QUESTION: How to check if baked goods are done?

Determining the readiness of homemade baked goods is an important skill that comes with experience, but there are several proven professional methods for different types of items. Proper assessment of the baking degree guarantees that a cake will not turn out raw inside and bread will not dry out in the oven.

The first and most popular method is suitable for cakes, sponge cakes, muffins, and soft pies. You will need a regular wooden toothpick or a thin wooden skewer, which should be carefully inserted into the very center of the item, as this part takes the longest to bake. If, upon extraction, there are no traces of liquid batter or clinging crumbs on the skewer, it means the baked goods are fully done.

For yeast and yeast-free bread, the classic auditory testing method is used. Take the loaf out of the oven, turn it upside down, and knock on the bottom crust with your knuckles. If you hear a clear and hollow sound, this indicates that the crumb inside has baked perfectly and become porous. If the sound is dull and muted, it is better to return the bread to the oven for a few more minutes.

Modern culinary thermometers greatly simplify the task of quality control for baked goods. For yeast bread, the internal temperature in the center of the crumb should be approximately 95-98 degrees Celsius. For delicate, democratic desserts such as a classic New York cheesecake, the target temperature inside the finished product is about 60-65 degrees.

Do not forget about the visual signs of confectionary readiness either. The edges of a quality pie or sponge cake should slightly pull away from the walls of the baking pan, and the top crust acquires a beautiful, even golden-brown shade. If you are baking an open pie with a berry or fruit filling, pay attention to the filling itself—it should not be watery and runny, and the syrup or juice should have thickened slightly.