Baking and Pastry Arts Flashcards
7 cards from real CMC practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Baking and Pastry Arts flashcards as text
What is the key difference between a tart (pâte sucrée shell) and a quiche crust (pâte brisée shell)?
Answer: Pâte sucrée contains sugar and more egg yolks making it sweet and cookie-like; pâte brisée is savory and more flaky
Pâte sucrée is a sweet, crumbly short dough used for dessert tarts, while pâte brisée is a less sweet, flakier dough suitable for quiches and savory tarts.
Which starch thickener produces the clearest, most glossy gel and is best suited for fruit glazes and Asian-inspired pastry fillings?
Answer: Arrowroot starch
Arrowroot produces a brilliantly clear, glossy gel and does not turn cloudy upon cooling, making it ideal for delicate fruit glazes.
When tempering dark chocolate, what is the correct sequence of temperatures for melt, cool, and working stages?
Answer: 115°F → 82°F → 88–90°F (46°C → 28°C → 31–32°C)
Dark chocolate is fully melted to 115°F, cooled to 82°F to seed stable Form V crystals, then raised to the working temperature of 88–90°F.
A baker finds that a high-ratio cake batter is breaking (separating). What is the most likely reason?
Answer: Fat and liquid are not at the same temperature, causing emulsion failure
Emulsion breakdown in high-ratio batters usually results from temperature differences between the fat and liquid components, preventing proper incorporation.
What is the function of trimoline (inverted sugar syrup) when added to sorbet?
Answer: It lowers the freezing point and contributes a softer, smoother texture
Trimoline depresses the freezing point of sorbet due to its monosaccharide content, yielding a softer scoop with finer ice crystals.
In bread baking, what is 'autolyse' and what benefit does it provide?
Answer: A rest period after mixing flour and water (before adding salt and yeast) that hydrates flour and begins gluten development naturally
Autolyse is a rest of 20–60 minutes given to a flour-water mixture before adding other ingredients, reducing mixing time and improving dough extensibility.
Which type of fat produces the flakiest texture in pie dough and why?
Answer: Butter, because its water content creates steam pockets and its fat content coats gluten strands
Butter contributes both water (which creates steam for flakiness) and fat (which coats gluten strands), making it the preferred fat for maximum flakiness and flavor.