Pastry Glossary

Terms galore! There are enough to make your head spin! Here's a helpful glossary of pastry and baking terms and techniques--everything from aerating to whipping, and a lot more, besides. And since a picture is worth a thousand words, many are linked to a Helpful Photograph and/or to an Amazon page, if you'd like to see how much they cost.

***Yes, I know that lots of the links are broken. I'm working my way down the list trying to fix them all. I'll be done soon, I hope. Thank you for your patience and understanding.***

Pastry Tools
You have the desire and the drive, but where to begin?  Read one book, and the author swears you need Item A.  Read another, and that author tells you that Item A is useless.  You go to a swanky kitchen store, and ask the helpful sales person, "Hey, do I need this $100.00 butter warmer? Helpful sales person says, "Of course you need it.  It's French."  Helpful sales person coldly calculates their commission behind their friendly smile.  What's a consumer to do?  I'm here to help.  The following is a list of kitchen supplies, some of which I think are vital, some nice to have but not necessary, and some just a waste of your hard-earned pennies, dollars or hundreds of dollars.
 

Apple Peeler/Corer/Slicer--A handy tool, if you're going to be peeling/coring/slicing bijillions of apples or pears.  Although they look a bit gimmicky, I've used them, and they work quite well.  Pass unless you're going into the apple pie business.

Baking Sheets--Absolutely necessary.  Go to the restaurant supply store nearest you, or check out some of the resources on the Pastry Links page, and get heavy duty professional half-sheet pans.  These measure 12"x18" and have about a 3/4" rim.  They're great for cookies, jelly rolls, water baths--you name it.

Bench Scrapers--Absolutely necessary.  They are good for many things--bashing things, scraping down your work area, transferring ingredients, portioning doughs, etc. 

Blenders--Handy, but not absolutely necessary.  If you must have one, I am partial to the Waring Professional version--toggle switch on/off, high/low.  Simple to use and metal gearing for a long life.

Bowl Scrapers--One of the cheapest little deals you can buy for the kitchen, and very much worth owning.  Not absolutely necessary, because a spatula would work almost as well, but nothing is better at getting every speck of a stiff cookie or bread dough out of a bowl

Bowls--Absolutely necessary.  Again, head out to the restaurant supply and get several good quality stainless steel bowls.  The shape is important--you want to be able to use your whisk in them.  Make sure they have a good curve to the sides but aren't so shallow that you're whisking things out of the bowl.  It has happened to me, so be forewarned.

Cake Pans--Absolutely necessary, if you're going to bake cakes.  If you're not, then it's really up to you.  I like straight-sided cake pans, brushed aluminum, either 2 or 3 inches in height.  The round ones come in sizes from 4" to 18", and there are many sizes of square pans as well.  Other shapes are available, but I generally stick to the basics.

Can Openers--Absolutely necessary.  Not strictly a pastry item, but when you need one, you really need one.  Get a good hand-held model.  Electric models, especially those weird little hands-off kind, are pretty much a waste of money, in my book.

Cherry Pitters--Absolutely necessary if you want whole pitted cherries.  Handy if you want your cherries halved.  Either way, a cherry pitter is a real time saver.  You can use it for olives, as well.  I have one that has a little plastic shield on it.  I thought it was kind of silly, but I bought it anyway because it was the only model they had at the store.  Well, let me tell you, I've been covered with little drops of cherry juice from pitting sessions before, and it doesn't happen anymore.  Hooray for the little plastic shield!

Chinois--Handy, but not necessary.  A chinois is a heavy duty very fine-meshed strainer that is conical in shape.  The conical shape makes it easy to use the included wooden pestle or a spatula to help push (whatever you're straining) through.  You can get the same effect by using 3-4 layers of cheesecloth in a colander, but you'll need to rely on time and gravity for the straining.  I don't recommend using a spatula to push sauces/custards/purees through cheesecloth.  A chinois is pretty pricey, but if you can afford one, they're nice to have. 

China Caps--Not necessary.  A china cap is shaped like a chinois, but rather than a heavy-duty fine mesh, it has holes in it that are about 1/16".  Live with your Colander.

Chocolate Fountains--A fairly recent arrival on the scene, a chocolate fountain is absolutely unnecessary.  Having a swanky buffet?  Rent one.

Citrus Juicers --Not really necessary, unless you are known as "The Juice Queen/King/Prince."  I say skip it and use your hands and maybe a low-tech cheap but effective reamer.

