CT FM 018: The Ultimate Guide To Baking With An Air Fryer

CT FM 018:

The Ultimate Guide to Baking with an Air Fryer Brought To You By: RecipeThis.com

Introduction Welcome to our eighteenth Podcast from CT FM. Air fryers have actually got so popular in 2016 that even Paula Deen and Gordon Ramsay have started getting excited about them. Yet a lot of us out there still don’t own one and still make their trusted French Fries in the deep fat fryer.

With an air fryer it is a great diet aid. Instead of having a deep fat fryer with 2 litres of unhealthy oil in it you have the Air fryer that like it says cooks with oil instead. This means for the average portion of fries you will use about a tablespoon of olive oil instead. This means that from a calorie point of view your French Fries have less calories than a jacket potato with baked beans. For those of you that are on a diet it can mean that you could lose weight by eating delicious homemade fries.

I personally hassled and nagged my husband into buying me one until he eventually agreed after I gave him a review of it in a diet magazine. He was amazed by the idea of it and a week later we bought our first Air Fryer from our local electrical store. But this is Portugal which means we pay a lot more for electricals and with the air fryer being so new and not having any competition it meant that we paid more for our Air Fryer than we had for any other small kitchen appliance.

But we saw the potential in it and knew that it would last many years.

We can’t remember exactly when we bought it but it was at least 4 years ago, maybe five and even though it looks battered and bruised it still does an amazing job for us.

I remember when we first bought it we tried cooking all kinds of things in it and we were amazed by how versatile it was and it didn’t just have to a machine for making fries, there was a whole world of possibilities of what you could make with it.

Then in 2015 we finally started baking in it and it was like an oven, a grill and a deep fryer all together and doughnuts and such like became a great possibility for this lovely kitchen gadget.

If you are new to Air Fryers and don’t understand what I am talking about then don’t forget to check out my infographic on the subject: https://recipethis.com/wp-content/uploads/the-ultimate-guide-to-theair-fryer.jpg The Ultimate Guide To Air Fryer Baking Stage 1 – Choosing Your Tools The first thing you need to make sure of is that you have the tools to do the job. Obviously you can’t just put a cake mixture into the bottom of an air fryer and hope for the best. All the cake mixture will drip into the bottom and leave an awful mess.

The tool that I would personally suggest you get is the Philips Airfryer Baking Basket. It works by slotting into your air fryer so that you can successfully bake cakes in it without any mess. In my mind it looks just like a baking it and then you can take it out to clean it and then use it as you need it. You can get your hands on one by going to recipethis.com/philipsbaking.

Plus I find it is the perfect size for a full sized cake!!!

Stage 2 – Healthy Or Not Healthy?

We all know that a lot of baked goods are bad for us. I know that each time I eat chocolate chip cookies it is adding another pound to my waistline especially when Dominic gives me the cookie dough bowl to clean out while the cookies are cooking in the Air Fryer.

But at the end of the day it is choice. Do you plan on eating out of the Air Fryer for the cakes and the calories or are you looking for a way to make really healthy baked goods in the Air Fryer.

Personally I am all bad. I save my calories on fries, copycat KFC chicken and such like and the cakes is my balance or my reward for something that I shouldn’t be eating.

But make your choice now if you are with me on that or not!

Stage 3 – Air Fryer Types The next thing you need to think about is the cooking area that you have. A Philips Air Fryer for example is not very tall and a little wide square shape. Therefore you can cook a square cake but not a rectangular one. In the same sense we have two air fryers and the other is wider and taller for when we are making things like chocolate mug cakes and such like.

I also find that having some good ramekins is also a great way to aid cooking. You can use them for making chocolate mug cakes instead or use them for making mini cakes without feeling like you are lost for space.

In the same sense go shopping to your local supermarket and pick up some dishes that are Air Fryer safe and fit into the square area and then you can use them for when you’re cooking in the Air Fryer and doesn’t just have to be for cake baking.

Some of the things that you cook in the Air Fryer will be fine in the bottom section. For example when we are making cheese scones we put them straight in and they don’t stick.

Stage 4 – Like 4 Like The best thing about Air Fryer baking is that the temperatures and time cooking are like for like with a conventional oven. Therefore if you would normally bake your cake for 40 minutes at 180c then you would do the same thing in the Air Fryer. There is just one simple difference that you need to take into account. And that is that your Air Fryer must be preheated, where as with the oven you would get away with it not being preheated.

But if you get into the habit of putting it on 10 minutes before you need it at the desired temperature then this will do the trick!

