All guides
Measuring & Conversions
Convert between cups, grams, ounces, and more — with ingredient-specific densities so your measurements are always accurate.
How Much Is a Stick of Butter?
One stick of butter = 1/2 cup = 8 tablespoons = 4 oz = 113 g. Full chart for sticks to cups, tablespoons, grams, and ounces — plus how European butter differs.
How to Measure Flour Correctly
Spoon flour into the cup and level off — never scoop. Scooping can add 30–40 g per cup, turning cakes dense and cookies dry. Step-by-step with weights.
How to Measure Sticky Ingredients (Honey, Syrup, Peanut Butter)
Spray the measuring cup with cooking spray before honey, syrup, or molasses and it pours out clean. Even better: weigh them directly. Exact grams per tablespoon included.
Liquid vs. Dry Measuring Cups: What's the Difference?
Liquid cups have a spout and headspace for reading a meniscus. Dry cups have a flat rim for leveling. Using the wrong one adds measurement error — here's why.
Tablespoons and Teaspoons Conversion Chart
3 teaspoons = 1 tablespoon. 16 tablespoons = 1 cup. Full conversion chart for fractions, milliliters, and grams for common baking ingredients.
US, UK, and Metric Cup Sizes: What's the Difference?
A US cup is 240 mL, a metric cup is 250 mL, and an old UK cup is 284 mL. The 5–20% difference can throw off baking recipes — here's how to convert between them.
Weighing vs. Measuring Cups: Which Is More Accurate?
A scale is more accurate than measuring cups every time. A scooped cup of flour can hold 120–160 g — a 33% swing that ruins baked goods. Here's when each tool is right.
Scaling Recipes
Scale any recipe up or down by servings or pan size, with smart handling for eggs, leavening, and unit conversions.
How to Adjust Baking Time When You Change Pan Size
Shallower batter bakes faster; deeper batter bakes slower. A 9x13 pan cooks a layer cake in 25–35 min versus 30–35 min for two 9-inch rounds. Adjustment table inside.
How to Halve an Egg in a Recipe
Beat a whole egg and measure out 1.5 tablespoons — that's half a large egg (25 g). Full chart for fractional eggs with weights and tablespoon measures.
How to Scale a Recipe Up or Down
Multiply every ingredient by your scale factor (new servings ÷ original servings). Baking needs extra attention to leavening, eggs, and pan size — worked examples inside.
How to Scale Yeast and Salt in Bread Recipes
Scale yeast linearly up to 2x. At larger scales, reduce yeast by 10–15% and watch the dough, not the clock. Salt stays at 1.8–2% of flour weight at any scale.
Why Baking Recipes Don't Always Scale Perfectly
Leavening, eggs, pan area, and oven behavior all change non-linearly when you scale a baking recipe. Understand the exceptions so your doubled cake doesn't flop.
Bread & Sourdough
Baker's percentage, sourdough schedules, yeast conversions, and hydration calculators built for serious bread bakers.
Baker's Percentage Explained
Baker's percentage: flour = 100%, every other ingredient divided by flour weight. Water at 66% = 66 g per 100 g flour. Full guide with worked examples and scaling math.
Bulk Fermentation Temperature Guide
At 75°F with 20% starter, bulk fermentation takes 4–5 hours. At 65°F it takes 9–12 hours. Full table by temperature and starter percentage, plus visual readiness cues.
Dough Hydration Guide: What the % Means
Hydration is water weight divided by flour weight. Sandwich bread runs 62–68%, sourdough 70–78%, ciabatta 78–85%. Full guide with bread-type table and handling tips.
How to Convert a Yeast Recipe to Sourdough
Replace 1 packet (2.25 tsp) of active dry yeast with 100 g of ripe sourdough starter. Remove 50 g flour and 50 g water from the recipe to compensate. Step-by-step guide.
Instant vs Active Dry Yeast: What's the Difference?
Use 25% less instant yeast than active dry: if a recipe calls for 1 tsp active dry, use 3/4 tsp instant. Instant skips proofing; active dry needs warm water first.
Salt Percentage in Bread: How Much Is Right?
Most bread uses 1.8–2.2% salt by baker's percentage. At 500 g flour, that is 9–11 g of salt. This guide covers salt's roles, the right range, and how to adjust.
Sourdough Schedule Examples: 3 Real Timelines
Three complete sourdough bake schedules with clock times: weekday same-day, weekend morning bake, and overnight cold retard. Adjust for your dough temperature.
Sourdough Starter Feeding Ratios: 1:1:1 to 1:5:5
A feeding ratio is starter:flour:water by weight. 1:1:1 peaks in 4–6 hours at 75°F; 1:5:5 peaks in 10–12 hours. Full table, timing guide, and how to pick the right ratio.
Substitutions
Find reliable ingredient swaps with correct ratios — buttermilk, eggs, flours, sugars, and more.
