What Indoor Climate is Ideal for Baked Goods?

It’s the holiday season, and you know what that means: baking! From Thanksgiving pies to Christmas cookies and more, your oven will be working overtime the next few weeks. But have you ever noticed that different seasons and climates make your baking turn out differently? Let’s take a look at how your indoor climate can affect your holiday baking, and vice versa.

Baking and Humidity

The way baking affects your surroundings is fairly straightforward. Running the oven makes your kitchen hot, which spreads to the rest of the house as well. This is why baking in winter, when the temperature drops, is such a good idea. It can help warm your home while reducing stress on your HVAC system.

But how does your indoor climate affect the things you bake? Humidity levels are high in Corpus Christi most of the year. They’re better in winter, but there can still be a lot of moisture in the air. That moisture can get into your dough or batter, causing it to be too wet, which alters its consistency and the way it bakes.

Some people run their HVAC system while baking, to dehumidify the air and get rid of that extra moisture. But be warned: that can send things too far in the other direction, causing your dough to dry up.

What Can You Do?

There are a few ways to counteract high humidity’s affect on holiday baking. Leave things in the oven a few extra minutes, to let the extra liquid cook off. Or simply reduce the amount of liquid you use just a little. Or if things are too dry, add a little extra liquid to get the right consistency.

You can also invest in a whole-house dehumidifier. This allows you to control your home’s humidity levels, so they’re not too high or too low. Moisture in the air is carefully regulated, so whatever you bake turns out the right way every time, now adjustment needed.

To learn about some of the other factors that affect indoor climate, contact us at CCAC. We provide Corpus Christi with quality HVAC solutions.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in Corpus Christi, Texas about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about your HVAC system, download our free Home Comfort Guide or call us at 361-678-2495.