Great British Bake Off's Frances Quinn Shares Her Best Baking Tips - Exclusive
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When it comes to baking at home, recipes can get tough sometimes. Baking is a science that requires specific ingredients and steps as you pay careful attention to the bake along the way. Thankfully, there are plenty of bakers who have spent a number of years in the kitchen honing their craft and excellent skills that are willing to share their tips. Frances Quinn is one of them.
As the winner of Season 4 of "The Great British Bake Off," Quinn certainly knows a thing or two about baking. She's incredibly talented when it comes to cakes and pastries, and she's a big fan of baking biscuits, or cookies as we'd call them in the States.
Recently, in an exclusive interview with Mashed, Quinn allowed us to pick her brain. From her best baking tips to the top kitchen tools she thinks you should always keep on hand, she was gracious enough to share it all.
Frances Quinn says these are three of the most important tools for bakers
While it may seem important to have a giant stand mixer in the kitchen or a whole slew of piping tools for decorating cakes and cookies, sometimes it's important to go back to basics first. There are several tools to consider when you're just getting into baking that can help you from the get-go. And chances are, they'll help you become a better baker with more practice.
According to Frances Quinn, a set of digital scales is one of the top items. "They're really handy to have. In fact, I even took my own along to Bake Off in the tent," she said. A digital scale will help you measure ingredients more accurately than a traditional cup measurement.
Quinn also suggests a pen or a pencil so you can write down recipes or ideas in the kitchen. And lastly, a microplane zester to enhance your bakes with lemon, orange, or even lime zest. "It's just a really great zester for getting really fine zest and quickly," she said.
Frances Quinn shares her top baking tips
For Frances Quinn, the kitchen is a calming place and baking should be relaxing. On that note, it's important not to overcomplicate things. "Sometimes it's good starting with a basic recipe," she said. "It's the idea of having a basic, say, lemon sponge or a basic flapjack mixture. And then you can ring the changes with different flavoring like putting orange zest in a flapjack, or using different types of sugar in your sponge."
Another great tip? Quinn says it's helpful to use parchment paper when rolling biscuits, or cookies. "When you're making biscuits, I would always roll the dough out onto your non-stick parchment paper, and then you can cut the shapes and just peel back the dough," she said. "Then you don't have to move the biscuits onto another sheet. They're already on the baking paper itself."
Last but certainly not least, Quinn says have fun with it. Throw on a great playlist and get to baking. "Just enjoy being in the kitchen and don't feel too intimidated by it. Try not to bake when you're in a bad mood because it never normally comes out very well," she said. "Don't get disheartened when things go wrong. You always learn from your mistakes."
You can find recipes from Frances Quinn on her website or more great recipes in her book "Quintessential Baking."