Saudi Gazette Who doesn't like freshly baked homemade cakes, pies and brownies? Baking has become a trend of late with young girls and home cooks across the world. A myriad of baking websites on the Internet, videos on YouTube and pages on Facebook feature countless recipes for all kinds of cakes, breads, pies and tarts. Social media inspiration Saudi Gazette spoke to a number of local home-based cooks who said social media inspired them to jump on the baking wagon. Jennifer John, a novice home baker, who started baking two years ago, said: "YouTube channels like "Laura in the Kitchen" and "Joy of Baking" inspired me to bake. The recipes are simple and the steps shown are easy to follow." She added: "I love it when people help themselves to second servings with big smiles. Its all about the joy of sharing when you cook." A passionate home cook who has over 2 million followers runs ‘Fauzia's Kitchen Fun' on Facebook. She has inspired many home cooks from around the world with her recipes. "Fauzia in the Kitchen- has amazing go-to recipes. I also thought of trying one of her bread recipes. I baked it and my family loved it. It wasn't long before I started baking cakes from scratch and different kinds of dinner rolls and buns," said Fareeha Amin. Amin, who started baking three years ago, highly recommends following pages ‘Tastemade' and easy recipes for baking desserts, breads and savory dishes. "Social media is a great platform to learn and get inspired," said Alia Rehan, who started baking two years ago. She added that the there are so many mouth-watering recipes on the Internet that "I'm confused as to what to bake first." Availability of ingredients Baking has become a trend not only because of access to unlimited recipes but also easy availability of ingredients. "If you visit any supermarket today, you will find different kinds of sugar, chocolates, butter, cream, flour, frostings and other baking goods from a variety of brands. You are tempted to buy and try your hands at baking. It wasn't the case earlier," said Rehan, who was born and brought up in Jeddah. "Honestly, I've never seen so many baking goods in my life until I moved here. There are baking pans, cupcake liners, serving trays, utensils in all shapes and sizes, not to mention the raw ingredients required for baking. Most of the ingredients required in a recipe are not easily available in local convenient stores in Delhi, especially where I lived. Those few places that did stock them sold them at exorbitant amounts," Rida Shaikh, who recently shifted base from New Delhi to Jeddah, told Saudi Gazette. Is it easy to bake? As easy at it may sound, baking isn't a piece of cake. Baking is all about correct measurements, steps, techniques and temperature. A slight change in recipe or technique — too much baking powder, over mixing a batter, batter with lumps, and oven set or unset at the wrong temperature among many others — can result in a moist cake or the opposite. Professional bakers and those who run popular cooking YouTube channels recommend that recipes should be followed exactly as they have been penned. Owner of startup Highway to Heaven Hana Hashmi also believes that baking isn't that simple if you're finicky. "Baking can sometimes be tedious, especially if you pay attention to detail. I don't think its just mixing up ingredients and putting it in the oven. It's not always as easy as it seems, but the end result is beautiful, delicious and satisfying." Amin is also of the view that even go-to recipes can become disastrous if not followed precisely. "If a recipe calls for cold butter or water, you can not use butter or water at room temperature because the result of the finished product may not be what you expect. The error may seem insignificant, but small errors can have drastic and unsatisfying results."
