Have you ever wanted to bake the perfect cake, but it’s too intimidating? You may have even tried before, but it didn’t come out quite right. Thankfully, there isn’t some secret baking club that you have to create the ideal three-tier cake to get in. Anyone can bake. You can search for any recipe, get all the ingredients, and create a delicious cake, tasty muffins, or even healthy bread. Even with that confidence, when you get all the ingredients in front of you, it can be a little overwhelming. We’ve come up with some tips to make your baking experience that much easier. With these tips, you’ll be able to come back again and again!
Tip 1. Always follow the recipe: You might get a little over-confident watching professional bakers or wanting to have fun with the instructions. When it comes to the base of the cake, you need to follow the recipe; otherwise, the consistency will be off. You can have fun with the filling, but something like the flour, baking soda, eggs, etc. can’t be changed.
Tip 2. Room temperature is vital: For cold ingredients like butter, milk, eggs, sour cream, etc. it’s best to have them at room temperature before you start baking with them. If you can, pull out your ingredients for about 1-2 hours before you start cooking. They should be cool and soft to the touch, but not warm.
Tip 3. Measure everything out: This step piggy-backs off tip 1. Measure out the ingredients and follow how they should be measured. For example, ingredients like flour are often measured wrong because people will scoop when the directions say “spoon & level.” Scooping it might cause air pockets, or there could be too much flour since it becomes compressed in the measuring cup.
Tip 4. Not all flours are created equal: All-purpose flour is acceptable for baking, but it’s not always the best. Cake flour is finer, which will translate into your finished cake. Be careful what kind of cake you’re baking, though. Cakes like chocolate, spice cake, banana cake, and others do not do well with the cake flour. It could be because their ingredients are already fine or too wet.
Tip 5. Mix the right amount: Pay attention to how much you’re mixing. Under mixing doesn’t let the ingredients blend. Over mixing will change the texture of the ingredients modifying the consistency of finished cake.
Tip 6. Parchment paper the secret weapon: Parchment paper will make sure your cake doesn’t stick to the bottom. You’ll need to cut out the shape of the bottom of the pan you’re using to keep it flat. For the best results, spray a non-stick spray on both the bottom of the pan and the parchment paper.
