Pastry Journal guide

Ingredients

Read product and ingredient behaviour before making substitutions or transferring a formula between suppliers.

Start here

Key pages

Gelatin Sheets, Powder and Bloom Strength

How to replace gold and silver gelatin by sheet or by dry weight, with practical Bloom conversions, hydration and pastry troubleshooting.

Cream in Pastry: Fat, Temperature and Aeration

How I choose and use dairy cream in pastry: fat percentage, temperature, whipping, emulsions, chocolate mousse, crémeux, substitutions and troubleshooting.

Fruit Purées in Pastry: Brix, Acidity and Texture

How I specify and use professional fruit purées in pastry: °Brix, pH, titratable acidity, fibre, consistency, freezing, gelation and recipe substitutions.

See the techniques in context

See it in a finished cake

Chocolate Tonka & Passion Fruit Cake — see how these techniques work together in the finished cake.

Cherry Chocolate Cake — see how these techniques work together in the finished cake.

Browse the full topic

Find the page you need

Choose a group below, then start with the recipe, ingredient or problem closest to your question.

Chocolate and cocoa

Couverture, cocoa butter, cocoa powder and chocolate selection.

How I Make Cake Sponge with Less Sugar — Vanilla and Chocolate

My reduced-sugar vanilla and chocolate sponge development formulas, and the pastry science behind keeping real sponge texture when sucrose is reduced.

Types of Chocolate: Dark, Milk, White, Couverture and Compound

How I choose between dark, milk and white chocolate—and why cocoa percentage, couverture, baking chocolate and compound coating are not interchangeable.

Is Chocolate Lactose-Free? How I Read the Label

Why dark chocolate may contain no milk yet is not automatically safe for every dairy restriction, and how lactose-free, dairy-free, vegan and milk-allergy claims differ.

Cocoa Butter Crystallisation and Polymorphism

A peer-reviewed, pastry-focused explanation of cocoa-butter crystal forms, nucleation, crystal growth, gloss, contraction, snap and bloom.

Dark Chocolate Couverture: Composition, Fluidity and Selection

A documented guide to how cocoa mass, cocoa butter, sugar, emulsifiers and product-specific fluidity determine dark couverture performance.

Cocoa Butter in Chocolate: Structure, Melt and Function

A peer-reviewed guide to cocoa butter as chocolate’s continuous fat phase: triacylglycerols, melting, crystallisation, snap and substitution consequences.

How to Incorporate Fat into Aerated Batter

My professional method for adding melted butter, chocolate or another fat phase to egg foam without streaks, separation or unnecessary loss of aeration.

Valrhona vs Cheaper Chocolate: What Are You Actually Paying For?

My honest comparison of Valrhona, professional couverture and cheaper chocolate products—flavour, cocoa butter, consistency, technical performance and when the extra cost matters.

Dairy and eggs

Cream, milk, butter, cheese, whites and yolks.

Milk Powder in Baking: What It Does and When to Use It

How to replace skim milk with skim milk powder, plus what milk powder changes in bread, cake and pastry.

Milk in Pastry: Water, Proteins, Lactose and Fat

How I use milk in pastry: composition, fat level, proteins, lactose, browning, custards, dough hydration, substitutions, heat treatment and troubleshooting.

Can I Use Milk in Baking for Someone Who Is Lactose Intolerant?

How I assess ordinary milk, lactose-free dairy and other dairy ingredients when baking for lactose intolerance, including lactose per portion, milk allergy, milk powder and substitutions.

Sugar in Pastry: Function Beyond Sweetness

I explain how sucrose controls egg foams, tenderness, moisture, browning, caramel, freezing and texture—and why reducing sugar changes the whole formula.

Sponge Cake Types: Structure, Texture and Uses

I compare génoise, separated-egg sponge, biscuit, Joconde, dacquoise, chiffon and entremet sponge by aeration, fat, texture and best pastry use.

Folding Batter: How I Preserve Aeration

My professional folding method for combining egg foam, liquids, dry ingredients and fat while preserving aeration in sponge, mousse and other pastry.