Baking Soda vs. Baking Powder: What's the Difference?
Baking soda is 3–4x stronger than baking powder and needs an acid to work. Baking powder has the acid built in. Full substitution chart and test to check freshness.
Brown Sugar Substitute: Make It from White Sugar + Molasses
Mix 1 cup white granulated sugar + 1 tablespoon molasses for light brown sugar, or 2 tablespoons molasses for dark brown sugar. Use 1:1 in any recipe.
Butter to Oil Conversion for Baking
Use 3/4 as much oil as butter when substituting. 1 cup butter = 3/4 cup oil. Full chart by tablespoon, cup, and grams — plus when the swap works and when it doesn't.
Buttermilk Substitute: 5 Options That Actually Work
Add 1 tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice to a measuring cup, fill to 1 cup with milk, wait 5 minutes. Use 1:1 in any buttermilk recipe. 5 options included.
Cake Flour Substitute: Make It with Cornstarch
For 1 cup cake flour: measure 1 cup all-purpose flour, remove 2 tablespoons, add 2 tablespoons cornstarch, sift together. Works in any recipe that calls for cake flour.
Egg Substitutes for Baking: A Practical Guide
3 tablespoons of aquafaba replaces 1 egg white. 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed + 3 tablespoons water replaces 1 whole egg. Full chart for 8 substitutes with best uses.
Self-Rising Flour Substitute (Make It from Scratch)
Mix 1 cup all-purpose flour + 1½ tsp baking powder + ¼ tsp salt. That's self-rising flour — use it 1:1 in any recipe. Scaled table from ¼ cup to 3 cups.
Pans & Yields
Convert between pan sizes, calculate batter volumes, and get adjusted bake times when switching pan shapes.
9x13 to 8x8 Pan Conversion
A 9x13 pan holds 117 sq in; an 8x8 holds 64 sq in. Use half the recipe when converting 9x13 to 8x8. Full math, baking time adjustments, and common recipe examples.
Bundt Pan Conversion: Size, Volume, and Substitutes
Standard Bundt pan holds 12 cups. Two 9-inch round layers make only 8 cups — not enough. Use a recipe that yields 10–12 cups. Full size table and pan substitutes.
How to Make Cupcakes From a Cake Recipe
Fill standard cupcake liners 2/3 full (about 3–4 tbsp batter). A 9x13 cake recipe makes 24 standard cupcakes. Bake at the same temperature for 18–22 minutes.
Loaf Pan Sizes: Which Size for Which Recipe?
Standard loaf pan is 9x5 inches (8.5 cups / 2 L volume). An 8.5x4.5-inch pan holds about 6 cups. Full size table, volume comparison, and which recipes fit which pan.
Round to Square Pan Conversion
A 9-inch round pan has 63.6 sq in; a 9x9 square has 81 sq in. Going round to square, use 1.27× the recipe. Going square to round, use 0.79×. Full table with areas.
Sheet Pan Sizes: Full, Half, Quarter, and Jelly Roll
A half sheet pan is 18x13 inches (234 sq in) — the standard home baker's pan. Full sheets are commercial. Quarter sheets are 13x9 inches. Full area table and uses.
Oven & Altitude
Convert oven temperatures between °F, °C, and gas marks, with convection adjustment and high-altitude guidance.
Convection Oven Conversion: Temperature and Time
Convection baking: reduce temperature by 25°F or time by 25%. Full conversion table, what bakes well on convection, and which items to cook conventionally instead.
High Altitude Baking Adjustments
Above 3,500 ft: reduce baking powder 1/8 tsp per tsp, add 1–2 tbsp liquid per cup, raise oven temp 15–25°F. Adjustment table from Colorado State Extension.
How to Calibrate Your Oven
Most home ovens run 25–50°F off. Test with an oven thermometer at 350°F for 20 minutes. Many ovens have a recalibration setting in the menu — adjust by up to ±35°F.
Oven Temperature Conversion Chart (F, C, Gas Mark)
350°F = 175°C = Gas Mark 4. Full chart from 225°F to 500°F with Celsius and UK gas mark equivalents, plus Fahrenheit to Celsius conversion formula.
Costing & Pricing
Calculate the true cost of your recipes per serving and set profitable prices for home bakery and cottage food businesses.
Home Bakery Profit Margins: What to Expect
Home bakeries typically achieve 50–70% gross margins on ingredients, but labor reduces net margin to 20–40%. Custom cakes have the highest margins; wholesale the lowest.
How to Calculate Recipe Cost Per Serving
Divide total ingredient cost by servings. A recipe using $8.40 of ingredients that yields 12 servings costs $0.70 per serving. Step-by-step with a worked example.
How to Price Baked Goods for a Home Bakery
Price baked goods at 3–4x ingredient cost to cover overhead, labor, and profit. A $3.50 ingredient cost per dozen cookies should sell for $12–$14. Step-by-step formula.