C-D

Cake flour is made from soft wheat and produces a tender, delicate crumb. Many bakers use it for angel food and chiffon cakes.

To substitute cake flour for all-purpose flour: Use 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons of cake flour per 1 cup all-purpose flour. Sift cake flour before measuring to lighten it so too much won't be added.

Measuring Ingredients

To heat and stir sugar until it melts and browns. Caramelized, or burnt, sugar is used in dessert recipes such as flan, candy-coated nuts, and burnt sugar cake and frosting.

To cut foods with a knife, cleaver, or food processor into smaller pieces.

The large, oval, husk-covered fruit of the coconut palm. Its market forms include canned and packaged coconut that is processed and sold shredded, flaked, and grated in sweetened and unsweetened forms. Flaked coconut is finer than shredded. Fresh and dried coconut pieces also are available.

A finely ground corn product, made from dried yellow, white, or blue corn kernels. Cornmeal labeled "stone ground" is slightly coarser than regular cornmeal. Store cornmeal in an airtight container in a cool, dry place for up to 6 months, or freeze it for up to a year.

To beat a fat, such as butter or shortening, either alone or with sugar, to a light, fluffy consistency. This process incorporates air into the fat so baked products have a lighter texture and better volume.

A dairy product made from whipping cream and a bacterial culture. The culture causes the whipping cream to thicken and develop a sharp, tangy flavor. Creme fraiche is similar to sour cream but is softer and has a milder flavor. Popular in French cooking, creme fraiche is often spooned over fresh fruit or used in recipes as you would sour cream. It is available at specialty food stores. If you can't find it in your area, you can make a substitute by combining 1/2 cup whipping cream and 1/2 cup dairy sour cream. Cover the mixture and let it stand at room temperature for 2 to 5 hours or until it thickens. Refrigerate for up to a week.

To pinch or press pastry dough together using your fingers, a fork, or another utensil. Usually done for a piecrust edge.

To work a solid fat, such as shortening or butter, into dry ingredients, usually with a pastry blender or two knives.

A measure equal to 1/16 teaspoon. Can be measured by filling a 1/4-teaspoon measure one-fourth full.

A specialty of Devonshire, England, this extra-thick cream is made by heating whole, unpasteurized milk until a semisolid layer of cream forms on the surface. After cooling, the Devonshire, or clotted, cream traditionally is served atop scones with jam.

To stir a solid food and a liquid food together to form a mixture in which none of the solid remains.

A mixture of flour and liquid to which other ingredients, such as sweeteners, shortening, butter, egg, or a leavening agent may be added. A dough is thick and nonpourable; some doughs can be kneaded. Soft doughs have more liquid and generally are used for biscuits, breads, and drop cookies. Stiff doughs are firm enough to be rolled out easily and are used to make items such as piecrusts and cutout cookies.

Dried egg whites can be used where egg white is needed (but not meringue powder, which has added sugar). Dried egg whites also are safer than raw egg whites. One handy use for them is in making egg white glazes for baked goods (no yolk is wasted). Dried egg whites are found in powdered form in the baking aisle of many grocery stores.

Fruit that has been depleted of more than half its water content by exposure to the sun or by mechanical heating methods. Dried fruit is chewy and very sweet due to the concentration of sugars during the drying process.

To randomly pour a liquid, such as powdered sugar icing, in a thin stream over food.

To lightly coat or sprinkle a food with a dry ingredient, such as flour or powdered sugar, either before or after cooking.