Cutters--Not absolutely necessary, but very useful if you need to cut many shapes of uniform size.  I like the ones that come in graduated sizes--all round, or square, or scalloped or what have you.  Of course, there are all manner of shaped cutters out there.  I do prefer metal ones, as they tend to make sharper cuts.  And they can be used for so much more than just cookies: pancake or egg molds (spray them well with non-stick spray first), trimming pie crust for individual pies, cutting puff pastry, biscuits, etc.

Cutting Boards--At home, we have a wooden-topped island, and I often used that as a cutting surface.  Otherwise, cutting boards are necessary to keep your counters, and your knives, at their best.  There has been some debate about wood versus plastic cutting boards.  I rather like end-grain cutting board as a cutting surface, but the NSF approved polyethylene boards that are available are very good, won't hurt your knives, and do help to cut down on cross-contamination if you adhere to the color coding (red=meat, green=vegetables, etc)

Deseeders--A highly specialized and completely unnecessary gadget used for scooping seeds from papaya, cucumbers, zucchini, etc.  For goodness' sake, use a spoon!

Double Boilers--Buying a dedicated double boiler is unnecessary.  Generally, your top vessel should have sloped sides, because whatever you are melting or heating will need to be stirred or whisked.  Use one of your nice stainless steel bowls fitted into a pan with about an inch of water in it. Here is a great example of a "home brewed" double boiler.

Docker--Skip it.  Use a fork or a paring knife.

Digital Scale--Absolutely necessary, as far as I'm concerned.  Much more accurate than "spring type" scales, electronic scales ensure precise measurements.  One cup of flour can weigh between 3-5 ounces depending on how you scoop it into the cup.  On the other hand, 4 ounces of flour is 4 ounces of flour no matter what.  I generally try, whenever possible, to convert any volumetric measures into weight measures.  For instance, I have discovered that 1 cup of sugar weighs 6.6 ounces.  Much easier to weigh it directly into a bowl and then zero out the scale (tare function) rather than use a measuring cup.

Food Processors--For frequent chopping/mixing/pulverizing, it's pretty necessary.  Spend the money on a good one with a large capacity and a wide feed tube.  For an ultra-sturdy commercial model, and if you are Wealthy, go with the Robot Coupe. For the rest of us, we can get a very nice model by Cuisinart or Kitchenaid for well under $200.

Funnels--Nice to have; I'd recommend a metal one since plastic is hard to keep clean, especially once it comes into contact with fats.

Graters--Cheap and low tech.  Sometimes it's the way to go.  Get one if you don't have one.  They're good for cheese and carrots and for slicing cucumbers or zucchini, if you get the kind with different cutting surfaces on each face.  An answer to the food processor if you just need small amounts of ingredients grated/sliced.

Hand Mixers--If you have a stand mixer, skip it.  Honestly, I have one and never use it.  Perhaps I should donate it to the Viet Nam Veteran's Association.  Hmmm.

Ice Cream Makers--Probably not necessary, unless you are a die-hard purist.  I use one at work almost every day, but even though I have one at home, I haven't used it in years. Given my preference, I want one that makes a ton of ice cream. And that means the old barrel style kind. Messier perhaps than the ones that have containers that you freeze, but more fun.

Immersion Blenders--Great for pureeing in the pot, rather than transferring your sauce (or whatever) to a blender.  It won't get your sauce (or whatever) as smooth as a blender will, but you can always strain after using the stick blender. If you don't have one, I recommend one.

Knives--Absolutely necessary.  Take your time and shop for good knives that have good balance and are the right size for you hand.  For pastry work, a good chef's knife and a paring knife are both essential.  Hone your blade before every use with a steel or ceramic steel, and, unless you're using it every day, pay to have it professionally sharpened once or twice a year.  If you do give your knives workouts on a daily basis, consider investing in a sharpening stone.  Keep in mind that they do take some practice to use correctly.

Liquid Measures --Absolutely necessary.  The old adage "a pint is a pound the world around" is fairly accurate, so often I do weigh liquid ingredients, but it's only dead-on accurate for water, whole eggs and milk.  Other liquids really should be measured by volume to account for differences in mass.  Oh, and don't try and use a liquid measure to measure dry ingredients.  It's not a good idea.

Mandolines--I was going to call this the poor man's food processor, but considering that some of them can cost upwards of $200, I have to reconsider that nick name. If you need to do a lot of thin, consistent slicing very quickly, they are extremely useful to have, so consider a Japanese Mandolin.  They come with several very sharp slicing blades and a much more economical option.

