With so many of us heeding orders to stay at home in these times, a lot of us are rediscovering — or perhaps just learning about — kitchen basics. We’re cooking and baking in greater numbers now than we have in decades. And not without reason.

We all have to eat.

So I’ve decided to start sharing daily cooking and baking posts, along with handy kitchen tips. Whether you’re new to the kitchen, or feel a bit rusty when it comes to a particular skill or technique, I hope to help with these posts. And if you’re looking for any particular information or recipe, contact me and I’ll do my best to help you out, or point you to the right resource. You can reach me at: noelle@noellecarterfood.com.

Baking powder and soda. Along with yeast and manual aeration, they’re the components — the leaveners — in recipes that help your cookies, breads, cakes and other delicious baked goods rise. In short, they’re kind of magical in the kitchen.

Well, so long as they’re fresh.

Ever have a cake turn up flat, or made doughnuts that failed to rise? Like many ingredients, baking powder and soda lose their effectiveness as they age. And there’s nothing worse than having a special dessert fail because the leaveners weren’t any good.

Because of this, it’s good to buy both baking powder and soda in small quantities, and label when you first open them so you know how long they’ve been in service (baking powder is especially fickle, and can start to lose its freshness just a few months after opening).

Additionally, there are simple ways to test both of these ingredients for freshness:

To test baking powder, place a teaspoon or so of powder in a small bowl or measuring cup of hot water. If it’s active, it will begin to bubble and fizz; if there’s no reaction, it’s time to buy some more.
To test baking soda, place a teaspoon or so of soda in a small bowl or measuring cup with a few tablespoons of vinegar. Like the powder, if the soda is active, it will immediately start to fizz; if there’s little to no reaction, it’s time to buy some more. (Even if it’s inactive, don’t throw the soda out; keep the container in the fridge, and it will help to neutralize odors for a few weeks.)

Once you’re satisfied with your leaveners, go forth and bake! You can start with this recipe for Salted caramel shortbread bars; your baking powder will give the rich and buttery shortbread just enough lift to make it flaky and delicate.

SALTED CARAMEL SHORTBREAD BARS

Total time: 45 minutes, plus cooling times. Makes 16 to 24 bars

SHORTBREAD

3 cups (12.75 ounces) flour
1 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) butter, softened

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 13-inch by 9-inch baking dish with nonstick spray and line the bottom with parchment. Spray the parchment and set aside.
In the bowl of a food processor, pulse together the flour, powdered sugar and baking powder to combine. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles a coarse meal. Add the mixture to the prepared dish and press the dough evenly over the bottom of the dish. Bake until the crust is set and lightly golden, about 30 minutes. Transfer the dish to a rack, and cool completely.

CARAMEL AND ASSEMBLY

1 1/3 cups sugar
1/2 cup water
1 teaspoon corn syrup
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter
1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla extract
Prepared cooled shortbread
1 teaspoon very coarse sea salt, preferably Maldon

In a large saucepan, combine the sugar, water and corn syrup, stirring until the sugar has the consistency of wet sand. Place the saucepan over high heat and cook until the sugar dissolves and begins to boil. Do not stir the sugar, as this may cause it to seize.
While the sugar is cooking, combine the cream and butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Keep an eye on the sugar while you're heating the cream to keep it from scorching. Cook until the butter melts, stirring it into the cream. When the mixture has come to a simmer, remove from heat.
Continue to cook the sugar until it darkens to a rich caramel color, 7 to 10 minutes — the sugar will darken quickly and noticeably and will smell faintly nutty. Swirl the pan as the sugar darkens to judge the true color of the caramel (the sugar may darken in patches if there are hot spots on the stove). Watch carefully, as the sugar can easily overcook at this point and burn.
As soon as the color is darkened to a rich caramel, remove the pan from the heat and quickly add the cream mixture in a slow, steady stream. The sugar will bubble and steam as the cream is added; be careful as both the mixture and steam are very hot. Carefully stir in the vanilla, then continue to stir until the mixture stops bubbling. Remove from heat and set aside until cool to just warm.
Pour the cooled caramel over the shortbread, using a spatula to push it to the edges of the dish for an even layer. Sprinkle over the coarse salt. Refrigerate until cold, then cut into bars.

Note: From Noelle Carter. Adapted and improving upon a recipe I first created at the Los Angeles Times.