Winter Baking Mistakes: Know How The Weather Affects Baking
Written by jheelum basu | January 18, 2026
Winter season is all about seeking warmth and comfort in flavorful baked treats. Cakes, cookies, pies, cheesecakes, crumbles, and tarts, the options are endless when it comes to winter baking. Made with warm winter spices and heavy ingredients (milk, butter, cream cheese, chocolate, sour cream), the winter baked delights are everything pleasant and rewarding for the taste buds. Kitchen air fills up with a signature buttery aroma every time something goes into the oven for baking.
Moreover, the winter season is all about Christmas and New Year’s celebrations. This is often considered the baking season of the year. From gingerbread cookies and cinnamon rolls to rich wine cake and apple pies, this season is all about baking mouthwatering winter delicacies.
While it sounds all jolly good, winter baking comes with several challenges as well. Owing to the temperature drop, everything changes, including the texture of the ingredients, the oven temperature, and the consistency of batters and doughs. Winter baking, therefore, comes with changes and adjustments. People often make several winter baking mistakes by sticking to the summertime methods and temperatures. However, the mistakes can be avoided with proper knowledge and understanding of how winter affects baking.
How Does Winter Affect Baking?
Baking is a science. And in science, temperature and humidity are considered two crucial parameters, as they affect several other factors. The drop in mercury level leads to several changes during winter. The dry air and cold ingredients often lead to dry and crumbly dough. The dry air also slows down yeast activity, leading to dense dough and longer proofing times. To nullify the changes, bakers often need to adjust ingredient temperatures, the quantity of liquid ingredients, and baking temperatures to ensure the desired outcomes. Here’s a list of top winter baking mistakes to avoid.
Top 5 Winter Baking Mistakes
1. Using Cold Ingredients
Cold ingredients create the biggest winter baking problems. In cold weather, ingredients like butter, eggs, and milk take longer to reach the required room temperature. If not allowed to adjust to the room temperature, proper creaming doesn’t happen. This is, therefore, crucial for proper emulsification of the ingredients, which leads to a smooth texture in cakes and cookies.
Solution:
It is recommended to plan early and take the ingredients out of the refrigerator an hour before making the batter. In case of eggs, one may place them in warm water for 5-10 minutes. For cold butter, grating it also speeds up the softening process.
2. Less Liquid And Dry Dough
Winter-time baking needs extra liquid ingredients. As the air lacks humidity, dry ingredients like flour absorb more liquid, making the dough or batter dry. For perfect consistency, added liquid ingredients are often needed.
Solution:
It is important to visually assess the consistency of the dough or batter and adjust the liquid content as needed. There is nothing to worry about if the dough or batter needs some extra milk or oil, as long as it doesn’t ruin it.
3. Poor Proofing Environment For Yeast
Proofing is best defined as the final rise of an yeat-leavened dough where yeast ferments sugar and forms gas to make the dough expand. This process requires a Warm environment. During winter, the cold and dry air slows down the process, which leads to flat, poorly risen, dry, and tough textures.
Solution:
For best results, it is recommended to create a warm environment for the dough to rise. One may place the covered dough in a turned-off oven with the light on. This generates gentle heat that speeds up the proofing process.
4. Incorrect Oven Temperature
An incorrect oven temperature is one big problem that often ruins the baking process, especially in winter. This happens because all the chemical reactions that make baking happen follow a precise temperature guideline. Any deviation from that alters the outcome significantly. During winters, the actual temperature inside the oven can be down by as much as 25-30 degrees from what it shows on the dial. This discrepancy often interferes with baking.
Solution:
It is recommended to always preheat the oven for at least 15-20 minutes before the baking starts. One may also use an oven thermometer to ensure the actual temperature of the oven.
5. Opening the Oven Door Too Often
It is always tempting to check what’s going on inside the oven while the baking is still on. While the urge to check for progress is natural, opening the oven door frequently causes a high temperature fluctuation. Every time the door is opened, the batter or dough gets a temperature shock as the oven is hot, while the winter air outside is cold. This often causes cakes, bread, or cookies to get sunken.
Solution:
Try not opening the oven door until ⅔ of the designated baking time has passed. Check for progress through the oven window.
Tips & Tricks For Winter Baking
Use room temperature ingredients:
For desired textures and consistencies, it is best to let cold eggs and butter come to room temperature. This ensured better emulsification and better creaming.Create Warmth for Dough:
For better proofing, it is essential to find a warm spot for the dough, where it can rise properly. A place near a heater or inside a slightly warm oven with just the light on is ideal for the dough to rise.Use a water bath:
To create a warm, humid environment, one may place the dough in a water bath. In this process, the dough does not absorb a significant amount of water from the air, but humid air rather prevents its own moisture from evaporating.Increase proofing time:
Allow the dough to rise for some extra time. This is needed as cold weather slows down yeast activity in a dough. Follow the visual cues until the dough has doubled in size.Adjust Liquids/Fats:
To increase the moisture content of the dough, one may add a few tablespoons of milk or melted butter to the dried-out dough. This is a common practice during winter.
Conclusion:
Winter is finally here, and so is the official baking season. While winter and baking go hand-in-hand, this year, make sure the seasonal changes don’t stand a chance of ruining the baking endeavors. Know the mistakes to avoid and implement the solutions for the best results.