On 2016-11-23 6:24 AM, Cindy Hamilton wrote:
> On Tuesday, November 22, 2016 at 3:33:59 PM UTC-5, graham wrote:

>> I checked the Amendola "The Baker's Manual", and he specifies that the
>> ingredient should be lightly spooned in to the cup before levelling off.
>> Some of his weights match KA, others don't. KA doesn't specify on that
>> table about how to fill the cup.
>
> I can't be bothered with all that stuff. I scoop it out of the
> canister with the measuring cup and level it off.
>
> Then again, I don't bake fussy stuff. Chocolate-chip cookies is
> about the extent of it.
>
> For pizza crust, I weigh the flour, because that's how the recipe
> came to me.


I think of them as conveniently measured amounts. I mean..... a cup
dipped into a bin and then leveled off.... vs. a cup that was spoon
filled and leveled of.... vs. a given weight that corresponds to a
cup???? Then add 1/4, 1/2, 3/4 or 1 tsp salt, or baking powder or
soda. They are all set amounts that may or not be the exact perfect
proportion to get the chemical reaction that is baking.

When making things like bread or dough there is usually some bench flour
used. I use the same measures and same process when making pie pastry,
but it does not always turn out exactly the same. When I roll it out I
throw some flour on the pastry cloth and more my rolling pin and on top
of the disk of dough. I don't measure that, and not all of it gets
incorporated into the rolled dough.

I have baked enough cookies over the years to know that it is important
to measure ingredients, but there are limits to the degree of accuracy
required.