Baking Powder
Ingredients
Directions
Combine bicarbonate of soda, cream of tartar, and cornstarch in a bowl.
Roll smoothly and mix thoroughly.
Store in a tight glass jar or bottle.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Bicarbonate of soda
- Provides the alkaline base that releases carbon dioxide to make baked goods rise when acid is present.
- Cream of tartar
- Supplies the acid that reacts with bicarbonate of soda to produce gas for leavening.
- Cornstarch
- Absorbs moisture and keeps the powder dry so the acid and base do not react early.
The step that matters
Mix thoroughly. If the bicarbonate and cream of tartar are not evenly distributed, some spots will be too acidic or too alkaline, causing uneven rising and off flavors in baked goods.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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