Tickle Your Brain | Euclid Public Library

Baking

A tray of cookies coming out of the oven. Someone is lifting one cookie to check if the bottom is ready.

Baking is a way of cooking food using an oven. It’s a little like magic—ingredients like flour, sugar, eggs, and butter are mixed together, and when they go into the oven, they turn into something delicious, like cookies, bread, or cake! The heat of the oven cooks the mixture and changes its shape, color, and flavor. That’s why baking is called a “science,” because it uses heat to make something new.

A Little History of Baking

Did you know that people have been baking for thousands of years? Long, long ago, ancient Egyptians were some of the first bakers. They made flatbreads using stone ovens. Later, in the Roman Empire, bakers made bread and pastries and even created the first “bakery shops.” By the time of the Middle Ages, bakers were very important in towns because everyone loved bread! Over time, baking became an art, with people inventing cakes, cookies, and pies that we still enjoy today.

Why Baking Is Awesome

Baking is great because it lets you be creative and share your treats with friends and family. You can experiment with flavors, shapes, and colors to make something unique. And the best part? You get to eat what you make!

So, next time you’re in the kitchen, grab an apron and try baking something new. Who knows? You might discover your favorite treat to bake and share!

A baker is whisking a bowl of flour. Other bowls of ingredients are on the table in front of them.

Finished loaves of bread are being removed from a large oven on a wooden tray.

Did You Know?

There are all kinds of baking projects, from super simple to very challenging.

Easy Bakes: If you’re new to baking, try making chocolate chip cookies. All you need to do is mix the ingredients, scoop out dough, and bake them. Another simple treat is a banana bread—just mix bananas, sugar, eggs, and flour, and you’re ready to bake!
Medium Bakes: When you’re ready for more of a challenge, try making a pie with a crust from scratch. Rolling out the dough takes practice, but it’s fun! Or bake some cupcakes and decorate them with colorful frosting.
Hard Bakes: If you’re a pro, you might enjoy making a layered cake with lots of frosting and decorations or baking croissants. Croissants are tricky because you have to fold butter into dough many times to make those flaky layers.