Butter in Pastry: Fat, Water and Temperature

How I choose and use butter in pastry: fat and water, temperature, plasticity, emulsions, browning, clarification, lamination and substitutions.

Eggs in Pastry: Whites, Yolks and Whole Eggs

How I use egg whites, yolks and whole eggs for aeration, structure, emulsification, moisture and texture, with weighing and substitution guidance.

Almond Flour in Pastry: Texture, Fat and Structure

How I choose and use almond flour in pastry: grind, fat, moisture, storage, substitutions and its structural role in sponge, financiers and almond cream.

Cream of Tartar in Baking: What It Does and When I Use It

My pastry guide to cream of tartar: what it does in cakes and meringue, how it stabilizes egg whites, how it works with baking soda, and when substitutes are appropriate.

Swiss Meringue: My 2:1 Formula, Bain-Marie Temperature and Drying Method

My Swiss meringue recipe with a 2:1 sugar-to-whites ratio, 55°C / 131°F bain-marie method, low-temperature drying, troubleshooting, uses and safety guidance.

French Meringue: My House Formula, Sugar Ratio and Low-Temperature Drying

My French meringue recipe with a 245 g egg-white house formula, a classical 2:1 sugar structure, gentle icing-sugar incorporation, low-temperature drying and practical troubleshooting.

Albumin Powder vs Egg White in Meringue: My Method

My method for assessing albumin powder against liquid egg whites in meringue: hydration, foam, water balance and why I do not use a universal conversion.

How I Make Mascarpone Cream for Tiramisu

I explain how mascarpone quality, yolk aeration, sugar dissolution, temperature and restrained mixing create a tiramisu cream that is soft but stable.

How I Build a Stable Oil-Based Cake Batter

I explain how eggs, sugar and liquid oil form the base of an oil cake, why mixing order matters, and how I prevent a greasy, heavy or separated crumb.

How I Keep Cream Cheese Frosting Smooth and Stable

I explain how cream-cheese type, temperature, mixing order and sugar affect frosting, and why overmixing or warming can turn it loose.

How I Use Buttermilk in Cakes

I explain how cultured buttermilk contributes water, acidity, dairy solids and flavour, and why its interaction with baking soda must be balanced rather than guessed.

How I Cream Butter and Sugar for a Fine Cake Crumb

I explain how butter temperature, sugar crystals, mixing time and gradual egg addition build useful aeration without producing a greasy or broken cake batter.

Pavlova Recipe: My Crisp-Shelled Meringue with a Marshmallow Centre

My Pavlova recipe uses a classic 2:1 sugar-to-egg-white ratio, a little cornstarch and acid, and a controlled low bake for a crisp shell with a soft marshmallow centre.

Crème Brûlée Recipe: My Smooth Vanilla Custard with a Thin Caramel Crust

My crème brûlée recipe uses cream, egg yolks, vanilla and gentle bain-marie baking for a silky custard finished with a very thin, brittle caramelized sugar crust.

Why Pain aux Raisins Unravels, Leaks or Stays Soggy

I diagnose pain aux raisins that unravels, leaks cream or butter, loses its spiral, or remains dense, raw or soggy in the centre.

Brioche Feuilletée Recipe: My Rich Laminated Brioche

My brioche feuilletée recipe uses rich whole-egg brioche dough with separate tourage butter, three simple turns, cold proofing control, baking and troubleshooting explained.

Why Brioche Feuilletée Loses Layers, Leaks or Turns Greasy

I diagnose brioche feuilletée with lost lamination, leaking butter, dense centres, greasy crumb, weak proof or poor mould expansion.

Croissant Recipe: My Classic French Butter Croissants

My classic French croissant recipe in grams, with lamination, butter plasticity, turns, proofing, baking and troubleshooting explained.

How I Develop Croissant Dough Before Lamination

I explain how I mix croissant détrempe for enough strength to hold layers and fermentation gas without making it so elastic that rolling damages the butter.

