Cooking with German baking powder and soda

So I found back pulver and haus Natron. Both come in small packets.

But when I cook and use the measurements called for in my recipes things don't turn out right.

I made Banana nut bread and it didn't rise at all.

So I am curious it it the exact same equivalent of the US versions, or do I need to use more/less than called for in recipes. My mother in-law uses the whole single use packet, but that is normally way more than my recipe states.

If you put Backpulver to the dough then it takes a while until it rises. About half an hour at room temperatur, the warmer the faster. Of course it doesn´t rise as much as a yeast dough at room temperatur. The big rise is in the stove.

You need a small pack of Backpulver (15g) for a pack of flour(500g). But I´ve used much more,too. 15g of Backpulver for 300g of flour. You do not need extra Natron, it´s part of Backpulver, to be exact: more or less the same

TT Wiki: British & American foods

Can anyone help suggest what a suitable replacement for 1 & 1/2 packets German baking powder would be if cooking a German recipe in USA/UK/Australia?
In my experience, guesswork in measurements for baked goods can be a precarious game....

How much flour does the recipe call for? What are the other ingredients?

This is the recipeI was trying to replicate

I haven't tried again, after my last fail.

I did try chocolate chip cookies (this time I got Us baking soda and powder), and mine came out as mini cakes and not anything like cookies.

I think baking may just not be my cup of tea

Thanks Westvan, the recipe I want to share with friends outside of Germany includes 4 cups flour, 3 eggs, 2 cups sugar, 2 cups buttermilk, and a topping that includes 2 cups of dessicated coconut, more sugar and cream. It asks for one and a half packs of baking powder - I'm wondering what that would be a good guesstimate in terms of american/UK baking powder - 4 teaspoons?

Hmm, I think a little package of German baking powder is a bit over a tablespoon but as someone has mentioned, it's single and not double action so you'd probably be safe with 4 tsp of double action US baking powder for 4 cups of flour. You might have to do a trial run first and see how it works out and then increase or decrease amounts.

weird that it didn't rise, Serena. A lot of recipes that include both baking powder and baking soda also call for sour milk (one cup of milk and 1 tsp lemon juice or vineger, let sit 10 mins), yogurt or buttermilk because it reacts with the soda and helps the bread rise. This one might work if you substituted one of those for the cream cheese.

Thanks a lot Westvan!
I actually have some Xin Jing brand baking powder from the asian market, which is double acting, so I can test the recipe out for my friends who aren't in Germany.

Ok....now that Im seeing the stories, Im starting to think baking cookies is a going to be an issue. Has anyone used Backpulver or Natron and had success???

I have to say that I use regular German baking powder and baking soda in my N. American recipes all the time and haven't had a problem. Some problems do seem to come up because the flour and butter are slightly different here. If you do a search on the forum something will probably come up about that.

I have searched, and all the results have been negative that I have found. That's why I'm wondering if that's always the case or whether you can get them to turn out.

Thank you for your response though....It tells me it can work.

It really depends on the recipe. If you post it here maybe we can warn you of the possible pitfalls.

ash is trying to make chocolate chip cookies. Her recipe calls just for baking soda. So I told her she would probably not have the same issue as me in which case I tried mixing the two together. I know there is an issue with variations in baking powder (single, double rise), but is hausnatron pretty direct in converting? Just use the equivalent amount?

On a side, but related CCC question, what is the name of finely ground brown sugar here. I only find the thick natural rock type under brown sugar. I tried replacing it with honey, but didn't work out so well.