High-Altitude Baking and Tips
Here's the thing. Baking at high altitude doesn't have to be hard, but you do have to make some adjustments. The air is thinner, which means that there's less pressure on foods when they rise, so they tend to rise fast and then collapse because the cell structures didn't have time to form. Also, water boils at a lower temperature at higher altitudes, so you have more liquid loss due to evaporation. We have a plethora of dry cakes and cupcakes in Colorado unfortunately.
Here are my high-altitude baking tips. I live at 5700 feet, so my recipes should work for anyone baking in the range of about 5000-6000 feet. If you live lower, you may need to use more chemical leaveners. If you live higher, you may need to use less chemical leaveners. For the ranges, you should start with the lowest range and then work up from there as needed.
Click here for my high-altitude baking recipes.
Cookies, Brownies, Pies, etc.:
I have no problem baking cookies, brownies, or pies.
Breads:
Breads will rise faster, so watch your rise and proof times. This is actually very helpful if you want to have homemade rolls for dinner and you only have a couple of hours.
Cupcakes:
When I eat cupcakes here, I can tell if they aren't adjusted for high altitude, and it tends to not be a pretty sight. Generally the cupcakes are dry and they aren't domed. The cake spills over the sides of the liner and rests on the pan. See the brown edges in the photo below? That's because I didn't adjust this recipe. The top of the cupcake is flat, although you can't really see that because of the frosting.
Here are my high-altitude baking tips. I live at 5700 feet, so my recipes should work for anyone baking in the range of about 5000-6000 feet. If you live lower, you may need to use more chemical leaveners. If you live higher, you may need to use less chemical leaveners. For the ranges, you should start with the lowest range and then work up from there as needed.
Click here for my high-altitude baking recipes.
Cookies, Brownies, Pies, etc.:
I have no problem baking cookies, brownies, or pies.
Breads:
Breads will rise faster, so watch your rise and proof times. This is actually very helpful if you want to have homemade rolls for dinner and you only have a couple of hours.
Cupcakes:
When I eat cupcakes here, I can tell if they aren't adjusted for high altitude, and it tends to not be a pretty sight. Generally the cupcakes are dry and they aren't domed. The cake spills over the sides of the liner and rests on the pan. See the brown edges in the photo below? That's because I didn't adjust this recipe. The top of the cupcake is flat, although you can't really see that because of the frosting.
So here's what I do for my cupcakes (I usually do tips 1, 2, 3, and 5. Tip 4 is something that I will wait and see if it needs to be fixed on a new batch):
1. Add an extra egg or if it's a vanilla/white cake recipe, add an extra egg white. The cakes need that extra moisture and the extra protein to help the cellular structures set.
2. Decrease the baking soda/baking powder by 1/8 to 1/2 teaspoon per every teaspoon of leavener in the recipe. Generally, I do 1/8-1/4 teaspoon reduction. It's rare that I go to the 1/2 teaspoon reduction. However, if I was baking at 9,000 feet, I might consider it.
3. Add 1-2 extra tablespoons of liquid per cup of liquid in the recipe. If it calls for one cup of milk, add one cup plus one (or two) tablespoons of milk.
4. If you cake has a mottled top (see picture above), decrease the sugar by 1-3 tablespoons per cup of sugar.
5. Increase the baking temperature by 25 degrees and check for doneness earlier.
Cakes:
If you've baked a cake at high altitude, you probably have experienced a collapsed cake. It looks so pretty while it's baking in the oven but then the center falls. Yes, you can hide this with extra frosting in the middle to make it level, but let's try to fix it in the first place. I usually do tips 1, 2, and 6. If those don't work, then I'll play around with 3, then 4, then 5.
1. If the recipe calls for an 8-inch round cake pan, bake it in a 9-inch cake pan. This gives everything more space so the batter doesn't overflow.
2. Add an extra egg or if it's a vanilla/white cake recipe, add an extra egg white. The cakes need that extra moisture and the extra protein to help the cellular structures set.
3. Decrease the baking soda/baking powder by 1/8 to 1/2 teaspoon per every teaspoon of leavener in the recipe. Generally, I do 1/8-1/4 teaspoon reduction.
4. Add 1-2 extra tablespoon of liquid per cup of liquid in the recipe. If it calls for one cup of milk, add one cup plus one (or two) tablespoon of milk.
5. If you cake has a mottled top, decrease the sugar by 1-3 tablespoons per cup of sugar.
6. Increase the baking temperature by 25 degrees and check for doneness earlier.
Thanks to Lauraland Design for the picture!
A lot of these tips come from Exploratorium
1. Add an extra egg or if it's a vanilla/white cake recipe, add an extra egg white. The cakes need that extra moisture and the extra protein to help the cellular structures set.
2. Decrease the baking soda/baking powder by 1/8 to 1/2 teaspoon per every teaspoon of leavener in the recipe. Generally, I do 1/8-1/4 teaspoon reduction. It's rare that I go to the 1/2 teaspoon reduction. However, if I was baking at 9,000 feet, I might consider it.
3. Add 1-2 extra tablespoons of liquid per cup of liquid in the recipe. If it calls for one cup of milk, add one cup plus one (or two) tablespoons of milk.
4. If you cake has a mottled top (see picture above), decrease the sugar by 1-3 tablespoons per cup of sugar.
5. Increase the baking temperature by 25 degrees and check for doneness earlier.
Cakes:
If you've baked a cake at high altitude, you probably have experienced a collapsed cake. It looks so pretty while it's baking in the oven but then the center falls. Yes, you can hide this with extra frosting in the middle to make it level, but let's try to fix it in the first place. I usually do tips 1, 2, and 6. If those don't work, then I'll play around with 3, then 4, then 5.
1. If the recipe calls for an 8-inch round cake pan, bake it in a 9-inch cake pan. This gives everything more space so the batter doesn't overflow.
2. Add an extra egg or if it's a vanilla/white cake recipe, add an extra egg white. The cakes need that extra moisture and the extra protein to help the cellular structures set.
3. Decrease the baking soda/baking powder by 1/8 to 1/2 teaspoon per every teaspoon of leavener in the recipe. Generally, I do 1/8-1/4 teaspoon reduction.
4. Add 1-2 extra tablespoon of liquid per cup of liquid in the recipe. If it calls for one cup of milk, add one cup plus one (or two) tablespoon of milk.
5. If you cake has a mottled top, decrease the sugar by 1-3 tablespoons per cup of sugar.
6. Increase the baking temperature by 25 degrees and check for doneness earlier.
Thanks to Lauraland Design for the picture!
A lot of these tips come from Exploratorium