Measuring Cups--Absolutely necessary for the home cook working from recipes written using standardmeasures rather than weights.  What I often try to do is measure using the cup, then weigh it and record the weight right on the recipe.  That way, the next time, I'll know that 1/3 cup of sugar weighs 2.6 ounces.  **Remember, don't weigh the measuring cup, too--just the ingredient. For that, make sure that you have a scale that has a tare function.** At work, I rarely use dry measuring cups as most of the recipes are written in ounces or grams.

Measuring Spoons--Absolutely necessary.  I carry a set in my pocket all the time.  But only at work, so if you see me at the movies, don't ask to borrow my measuring spoons.  I don't have them on me!

Microplane--Not absolutely necessary, until you've used one.  And then, oh my, but you'll never want to go back to a traditional zester or grater.  I use one for zesting citrus, or for finely grating garlic or ginger.  Try to get the kind with a metal, rather than plastic, frame.  They are more durable.

Mortar & Pestle--Fun for decoration, but get a coffee grinder for grinding spices and a food processor for making salsas, pestos and other coarse-textured sauces.   "But, the ancients used them!"  you say.  Well, they didn't have access to a coffee grinder.

Parchment Paper--Makes life a whole lot easier when it comes to removing cakes from pans.  Or cookies from trays.  Or sticky tart pans from trays.  I use it to line ring molds, line sheet trays and cake pans.  At work, we buy it in boxes of 500 sheets that fit perfectly on a full sheet tray.  At home, I buy it in rolls.  In a pinch, you could use wax paper, but the wax makes the oven smoke a bit.  Believe me, I'm t 8ujhelling the truth.

Pastry cutter--Sometimes called a pastry blender.  Skip it.  Use two forks or your fingers.

Pineapple Corer--Oh, please. Unless you are cutting multiple pineapples a day, and unless you absolutely need perfect rings of pineapple, just don't bother.

Piping bags--The disposable kind are nice and, aside from any cake decorating I might have to do, I also use them for piping meringue and pate a choux, filling molds, and making lady fingers.  Not absolutely necessary, but very useful.

Piping tips--For cake decorating cakes with intricate scroll work or shells or string work, absolutely necessary. 

Peelers--Unless you are very good with your paring knife, a peeler is absolutely necessary.  I even use mine to peel wide strips of citrus zest for steeping into ice cream bases or sauces. Depending on your preference, choose either an inline swivel peeler or Y peeler.

Portion Scoops--Very handy to make sure that all your cookies are the same size, for instance.  Not absolutely necessary, but very useful. Generally speaking, they are sized according to how many scoops will make a quart.  So, a #8 holds 4 ounces while a #16 holds 2 ounces.  Click here for a handy chart of scoop numbers and sizes.

Pots and pans--Absolutely necessary.  Get good solid pans that are fairly heavy, for heat retention, and are made, at least in part, of aluminum for good heat conductivity.  Stainless steel with aluminum cores are a good bet.  Try and find ones with metal handles and lids so the whole thing can go in the oven if necessary.   You can get all aluminum cookware, but unanodized aluminum can react with acidic ingredients and your lemon curd can end up tasting like metal.  This is not good.  Oh, and non-stick--not strictly necessary.  I'd recommend having one nonstick skillet or frying pan.  That's all.

Rolling pins--Not only necessary for rolling out doughs and pie crusts, but also useful for bashing things, such as toffee or peanut brittle, into small pieces.  Good stress relief.

Ring Molds--Useful, but not absolutely necessary.  They're good for baking as well as for layering desserts.  I use them at work but have not bothered to purchase any for home.

Sifters--I have one that I bought years ago.  If I had it to do all over again, I'd just use my strainer.

Silicone Baking Mats--These are pretty pricey and really delicate.  Do NOT cut on one, or it will slice right open.  Trust me; I've seen it.  They are great, and I do own some, and they are very useful for sugar work or for baking really thin tuiles but, unless you're the Tuile King or the Pulled Sugar Princess, I'd skip them and just use parchment paper.

Spatulas--Two kinds, and both are pretty necessary:  The first, the flat plastic kind with silicone heads (so you can use them in hot pans without their melting).  These are great for mixing and folding, and indispensable for scraping every last particle out of the mixer bowl.  The second, the thin metal kind with wooden or plastic handles, are called icing spatulas.  I like the offset kind (the kind with a bend in the blade)  because they keep my knuckles out the way.  They are great for, as the name implies, icing cakes, but also for spreading batters/meringues/whatever very thinly.

