There are many challenges that we face living at 6,000 feet of elevation — what feels like 10 months of winter, the occasional moose in your backyard and low oxygen levels. One of the challenges many don’t expect to face is baking.
When baking at a high altitude the atmospheric pressure is different (most of the time) than where the recipe was written and tested. That doesn’t sound that important, but let me tell you it is. Baking at a different atmospheric pressure changes the temperature, air pressure and moisture levels of everything that you put in the oven.
All of these factors combine together and can wreak havoc on the texture, structure and overall taste of baked goods. In layman’s terms your baked goods will come out squishy, lumpy, floppy and dense or expand and overflow all over your oven.
None of those are words that you would like to be used to describe your food. Thankfully it is fixable! Here are my top tips for baking at a high altitude.
• When you are looking for a recipe look for one that was formulated specifically for high altitudes. There are many blogs, youtube channels, recipe books and food content creators that solely focus on high altitude baking. My personal favorite is a recipe book published by the University of Wyoming titled “High-Altitude Baking” written by Vicki Hayman and Tanya Ingle. It contains a treasure trove of recipes for just about anything you could think to bake. All of the libraries in Lincoln County have a copy if you would like to test it out!
• If you make a recipe that seems to always grow to massive proportions and then shrink as soon as it hits cool air, decrease the amount of leavening agent that you put in. In most recipes the best ingredient to lessen is the baking powder, taking out 1/8 of a teaspoon usually does the trick. But if that doesn’t work don’t be afraid to take more, all the way up to a1/4 of a teaspoon less. The lower air pressure at high altitudes means that your baked goods rise much faster than at lower altitudes.
• Add more liquid. Water boils at a lower temperature the higher in altitude you are. If you are struggling with funky textures, or dry cakes and sticking, a little bit more liquid, even just a couple tablespoons will help a whole lot.
Whatever it is you would like to bake, I am confident you can find a book about it at your local library. Happy Baking!