How I Control Butter Plasticity for Croissants

I explain how I judge lamination butter by flexibility rather than one fixed temperature, and what I do when it cracks, smears or moves differently from the dough.

How I Proof and Bake Croissants

I explain how I judge croissant proof by volume, movement and visible layers, protect the butter from excessive heat, apply egg wash and bake until the crumb is fully set.

Danish Pastry Recipe: My Professional Laminated Dough Base

My professional Danish pastry dough recipe in grams, with enriched yeast dough, butter lamination, turns, proofing, baking, fillings and troubleshooting explained.

Kouign-Amann Recipe: My Classic Breton Butter Pastry

My classic kouign-amann recipe in grams, with yeasted dough, butter lamination, sugar turns, proofing, caramelization and troubleshooting explained.

White Sandwich Bread Recipe: My Pain de Mie-Style Loaf

My white sandwich bread recipe with milk, cream, egg, butter, overnight cold fermentation, fine crumb, open-top baking and a Pullman pain de mie variation.

Challah Recipe: My Braided Egg Bread Method

My professional challah recipe with eggs, oil, controlled fermentation, even braiding, proofing cues, egg wash and a soft, fine crumb.

Crème Anglaise Recipe: My Classic Vanilla Custard Sauce

My classic crème anglaise recipe: a silky vanilla custard sauce made with milk, yolks and sugar, cooked gently to 82–84°C / 180–183°F and judged by the nappe test.

Crème Mousseline: My Professional Recipe, Method and Troubleshooting Guide

My professional crème mousseline recipe with pastry cream and butter, including the correct emulsion method, working temperature, troubleshooting, ratios and pastry uses.

Panettone Dough in a Spiral Mixer: Causes of Mixing Failure

A practical guide to panettone mixing problems: dough development, butter and sugar addition, mixer load, fermentation and temperature control.

Panna Cotta: How to Control Texture and Gelatin

A practical guide to panna cotta texture: cream and milk balance, gelatin strength, temperature, setting and common mistakes.

Puff Pastry Recipe: My Professional Pâte Feuilletée

My professional puff pastry recipe in grams, with détrempe, butter lock-in, turns, resting, baking, freezing and troubleshooting explained.

Brioche Recipe: My Professional French Butter Bread

My professional brioche recipe in grams, with whole eggs, cold butter incorporation, dough temperature, overnight fermentation, proofing and troubleshooting explained.

My Kugelhopf Recipe — Raisins, Almonds and Enriched Dough

My tested Kugelhopf recipe with butter, eggs, raisins and almonds, plus the mixing, proofing and baking controls I use for a light enriched crumb.

My Gâteau Basque Recipe — Butter Pastry and Vanilla Cream

My tested Gâteau Basque recipe with butter pastry and vanilla pastry cream, plus the sealing and baking controls I use for an even result.

My Génoise Sponge Recipe — Whole-Egg Foam Method

My tested génoise sponge recipe, with staged whole-egg whipping, careful flour folding and a butter liaison for a fine, light crumb.

My Scottish Shortbread Recipe — The 1:2:3 Butter Biscuit

My tested Scottish shortbread recipe using the classical 1:2:3 sugar, butter and flour ratio, with the mixing and baking controls I use for a short crumb.

My Soft Amaretti Recipe — Almond and Egg-White Biscuits

My tested soft amaretti recipe with almond flour, sugar and egg whites, including how I keep the centres tender without confusing them with French macarons.

My Christmas Stollen Recipe — Fruit, Almonds and Butter

My tested Christmas Stollen recipe with dried fruit, almonds and a butter-sugar finish, including how I mix and bake this heavily enriched dough.

My British Scones Recipe — Tender Cream-Tea Scones

My tested British scones recipe with cold butter, minimal mixing and a hot bake for a tender cream-tea crumb.

Rough Puff Pastry: Building Flaky Layers Without a Butter Block

Tanya Novak explains rough puff pastry as a deliberately irregular lamination system: how butter pieces, hydration, folds, resting and baking create crisp layers without classic puff pastry's enclosed butter block.

