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book excerpt: “Ten Tips for Successful Baking,“ from THE BIRTHDAY CAKE BOOK
Print or online media may reprint this excerpt with the following attribution: “Excerpted from The Birthday Cake Book, by Dede Wilson. (c) 2008, used by permission from The Harvard Common Press.”
Ten Tips for Successful Baking
1. Read each recipe thoroughly and follow it to the letter. Use only the ingredients listed in each recipe (no substitutions), measure them as specified, and use the appropriate equipment. For example, replacing a 9-inch pan with an 8-inch pan will not work.
2. Use high-quality measuring cups and spoons. My stainless-steel measuring equipment comes from Williams-Sonoma and The Baker’s Catalogue. Cheap, poorly made measuring spoons and cups are often improperly calibrated, and that will wreak havoc with any recipe. Invest in high-quality equipment; it will last forever.
3. Use high-quality cake pans. The same batter baked in thin, flimsy cake pans can yield dramatically different results—and not for the better. Look for sturdy aluminum pans 1.0 to 1.5 mm thick. This thickness and material will give you uniformly baked cakes with even color and consistent texture. Straight sides at a 90-degree angle give the cake a clean shape, and rolled edges allow for an easy grip. Some companies even offer lifetime guarantees.
4. Use an oven thermometer to make sure that your oven is calibrated properly. Keep one in the oven at all times. These can be found in hardware and housewares stores.
5. Do not overbake your cakes. I usually suggest baking a cake until a wooden toothpick (or a wooden skewer for very deep cakes) inserted into the center of a layer shows a few moist crumbs when removed; don’t wait for the toothpick to emerge completely clean, because residual heat continues to bake the cake even after it’s removed from the oven.
6. Cool your pans on wire racks, which allow air circulation all around the cake. Once cooled to just warm, unmold the cakes onto the racks themselves, remove the parchment, if applicable, and cool thoroughly. (Exceptions such as angel food and chiffon cakes are noted in recipes.) Proper cooling helps the cake’s texture be as good as it can be. To unmold, run an icing spatula around the edges between the cake and the pan to facilitate removal, if necessary.
7. Many cakes can be made a day before filling and frosting them. Place the layers on cardboards that are the same size as the cake pans, double-wrap each layer in plastic wrap, and store at room temperature. The cardboards protect the shape of the layers during storage. To fill and frost, remove the cardboard from all but the bottom cake layer.
8. Precut cardboards provide a smooth guide for your icing spatula when applying frosting. A turntable, cardboards in the same shape and diameter as the layers, and an icing spatula are the three most important tools for making professional-looking cakes.
9. If a cake is to be refrigerated, make sure to bring it to room temperature before serving. The butter in cakes and frostings must soften to allow the best texture and flavors to come through.
10. Enjoy baking! Have fun!
