How to make cake: top 10 tips for success

If you are a chef and cannot resist throwing in this little bite of food, you may find baking may be a bit of a mistake. Baking is a cooking area and does not require an art license. But following some basic baking rules will certainly succeed...

1. Use a good recipe

In order to guarantee the result, it is very important to follow the baking recipe in the recipe, so your cake will only be as good as the recipe you use. Start with your trusted source. Many recipes, especially on the Internet, have not been tried and tested (we have!)

2. Use the tin size indicated in the recipe and line it up. If you want to use a different tin size, you need to adjust the cooking time.

Baking parchment is very suitable for lining because it is not sticky. Spreading flour with softened butter or oil sprinkled with flour is an alternative. Do not use too much fat, otherwise it will blow up both sides of the cake. If you are cooking cakes for a long time (such as rich fruit cakes), wrapping the outside of the tin with brown paper and rope is also worth it to prevent the edges from burning.

3. Preheat the oven

If you put the cake in a hot oven, it will affect the way it rises. With the traditional setting, the fan oven slightly dries the cake to extend the shelf life.

4. Accurate weight and composition

Make sure you use the exact measurements and ingredients described in the recipe. If you want to make more of your cake, or use homemade flour instead of flat cake, you can't just add more baking powder. Use measuring spoons instead of tablecloths to ensure accuracy. Also, avoid mixing Imperial and metric measurements, pick one or the other.

5. Make sure the batch temperature is right

Most recipes require fat and eggs at room temperature. If the butter is taken directly from the refrigerator, it will not freeze well, and the cold egg will coagulate the cake mix.

6. Bring air into the cake as much as possible

Cream, butter, and sugar until the texture and color of the mixture fades. This increases the air and volume of the cake and gives you an easier result.

Mix flour with other prescribed ingredients, add air and make it easier to fold. The large balloon whisk (slightly used) is best for folding because it helps to avoid the flour but does not over mix. Do not try to shake violently, because it will destroy the air and cause a heavy cake.

7. Once the cake mix is ​​made directly into the oven

Once in contact with any "wet" ingredients, the raising agent will begin to work to ensure that the cake mixture can enter the oven immediately.

8. Place the cake on the correct shelf and close the oven door

The cake is usually placed on the middle shelf to ensure even cooking.

Once the cake enters, do not open the door until cooked. If you let the cold air into the oven, the cake may crash, and you need to wait until it is set correctly before observing. Also, when you put the cake in the oven, don't hang it on top so that all the heat is emitted.

9. Keep cooking time

If you use the correct jar and you have a good oven, the time stated in the recipe should be accurate. Since the oven does vary, check the cake before cooking is over. If cooked on the edge or in the middle, the cooked cake should feel the same. In addition, the string inserted into the center should be dried. If your cake is not cooked properly but looks brown, you can cover it with moistened, greaseproof paper.

10. Cool the cake

The recipe usually provides cooling instructions, but usually most sponge cakes are best left for a few minutes and then turned to the cooling rack to avoid the wet edges. The rich fruit cake cools better in the tin.