Pâte Sablée: Tender Shortcrust Pastry and Clean Tart Shells

A professional guide to pâte sablée: how butter, sugar, flour, eggs, mixing method, resting and baking determine friability, crispness and clean tart-shell structure.

My Sablé Breton Recipe — A Thick Breton Butter Biscuit

My tested Sablé Breton recipe with butter, egg yolks and baking powder, including how I keep the crumb sandy, tender and evenly baked.

Pâte à Choux Recipe: My Professional Choux Pastry

My professional pâte à choux recipe for éclairs, profiteroles and Paris-Brest, with panade drying, egg consistency, baking and troubleshooting explained.

Tarte Tatin Recipe: My Classic French Caramelised Apple Tart

My classic Tarte Tatin with firm apples, deep caramel and crisp all-butter puff pastry, with apple choice, inversion and troubleshooting explained.

Madeleine Recipe: My Classic French Madeleines with a Tender Crumb and Proper Hump

My classic lemon madeleine recipe with a 12-hour cold rest, tender buttery crumb, defined shell and proper hump, with mould, baking and troubleshooting explained.

Why I Rest Madeleine Batter Overnight

I explain how a 12-hour cold rest hydrates flour, firms butter and gives madeleine batter a repeatable starting temperature without overclaiming what resting can fix.

How I Prepare a Madeleine Mould for Clean Shell Definition

I explain metal versus silicone madeleine moulds, thin butter-and-flour preparation, consistent filling and prompt unmoulding for clear shells and even colour.

Why Madeleines Are Flat, Dry, Greasy or Stuck

I diagnose madeleine failures through batter temperature, leavener, butter incorporation, fill weight, mould preparation, oven heat and baking endpoint.

How I Make Beurre Noisette for Financiers

I explain how I brown butter by sensory cues, stop the cooking, retain the toasted milk solids and weigh the finished beurre noisette correctly for financier formulas.

Why I Use Unwhipped Egg Whites in Financiers

I explain how unwhipped egg whites hydrate and set financier batter while preserving its fine, moist, compact crumb instead of turning it into a foam cake.

How I Emulsify Financier Batter

I explain the order, temperature and physical cues I use to incorporate warm clarified or browned butter into egg-white and nut-flour financier batter without greasy separation.

Why Financiers Are Dry, Greasy, Pale or Stuck

I diagnose financier failures through butter emulsion, nut-flour texture, cavity weight, mould conductivity, oven heat, baking endpoint and cooling.

How I Prepare Canelé Moulds for a Thin, Crisp Crust

I compare copper, aluminium and silicone canelé moulds and explain how I apply butter or beeswax without creating pooled, greasy or uneven shells.

Pâte Brisée: Shortcrust Pastry, Hydration and Texture

A professional guide to pâte brisée: how flour, butter, water, mixing, resting and baking create a tender shortcrust pastry for sweet and savoury tarts.

Croissant: Lamination and Fermentation Fundamentals

The essential relationship between dough strength, butter layers, proofing and baking in croissant production.

Choux Pastry: Steam, Eggs and Structure

How panade drying, egg quantity and baking create hollow choux shells.

Fruit and gelling systems

Purées, pectins, gelatin, gums and hydrocolloids.

Freeze–Thaw Stability of Fruit Inserts

My professional method for freezing, thawing and testing fruit inserts for entremets, with practical control of syneresis, pectin, gelatin, Brix and pH.

Gelatin Hydration and Gelatin Mass: Ratios and Conversion

How to make, weigh and convert gelatin mass: dry gelatin, hydration water, 1:5 and 1/6 notation, sheet gelatin, Bloom strength and pastry troubleshooting.

Pectin NH in Pastry: Fruit Gels and Freezing

How I use Pectin NH for fruit gels and frozen inserts: product selection, sugar dispersion, hot hydration, acidity, thermoreversibility and troubleshooting.

Agar Agar in Baking and Pastry: How to Use It Without a Rubbery Texture

A pastry chef’s practical guide to agar agar: how it sets, how it differs from gelatin, how to dissolve it and how to avoid brittle or rubbery gels.

