# A question for cake bakers **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 22, 2008, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-for-cake-bakers/474043 "2008-11-22T22:34:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![xanthous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/53a042/32.png) [@xanthous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xanthous)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2008, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-for-cake-bakers/474043/1 "2008-11-22T22:34:59Z")
I’m making a [spiced cranberry bundt cake](http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Spiced-Cranberry-Bundt-Cake-350418) and am using a bundt pan with a design that has some nooks/crannies. I smacked the pan against the countertop 7 or 8 times to settle the batter into those nooks/crannies (not too hard, but firmly) and wondered after the fact if I could have screwed up anything by doing this. (baking=chemistry ignorance showing here, I’m sure!) I had to beat the batter for a bit, as the recipe says, and I know that little air bubbles get in there, and I just wonder if smacking the bottom of the pan might have, I don’t know—messed up the “chemistry” somehow? I suppose doing this could have “sunk” the cranberries a little, but who knows, maybe them being closer to the top on the finished cake might look cool or something. Thoughts? ---
**Author:** ![criminey.jicket](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dfb087/32.png) [@criminey.jicket](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/criminey.jicket)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2008, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-for-cake-bakers/474043/2 "2008-11-22T22:43:38Z")
Looks like a thickish batter in your recipe (btw, yum) so I don’t think you’ll have any detrimental side effects. That many whacks isn’t enough vibrations to deflate your batter. ---
**Author:** ![xanthous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/53a042/32.png) [@xanthous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xanthous)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2008, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-for-cake-bakers/474043/3 "2008-11-22T22:49:25Z")
> [@criminey.jicket](#): > > Looks like a thickish batter in your recipe (btw, yum) so I don’t think you’ll have any detrimental side effects. That many whacks isn’t enough vibrations to deflate your batter. Definitely thick, which is why I was all concerned about bubbles & the point-ish design of the pan. We shall see! ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2008, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-for-cake-bakers/474043/4 "2008-11-22T23:50:52Z")
I think you did the right thing; I’m going to be making gingerbread in a bundt pan for Thanksgiving and I usually use a small ladle (gravy ladle) to fill in the little nooks and crannies first; then I let that settle for a few minutes before putting in the rest of the batter and then smack the pan a few times as you did. I’m a little overly detailed about it; yours will turn out fine. Report back with taste test! ---
**Author:** ![truthbot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e9bcb4/32.png) [@truthbot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/truthbot)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2008, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-for-cake-bakers/474043/5 "2008-11-23T00:56:39Z")
If you’re concerned about the nuts and berries sinking, you can toss them with some flour _before_ adding to the batter. ---
**Author:** ![xanthous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/53a042/32.png) [@xanthous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xanthous)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2008, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-for-cake-bakers/474043/6 "2008-11-23T17:30:06Z")
> [@Sigmagirl](#): > > Report back with taste test! Will do. It’s being taken to a Thanksgiving dinner I’m going to today. So far it looks grrrreat! Will do the glaze a few hours before leaving and cooked a few fresh cranberries (the way you do when you make cranberry sauce) and will plop a few of those in the nooks/crannies for decoration once I get to the party. A note: if any of you are intrigued by this recipe and want to make it yourself, DO NOT follow the time it tells you to bake this thing. Luckily I read the reviews, and overwhelmingly the positives were from the people that had the good sense to take it out at 45-50 minutes, and the negatives were from those who cooked it for the full 1 hour 15 minutes and got a dry, crumbly _fail_! ---
**Author:** ![GilaB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8e7dd6/32.png) [@GilaB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GilaB)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2008, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-for-cake-bakers/474043/7 "2008-11-24T03:58:24Z")
A friend brought this cake over this past weekend, and she mentioned that you want to pull it from the oven _before_ the cake tester comes out totally clean. She waited until her toothpick came out crumb-free, and while the cake is not particularly dry, it’s much crumblier than you might like. It’s pretty delicious, though. ---
**Author:** ![xanthous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/53a042/32.png) [@xanthous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xanthous)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2008, 6:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-for-cake-bakers/474043/8 "2008-11-24T06:02:00Z")
> [@GilaB](#): > > A friend brought this cake over this past weekend, and she mentioned that you want to pull it from the oven _before_ the cake tester comes out totally clean. She waited until her toothpick came out crumb-free, and while the cake is not particularly dry, it’s much crumblier than you might like. It’s pretty delicious, though. The cake turned out perfect—it had a bit of crumb that I would guess came from the almond flour in it, but it was not dry at all, which I would guess came from the greek yogurt. A good combination. A great cake—got devoured at the party! So, smacking the bottom was at best a good idea as far as preventing bubbles, and at worst a non-issue for the “integrity” of the cake! Sigh of relief! 😃