A Test On Chemically Aerated Products

We had our 3rd assessment last Saturday and that marks the end of our sugar module~ woot! I really hated dealing with sugar despite being able to work in an air-conditioned room and having a smaller area to clear up. Our 3rd assessment was on chemically aerated products: products which uses a higher ratio of baking powder to help aerate and fluffify the baked goods. 

Our class was divided into 2 groups; one started on scones while the other started with muffins. I started with scones, using the rub in method, and it was kinda tricky as the dough obtained from the given recipe was way stickier than the previous ones we made. The previous recipe had a higher percentage of fat and sugar and a lower percentage in eggs and liquid, which explains the drier texture. I was really eager to do a taste the scones as I wanted to know the effects dough texture had on the taste.

Raisin Scones and Plain Scones

In my opinion, the scones were slightly cakier and softer. I also thought it looked flater and rounder, like those moon cake pastries or siew bao. Nonetheless, Chef Goh was nice and gave us all good grades :)

Next, it was our turn to make the muffins. The recipe given called for an all in method which made muffin making a breeze. We basically dump in all the ingredients and let the mixer do its thing before piping it into a muffin tray and baking at 205 degrees C. However, we made a mistake by opening the oven after 15 minutes to flip the tray around; that resulted in a slightly collapsed muffin which was really ugly. It may have been our luck for that day as almost 30% of our muffins were undercooked...sighs.

Nicely Risen Muffin VS Our Collapsed Muffins

Nonetheless, the other 70% yield a fluffy buttery texture. 

Soft and Fluffy Interior

We decorated the plain vanilla muffins with strawberry flavoured cream and sprinkled some colourful bits to complete the look.

The muffins were extremely moist the day after

We finished our assessment pretty early and so Chef Goh decided to demonstrate making scones using the creaming method. This method involved us creaming the fats with sugar before adding in the eggs and flour and boy! does this yield one hell of a fluffy scone. 

Scones- Creaming Method

The scone was uber soft and tender, almost like a dense pound cake. Looks like creaming is the way to go if you prefer a fluffier scone! :)

Fluffy Scones