Fruit Gels: Pectin, Gelatin or Agar?

A pastry chef’s guide to fruit gels: how pectin, gelatin and agar differ, how acidity and fruit composition affect texture, and how to choose the right system.

How Carrots Change Cake Batter, Moisture and Texture

I explain how carrot water, fibre, sugar, particle size and preparation affect cake batter, baking time and the difference between a moist crumb and a gummy centre.

Why I Use Steam at the Beginning of Bread Baking

Why bread needs steam early in the bake: surface condensation, delayed crust setting, oven spring, score opening, starch gelatinisation, gloss, browning and why I vent the oven later.

Glucono Delta-Lactone (GDL): What It Is and How It Works in Food and Baking

I explain what glucono delta-lactone (GDL) is, how it slowly acidifies food, how it behaves in baking, and where it is useful in pastry, bread and other food systems.

Gellan Gum in Modern Pastry

What gellan gum does in gels and fluid gels, and why its behaviour differs from gelatin and pectin.

Fruit Mousse: Acidity, Gelatin and Aeration

How fruit acidity, purée solids, gelatin and whipped components interact in a stable fruit mousse.

Flour, starch and fermentation

Structure, hydration, starches, yeast and preferments.

Fresh Yeast vs Dry Yeast: How Much to Use

How I convert fresh yeast to dry yeast by product, with worked examples for brioche, active dry versus instant yeast, and enriched-dough checks.

Potato Starch in Baking: Uses and Texture

When potato starch helps a cake or filling, how to test a substitution, and why potato flour and corn starch behave differently.

Ascorbic Acid in Bread Dough: When I Would Consider It

How I assess whether ascorbic acid belongs in a wheat bread dough: flour strength, mixing, tiny flour-based doses and a controlled comparison bake.

Why I Use Starch and Acid in Pavlova

I explain how a small amount of cornstarch and vinegar or lemon supports Pavlova’s marshmallow centre without replacing correct foam, geometry and baking.

Why Pavlova Cracks, Weeps or Collapses

I diagnose Pavlova through foam quality, sugar dissolution, starch and acid, shape, oven heat, cooling and humidity rather than treating every crack as failure.

How I Judge a Poolish: Ripeness, Timing and Dough Effect

I explain how I mix and judge a ripe poolish, recognise a young or collapsed preferment, control yeast and temperature, and calculate it correctly in bread dough.

How I Match Bread Flour to Hydration and Dough Strength

I explain how I decide whether bread flour can support a chosen hydration, adjust water without chasing a percentage, and read strength, extensibility and stickiness in the dough.

How I Choose Wheat Flour: Strength, W, P/L, Ash and Flour Types

A practical guide to wheat flour strength, alveograph W and P/L, ash content, protein quality, international flour labels and choosing flour for cakes, bread, croissants, brioche and panettone.

Rye Bread Recipe: My Sourdough Rye Method

My rye-dominant sourdough bread recipe with 66% rye flour, an overnight rye sour, controlled fermentation, steam baking and a moist, clean-slicing crumb.

How I Use Rye Flour in Bread: Structure, Acidity and Crumb

I explain how rye flour changes water binding, dough handling, fermentation and crumb setting, and why rye-rich bread needs different judgments from wheat dough.

Psyllium in Gluten-Free Baking: Structure, Water and Texture

How psyllium husk affects water binding, viscosity, structure and handling in gluten-free baking, and why dosage must be tested within the full formula.

My Vanilla Kipferl Recipe — Austrian Crescent Biscuits

My tested Vanilla Kipferl recipe with a tender nut short dough, precise crescent shaping and a warm vanilla-sugar finish.

How I Rest Canelé Batter — and Why It Matters

I explain how cold resting hydrates flour, releases trapped air and makes canelé batter more predictable without turning rest time into a substitute for correct mixing.

Sugars and functional sweeteners

Sweetness, solids, freezing behaviour, browning and texture.