We are so blessed to have received lots of good feedbacks and reviews. Most of all, we are grateful for the untiring support of all our readers who continue to send us their questions.  In this issue, we tackle one baking method used to  ensure gentle, even baking—bain marie or “banyo maria.”

Q: Hi Chef Jun Jun and Chef Adoree.  I would like to clarify something about bain marie.  What is bain marie?  How much water is enough for it? There are some who say not to use hot water.  Is this true?  I even heard tips on putting a towel on the tray and what is it for?  Thank you so much for taking the time to answer my query.  (Monica Morillos from Quezon City)

Adoree:  Bain marie is baking with a hot water bath.  The baking pan is put on a bigger pan with hot water in it, filled halfway through the smaller baking pan.   Having said this, you also have to consider the circumstance.  If you are baking a  cheesecake using a removable-bottom pan, it is known that you have to line the outside of your pan with aluminum foil to prevent the water from seeping in. 

If the edge of the foil does not reach the top of your pan, you cannot use a lot of  water to fill your hot water halfway through your cheesecake pan.  So, you just pour enough water barely reaching the edge of the aluminum foil.  I use hot water for my bain marie to control the oven temperature, so that the temperature does not fluctuate dramatically when I pop in the item in the oven.  I have also heard about the towel in the bain marie.  The towel is said to prevent the water from boiling while inside the oven. 

Jun Jun: The towel, I believe, is placed so that whatever you place inside the bain marie will not move and will not allow any unwanted water or drops to seep into whatever you’re baking.  I use warm water since hot water will make it faster for the water to boil causing the baked item get cooked quite faster than how it should. 

Q: I understand baking bain maire is done in cheesecakes.  What other items do we bake in bain marie?  Is it okay if I bake my butter cake in a bain marie to avoid cracking, too?  (Jen de Pio from Taguig)

Adoree: Hi Jen.  Not all cheesecakes have to be baked bain marie, though there is no harm in baking them with it even if the recipe did not state it.  Custards like flan, crème brulee and pot de crème have to be baked bain marie.  Other items like cakes and puddings may also be baked with a hot water bath, so your butter cake can also be included.  Let me just note that by doing so, your butter will be a little more wet than usual.  Fruitcakes are also baked in a hot water bath to make them more moist as well as to prevent cracking on top.

Jun Jun: That’s right, the bain marie is primarily used for custards and other egg-based type of desserts that have to be baked slowly.  I don’t really recommend cakes other than these but with fruit cakes, I do this so that there is gentle baking happening since this will take longer than the usual time for a cake to bake. 

Q: Hi, Jun Jun and Adoree.  I read your column regularly but it is my first time to write you. I would like to congratulate you both for a very informative and very helpful column.  My question is regarding baking my cheesecake using a bain marie.  Is it possible for me to not use a hot water bath anymore because the water keeps on sipping into the cheesecake.  (Joan Lirios from Pasig City)

Adoree:  Thanks for writing us, Joan.  I hope you continue to read our column and that this will not be the last time to hear from you.  I can only imagine the frustration when you find out the bottom of your cheesecake is wet and soggy. 

The bad news is, you still have to bake the cheesecake in a bain marie.   I suggest you use a regular baking pan, the one without the removable bottom, if you are baking a New York-style cheesecake or the dense-type cheesecake. 

Line the bottom with baking paper and coat the side of the pan with butter.  After completely cooling the cheesecake and refrigerating it overnight, you will be able to invert it to unmold it.  I would suggest you use a cake board or any flat tool covered tightly with cling wrap; put this on the cheesecake then invert the cheesecake, peel off the paper at the bottom then re-invert again. 

The cling wrap should not stick to the cheesecake so as not to bruise it.  If your cheesecake is the creamy, soft-type, you have to use the removable-bottom pan.  Just double or triple line it with aluminum foil to ensure that the water does not sip in, and the water should not reach the edge of the foil.  If you can get the heavy-duty aluminum foil, so much better.

Jun Jun:  The other way is simulate the bain marie method by putting pans of water around the cheesecake which is just on a baking tray.  This way, you will prevent water from coming in or seeping in.  My other technique is to make sure that no fold of the foil reaches where the water is, since it is futile for the water to move to that area. 

Q: Good day to you both.  The hot water bath is supposed to prevent my cheesecake from browning, right?  What will I do if my cheesecake still browns and cracks on top even if I bake it bain marie?  I also noticed that my cheesecake creates a wet top after baking.  What would I do?  (Penny Wenceslao from Makati City)

Adoree: Hi, Penny.  Please ensure that your oven temperature is accurate. I suspect your temperature was high, so, even if you had a hot water bath, your cheesecake still browned and cracked on top.  Also, the water could have ‘boiled’ in the oven that is why the top was all wet.  Just bake the cheesecake at 300 F with the hot water bath and watch for any browning, you might need to reduce the temperature further by 25 degrees Fahrenheit.  Good luck!

Jun Jun: The temperature of the oven is too high. If you are not sure of this, get yourself an oven thermometer; it really helps a lot.  Also, make sure you have the right amount of water in your container.