Bakeware
Be sure to use the pan size called for in the recipe. To check the width of a pan, measure across the top from inside edge to inside edge.
Use shiny metal pans for baking cakes. They reflect heat away, producing a tender, lighter-colored crust.
Use caution when using dark nonstick baking pans or glass baking dishes. Read and follow the manufacturer’s directions. Since these pans absorb more heat, results may be better if the baking temperature is reduced by 25 degrees F.
Baking
Bake cakes with the oven rack placed in the center of the oven, unless the recipe states differently. Bake only on one rack.
Cooling
Cakes should be cooled completely on wire racks. Cool round cakes in their pans 10 minutes, then loosen and remove from pans to wire racks. Rectangular cakes (often in 13×9-inch baking pans) can be cooled completely in the pan or cooled 10 minutes in the pan and then removed to a wire rack to cool completely.
Frosting
Frost cakes when they are completely cooled, or the frosting will melt or slide off the cake.
Making a Cake Recipe into Cupcakes
Follow cupcake preparation directions in the recipe, but if the recipe does not have specific instructions, be aware that most cake recipes can be made into cupcakes. Use the following guidelines.
Line cupcake pans with paper baking cups; fill cups 1/2 to 3/4 full with cake batter.
Bake cupcakes at 375 degrees F. for about 16 to 20 minutes.
Cool cupcakes completely before frosting.
Expect a yield of about 1-1/2 to 2 dozen cupcakes from a recipe calling for about 2-1/4 cups of flour.
Preparation
Grease and/or flour pans as directed in recipes for butter-type cakes. Do not grease pans for angel, sponge and chiffon cakes unless directed in the recipe.
Fill cake pans no more than half full to allow for rising during baking.
Storage & Cutting
Cool unfrosted cakes completely before storing, or they will become sticky on the surface.
Store cakes with creamy frostings under a cake saver or large inverted bowl.
Store cakes with whipped cream toppings, cream fillings or cream cheese frostings in the refrigerator.
Cut butter-type cakes with a sharp, long, thin knife.
Cut angel food, chiffon and pound cakes with a long, serrated knife or electric knife.
Trouble Shooting
Refer to this checklist to figure out why a cake did not turn out as expected.
If a homemade cake has a coarse texture, the following problems may have occurred:
* Too much baking soda or baking powder may have been used.
* Not enough liquid may have been used.
* The butter and sugar may not have been beaten together long enough. If the recipe calls for creaming butter and sugar, or beating until light and fluffy, this should take at least three to four minutes of beating.
* The oven temperature was too low.
If a homemade cake is too dry, the following problems may have occurred:
* Too much flour or leavening (baking soda/baking powder) was used.
* Not enough shortening or sugar was used.
* The cake was over-baked – the oven temperature was too high and/or the baking time was too long.
If a homemade cake fell (the center of the cake sinks), the following problems may have occurred:
* The cake was under-baked – the oven temperature was too low and/or the baking time was too short.
* The liquid was over or under measured.
* The pan was too small – the batter was too deep.
* The cake was moved or jarred before it was sufficiently baked.
* Old or expired baking powder was used.
* A wooden pick or cake tester was inserted into the cake before it was sufficiently set.
If a homemade cake has low volume or is too flat, the following problems may have occurred:
* The liquid was over- or under-measured.
* The batter was under-mixed or extremely over-mixed.
* Too large a pan was used.
* The oven temperature was too low or too high.
If a homemade cake has a peaked center, the following problems may have occurred:
* The batter was over-mixed.
* The oven temperature was too hot.
If a homemade cake shrinks excessively around the edges, the following problems may have occurred:
* The baking pans were greased too heavily.
* The baking pans were placed too close together in the oven.
* There was too little batter in the baking pan.
* The batter was extremely over-mixed.
* There was too little liquid in the batter.
* The cake was over-baked – either too long a time or at too high a temperature.
If a homemade cake is soggy, the following problems may have occurred:
* The cake was moved or jarred before it was sufficiently baked.
* The cake was under-baked – the oven temperature was too low and/or the baking time was too short.
* Old or expired baking powder was used.
If a homemade cake has a spotted crust, the batter was probably under-mixed.
If a homemade cake has a sticky top crust, the following problems may have occurred:
* The cake was stored while still warm.
* The liquid was over measured.
* The cake was under-baked – the oven temperature was too low and/or the baking time was too short.
* The air humidity was too high.
If a homemade cake has tunnels throughout the layer, the following problems may have occurred:
* The oven temperature was too high.
* The batter was under-mixed or extremely over-mixed.
If a homemade cake has uneven browning, the following problems may have occurred:
* There was uneven heat circulation in the oven.
* The baking pans were placed too close together in the oven.
If a homemade cake has uneven layers, the following problems may have occurred:
* The oven rack was not level.
* The cake pans were warped or bent.
SECRETS OF A SUCCESSFUL CAKE
For best results, have all ingredients at room temperature before mixing the cake.
Success of a cake depends on the correct blending of ingredients, the careful creaming of butter and sugar, as well as the gentle folding of egg whites (if added separately) to maintain maximum aeration.
Bake single layers in center of oven in the middle of the oven rack. Good circulation is important when baking more than one layer – stagger pans on oven racks so they do not block heat circulation from one another.
A cake is done when the sides shrink back slightly from the side of the pan (except sponge and chiffon cakes, which cling tightly to the pan), when the top springs back when lightly pressed with fingertips, or when a cake tester or toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
TIP: Spray the cooling racks with vegetable-oil cooking spray to help prevent the cake from sticking to it when cooling.
