What do pie crust, rolled cookies, puff pastry and Danish dough all have in common? At some point in the recipe you will be rolling them out on a flour-dusted surface. Dough is often a bit sticky and needs help; you want to roll it out to the desired thickness or thinness without it sticking to your counter top. Some bakers use pastry cloths or roll dough between sheets of parchment paper, and sometimes we will employ these methods, but the basic technique just uses your work surface, a bit of flour and a rolling pin.

The key is to use just enough flour to keep your pastry or dough from sticking, and not any more. Extra flour will become incorporated into your dough and make it tough, so it is best to start with a light dusting. You can certainly use your fingertips to sprinkle some flour as evenly as possible over your work surface, but we love our flour wand. First of all, it just looks really cool – and no one knows what it is, so it can be a conversation piece – but we are all about function and this old-fashioned tool does its job well.

It might look like a torture device, but it is actually quite handy and simple to use. To use, squeeze the two handles inward; this action releases the tightly coiled spring head, which you then dip into a container of flour (usually all-purpose, unless stated otherwise). Then, release the pressure on the handle and the spring closes shut, capturing the flour inside. You can now hold the flour wand over your counter top and control the amount of flour that flows out by the pressure you apply on the handles.

In the image above, we used a flour wand to dust our surface with flour and also to lightly dust the top of the cookie dough before and during rolling. You can see how evenly and lightly the flour is dispersed. On the top part of the dough, we used our hands to spread the flour into an even layer during subsequent passes with the rolling pin.

Do you need a flour wand? No, but once you have one you will use it whenever this technique is required, as it simply does it better than anything else, fingers included. P.S. We don’t usually wash ours, as some are prone to rusting. We simple shake it clean of flour and wipe it off with a soft cloth.

The baking world has its own language. We “cream and whip,” we “reduce until thick” and we beat “until a ribbon forms.” This last term is such an odd phrase and yet it is a commonly called-for technique in baking, so it’s important that you know what it means and why it is essential.

In the photo, you can clearly see the ribbon (in this case, it is just whole eggs that have been whipped) swirling down and momentarily being suspended on the bulk of the whipped eggs. The eggs have been beaten long enough to produce desirable thickness and loft, so that as you allow them to drizzle back down upon the bulk, they do not disappear immediately becoming one with the rest. If that happened, it would mean they were too loose and thin and hadn’t been beaten enough. Thus, when you see the phrase “beat until a ribbon forms” used in recipes (ours and others), this is what you want to look for. This technique is called for when the recipe needs structure, so stopping short of seeing that ribbon will not produce an optimum result. Keep beating!

In our example, the image is showing whole eggs, whipped with a wire whip until tripled in volume and until a ribbon forms. Sometimes you will see this phrase in reference to a mixture of whole eggs and sugar, or just egg yolks and sugar, so it is not dependent on the ingredients, rather it is what you do with the ingredients.

Our Flourless Chocolate Cake with Raspberries uses this technique to great effect. The recipe has just three main ingredients – chocolate, butter and eggs (the berries are optional). The eggs must be whipped until a ribbon forms, at which point they are combined with the melted and cooled butter/chocolate mixture. They give this cake structure and richness. The technique is also used when making a classic Génoise, which uses no chemical leavener and instead relies on the whipped eggs to provide loft and structure.

Occasionally a recipe suggests that you “torte” the layers of a cake. This is a technique where you take one cake layer and cut it horizontally into two or more layers. Always use a thin, sharp knife. (We like a long hollow edge slicing knife as described in How to Level Your Cake Layers). If it is longer than the width of your cake, it will be easier to perform this task.

First, the freehand approach. Place your whole cake layer on a cardboard of the same size, then place on your turntable, if you have one. This tool will facilitate the process. Bring your eye down to cake level so that you can easily assess the path of the knife as you cut. Cut horizontally into as many cake layers as you need – cutting in half, thirds or quarters, for instance. If you have spare cardboards, place each newly cut layer on one; this will protect them as you move them around and re-assemble your cake.

You could try and do this by eye, but it can be difficult. A more exacting technique is to put the cake on a cardboard round and cut a small vertical line into the cake’s side, from top to bottom—just deep enough to see (you’ll be using this later to line the split layers back up). Hold a ruler vertically against the cake, placing the ruler on the top edge of the cardboard to get true measurements of the actual cake.

Make small holes with toothpicks at the level(s) where you want to cut at intervals all the way around the circumference of the cake moving the ruler around the cake as you go to help you mark properly. Place your cake in the center of your turntable and place your knife horizontally against one of the holes.

Start gently cutting into the cake, spinning the turntable slowly, cutting all the while and always making sure that the blade is level (horizontal) and hitting the right spots. Continue until the cake is cut evenly all the way through. Slide this layer onto another same-size cardboard and set aside. Continue if you are cutting more layers.

Now you are ready to fill and frost your cake. Line up those initial vertical cuts after you have applied your filling to make sure you are putting your cake layers back together correctly.

Scratch baking is a creative joy, and there are some great tips and tricks for baking cakes that will ensure the best results. Here are our top 10 to get you well on your way to being a crackerjack scratch baker.

1. Read each recipe thoroughly and follow it to the letter. This means taking care to use the exact ingredients and equipment called for and following the baking techniques suggested.

2. Use high-quality measuring cups and spoons. We use both Cuisipro and King Arthur Flour measuring cups in the test kitchen. In our assessment, cheap, poorly calibrated measuring spoons varied by over 100% in comparison to those properly made in accordance with federal weights and measures guidelines.

3. Use high-quality cake pans such as Wilton’s Decorator Preferred. They should be heavyweight aluminum to conduct heat evenly. Baking cakes in thin, flimsy pans from the supermarket can yield a cake overdone on the edges with a steep peak and cracks.

4. Use an oven thermometer to make sure that your oven is calibrated properly.

5. Do not over-bake your cakes. Recipes often give time cues for baking cakes, which are approximations, as well as visual cues. The visual cues are the most important, and we usually suggest baking until a wooden toothpick (or wooden skewer for very deep cakes) shows a few moist crumbs because there is residual pan heat after you remove the cakes from the oven. Thus, we don’t advise baking your cakes until the toothpick test comes out completely clean.

6. Cool your pans on a rack, which allows air circulation, then turn the cakes out onto the racks themselves. Remove parchment, if applicable, and then cool thoroughly. (Exceptions, such as angel food and chiffon cakes, are noted in recipes themselves.) Proper cooling helps your cake’s texture be as good as it can be.

7. Many cakes can be made up to one day before filling and frosting, such as classic butter-rich layer cakes. Place layers of same-size cardboard rounds (purchased at a craft or cake-decorating store), then double wrap in plastic wrap and store at room temperature.

8. Cardboard rounds provide a smooth guide for your icing spatula when applying frosting on cakes. In fact, a turntable, cardboard rounds and an icing spatula are the three most important baking tools that will help you create beautifully decorated cakes.

9. Follow storage instructions in individual recipes. If a cake is stored in the refrigerator, but directions say to serve at room temperature, follow those recommendations for best results. The butter in many cakes and frostings must soften to allow the best texture and flavors to come through.

10. Last but not least, Enjoy the baking process – have fun!