My Not-So-Secret, Secret Baking Weapon

Baking is a science. Unlike in cooking where you can take a pinch there, throw in a little basil and salt to taste- Baking, rather, needs to be measured, re-measured and timed perfectly.

The eggs, butter and milk must all be the correct temperature (room temperature to be exact).

Dry ingrediants should be sifted together for even distribution.

Don't whip it together long enough- you get seperation. Whip it too long- you can get either too many air bubbles or a soupy result (depending on what your baking).

All in all- you need to make sure everything is in order when you bake to get the best possible result.

One thing that we forget about, or rather think the job is done for us, is getting the correct oven temperature.

Okay, now is your turn to say "Um, Jess- I have a digital, American, brand new oven. So lay off." Well now I'm about to crush all your dreams: Ovens. Are. The. Devil.

Not really.

But they do get it wrong. A lot of times. Majority of ovens have hot spots. Thats a spot in your oven that will get hot and stay hotter than any other spot. They even have cool spots. Just take a guess on what that means.

So now you are thinking "Oh Jess- Please. Tell me what I can do to fix this catastraphy!"

No worries- I possess the sercet weapon. Actually, your local Walmart does.

It's as easy as a $5 oven thermometer.

This little gadget sits or hangs from your oven rack and tells you the correct temperature.

Let me show you what I am dealing with here in Germany, and why I felt the need to buy one.

Yep. Celcius.

Ten points if you can tell me the conversion equation for Celsius to Farenheit off the top of your head. Anyone? Didn't think so.

I have an app (God Bless iPhones) for conversion and it was telling me that 175 C would get me to 350 F. In the words of my husband " Ra Ra Ra WRONG!" All my cupcakes were chewy on top, raw in the middle. And I knew the back left corner was a hot spot because everytime I put in cake (TIP: when baking two round cakes in the oven at the same time, put them in diagonally, not side by side, for a more even bake) that corner burned the poor soul I put there.

When I came home with this little guy I decided that I first needed to know what temperature 350 F really is on my oven. I also needed to figure out my hot and cool spots. I put the thermometer dead center and turned it on 175 C.

HOLY SMOKES!

It was 420 F! All those nights of being so angry when my chicken lasagna was still raw, but looked done.

I then placed it at each corner for 15 minutes each to find out where my hot and cool spots are. One really hot spot, one slightly cool spot. I can live with that.

My thermometer now hangs in the back of my oven so I can always see what the temperature is. I really only take it out to clean.

Can I just point out how ridiculously small my oven is?