Baking beautiful, delicious cakes is easy when you know how. There are definitely tricks that I have learned along the way, and I have suffered enough disappointments and failures to have learned that there is a science to successful baking. For me, creating wonderful biscuits, cakes, pastries tarts and creams is definitely the most rewarding part of my job. Patisserie is a magical alchemy, and here I outline some of my tried-and-tested tips.
Top ten tips for successful cake baking
1. Ingredients, ingredients, ingredients.
Like all cooking, buy the very best ingredients that your budget can afford, as you will definitely be able to taste the difference in the final result. I buy only fresh, free range organic eggs from corn fed chickens, Billingtons pure, raw cane sugar, organic butter from Yeo Valley, Berkeley Farm or Rachel’s Farm, 00 Italian flour, Bourbon vanilla pods, unwaxed lemons and oranges. I also believe that the only chocolate to use is proper 72-80% cacao bean solid chocolate from Rococo, Valrhona, Amedei, Callebaut, Grenada or Green and Black. I always include some vanilla seeds and some grated lemon zest in all my cakes, as they provide the “umami”, or deliciousness, that we all crave in homebaking.
2. Seasonality
You should only use those fruits that are ripe and in season at that moment in time. Raspberries, strawberries, blackberries, apples and pears should only be used in cakes when in season, or they will taste of imported blandness. Similarly, the autumn and winter is the correct time to use nuts, as peeled nuts can go stale and rancid very quickly. I never buy pre-ground nuts, as the aroma evaporated a long time ago. Citrus fruits, as they do not grow in Great Britain on a commercial basis, can be used all year round, as can dried dates, raisins, and coconut.
3. Equipment
You do not need to spend a great deal of money on equipment, but having good quality bakeware, that does not buckle under heat and can withstand the tear and wear of time, is a very good long term investment. Similarly, a good blender, mixer and food processor will pay huge dividends in the future, as they will help you make cakes with greater ease.
4. Ovens
Fan assisted ovens are too aggressive, I usually bake my cakes and biscuits with heat from both top and bottom, and I always foil the top of my cakes for the last ten minutes. This prevents the top of the cake from browning too much, when the rest of the cake is not yet ready. I place my racks evenly in the oven if I am batch baking. If I bake in the Aga, I normally bake in the top oven, on the lowest shelf.
5. Recipe Books
In the book section of my website you will see many of my favourite baking bibles. Find really good, talented baking writers, and do what they tell you to do in the recipe. Like finding a needle in a hay stack, experienced, serious pastry cooks are often not in the limelight. Have a really good look at the cake book section of your nearest book shop and buy the one that fits your style, your vision and, above all, your level of comfort, understanding and capability.
6. Beating, folding, whipping, creaming
The techniques of mixing are very important in ensuring you incorporate as much air as possible into cakes. You need to beat eggs well, using a whisk. If you need to cream the butter and sugar together, do so till they are light and fluffy. Whisk egg whites using an electric beater, ensuring that the peaks are really stiff if the recipe requires it. Fold ingredients together using figure of 8 movements in order to ensure that air remains trapped inside the cake. If whipping cream, read clearly whether the cream should be “softly whipped” or “whisked till stiff”. Reading the recipe very carefully from start to finish, and following its instructions is paramount for success.
7. The details
God is in the details. I always butter and line my cake tins with baking parchment, even when they are non-stick, so as to guarantee that the cake can be removed without breaking. After pouring the cake mix into the tin, I tap the tin on my work table to ensure the mix is evenly distibuted in the tin. I then level the surface completely using a spatula. I place the cake tin on a baking tray, as it is easier to negotiate a tin in and out of the oven on a tray.
8. Raising agents
The raising agent most commonly found in cakes is called baking powder. This is a mixture of an alkaline, called bicarbonate of soda, and an acid, called cream of tartar. At high temperatures, these two ingredients react together to give off carbon dioxide, which makes your cake rise. It is very important that you never open the oven door while this rising is taking place, or your cake will fail to rise at all. If your cake recipe does not have raising agents in the recipe, it means you will have to beat the eggs very well, and fold them into the other ingredients very lightly, to incorporate the air you will need to achieve height.
9. Temperatures
I always leave my eggs, butter, milk and cream at room temperature for at least an hour prior to beginning my work, so that the ingredients amalgamate with greater ease. If the ingredients are cold, and straight out of the fridge, you are more likely to get lumps, bumps and curdling.
10. Patience
You cannot hurry a good cake. Take care in your method, proceed with good attention and do not take any hurrying short cuts along the way. Do not be tempted to unmould the cake out of the tin when it is too hot. Leave it in the cake tin for about 5-10 minutes, then unmould onto a wire rack. Always leave a cake to cool completely before attempting to ice or decorate it. Never place a warm cake in an air tight container as it will release steam.
Above all, enjoy your cake baking. A freshly made cake is one of the most delicious things on earth.
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