Good Eats at the TEOTWAWKI Café—Making the Most of Powdered Milk in
Your Food Storage, the 3rd volume of articles from the Prep School Daily blog, is
now available on Amazon. With over 130 family-friendly recipes using powdered
milk—without a hint of that powdered milk taste—your family will have no idea
there's a crisis.
A couple of years ago I posted some basic instructions for making adjustments when baking at high altitudes. I didn’t go into the science of why the changes were necessary, and I wasn’t aware that increasing the baking temperature is also important.
A month or so ago I came across a link to an absolutely amazing reference from the University of Wyoming Extension service. And like most all USDA Extension publications, it’s free (your tax dollars at work). Unlike many, however, this one is beautiful. The gorgeous photography, unfortunately, will make you gain weight by just looking at the pics. It is really nice. In fact, it is so nice that if you printed it in color on glossy paper, you could give it as gifts to the high-altitude cooks among your family and friends.
I printed mine up this morning.
It goes by the rather unobtrusive title of High-Altitude Baking. As the title suggests, it is written for those living at high altitude, here defined as anything above 3,000 feet. And the beauty of the recipes in this cookbook lies in the fact that not only is everything absolutely scrumptious, but all of the high-altitude adjustments are already made. You just have to follow the recipe.
However, suggestions are also provided for adjusting all your other baking recipes as well. Most of the time when you see suggestions for high-altitude adjustments, it’s all-or-nothing. I think the customary cut-off for boxed cake mixes is 3,500 feet. But in this reference, there are specific instructions for those above 3000 feet, above 5000 feet, and above 7000 feet, as well as a suggested range in the recipe adjustments to be made, so you can tailor changes more precisely for your own altitude.
Also included are general baking guidelines for success, as well as specifics for using eggs, butter, hot and cold ingredients—information I’ve never seen shared anywhere else. I’ve been baking all my life and learned something new today. Actually, a few things. There are suggestions for serving desserts and making cakes moister—things I didn’t know and I was a professional wedding cake decorator for several years! This book is well worth taking a close look at.
In addition, the authors dive into the science of high-altitude baking—why you need to add or subtract sugar, water, and leavening, adjust temperatures, and more. Here’s an excerpt:
With each 500‑foot increase in elevation, the boiling point of water is lowered by just under 1°F. At 7,500 feet, for example, water boils at about 198°F. This quicker evaporation can make baked goods more prone to sticking as sugar becomes more concentrated. Some cakes will not set, or by the time they do, they are dry and crumbly. Leavening occurs faster, and gas bubbles tend to group in large, irregular pockets in a batter or dough. This can create a coarse‑textured cake.
Everything is so well-organized. Basically, they did an excellent job, something you just don’t expect out of the government. Kudos to Vicki Hayman and Tanya Engel of the University of Wyoming Extension for a job really well done.
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