My {baking} secret weapon
Baking is one of my most favorite things to do! It’s so calming and relaxing. I love baking things that are so yummy for other people. I love the chemistry and science behind it. I love experimenting with new recipes. And I love researching and reading everything I can about how to get the best bakes. One thing I don’t love is when something I make doesn’t turn out the way I thought it should when I have done everything right. It doesn’t always make sense if I followed the recipe correctly. It donned on me that it could be the oven. If the oven temperature says 350 degrees Fahrenheit and it’s actually at 300 degrees Fahrenheit, that can totally change the bake
We have moved quite a bit over the last 6 years. We moved from Utah (I had an amazing oven! It was a double freestanding oven that was brand-new). I had amazing bakes in that house. From there we lived in Alaska (it had an old wall oven that was constantly breaking) I had terrible bakes at times in that house, I would have to turn the oven on over and over to get the oven to heat up until we had it serviced. Next, we moved back to Utah (A pretty decent gas oven that I didn’t always trust.)
This thermometer has been so helpful in letting me know what actually going on in my oven! Often times the oven display will say a totally different temperature than what it actually is, according to the thermometer. I have had many bad bakes, that were taking a much longer time in the oven, AND weren’t coming out right in the end with my current oven until I realized I needed to start paying attention to the thermometer. I was trusting my current oven, because it is fairly new. I think the biggest problem is the preheating takes much longer than when the oven says it’s finished preheating. Just because it says it’s done preheating, doesn’t mean it is! Relying on the thermometer is what makes all the difference in my baking! It’s my secret weapon that keeps my baking a calm and happy time, instead of a disaster.