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How the pH levels of honey substitutes affect baking

Richard Cornish
Richard Cornish

Golden or maple syrup can be substituted for honey in baking, but you may need to add a little lemon juice as well to activate baking soda.
Golden or maple syrup can be substituted for honey in baking, but you may need to add a little lemon juice as well to activate baking soda.William Meppem

I am allergic to honey. What can I use to substitute? M. Gingold

Honey has several interesting attributes that make it such a useful ingredient in cooking. It is sweet, it acts like an invert sugar, it is acidic and has amino acids. Unlike white sugar invert sugar does not absorb moisture from the air. This means biscuits baked with honey take a long time to go stale.

Golden syrup is over half invert sugar and is also sweet so you could use that for baking. Honey's low pH – meaning that it is acidic – is sometimes used in recipes to activate baking soda which leavens some cakes.

If you use golden syrup or brown rice syrup, which are not as acidic as honey, you may need to add a little lemon juice to activate baking soda. Honey contains amino acids, including glutamate, making it surprisingly savoury. Replace honey with maple syrup that has savoury qualities.

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I have been practising baking bread and now have a lot of bits of leftover bread. Any ideas? J. Prosser

Never throw away good bread. Take your bits of loaves or crusts and place them in a food processor with some fresh herbs such as basil, rosemary or sage. Process on high speed until you have moderately smooth breadcrumbs. Not too fine. Pour a cup into a resealable plastic bag, squeeze out the air and freeze.

These savoury breadcrumbs are the most useful things in the world. Make a vegetable stew with loads of zucchini, pour into an oven dish, cover with the frozen bread crumbs, dot with butter and bake until golden.

Use the savoury crumbs to coat fish before shallow frying. Use to coat beaten chicken thighs, dipped in seasoned flour, then egg, then pan fry until the crumbs are golden. Top with chopped tomatoes and mozzarella and place in a moderate oven to cook the chicken through. Call it a posh parmie.

Fry the breadcrumbs in a little olive oil and sprinkle over a salad or add to a pasta dish. Savoury bread crumbs are delicious.

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Regarding peeling chestnuts, I believe there is a gadget called an Italian chestnut cutter. Where can I buy one? E. Black

While I abhor kitchen gadgets I will point you to a website where you can buy the above device. It is costanteimports.com.au, it is based in Preston in Melbourne and it stocks the cutter that will become clutter in your drawers within weeks of purchase.

Costante Imports is, however, one of my favourite sites for homemade sausage making supplies, from skins to string to nets.

Letters, Apologies and Corrections

I am a nong. Last week W. Musgrave asked, "When hard-boiling an egg to eat cold in a salad, how do I keep the yolk in the centre of the white?".

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I replied, "Bring your eggs to the boil. Reduce heat, simmer for three minutes. Remove from heat. Rest for seven minutes. Drain. Refresh under cold water. Peel. Slice." I left out the most important detail – gently stir while the egg is cooking. Apologies.

Send your vexing culinary conundrums to brainfood@richardcornish.com.au or tweet to @Foodcornish

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Richard CornishRichard Cornish writes about food, drinks and producers for Good Food.

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