Baking Flavoring – Extracts, Emulsions, and Oils

Walking down the baking aisle of any supermarket, you will find a wall of bottles, vials and boxes filled with various extracts. Vanilla is the most popular by far but it’s hardly the only option.

Professional bakers often opt for emulsions over alcohol-based extracts. These hold up better to high-temperatures and don’t ‘bake out’ as much.

Pure & Imitation Extracts

A staple in many bakeries, pure and imitation extracts add a strong punch of flavor to baked goods, ice cream, and more. These ingredients are made by soaking dried, natural substances in alcohol or other liquids. They can then be used to infuse the flavor of a recipe with just a few drops.

For example, vanilla extract can add an extra homemade element to cakes and cookies, help tame acidic recipes like marinara sauce, or enhance the aroma of coffee. It can also be added to cocktails to give drinks a sweet, creamy finish.

Other flavors include citrus, such as lemon extract, which can replace the zest of lemons to bring out the fullness of a recipe, or peppermint extract, which adds a refreshing touch to frosted holiday treats and creamy desserts. Chocolate extract is another common ingredient, combining with cocoa powder to give baked goods a richer, more robust chocolate flavor.

These products are available in both water and oil soluble options to accommodate all your cooking needs. The difference between them is that oil soluble extracts require Baking Flavoring the addition of water to create a solution, while water soluble extracts are ready to use as-is. Water-based extracts also have the benefit of being bake-proof, meaning that they won’t react with heat or degrade in a long baking process.

Emulsions

Bakery emulsions are water-based and alcohol-free versions of extracts. Because they are water-based, emulsions don’t evaporate as quickly as alcohol-based extracts, resulting in stronger aromas and tastes. These characteristics make them an excellent choice for bakery applications.

The emulsification process involves the use of an emulsifier to combine an immiscible liquid (like oil and water) into a homogenous mixture. The emulsion also helps stabilize the product, which is important for keeping its shape and texture during processing. Many common food products are made with emulsions, including mayonnaise, vinaigrettes and hollandaise sauce. In the baking world, emulsions are used in chocolate ganaches and whipped cream.

While baking emulsions can be substituted for extracts in recipes, they aren’t suitable for all applications. For example, bakery emulsions aren’t ideal for chocolate or hard candy making because they will seize up the ingredients. To prevent this, stick with oil-based super strength flavorings for these applications or use a different type of emulsion like a flavor concentrate.

When choosing a bakery emulsion, bakers should always start with half the amount called for in the recipe to ensure they aren’t overpowering the recipe. They should then taste the results to determine whether to add more, and if so, how much. This allows them to maintain the integrity of their final product, as well as control costs by using less flavoring and avoiding costly ingredient overages.

Flavor Powders

Although liquid flavorings are the preferred method of adding flavors, powders are great for applications that require a dry product. Powders are ideal for powder heavy formulations that must produce a dry finished product – such as certain baking applications and dry mixes and rubs, and also work very well with beverage creations.

These powders are made by blending fruits and vegetables that have been freeze dried (retaining all of their natural nutrients) and then ground up into a fine, easy to dissolve powder. This is a great alternative to adding a fruit or vegetable directly to your recipe, as it allows you to control the amount of fruit or veggie you use without worrying about liquid sensitivities or having to keep an extra ingredient in the refrigerator.

The great thing about using these flavored powders is that they are heat stable, have an extended shelf life and can be used in many different ways in your recipes. For example, you can sprinkle a little vanilla powder in your baked goods for a sweet and creamy taste experience. Or, you can add a little of the red wine vinegar powder to your marinades and rubs for a unique, rich flavor profile that isn’t from tomato or other liquids.

The key to successfully using these flavored powders is teasing your audience’s palate with just enough to create a memorable and delicious experience. Over-flavoring your culinary creations will leave them with a medicinal or minty aftertaste and can make it difficult to enjoy your food or drink.

Flavor Oils

Compared to extracts, flavor oils pack more of a punch. This is because unlike an extract which must adhere to the FDA’s 35% alcohol guidelines, Baking Flavoring oil based flavors are not restricted in their concentration of the ingredient. Using more than recommended amounts can easily overwhelm recipes. To avoid this, The Kitchn advises that you start out small and add more oil a few drops at a time to your recipes until they reach your desired taste level.

Flavor oils are water-soluble and can be used to flavor ganache, frostings, chocolate, fondant, and more. They’re also perfect for creating delicious, hard candy centers and candies.

Because of their high concentrations, only a few drops are needed to give a recipe a big boost in flavor. This saves you the hassle of chopping and measuring fresh ingredients like a lemon, passion fruit, ginger, chipotle in adobo sauce, or cloves, saving you precious time and effort.

Oils are less shelf-stable than their extract counterparts and will eventually go rancid over time, so be sure to purchase them in small quantities. You can use them as a replacement for any extract in a recipe, but a little goes a long way! You’ll want to start with 1/4 teaspoon of an oil in place of an extract.