Cake Problems...

Baking By tabtab128 Updated 15 May 2010 , 4:01am by noahsmummy

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tabtab128 Posted 14 May 2010 , 4:28pm
post #1 of 25

Hello all!

I'm not sure if I'm posting this in the correct place but...I was just wondering if anyone had a fool proof cake recipe? I've gone through a whole bag of flour (the 5 pound ones) yesterday and my cakes aren't turning out right! The cakes are either as hard as a rock or they just break apart when I pick it up! oh! and I had one that had this hard looking crust at the bottom of the cake (where the batter was sitting in the pan).

(you can probably tell that I'm a total newbie with baking icon_razz.gif )

thanks in advance!

24 replies
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ilovemylittleone Posted 14 May 2010 , 7:06pm
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I'm a total fan of box mixes. Try searching for doctored cake mixes, which start with a box. They seem to have much better results.

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Karen421 Posted 14 May 2010 , 11:05pm
post #3 of 25

What kind of flour are you using? Is your baking powder fresh? The doctored recipes that start with a box mix are really good!

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mamawrobin Posted 14 May 2010 , 11:07pm
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ilovemylittleone

I'm a total fan of box mixes. Try searching for doctored cake mixes, which start with a box. They seem to have much better results.




ditto thumbs_up.gif

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leah_s Posted 14 May 2010 , 11:19pm
post #5 of 25

How about posting a recipe you used and let us look it over.

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Kibosh Posted 14 May 2010 , 11:31pm
post #6 of 25
Quote:
Quote:



Try putting an oven thermometer in your oven just to make sure it's accurate. Maybe the actual internal temp is too high. I had the exact same problem as you in the beginning (yeah, that's just a few months ago..lol). Cake after cake after cake icon_cry.gif

Thankfully, CC taught me the flower nail method (plus I use the strips) and I haven't had a problem since icon_biggrin.gif

HTH thumbs_up.gif


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Kibosh Posted 14 May 2010 , 11:32pm
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I swear one day I am going to learn how to use this darn "quote" thingy!!!!! icon_confused.gif

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Cakelayer Posted 15 May 2010 , 12:02am
post #8 of 25

I think that using cake flour is very important and it makes a big difference in the texture of the cake. Also I like using recipes that whip egg whites separately and are folded in to the batter. They seem to come out lighter and fluffier like cake mixes.

I think you're doing the right thing by practicing your cakes until you find the recipes that work for you.

DianaJJ

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anxietyattack Posted 15 May 2010 , 1:01am
post #9 of 25

a baking stone has made all the difference in the world for me. I never baked a thing (I should clearify, an edible thing) in my life up until a little less than a year ago. I was horrible up until my husband bought me the Bakewise cookbook.

Awesome.

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noahsmummy Posted 15 May 2010 , 1:18am
post #10 of 25

the wasc recipe is pretty fool proof.

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Baker_Rose Posted 15 May 2010 , 1:24am
post #11 of 25

Is your oven working? It sounds like it could be more than just your abilities or your flour.

icon_smile.gif

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tesso Posted 15 May 2010 , 1:29am
post #12 of 25
Quote:
Originally Posted by noahsmummy

the wasc recipe is pretty fool proof.




It WAS considered fool proof until it met me !! icon_lol.gif

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noahsmummy Posted 15 May 2010 , 1:42am
post #13 of 25

lol ohhh dont tell me that! ive actually never tried it myself, but will be this week! im always hearing how great it is...

another one is the cake mix extender recipe on this site, ive used that a few times and its come out beautifully. and that was when i was a TOTAL newbie.. i.e i did i 2 tire cake without any support whatsoever..=/ and its was a heavy bastard.. that was using the extender mix and it held up... (thank gosh)

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tastyart Posted 15 May 2010 , 1:59am
post #14 of 25

I like to use the WASC. . Hope it will be helpful.

