Can I bake a small cake in my toaster oven?

Question

I'd like to try out a simple cake mix, prepare as I would normally, but in a smaller portion in order to bake in the toaster oven. Is this possible?
I would like to make a simple vainilla cake. What recipe should I follow?

Answer 1

You can, but the results may be a little bumpy. Try a simply box cake recipie first with a small rectangular metal pan. I would watch this carefully as batter could come into contact with the heating elements. aim for a small cake.

Answer 2

Sure you can. Give it a go. I baked a small layer cake using two aluminum ice cube trays once. It worked out fine. Don't forget though, if you use wax paper, remove the paper. I forgot and sure got some funny looks as the party girl cut the cake!

Use any recipe you like. Adjust the cooking times to suit the size of the pan. I would try a small mix and some easy icing if the first one is just an experiment. If the first one is the real deal, use your favorite recipe and either plan to make more than one (smaller) cake or adjust the recipe.

Let your imagination run wild. Just remember that the cake will be smaller and take less time to cook.

Answer 3

I'm interested in seeing the other responses, to see if anyone has had experience.

My first reaction would be to doubt this is possible. Temperature control is so critical in cake baking. A toaster oven heats by direct infra red radiating off of heat coils. A cake is baked by hot air convection heating up the entire oven.

In a regular oven, the cook can control the air temp surrounding the cake. In a toaster oven, the heat source is only from the direction of the coils.

Good luck with the answers, and your experiments.

Answer 4

There are some toaster ovens you can bake in. Do you have any instructions for it ? Mine has a dial with temperatures on it, I find it is slower than my oven. If you do try a small cake or muffins, Jeffy puts out a small cake mix, cornbread look at the store. It is fun to experiment Keep a close eye the first time you do it. BW

Answer 5

Yes, you can. You can use any recipe. Maybe reduce the liquid by about a Ts and check doneness with a toothpick at around 35 minutes. As usual leave little longer if necessary. Use any pan that fits in your oven and remember not to fill it mor than 3/4 full, it can be tempting to add the last 2-3 spoons of batter. I think you can freeze your batter and use it later like frozen cookie mix, but I must admit I haven't tried that yet.

Answer 6

Our grocery store has the small cake mixes put out by Jiffy that should be just the right size to bake in your toaster oven. I think an 8"x8" pan should fit in your toaster oven. Give it a try.

Answer 7

My friend is in the Air Force and while stationed over seas all they had to cook in was a toaster oven. And yes she actually baked a cake in the toaster oven for Easter. Just becareful not to burn it. Good luck.

Answer 8

If you have the book that came with the toaster oven check out the index and if it's possible it should be in there. If you don't have the book, look up the name on the internet and see if they have an online manual. Sometimes they do have it do download on your pc....Good luck!

Answer 9

Yes, absolutely, I've done it before... well not exactly. I've baked brownies in a toaster oven. They turned out fine.

try some of these sites for a recipe:
http://www.cooks.com/rec/search/0,10,basic_vanilla_cake,FF.html
http://www.kraftfoods.com/kf/ff/Birthdaythemes/ClassicCakes.htm
http://students.washington.edu/haoli/hobbies/recipe/cake.html
http://cooking4u.sondrak.com/vanilla-cake-recipe.html

Answer 10

Hell, If my sister could get that Ez-bake thing to work 25 years ago, anything is possible. I've even seen pies baked in webber grill. Try a muffin mix or corn bread mix. They are easy to use. Then work your way up to a cake.