Why can't I make a cake?

Cafe Society
1

I have been cooking since I was 10. Baking has never been a problem and I’m considered a pretty good home cook by many of my friends. My next dream is to go to a cordon bleu cooking school and really go to the next level.

I cannot make a homemade cake to save my life

They are always bland and flat. The last recipe I tried looked and tasted like a sheet of pancake. No rise would indicate bad baking bowder, but it works on everything else I bake. And why would it be EVERY time I do a homemade cake?
I’ve tried barely wetting the dry ingredients. Bleh
I’ve tried overbeating to get air in the batter. Bleh
I’ve tried cupcakes. Bleh (at least it had taste, this experiment was a homemade red velvet cake)

Any ideas? BTW: yes I preheat the oven

2

Are you cooking from scratch with cake flour?

3

yes and no
scratch and AP flour but I’ve had similar lack of success with cake flour

4

What kinds of cake are you trying to make?

5

Usually yellow cake.

6

Give us your recipe to critique. And don’t feel bad…I have a friend who is a great baker…but she can’t get chocolate chip cookies to turn out right, ever.

7

I have also noticed that. Some cooks and some recipies just don’t work together, and no-one knows why. I’ve tried to copy a friends recepy for tomatosauce about six times; doesn’t work. He, on the other hand, can’t seem to get my baked pieces of goats cheese right, no matter how simple that is.

If I were you, I’d try an completely different brand of cake flour and see if your KitchenKarma is more compatibel with that.

8

First, throw out all cake ingredients and go buy new. Do not alter the recipe in any way. Baking is chemistry and for things to come out right you have to follow the recipe. Do not skip any steps. Are you creaming the butter and sugar together and then adding the eggs? Follow each step in order. Beat the batter for the time and intensity that the recipe calls for. Grease and flour the pans.

Here is a basic recipe for yellow cake:
2 cups cake flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs, room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla
3/4 cup milk

PREPARATION:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour 2 9-inch cake pans.
In bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt with a wire whisk.

Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time.

Add vanilla and mix until completely combines. Slowly add flour alternately with milk. At end of addition batter should be smooth. Divide between 2 pans.
Bake for 20 to 25 minutes. Cool 5 minutes in pan, then invert onto a rack and cool completely before frosting.

For a 9 x 13 pan - Baked at 350 degrees F. for 30 to 38 minutes.

9

Have you tested the temperature of your oven?

10

This one was the latest fiasco (but I’ve tried other recipes too)
Basic Yellow Cake

11

We get yellow cake …from Africa.

12

I don’t know if any of these will help, but here goes.

Over beating will force air out of the cake batter. I’ve always been taught to beat the wet ingredients thoroughly (but not to over cream the butter/sugar at first), just mix through the dry ingredients until they’re uniform, and fold them through rather than beat them in. Sifting the flour is what adds air to the mix.
All ingredients should be room temp or cooler when baking.
The batter should be mixed and then immediately go into the tin and then the oven without any delays.
Make sure the oven is fully pre-heated before putting the cake tin in.

Check your oven seal - a batch of cookies can show you any hot spots or cool spots in the oven.

Line with paper or dust flour on the bottom of the cake tin, but just butter the sides. This will help the mix ‘climb’ the sides of the tin without sticking in the tin. Run a knife around the sides before tipping onto the cooling rack.

Too much baking powder can have the same effect as none at all. Make sure you’re not adding it to self-raising flour. My brother did that and ended up with hockey pucks instead of scones.

According to one of my cookbooks, old flour will not rise and only fresh flour should be used for cakes. I’ve never had that problem - but baking goods don’t get the chance to age disgracefully in this house!

I’ve found that the following microwave recipe is very forgiving (I’ve used oil instead of butter and other random mistakes). If you haven’t got a microwave cake ‘tin’, use a safe bowl with a glass inverted in the center.

Mix in one bowl - 1 cup flour, 1 cup sugar, 3 Tbsp cocoa (or more - go on, more!), 2 tsp baking powder, and a pinch of salt. I often use a whisk to mix these dry ingredients, just to add air.

In another bowl, melt 3oz butter and add 2 eggs, 1/2 cup milk and 1 tsp vanilla, beat the crap out of this (with the whisk you already have on the bench) then add it to the dry ingredients and mix through gently with a rubber spatula or spoon.

Microwave on high for 6-8 mins depending on your machine (I do 8 mins in a 750w oven). Leave it in the tin for a further 5 mins before turning out onto a cooling rack.

Dribble with chocolate sauce or orange syrup or whatever you like.

If this doesn’t work, I’m afraid you were cursed by the cake fairy and there’s nothing you can do. On review, some of these have been mentioned, good luck and please report back.

13

Alton Brown did a show just on yellow cake. A Cake on Every Plate. See if that helps.

StG

14

Are you at a high altitude locale? Are you baking immediately after mixing? Have you tested your oven’s temp?

15

Sounds like your cakes aren’t rising properly. The question is, though, are they not rising enough or are they rising too much and then “popping”?

16

no rise whatsoever

17

Do you have an oven thermometer? Baking seems to be the most temperature sensitive type of cooking.

18

You are using self-raising flour and baking powder where directed? (not plain flour and/or bicarbonate of soda).

I have a recipe for an all-in-one (no fiddly mixing - everything in the bowl, and mix with an electric whisk) sponge that never goes wrong in my experience - I used it for my Orange and Lemon Drizzle Cakes and my Raspberry & Pear Sponge Pudding.

If you’re making just the plain cake part of the recipe, I’d recommend a teaspoon of vanilla essence in the mix.

19

Where are you located? If you’re in Canada you need to buy pastry flour, our regular flour is higher in protein and most recipes are written in quantities suitable for low-protein flour.

20

Anecdotally, I’ve always found that room temperature eggs give a better rise than chilled ones. I’ve never tested this empirically though (I intend to).