MUST-KNOW CAKE BAKING TIPS

MISTAKES THAT EVEN BAKERS MAKE.

Coffee cake.

WORK WITH A RECIPE: A food recipe is that material that contains the ingredients, measurement, portions or servings, nutritional (in some cases) and directions on how to prepare a particular food. There was a time I hyped myself, prepared donuts without my recipe and it turned chewy. Preparing cake requires precision and accuracy. Accurate measurement is the foundation of a good cake. Okay, You are a baker and you have done this over and over again I know. It does not matter if it is your personal recipe or your signature dish, not everybody will always demand a ten inches cake ( unless that is your only speciality) and doing guess work is like passing through a road you already know but this time blindfolded. On the other hand, if you are just an amateur or enthusiast who just want to try a new cake recipe, don't just read through, drop the book and go on baking all through. There will be so many mistake that you can't trace or adjust. Follow the recipe like a baby, get good result and be happy.

DO NOT BE STINGY WITH YOUR INGREDIENTS: So far in the world of cake making, I have seen the catastrophic effect of adding 5 eggs instead of 7, using 400gm of flour instead of 600gms and many more disastrous experience all in the name of economy and frugality. Baking a cake is just in correlation with the Newton's third law of motion which states that; to every action, there is an opposite reaction (paraphrased). As earlier said, baking cake requires accurate measurements. You just don't reduce anything (except it's intentional, like reducing your sugar, which also has an effect) and not get the effect. Too little eggs and you cake becomes coarse, too little flour and the volume of your cake becomes small ( this one I hate most. After all the ingredients and work, you get a small cake), too little sugar and cake becomes tough.

A total oven wreck.

ALWAYS RESPECT THE OVEN RULES: This particular one I fell victim of recently, I didn't preheat my oven before baking and when my cake came out, it looked like a staircase or should I say sloppy hill. Oven are very simple to use when you adhere to the guidelines on the manual and your cake will do just fine when you follow the baking direction of the recipe. Majorly you preheat your often before baking. You should also pay attention to the temperature as too low temperature will cause your cake to fall and too high temperature will get your cake burnt before before getting done.

Also be careful not to let the heat out by constantly opening the oven to check the cake, as 'curiosity they say killed the cat'. If you are the one that is a so curious about knowing how far with your cake, you either buy an oven with a see-through glass door or just weight thirty minutes before checking, by this time, the cake must have hold it shape.

DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE THE CREAMING PROCESS: Also from experience, I am telling you not to. The first cake I ever baked, I did in a hurry. I mixed The butter and sugar within five minute. When it came out, not only did it not rise, I could taste the separation in the cake. Take your time to make every step count because in the end, it goes a long way in determining the taste, volume and durability.

LEARN TO IMPROVISE: This is an attribute that every baker, chef and cook must have. I can't tell you the countless number of time I had to substitute one ingredient for another without doing much harm to to the goods. You always need to find a way round any challenge. Do not say you can't use nutmeg because there is no cinnamon or margarine because there is no butter.