Avoid dry, dense cakes and set yourself up for baking success with these tips.
One of the hallmarks of an excellenthome-baked cakeis a moist, tender crumb.
Bakingdoesn’t have to be challenging, but it must always be thoughtful.
Credit:Southern Living
These tips and hints are smart strategies for achieving a moist cake every time.
A cake stays flat as a lousy pancake when the leavening can’t do its job.
When preparing a cake mix that calls for water, try replacing the water with whole milk.
When arecipe calls for buttermilk, use buttermilk.
Reach For The Right Flour
If a recipe calls for cake flour,use cake flour.
Stick to the flour the recipe calls for to make a moist cake.
Select Sugar, Not Sweetener Substitutes
Sugar does more than make a cake sweet.
It impacts the structure.
Sugar substitutes cannot replace cane sugar in a cake recipe without compromising the cake’s texture.
They’ll blend in better with less risk of over-mixing.
There’s a reason that some people say that baking is more of a science than an art.
Measure wet ingredients in cups with pouring spouts.
It’s easier to assess the success of a cake once it’s all done.
Mix Correctly
Stirring and beating cake batter longer than necessary can make the cake tough and dense.
To make a moist cake, be thorough but gentle.
Don’t skip or combine steps to speed up the process.
Avoid Over Baking
Even the best recipe writer doesn’t know your oven like you do.
So, consider the recipe’s baking time as reliable advice, rather than hard fact.
You may be surprised to learn that your oven runs a little hot or cool.
The term might be archaic, but the practice is as essential as ever.
Pan size matters, too, so it’s best to stick with the size specified in the recipe.
If the recipe doesn’t say how long, 10 minutes of chill time works for most cakes.
Then set it aside to cool.
Let the syrup seep in and use only enough to moisten the cake without turning it soggy.
The main ingredients in cake each serve a purpose.
Butter adds smoothness and lightens the batter.
Sugar makes a cake sweet and aids structure.
Eggs help combine and hold the ingredients, while flour adds structure.
A leavening agent helps the cake rise and take shape.