Top 10 Air Fryer Baking Recipes

These recipes are all from RecipeThis.com and are all based on popular recipes on our blog that our readers have voted as their favourites. I would suggest that you have these as a starting point, start by perfecting these 10 recipes and then move onto more complicated ones. It will just get you confident and make you realise that baking with an Air Fryer is easier than you think. #1 – 5 Ingredient Air Fryer Chocolate Mug Cake

I remember years and years ago these been the fashion in the microwave. Well times change and this is how to do them quickly in the Air Fryer. It also works as a really quick fix when you have chocolate cravings. #2 – The Best Ever White Chocolate Chip Cookies

Milk chocolate chip cookies are great, but these white chocolate chip cookies are even better. They taste absolutely delicious and you will be arguing over who gets the last one! #3 – Easy Airfryer Oaty Sandwich Biscuits

This recipe is based upon a long term recipe of my aunts who got it from one of her school friends mums many years ago. It still works and I have added a few extra flavours and it is perfect for some quick baking in the Air Fryer! #4 – Homemade Sausage Rolls In The Airfryer

Who said that everything baked in the Airfryer must be sweet? What about savoury snacks? Well that is exactly my thoughts too and this is my delicious homemade sausage rolls that are perfect for the Airfryer. I make them at Christmas and also have them in the summer when we have a picnic on the beach. #5 – Flourless Key Lime Cupcakes In The Airfryer

Welcome to my flourless key lime cupcakes. These are for all you cupcake lovers out there that don’t want loads of flour in their diet.

Made with dairy products instead and so delicious too!

#6 – Airfryer Cheese & Bacon Muffins

If you’re after something simple that you could have for breakfast, as a snack or even to take to a party then this is it! They taste amazing and only use a small amount of ingredients which makes it very frugal for the average family. #7 – Airfryer Mini Cheese Scones Recipe

As I have mentioned it a few times in this Podcast I thought I better share it with you in the round up. This is my delicious cheese scones that

you should share at a party but are great for having to yourself at home and not telling anyone!

We also find that they make a delicious dumpling over a stew or casserole in the winter comfort months. #8 – Airfryer Cornish Pasties

Okay so this is the last of the savoury ones and I suppose I only included it because it is so cheap to make yet so frugal. Plus it fills you up so much that if you served it with potatoes and vegetables you could only eat two of them. Well my son would butt in and say he could manage 4 but I am sure you know what I mean! #9 – Airfryer Pineapple Cake

This is the first cake I ever made in the Air Fryer and I would say it is up there as the most delicious things to make in it. Its simple to make and so full of flavour. You’ll find that it is effortless to put this together and would make a brilliant pudding on a Sunday after your Sunday roast. #10 – The Ultimate Air Fryer Doughnuts

For the ultimate treat why not make some delicious airfryer doughnuts?

They are delicious and taste amazing. I just want to eat more and more of them and try to pretend that they are zero calories!

Though we all love the pink icing so we always argue over that one!

The Podcast Sponsor

For the Podcast sponsor for this month it is the Philips Air Fryer. They always say that you always love your first, well Philips was the first Air Fryer that we owned and also the first one that we baked in.

With our Philips Air Fryer we learnt how to bake banana bread, pineapple cake and a whole variety of pastries and we will be very thankful for that.

Add to this the fact that it is still standing after years of daily abuse from us.

You can check out their Air Fryer at recipethis.com/philipsairfryer.

The Best Ever Air Fryer Thick & Fudgy Chocolate Cake

Author: RecipeThis.com Serves: 8 Prep time: 25 minutes Cook time: 30 minutes Ingredients: Chocolate Cake 200g Self Raising Flour 225g Caster Sugar 25g Cocoa Powder 100g Butter 2 Large Eggs 1 Large Orange (rind and juice) 75ml Whole Milk 1Tbsp Honey 1Tsp Vanilla Essence Chocolate Fudge Sauce 100g Icing Sugar 25g Butter 15ml Whole Milk 15ml Cocoa Powder 1Tbsp Brown Sugar 2Tsp Honey

Method: 1. Preheat the Air Fryer to 180c.

2. Firstly make the chocolate cake. In a mixing bowl add the flour, sugar, cocoa powder and butter. Mix well and then using the rubbing in method rub the fat into the flour until you have a mixture that resembles breadcrumbs.

3. In a separate bowl mix together the eggs, milk, honey and vanilla and beat with a fork until you have a lovely eggy mixture.

4. Add the wet and the dry ingredients together and whisk the mixture until you have a lovely smooth chocolate cake batter.

5. Fill your cake tin with the mixture and bake in the Air Fryer for 35 minutes or until it is cooked in the middle.

6. Remove from the Air Fryer and allow to cool on a baking rack.

7. Make the fudge sauce – Melt the butter, sugar, honey and milk in a saucepan on a medium heat. Beat in the icing sugar. Leave to cool.

8. Once both the cake and the sauce are cool pour the sauce over the cake and then allow to chill before serving.

Notes: We love a chocolate orange cake but you could swap the orange for another type of fruit or for more chocolate if that is more your taste.

That’s A Wrap Thanks for listenin g to our Podcas t and don’t forget to start baking in your air fryer too!

The most important thing we have learnt is just how simple baking is when you use your air fryer and how baking a cake has a whole new modern twist to it!

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