adding liquid to a pie dough, please add 50 percent of the total amount then use a fork to toss it.  Add again the next 50 percent of whatever liquid left.  Try your best to bind this immediately and avoid too much handling and mixing of the dough.  Make sure to have the mixture rest between 30 minutes to an hour before baking.

Adoree: It would be better to add the liquid gradually than to just dump all of it at once.  The dough comes out more even if you add the liquid gradually.

Jun Jun, Adoree, in one of the recipes that you published in your column, what does dot with butter mean? (Faith of Cavite)

Jun Jun: Thanks again for continuing to be a part of the growth of this column.  I remember that one.  It really is a pastry term that a chef uses. When cube butter, cold and firm, is added on top of the mixture – the verb to use is to “dot,” since you are putting small pieces on top.  Dotting though is different from docking, which means putting holes using the tines of the fork. 

Adoree: Hi, Faith. Thanks for writing us. To dot with butter means to put small bits of butter on top. This is done to usually to enrich your baked item as well as to to make the item not dry.