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Weighing Ingredients and Changing Formulas

Vicki Mendham

Formulas and Measurement

Volume:  Each ingredient for the most part, will weigh a different amount. Do not confuse volume measurements with weight. Example:  1 Cup of honey or 1 Cup of flour does NOT weigh 8 ounces.

There are a few ingredients that may be measured by volume–at the ratio of one pint per pound. These are:

  • Water
  • Milk
  • Eggs

The baker’s term for weighing out ingredients is scaling.  Scaling is always more accurate, especially in baked goods.

Importance of weighing rather than measuring:

Exercises

Weighing ingredients is more accurate than measuring them.  Please complete the following exercise:

Use both the bakers scale and an electronic scale to weigh the following ingredients. Note their weights in the chart.

Baker’s Scale  Electronic Scale 
Weigh 1 C. Packed Flour ?
Weigh 1 C. Loose Flour
Weigh 1 C. Butter
Weigh 1 C. Powdered sugar
Weigh 1 C. Brown sugar

 

When using a bakers scale, place the scoop on the left side and a counterweight of same weight on the right side.

Electronic scales are used very often as well, but you will need to calibrate them regularly to make sure they are correct.

Procedure for Converting a Formula to a New Yield

First, start with a formula complete with percentages. 

  1. Change the total percentage to decimal form by moving the decimal point two places to the left.
  2. Divide the desired yield (in ounces) by this decimal figure to get the weight of the flour.
  3. Round up to the next whole number. This will allow for losses in mixing, makeup and panning.
  4. Use the weight of flour and remaining ingredient percentages to calculate the other ingredients. Calculate these ingredients to two decimal places.

Baking measures that you will need often:

  • 1 dash=1/8 teaspoon
  • 3 teaspoons=1 Tablespoon
  • 16 Tablespoons = 1 Cup
  • 8 ounces (liquid measure) = 16 Tablespoons
  • 1 ounce of butter weighs 1/2 ounce
  • 1 fluid ounce=2 Tablespoons
  • 1 pint=2 Cups
  • 1 quart=4 Cups
  • 1 gallon=16 Cups
  • 1 pound=16 ounces

License

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Professional Baking Copyright © by Chef Tammy Rink with William R. Thibodeaux; The BC Cook Articulation Committee; and Vicki Mendham is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.

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