High Altitude Baking

High-altitude baking can cause a lot of heartache in the kitchen, and I’ve got a ton of recipes, tips, tricks and helpful information throughout this website and on all of my recipes to help along the way. You’ll also find my downloadable guides below to help you have more successful bakes!

Click the links below to download a copy of my high-altitude baking guide, or my holiday baking guide!

High-Altitude Baking Tips & Tricks

There are a lot of methods when it comes to adapting sea level recipes to work at higher altitudes, and first and foremost, if you have a method that you love and that works well for you, stick with it! I’m not here to change the way you’ve been able to succeed over the years, but I can offer up recipes that are developed at high-altitude, and ready to bake.

I like to approach my altitude adjustment tips by the type of bake you are making. For example, you don’t approach adjusting a sea level cake recipe the same way you would adjust a yeast bread recipe. I’ve got tons of tips throughout this site, along with the resources above, and also my two published books, which you can find in the sidebar of this site.

High-altitude baking doesn’t have to be complicated, you just need to know how to approach it, and with a few quick tips, you’ll find it much easier. The easiest way to start is to download the cheatsheet linked above, or start with the recipes listed below!

High-Altitude Baking Adjustments

I bake at about 5,000 ft. above sea level, and these adjustments are effective for people who live between about 3,000 ft.-7,000 ft. above sea level. Use these tips adjust a sea-level recipe to be high-altitude friendly. If you are higher than 7,000 ft, you may need to take these adjustments a little further, like decreasing leaving a little more, increasing flour a little more, etc.

CAKES & QUICKBREAD	Decrease leavening (baking soda or powder) by 1/4-1/2 teaspoon per teaspoon called for in the recipe.
	Increase the flour by 3-4 tablespoons for a single 8-inch layer cake. Multiple this for multiple layer cakes.
	Increase the liquid by 1-2 teaspoons. This can be in the form of liquid already in the recipe like milk, water, or extracts.
	Use powerful ingredients like fresh baking soda and powder, dutch-processed cocoa powder, real vanilla extract, and salt to ensure great flavors.

COOKIES & BARS	Decrease leavening (baking soda or powder) by 1/4-1/2 teaspoon per teaspoon.
	Increase the flour by 2 tablespoons per cup of flour.
	Increase the liquid by 1-2 teaspoons. This can be in the form of liquid already in the recipe like milk, water, or extracts.

YEAST BREADS	Decrease rise times as rising can often occur faster at altitude. Shy on the smaller side of a dough that has “doubled in size” to avoid over-proofing. Pay attention to the size of your dough rather than the indicated rise time.
	Knead the dough fully until it passes the window pane test, this can take up to 20 mins.
	Increase bake time. Things can often take longer to bake at higher altitudes, so focus on visual cues and internal temp instructions in a recipe.

Beginner High-Altitude Baking Recipes

If you’re just starting out baking at high-altitude, here are some really great simple, approachable recipes to start with:

• High-Altitude Sandwich Bread is super fluffy, soft, flavorful, and a great place to start baking your own bread.
• This Funfetti Snack Cake is a simple, single layer cake that is really easy to make, but fully gives you what you want in a sprinkle cake!
• High-Altitude Chocolate Cake is the perfect birthday cake. It’s a bit of a bigger project, but chocolate cake can be very tricky at high-altitude, and this is my favorite layer cake recipe for it!
• These Small-Batch Snickerdoodles are very easy to pull together, and they give you that classic comfort cookie that we all love.
• Everyone needs a great High-Altitude Banana Bread recipe in their back pocket- I’ve got you covered.

This website is full of recipes that I’ve developed and tested at high-altitude, and I’m here to help you with your high-altitude baking questions along the way. Hope you enjoy!