If you’re not at all sure about how to bake a cake, here are some cake making tips. In general, they apply to most cake recipes. If you make a cake and it doesn’t work out as you’d expect then it’s probably a good idea to review this list to see where things might have gone wrong. Even if you’re confident with how to bake a cake, it’s a good idea to review this list from time to time.

Cake Making Tips

Ensure that all the ingredients are at room temperature for the best results.

Always preheat the oven to the temperature specified in the recipe. Otherwise the homemade cake could be heavy if it doesn’t rise properly after being put in a cool oven.

It’s very important to use the correct size tin (pan) stated in the recipe. A tin that’s too small could cause the cake to overflow. One that’s too big will make the cake too thin and heavy.

Make sure the cake tin is prepared properly before use, according to the recipe. Usually this means greasing the bottom and sides with a thin layer of oil, butter or margarine. Often it’s suggested that the tin is lightly floured as well by sprinkling a little flour in the tin and turning the tin to evenly coat the inside. It often helps to line the base with grease proof (waxed) paper, and for cakes that need a long baking time the sides should be lined as well with greased paper. For really heavy, rich fruit cakes, brown paper can be tied around the outside of the tin to for protection. And as the cake cooks, if the top is starting to burn, the top can be protected with a piece of paper or foil.

It’s important to use the type of flour listed in the recipe. Don’t substitute self-raising flour for plain (all purpose) flour, or the cake will almost certainly rise too much and the texture will be open and coarse. But plain flour can be substituted for self-raising if baking powder is added as a raising agent. Usually 4 level teaspoons are added to each pound of flour. It is recommended to sift flour, icing sugar, etc, before use to remove the lumps and aerate it.

Get all the ingredients together before starting so that you know everything is to hand and nothing gets forgotten.

The basics of how to bake a cake have remained the same for years. Here are some words of wisdom from School and Home Economics written by Carlotta Greer in 1920:

The Quality of Cake.

Desirable cake is tender and light, but of fine grain. The quantity of eggs, sugar, fat, and moisture affects these qualities. Too much sugar makes a cake of coarse grain and of waxy or tough texture. On the other hand, a cake containing too little sugar is not as fine grained as one having “just enough.”

A cake in which there is too much fat is crisp or crumbly, i.e., it will not hold its shape. Too little fat may make it tough in texture. Generally the more fat a cake contains the smaller the quantity of moisture needed.

Many eggs without a proportionate quantity of fat and sugar produce a tough cake. The toughness occasioned by eggs, may be offset, of course, by the tenderness produced by fat. It is a most interesting study to compare cake recipes. Some are well proportioned, others could be greatly improved by variations in the quantity of ingredients.

The flavour of a cake is largely affected by the proportion of ingredients in a cake. For the sake of economy, however, certain ingredients, especially fat and eggs, must be decreased even though texture, grain, and flavour are sacrificed. The matter of wholesomeness must also be taken into consideration. Many persons can eat with comfort plain cakes, i.e. those containing little fat and a moderate quantity of sugar, while rich cakes distress them.

Remember these pearls of wisdom from almost 100 years ago and you will be well on the way to being an expert on how to bake a cake which is light and tender to eat!