Spice Mills--Very useful for, you know, milling spices, but they can be pricey.  I say skip it and get a dedicated blade coffee grinder for about $15.

Spoons--Absolutely necessary.  Metal ones and wooden ones.  They also have cool hard composite plastic ones (Exoglass TM) that are heat resistant and vaguely wood-colored that we dubbed "plood" spoons. 
Squeeze Bottles--Nice to have, but not completely necessary unless you want to make sauce dots or squiggles on your plates.

Stand Mixers--If you're going to be making a lot of batters and doughs on a regular basis, absolutely buy one.  They are an investment, but they should last forever.  Look for a heavy, sturdy model with all-metal gearing.  This is very important, especially if you're going to be giving it a workout on a regular basis.  The quieter home models have nylon gearing.  Well, over time the gears will strip out and your mixer will not work.  I've seen it happen.  It's not pretty.  So, little Timmy might have to turn up the volume on the TV while you're making your dough.  He'll live.  (An aside:  A friend had her KitchenAid strip out and she called the company.  They asked her in an annoyed sort of voice, "Well, were you making bread?"  Gee, I'm sorry, I guess the included dough hook gave me the wrong idea! KA has recently gone back to metal gearing on some, if not all of their models, thank goodness).   At any rate, don't just be married to KA.  There are some really good mixers available by Electrolux, Viking and DeLonghi, just to name a few.  It pays to do some research, as you should expect to own your stand mixer for a long long time. 

Strainers--I use these instead of colanders and sifters, too.  They're cheap and useful.  Buy one or two.

Tart Pans--Unless you'll be making tarts on a regular basis, skip them.  A free-form panless tart, or galette is rustic and beautiful.

Thermometers--Absolutely necessary, especially if you want to make sugar syrups or candies.  There are a few different types.  I recommend an instant read thermometer for checking internal temperatures and a candy thermometer for working with sugar.

Timers--Absolutely necessary, especially when you have several things going at once.  I use a triple timer, and I often have all three timers set.  Burn something that you've worked long and hard on, and you'll understand.

Tongs--Very useful for turning things in hot pans, grabbing spaghetti for serving, grabbing, well, almost anything.  At home, I use them to grab errant socks from behind the washer.

Torches--Although we use one at work frequently, I've never felt the need for one at home.  I say skip it.

Turntables--Very nice to have, if not absolutely necessary, for icing/decorating cakes.

Whisks--Absolutely necessary for aerating by hand.  They come in all different configurations, but my favorite for whipping air into light ingredients quickly is the piano, or balloon whisk. 

Wine Keys--A very useful tool for opening wine bottles, and the bonus is you can carry it in your apron pocket.

Zesters--Since the advent of the Microplane, my zester hasn't gotten much of a workout.  Enough said.

Pastry Techniques
Here is a listing of helpful cooking verbs.  When you ask yourself, "What do they mean by cut in the flour?" or "Fold?!  Fold how?" come to this helpful little section for clarification on how to do what the recipes tell you to do.

Aerate--to add air to a mixture, generally by using a whisk or the whip attachment on a mixer

Bake--to cook using the dry heat of an oven.  The heating element in an oven is usually in the bottom.  When you turn on the oven, first the air in the oven heats up, and then the metal box of the oven heats.  When pre-heating, the happy little signal your oven emits means that the air has gotten up to temperature.  Wait another few minutes to allow the heat to build up in the metal itself before opening the door and losing all that hot air.  Your temperature will recover much more quickly.

Baste--To spoon juices over what you are cooking every so often.  Do it fairly quickly to keep heat loss to a minimum.

Beat--to quickly mix together by stirring vigorously or by using a whisk or a stand mixer.  This action will also help to aerate your batter/dough/whatever you happen to be beating.

Blanch--to plunge into rapidly boiling water for a very short time to either a)lock in color or b) loosen skins for easy peeling of tomatoes, peaches, etc.  After blanching, fish out your blanched product quickly and put it in ice water.  This will stop the cooking process and keep your colors bright and your textures crisp.

Blend--to homogenize ingredients by use of a spoon, a beater or a some cool electric appliance.

