cake catastrophe?

Question

when i bake cakes they always turn out dense thick and sort of buttery...never light and fluffy. i always follow the directions and can bake other things without problems?

what am i doing thats killing my cakes?

Answer 1

You may be adding too much liquid. Altitude and oven temperatures have alot to do with it, but if your cakes are coming out too thick, you're adding too much liquid. Try reducing the amount of liquid (oil, milk, whatever) by about 1/3 of a cup. Hope it helps!

Answer 2

I know this is frustrating. I really need more information that this. Do you use box cakemix? If so then the answer is more complicated and I would suggest you call the 800 number on the box. They usually bend over backwards to help. If you are not using a boxed mix the problem is the structure (the little air holes) are collapsing because they aren't strong enough. It could be you need more protein in your flour. Try using an all purpose flour or maybe even a bread flour which is very high in protein but I doubt that will be needed. There's something else going on that causes the gas to escape or perhaps never get generated in the first place. Is you baking powder good? Don't know if this helps but I tried.
PhD Food Chemistry and Nutrition

Answer 3

Under whipping or using too high a speed on electric mixer (setting should be 2 or 3 more low to med-low than high or med high) If you under whip there is not enough air in the batter to help it raise and if you over whip it becomes to glutenous to raise. Also if you use a mix you need to use oil (peanut or canola work best) if you are using butter it needs to be melted then cooled if you add it hot it kills the leavening agent. The other 2 problems are the temperature of your oven (if it is uneven your cake takes longer to cook and is thicker - use an interior baking thermometer to test preheated oven for correct temperature) or if you are at a high altitude (like Colorado) you need to add a bit more flour (approx 2 tablespoons) or the cake won't rise properly. Hope this helps.

Answer 4

It could be a lot of things. Can you post an example of a recipe?
If you are cooking from the Julia Child cookbook it WILL be buttery, that's just how she rolls. :)

General tips and suggestions:
- Items that make your cakes rise are eggs, baking powder and baking soda. If you don't have a reasonable amount in your recipe, then it will be dense.

-If the flour or baking soda/powder is old, it won't react as well

- NEVER use flour with the baking soda/powder already in it. It sucks and never works right.

-If a recipe is asking for a lot of butter or oil, replace half of it with something like apple sauce - also reduce the amount of sugar unless you have a sweet tooth.


Here is a recipe for Kumquat Tea Cake, you can also replace kumquats for oranges - just not as exotic.

I didn't add the glaze, but included it in this recipe. The bread seemed to be sweet enough without the topping.

Here it goes.

2 cups kumquats, stemmed, quartered, seeded; plus 2 kumquats, sliced thinly
**use a sharp knife and be careful, these suckers aren't easy to cut.**

3 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons instant iced tea powder (optional) ** I used it and didn't notice the flavor, but I think this could be fun to play with**
2 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 1/4 cups sugar
3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon corn or vegetable oil
3 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 8-ounce can crushed pineapple in its own juice
1-2 tablespoons orange marmalade

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
3 cups powdered sugar
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
preparation
Place quartered kumquats in processor; puree 3 minutes. Measure 1/3 cup puree for glaze; set aside.

Position rack in center of oven; preheat to 350°F. Grease two 8 1/2x4 1/2x2 1/2-inch metal loaf pans. Combine flour, tea powder (if desired), baking soda, cardamom, and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt in medium bowl; whisk to blend. Using electric mixer, blend 1 1/4 cups sugar and oil in large bowl. Beat in eggs, 1 at a time, then vanilla, 2/3 cup kumquat puree, marmalade and pineapple with juice. Gradually add dry ingredients, beating just until blended. Divide batter between prepared pans.

I let my batter sit for a half hour while preparing dinner and the batter rose quite a bit, the original recipe did not call for a wait time, but it made for pretty light bread.

Bake cakes until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 1 hour. Cool 5 minutes in pans on rack. Turn cakes out; place top side up on rack and cool.

Place reserved 1/3 cup puree in large bowl. Whisk in butter, powdered sugar and lemon juice. Spread glaze over cakes, dividing equally. Top with kumquat slices. Let stand until icing sets. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Wrap in foil; store at room temperature.)

Makes 2 loaves.

Answer 5

You're not baking them long enough. A toothpick inserted in the middle should come out clean before you take the cake out of the oven.

Also, make sure you're using large eggs, and follow the high altitude instructions if you're in a high area.

Answer 6

Have you tested your baking powder. Take about a teaspoonful, put it in a glass or cup and add to that a little of the hottest water you get from the tap. If the baking powder is fresh it will fizz up like alka seltzer. It could be that yours is slowly dying.