Cookbook author Camilla Wynne on why you should bake all summer long

CBC

8 hours ago

Yes, it's worth turning your oven on for these sweet treats
Summer is all about fruit. Markets heave with colourful harvests begging to be transformed into dessert. And although there's nothing quite like that first bite of a perfectly ripe strawberry or juicy peach, you need to turn on your oven to truly experience the full potential of the season's offerings.
There's something special about cooked fruit; it's delightful in a pie or crumble, but even better in a galette. I find it so satisfying to arrange sliced fruit in neat concentric circles on a disc of dough. The latter becomes shatteringly crisp in a hot oven, while roasting fruit causes some of its water content to evaporate, concentrating flavours and filling your house with incredible aromas. Plus, this sweet requires no toppings, except perhaps a spoonful of whipped cream.
Planning to freeze all that fresh fruit to bake with throughout the winter? While that works for some preparations — jams, muffins, crisps — you'll never get the ideal galette from frozen fruit. Freezing breaks down cell walls, causing the juices to flow free and the fruit to lose its shape. I'm afraid you're just going to have to bake now.
Luckily, I have some tips to help you deal with common hot-weather baking problems — for galettes and more — that will help you avoid any potential pitfalls.
Stick to smaller treats
If you're lucky enough to have air conditioning, you might be in the clear. If not, I find that opening the windows and turning on the fans for a cross breeze can help. But on super-hot days, choose recipes with shorter bake times to limit how long the oven is on. Smaller treats such as cupcakes and mini tarts bake faster than their full-size counterparts, and they're excellent for bringing to picnics since they're pre-portioned. Shortcakes in particular are a classic summertime treat; if you don't have round cutters, you can use an upside-down glass or cut the dough into squares.
Be mindful of rising temps
If you're baking with yeast or making sourdough, keep in mind that higher ambient temperatures will affect rising times, often speeding up the rise itself. There's nothing worse than kneading dough into full gluten development only to later find it spilling out of its container. When it's over-proofed, it lacks structure and can take on a slightly alcoholic scent. So when temperatures peak, check on the rising status of your dough sooner rather than later.
On the plus side, if you're doing one rise in the fridge overnight (my timesaving hack for making yeasted treats in the morning with less fuss), the dough will shake off that chill much faster in a hot kitchen and will be ready to bake — and eat — sooner.
Make your refrigerator work for you
While most cookie recipes call for room-temperature butter, a very hot room makes for very soft butter, which can cause cookies to spread too much in the oven and bake too flat. The refrigerator (or freezer, if you're in a rush) is your best friend here. Chill cookie dough thoroughly before baking it so the proteins and starches can begin to gel before the butter melts and slumps.
Similarly, working with pie dough or puff pastry in a hot environment can feel impossible with too-warm butter making things sticky. To avoid this, pre-chill all dough ingredients and return the dough to the fridge if it ever feels too soft — or stick to crumb crusts and cookies that start with a melted-butter base!
Steer clear of sweaty confections
There are some bakes you should avoid on particularly humid days. While a pavlova might seem like the ultimate summer dessert — crisp meringue topped with mounds of whipped cream and fresh fruit — it's only for days with a low humidex. Humidity is the enemy of meringue, making it soft, sticky and even weepy, so you'll want to avoid meringue-topped pies as well.
If you're making meringues ahead of time, store them in an airtight container. Save little packets of silica from packaged snacks such as seaweed to add to the container — they will help to absorb excess moisture and keep things crisp.
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