Bloom--to hydrate and soften, most often gelatin.  Sheet gelatin should be hydrated in ice water.  Ice water will hydrate the gelatin but the sheet will maintain its integrity.  Once it's bloomed, just wring it out and toss in to your hot ingredients and stir it in.  Blooming sheet gelatin in room temperature water will work, but you have to pay close attention.  Once its bloomed, it will begin to dissolve, and that's no good for anyone.  Powdered gelatin, most easily found for home cooks, is bloomed in a portion of the cold liquid called for in a recipe.  Then, you have to melt it over low heat before adding the rest of your ingredients.  Either way, strain your mixture before using to prevent any little errant gelatin lumps from messing up the texture of your final product.

Blind Bake--to bake a pie or tart crust without any filling in it. To do this, you need some sort of weight to hold the crust in place to keep it from sliding down the sides of the pan or bubbling up during baking. Stores want to sell you pie weights. Do not buy them.  Accept them as a gift, but don't buy them.  I use a bag of beans, chickpeas in my case, but any old dried bean will do.  I line the pie shell with plastic wrap--yes it can go in the oven, but don't let it touch metal or it will stick--then fill it up with beans.  Bake for a few minutes, until the edges look firm, then remove the beans by gathering up the plastic wrap and lifting out the whole bundle.

Boil--to cook in vigorously bubbling water (212 degrees, F at sea level)

Braise--moist heat cooking method; to cook in an oven in a sealed pot/pan at a relatively low temperature (generally around 300 degrees, F) for a relatively long period of time in liquid that comes about half way up the side of the food you are cooking.

Broil--dry heat cooking method; to cook in an oven with heat radiating from the top; you can think of it as upside down grilling.  Or not.

Caramelize--to cook sugar until it turns color, anywhere from light amber to just this side of burnt.  I always add water to start; it helps the sugar dissolve evenly and it cooks off well before caramelization actually happens.

Chiffonade--to cut flat herbs, such as mint or basil, into very thin strips.  Easily done by rolling a stack of leaves into a tight cylinder and then slicing through the cylinder

Chop--to cut roughly into pieces of about the same size
Combine--to put two or more ingredients together

Cut In--to work a cold fat (butter, lard or shortening) into dry ingredients using either two forks, a pastry cutter or your hands.  If you use your hands (usually called "rubbing in"), work quickly so you don't soften the fat too much. 

Cream--to work ingredients together into a smooth and creamy texture.  This can be done in a stand mixer with a paddle attachment or with a spoon or spatula against the side of a bowl.  In baking, fats and sugars are often creamed together as a first step before other ingredients are added.

Crimp--to decoratively (or not) pinch the top and bottom crusts of a pie together, sealing the filling inside.  This can be done with a fork or with your fingers.

Cube--to cut into regular dice of about 1/2 inch

Cut in--to work cold fat into flour for biscuits, pie dough or tart dough.  You can do this using two forks and "mashing" the fat in to the flour.  Don't get too carried away.  Sometimes you want big pieces of butter left.  Check your recipe to see.  You can also cut in with your fingers.  This is my preferred way, but you have to be quick since the heat from your hands and melt the fat.  I just reach right in and smash the butter between my thumbs and forefingers, rubbing as I go.  It's easier to get a feel (literally) for the size of the pieces of fat this way.  If you can feel that the fat is starting to melt.  Throw the bowl into the freezer for a few minutes before continuing.

Dice--to cut into regular dice of about 1/4 inch

Dock--to use a fork or a docker to prick a pie crust or pastry all over before baking, allowing steam to escape and preventing the crust from "heaving up" from the bottom of the pan.  Especially used when blind baking.

Emulsify--to force two liquids together that don't like to go together by suspending one in the other.  Oil and vinegar in a vinaigrette, for example.  This is most often done by whisking madly while slowly drizzling one liquid into the other.

Flambé--to burn off vaporizing alcohol in a pan.  This is done by adding a liquid with a high alcohol content to a hot pan, then lighting the vapors with a looong match.  No tilting the pan down into the gas flame, people.  Safety first!

Fold--to gently incorporate ingredients while minimizing loss of air, usually achieved by using a large spatula and cutting down through the ingredients, sweeping the spatula along the bottom of the bowl and then bringing it up and over the top.  Turn pan and repeat until the ingredients are incorporated.  Very useful technique for making genoise, angel food cake, mousse or other light and airy products.

Fry--to cook in hot fat.  In pan frying, use about 1/2 inch of fat; in deep frying, put enough oil in a large Dutch oven to completely immerse the food.  When done right, frying actually adds very little fat to the finished product since  the pressure of the steam leaving the cooking food is enough to keep the fat from penetrating.  Wait until all the steam is gone, though, and you've got very dry, greasy food.  It pays to be vigilant when frying.

