From a snack cake to a multi-layered birthday cake, some basic secrets will help make every cake a success.
Use shiny metal pans. Shiny aluminum pans reflect heat away from the cake and give it a tender, light-brown crust. Dark pans can cause a thick, dark crust. Insulated pans require a longer baking time.
Use a properly sized pan. When checking the size, measure from inside edge to inside edge. A cake made in a pan that is too large can be flat and overbaked, while one made in a pan that is too small may overflow during baking or take longer to bake.
Prepare the pan according to recipe directions. Pans for butter cakes are usually greased and floured. Pans for foam cakes are usually not.
Heat the oven 10 to 15 minutes before baking.
Measure ingredients accurately. Be sure to add them in the order and manner specified in the recipe.
Don’t overbeat or underbeat the batter. Underbeating or overbeating will affect the texture and volume of the cake. These recipes have been tested using an electric mixer, which produces the highest volume, but they also may be mixed by hand. One minute of beating time with a mixer equals 150 strokes by hand.
Fill pans halfway. This will ensure that the cake bakes evenly and that the batter doesn’t overflow the pan during baking. If you’re using a special-shaped pan such as a heart or Christmas tree, measure how much batter it will hold by filling it with water. Measure the amount of water and use half that amount of batter. Extra batter can be used for cupcakes.
Carefully space pans in the oven. Place single pans in the middle of the center rack. For more than one pan, leave at least 1 inch between the pans and the sides of the oven for good air circulation. If necessary, stagger the pans on two oven racks so one is not directly above the other so that air flows evenly around them. If you are baking cakes on both racks, it’s a good idea to rotate the pans midway through the baking period. The most effective way to rotate is to turn the pans around, so that the side of the pan or baking sheet that was at the front of the oven is now at the back, and to put the top pan on the bottom rack and the bottom pan on the top. This technique makes up for any hot spots or other inconsistencies in your oven.
Cool cakes completely before filling, frosting or glazing them.
Always use room-temperature butter, not fresh-out-of-the-fridge cold nor melted.
Pay attention to the egg size called for in the recipe. More than likely, it’ll call for large eggs, but other times it won’t!
Measure flour the correct way by spooning it into the measuring cup, tapping it, and leveling it off with a knife or other flat edge.
Sift dry ingredients for an airier cake.
Grease a cake pan correctly with butter and evenly-distributed flour: brush the whole surface with butter, sprinkle in the flour, and tap until covered. I use some of the dry cake mix to keep from making a dark cake look white.
Always use a toothpick to test for doneness, and pay attention to when the cake starts to pull away from the sides of the pan.
For perfect slicing, first dip a chef’s knife in hot water and wipe clean.
Now that you have your Cake Game down, see these reasons why All Flour Is Not Created Equal.
I am guilty of using dark enamel pans like my mom used to! Sometimes it amazes me I do things but never know why. Like sifting dry ingredients. I always thought it a waste of time.
Oh, wow, I never thought to use melted butter! And i love size chart! Thanks for bringing your post to Throwback Thursday This week!
Thaks Mollie. Watch the melted butter as in some recipes it affects the other ingredients. Cakes and cookies are good!
I am pinning your tips, everyone needs access to these wonderful tips to help us become better bakers! Thanks so much for sharing with us today at Full Plate Thursday and have a great weekend!
Thank you for the pin. There are so many tricks to learn. Thankfully you can ignore them most of the time and still have a wonderfully delicious meal. These things are just the final touches!
These are definitely great tips. Homemade cakes seem intimidating, but I think they are so much fun to make! Thanks for sharing at Throwback Thursday!
That is a great one!. Works for everything. Tanks CJ.
Great tips! Thank you for joining the Creative K Kids’ Tasty Tuesday, I can’t wait to see what you come up with next week.
Thank you for coming by Amanda. I Love Tasty Tuesday!
Actually most are more for show. The taste is good no matter what! Thanks Carla.
The cake is the easy part! It’s the flavor that is hard. Thanks Shirley.
Great tips Marilyn! If there is a dome on my cakes after baking I use fishing line to slice it off. We either snack on it or I place it in a zippered bag, freeze and use it to make cake truffles.
I have used piano wire. Fish line is better! I love you reuse the cake. I throw it on top of popcorn. LOL!
You got it. Thanks Jess.
Awesome tips! Thanks for sharing at the To Grandma’s house we go link party today! Pinned!
Glad you liked them. Thanks for the pin!
I always take the path of least resistance except when I am presenting the cake for a special occasion. Simple cake mix rectangular pans otherwise! Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
Great tips for me! I’m not a great cake baker, so these hints are really helpful for me! Pinned!
I am glad you found them useful Emmi. Thanks for the pin.
I’ve had the best luck greasing my pans with vegetable shortening. I use a cheap sandwich bag (the kind with the fold-over, not a zip-top) over my hand and rub a nice even layer all over.
I use this method a lot. Sometimes I use a stick of butter with the baggie. When I mush meatlaf, I use the baggie method to keep the grease off my hands. Thanks for the tip!
What great hints and tips Marilyn! I recently purchased new technology pans which no longer require greasing or preparation and cook in almost half the time!
I also recent;y purchased baking strips that require pre soaking and placed around the pan! Works great! Thanks for enlightening me!
Those sound good. What are they called? (recipe?) LOL LOL LOL inside joke everyone.
I put my layers in the freezer for a bit to help keep the crumbs out of the frosting – Found some hints here that I was unaware of! Thanks!
I just found out that one this week through a comment. I need to make a cake to test it out!
I’m not a baker by any means and living at high altitude doesn’t help much but I love your clever tricks. Especially measuring your pans with water first- brilliant!
Thank you Michelle. I would have trouble at high altitude also! Enjoy your week.
I am not the best at baking, so these tips are awesome for me…thank you for sharing!
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I am glad you found them useful! Enjoy your week.
Thank you for commenting. Glad you find it useful.
I love the serving size tips! It’s always great to know how big a cake to make!
Thanks Vickie. At my house we only get half the amount of pieces when my dughter cuts the cake. I still am teaching her the definition of portions!
I appreciate these tips Marilyn! Pinning to share and save!
Thank you Laurie. I am glad you found it useful!
My aunt taught me how to frost a cake without pulling up cake crumbs. The trick is to put the cake in the freezer and take it out before frosting. It works.
Thank you Pat for the great tip! I hate when I rush things and frost a dark cake with light frosting. You can never get it right again.