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eperales0411 Posted 15 May 2010 , 2:01am
post #15 of 25

This might seem dumb, but what does WASC mean? I have seen this several times and I keep wondering what it means. Can someone please tell me? Thanks icon_redface.gif

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cnhiatt Posted 15 May 2010 , 2:15am
post #16 of 25

WASC=White Almond Sour Cream

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noahsmummy Posted 15 May 2010 , 2:22am
post #17 of 25

if there are any owrds you come across you dont mean, and they are underlined in posts, if you just hover over the word it will let you know what it is. =)

wasc is white almond sour cream cake.

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LindaF144a Posted 15 May 2010 , 2:31am
post #18 of 25

Not only do you need to post the recipe that you used. You need to tell us exactly how you mixed the batter step by step. What temperature did you set your oven, did you use an oven thermometer to see if your oven is accurate. What kind of flour did you use? Did you weight your ingredients? If not how did you measure it?

Scratch cakes can be done. If you are complete newbie to baking then you should start with box cake mix and get used to all the ways of baking and the exact steps and science to it.

After you make a couple of those and after you read a lot about making cakes from scratch (start at your local library), you will get the hang of it. Right now there is not information here to choose from.

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tastyart Posted 15 May 2010 , 2:42am
post #19 of 25

In my humble opinion, baking is an art and not a science. I do not adhere to the notion that everything has to be so absolutely precise for baking. I don't even measure the vanilla that I put in. I do loosly follow recipes, but the day I stress about how precisely I'm measuring and time my mixing to the second is the day that baking will no longer be fun. I don't even own a kitchen scale. I "eyeball" my ingredients all the time and check my cake doneness the same way. Don't stress about baking, tabtab. You'll get the hang of it and love it.

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noahsmummy Posted 15 May 2010 , 2:45am
post #20 of 25

tastyart; im so happy to hear that im not the only one. i never have been one to follow directions for anything, im much more inclined to "wing it". im a scratch bake, and the majority of my things turn out, and i dont have the time or effort to measure things precisely! totally agree that it would suck all the outta caking! lol

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luvbuttercream Posted 15 May 2010 , 2:52am
post #21 of 25

I swear by WASC I have made both straight cake mixes as well as scratch and the only one that is always consistent no matter how you do it is WASC. I made Chocolate Fudge Almond Sour Cream cake this afternoon it was perfect! Always is!

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anxietyattack Posted 15 May 2010 , 3:25am
post #22 of 25
Quote:
Originally Posted by eperales0411

This might seem dumb, but what does WASC mean? I have seen this several times and I keep wondering what it means. Can someone please tell me? Thanks icon_redface.gif




White Almond Sour Cream (cake)

If you hold your cursor over words that have that dotted line under it, it will pop up a window and tell you the definition. HTH

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tastyart Posted 15 May 2010 , 3:34am
post #23 of 25

Yay! Another free spirit in the kitchen. Nice to meet ya, noahsmommy.

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tesso Posted 15 May 2010 , 3:46am
post #24 of 25
Quote:
Originally Posted by tastyart

Yay! Another free spirit in the kitchen. Nice to meet ya, noahsmommy.




hello fellow experimenters !!!!! Don't get me started on the atrocities that i have committed against GANACHE !!!! icon_twisted.gificon_twisted.gificon_twisted.gif through my experimenting I have found a way to turn basic ganache into a frosting that is to die for!! I thought about contributing it to the recipes but was afraid the ganache police might get me. icon_lol.gificon_biggrin.gificon_lol.gif

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noahsmummy Posted 15 May 2010 , 4:01am
post #25 of 25

hahaha. well... as i am also a "waste not want not" girl.. i also committed a ganache atrocity yesterday... after experimenting trying to make chocolate clay.. and having the choc. seize on me and petty much die.. i thought hey... why waste good chocolate? ill melt it down and turn it into ganache.. turned out fine. hahaha.

but shhhhhh. if my opa ever found out about that... would i ever be in for it!

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