Found out baking powder expires way faster than I thought

I was making my usual Saturday morning batch of buttermilk pancakes last weekend and they came out flat and dense. Pulled out the can of baking powder from the back of my cabinet and checked the date - it expired 8 months ago. I always thought that stuff lasted forever like salt or sugar, but apparently it loses its oomph after about 6 months. Has anyone else had a recipe flop because of old leavening agents?

2 comments

2 Comments

hugobarnes1mo ago

Wait, Casey - you're saying 8 months past date is fine, but were you using the same kind of baking powder? Because double-acting needs heat to work, and single-acting needs acid from the buttermilk. If yours was double-acting and you used it 8 months later, then yeah, maybe your griddle temp saved you. But if it was single-acting and your buttermilk was old too, that might explain why yours worked and his didn't. Did you actually check the can to see what type it was, or did you just assume they're all the same?

casey8431mo ago

You're blaming the baking powder but 8 months past date ain't that bad. I've used year old stuff and pancakes still came out fine. Maybe your griddle wasn't hot enough or you overmixed the batter.