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| English Garden Wedding Cake |
Baking a cake for a special event? How do you bake the "perfect" cake? Everyone wants their cakes to turn out to be moist, not dry, and have just the right texture! It takes a few simple steps to ensure the cake tastes great!
1. Preheat!!! The oven has to preheat or the cake will come out uneven and under cooked! Let the oven preheat before the mixing begins. It is a good idea as well to get a reliable oven thermometer to check the temp before putting the batter into the oven. Some ovens especially electric will fluctuate 5 degrees or more which can over or under cook the cake and cause a cake disaster. Adjust the oven to the correct temperature. (Be sure to use a flour baking spray and line the pans with parchment paper circles for easy cake turn outs)
2. Measure Correctly!!! Volume measurements and weight measurements (ex. Cup vs. Grams) are both acceptable methods when measuring dry and liquid ingredients. Measuring by grams and ounces is a more precise way than using a measuring cup. When possible it is best to use weight measurements. When the recipe does not have a weight conversion measurement, volume will be ok. Make sure that when flour is measured by the "cup" that it is done correctly. Stir the flour in the bag with a wire whisk and loosen it first. Next use a spoon to scoop some flour into the measuring cup that will be the amount that is needed. Never compact or press down the flour into the measuring cup. After the cup is filled with flour, gently level off the top with a spatula or a knife. This is the correct measurement for a cup of flour, not over filled. Never scoop the measuring cup into the flour because it compacts and gives more than what the recipe calls for. Having the right amount of flour is essential. Too much and the cake will be dry and tough, too little and it will be runny.
3. Temperature of Ingredients should be at room temperature!!! Butter, Milk, Eggs. Having all the ingredients at room temperature helps with the consistency of the batter. Creaming the butter works only when the butter is at room temp. This is what gives the cake a light and fluffy texture. After the eggs are in and the last of the flour has been added, DO NOT over mix!! Mix the ingredients only until they are incorporated!! This is what causes a cake to be more dense than fluffy. Last of all, bake at recommended time and temp and cook until a toothpick comes out clean. Turn the cakes out of the pans in 10 minutes unless advised to cool in pans!
