The gourmet pantry
Chocolate, vanilla, flour, salt and spice: the ingredients that lift good baking to great.
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In baking, the ingredients are the recipe. Good chocolate, real vanilla, well-milled flour and flaky salt change the character of everything you make. These are the pantry staples worth seeking out.
The baker’s cupboard
Guanaja 70% Dark Chocolate Fèves
A benchmark French couverture: deep, bittersweet and beautifully balanced. Easy-to-melt fèves for ganache and baking.
Best for: Ganache, mousse and brownies
View on Amazon.caPure Cocoa Powder
Rich, dark Dutch-processed cocoa that gives cakes and drinking chocolate real depth.
Best for: Chocolate cakes and hot chocolate
View on Amazon.caMadagascar Bourbon Vanilla Bean Paste
Real vanilla with visible seeds, measured spoon for spoon like extract. A small change you will taste in everything.
Best for: Custards, buttercream and ice cream
View on Amazon.caUnbleached Bread Flour
A consistent, high-protein flour that gives home loaves structure, chew and a good open crumb.
Best for: Sourdough, baguettes and pizza
View on Amazon.caSalt, spice & sweetness
Sea Salt Flakes
Delicate, crunchy pyramids of salt to finish cookies, caramel and savoury dishes.
Best for: Finishing bakes and plates
View on Amazon.caSingle-Origin Cinnamon & Cardamom
Freshly harvested, traceable spices with far more aroma than supermarket jars.
Best for: Cinnamon buns and spiced bakes
View on Amazon.caGolden Syrup
A buttery, caramel-like syrup that brings chew to flapjacks, tarts and cookies.
Best for: British bakes and treacle tart
View on Amazon.caIntense Fruit Preserves
Bright, high-fruit preserves for filling sponges, thumbprints and tarts.
Best for: Victoria sponge and pastries
View on Amazon.caGood to know
Is expensive chocolate worth it for baking?
For recipes where chocolate is the star, such as ganache, mousse or truffles, yes. For cookies with chips, a good mid-range chocolate is perfectly fine.
Vanilla extract or vanilla paste?
They can be used interchangeably. Paste adds the visible seeds and a slightly richer flavour, which makes it ideal for custards and buttercream.
What is the difference between bread flour and all-purpose flour?
Bread flour has more protein, which builds stronger gluten for chewy, well-risen loaves. All-purpose flour is better for tender cakes, cookies and pastry.
Photography: Steven Ungermann on Unsplash.