Kosher-Pareve Ingredients in Baking

[yoshka]

I just got a job at a Kosher-Parve bakery.

My question is- can I use non dairy topping instead of milk in my recipes for cakes

mousses etc. and can I use margarine instead of butter in my recipes.

Any advise or comment would be highly appreciated.

TIA

Yoshka

[Stephanie]

Yes, you can use non-dairy topping and margarine BUT read the ingredients list and make sure they are certified Kosher-Pareve. Some things that appear non-dairy have trace dairy elements such as casein, which would make them unsuitable for pareve baked goods.

To make absolutely sure, you may want to use liquid oils like canola rather than solid fats. Of course, how this will ultimately affect your recipes I have no idea.

[Steve Klc]

Yoshka--how strict and how supervised is your shop?

Stephaine's right--there are so many chemical processes, additives, food science, trace elements in production and manufacturing plants which come into to play, it can be very, very complex--and the real answers to your question can be hidden. Depends how strict you are.

As far as direct substitutions go, I have not had as much luck substituting margarine for butter in recipes designed to take advantage of the magic and mouthfeel of butter. That might satisfy stricture but usually not palate. When I explored kosher and pareve pastry I found what worked best--what had the best taste and what appealed to me as a pastry chef--were the recipes and desserts which didn't rely on direct "substitution" but instead on things meant to take advantage of acceptable ingredients--so in your case instead of dairy use coconut milk or almond milk--but use them to highlight their own taste, their own beauty as ingredients. Making your own almond milk--by boiling water with almond flour or ground almonds, infusing and then straining--can be especially rewarding. And yes, you will have to adjust your recipes--but my personal philosophy always was adjust them with an eye toward flavor--and not simply plugging in acceptable substitutes. For instance, meringues and dacquoises with nut flours can make excellent cake and dessert bases, ganaches could be made with blends of fruit purees, wine, coconut milk or almond milk with the texture balanced with some different types of sugars.

What kinds of things have you baked so far?

What's your clientele like?

[Malawry]

You may want to sit down with the mashgiach (person who supervises the bakery and certifies it as kosher-pareve) and iron out some of those questions. They can tell you better than we can what is and is not acceptable.

When you talk to the mashgiach, here are some questions to ask:

1. How do I recognize a hechsher (symbol on a product certifying it is Kosher)? Which hechshers are acceptable to this bakery? (Different types of symbols represent different overseeing authorities, and not all mashgiachs accept all hechshers.)

2. How do I source Kosher products that are acceptable to the bakery?

3. What kinds of storage and equipment separations do I need to follow? Especially important if you work in an operation that is not entirely Kosher-pareve (if they sell meat or dairy in any form, this is the case).

4. How often do you visit? What are you looking for when you do visit?

5. What questions might patrons of the bakery be asking me, and how do I respond to them?

[yoshka]

Hi Steve and Malawry,

We are going to be very strict. The Vaad-Hakashrut and the mashgiach will supervise the bakery. We will be opening hopefully in 2 weeks.

I did not bake yet anything Parve. I have an 15 years experience as pastry chef and I am a graduate of Le Cordon Bleu and also an ex- Israeli but never baked in Israel.

I am waiting for some receipes from a baker friend in Israel but he told me already that some of the ingredients are not the same here and there.

I found some recipes that uses margarine and shortning and I will try them.

I will also try to use the non-dairy topping instead of milk.

Our clientele will be the orthodox jews.

Yoshka

[Pam R]

I'm wondering how things worked out... nu?

[bloviatrix]

Yoshka -- where is the bakery?