Measure liquids in a liquid measuring cup - dry ingredients in a dry measure cup. All my cooking life, I've paid attention to this detail painstakingly, figuring that cooking and baking was so scientific that even the slightest mis-measurement would end in disaster.
Ah, the things you learn in culinary school.
My school-issued knife kit included a dry measuring set, and I noticed that almost everyone was using it for some liquid measurements as well. I was pretty much appalled - my 8th grade Home Ec teacher must be turning over in her grave.
Turns out that water, milk and eggs have nearly equal volume and mass: A cup of water weighs 8 ounces, a pint of milk weighs one pound and a gallon of eggs weighs 8 pounds.
You can save yourself some time with the little rhyme "A pint, a pound, the whole world round," but I would be remiss if I didn't mention that the "world" refers to the United States. Every place else uses the metric system. Go figure.
Ever wanted to know what it's like to go to culinary school? Here's your chance, as one local wanna-be-chef tells tales out of school. Check back soon for the next installment of "Cooking School Secrets."
