Posted by UBE.25
Ube gives baked goods a striking color and a soft, vanilla-like flavor. But when baking with ube powder for the first time, you may sometimes end up with a dull color or not enough ube flavor. These seven tips will help you avoid that.
1. Mix the powder first
Mix the powder with a little warm water or milk to make a smooth paste before adding it to the dough. This distributes the color evenly and prevents purple specks. For the ube cookies, mix the powder with a little warm water before working it into the dough.
2. Use a generous amount
In baked goods, the color is diluted by flour, butter, and eggs. Allow for 1 to 3 tablespoons of powder per baking sheet of cookies or cake. For a deeper purple color, add an extra teaspoon.
3. Be careful with baking soda
The purple color of ube comes from anthocyanins, which turn bluish or greenish in an alkaline environment. Too much baking soda can give your baked goods an odd tint. It is better to use baking powder or limit the amount of baking soda. Read more in why is ube purple?.
4. Acid makes it pinker
Lemon, lime, or buttermilk make the color pinker. This can look beautiful, as in the ube lime tart. If you want a truly purple color, limit acidic ingredients.
5. Do not bake at too high a temperature or for too long
Baked goods that become too brown lose their purple appearance on the outside. Bake at a slightly lower temperature or remove cookies from the oven as soon as the edges are just firm.
6. Choose complementary flavors
- White chocolate: creamy and sweet, perfect with ube.
- Coconut: the classic Filipino combination.
- Vanilla: enhances the soft flavor.
- Cream cheese: for cheesecake or frosting.
7. Create a marbled effect
Divide the dough into two parts, mix ube into one part, and gently swirl the parts together. This creates a purple-and-white marble effect that stands out in every photo.
Recipes to get started with
- Ube cookies: chewy, purple, and ready in half an hour
- Ube lime tart: fresh and plant-based
- More ideas in what can you do with ube?
Which powder should you use?
For baking, you want sugar-free and dye-free powder so you can control the sweetness yourself. ube powder from UBE.25 consists of 99.7% ube and 0.3% natural vanilla. Baking for your business? Check out ube for the hospitality industry.