Glaze--to cover a product with a thin coating of, um, glaze.  The glaze can be a thin chocolate, fondant, or thinned jam or preserves

Infuse--to impart extra flavor into a base by steeping an ingredient in the base.  For example, put toasted ground nuts in milk or cream overnight to impart a nutty flavor to the milk, or put an herb or spice into a syrup to add extra flavor.  Many folks like to heat up their base for infusing, but often the heat can bring out bitter flavor components in whatever you're steeping.  It takes a bit longer to do it cold, but if you have the time, infuse overnight into cold liquid.

Julienne--to cut into uniform matchstick shapes, usually about 1/8" x 1/8" x 1 1/2"

Knead--most often associated with bread dough.  To fold and push the dough for several minutes, either by hand or in a mixer with a dough hook.  The purpose of this, besides a good work-out, is to develop the gluten strands in the flour that give bread its structure and characteristic chew.

Level--In cake decorating, to cut off the crown, or "hump" on the top of a cake so it is flat.

Lighten--To incorporate a portion of an aerated ingredient into a denser ingredient to make it easier to fold the two ingredients together by making the textures similar.  Wow, sorry about that.  Let me 'splain, Lucy, with an example:  You're making mousse.  You have a thick chocolate pudding and a light whipped cream.  In order to make it easier to fold together, you fold in a portion of the whipped cream (about 1/3) into the pudding to lighten its texture before folding in the rest.  Also used in making soufflés.

Macerate--used often in reference to dried fruits.  To soak dried fruits in a liquid to soften and plump them and add flavor.  For instance, you can macerate raisins in rum.  Yum.

Marinate--to soak an ingredient in a flavorful liquid that usually contains an acid to heighten flavor.

Mince--to cut into very very very small pieces.

Mix--to stir together well with a wooden spoon or in a stand mixer on low speed

Parboil--to partially boil an ingredient to be held and finished at a later time

Parcook--ditto, whether the cooking method is grilling, sautéing or whatever, to cook it until it is only partially done to be finished later

Pipe--in cake decorating, to apply decorative icings using a piping bag and piping tips.

Puree--to reduce pulp (fruit or vegetable) into a smooth, thick liquid using a blender or an immersion blender

Poach--to cook in barely simmering liquid.

Reduce--to boil a liquid until a portion of the water has boiled off, leaving an intensely flavored syrup.  The thickness and richness of the final product depends on how much you reduce it.

Roast--dry cooking method; to cook uncovered in an oven or on a grill using indirect heat.

Sauté--to cook in a pan with a little bit of fat at a relatively high heat for a relatively short period of time.  Sauté means "to jump" in French, and the food should jump around a little.  Watch it next time you sauté onions and garlic.

Scald--to bring milk or cream almost, but not quite, to a boil.  Years ago, this was done to kill off bacteria and enzymes that could affect the final product.  Now, with pasteurization, scalding isn't strictly necessary.

Score--to make shallow cuts across the surface of a product.  Bakers score bread dough before baking to make a nice pattern, but also to assist in optimal rising of the final bread

Sift--to pass dry ingredients through a sifter or sieve to catch clumps and aerate.

Simmer--to cook in a liquid that is just below a boil.  Very similar to poaching.

Stew--moist heat cooking method; food is cooked in an uncovered pot on top of the stove for a relatively long time at a relatively low temperature completely submerged in a liquid.

Temper--to slowly raise the temperature of an ingredient.  To temper eggs into cream for making custard, you heat the cream then pour a little into the eggs while whisking.  Then add a little more hot cream and whisk some more.  When the eggs are very warm, you then pour the egg/milk mixture back into the pan and continue heating and stirring until thickened.  If you pour the cold eggs into the hot cream, you will have egg drop soup, and you will be very sad.  Unless that's what you were going for.  In which case, carry on.  In chocolate work, tempering is the process by which chocolate is heated, cooled and then brought to the precise temperature to ensure that all the fats that make up the cocoa butter in the chocolate crystallize at the same time.  Chocolate that has been properly tempered dries shiny, resists melting in your hand and will snap when you break it.  Untempered chocolate is dull and streaky, melts on your hands and bends when you bend it.

Toast--to brown or crisp an ingredient in an oven, or under a broiler.  Toasting brings out the flavor of nuts and adds a nice crunchy texture to whatever is being toasted.

Whip--to beat so many tiny air bubbles into cream or egg whites that they become thick and hold peaks.  You can do this by hand with a whisk.  Honest.  Or you can use a stand mixer.