5 Myths about Cakes and What You Should Be Believing in Instead
So, knowing all about baking cakes isn’t a piece of cake. Granted! It takes a lot of experience in baking to know all the nitty gritty of it. In that course of time, you come to meet a lot of advice, a lot of trials, a lot many goof-ups, and a lot many myths as well. If you have just begun your journey in cake-baking, odds are that you too are victim to a gamut of myths that bring no particular good to you or your cakes. So, here are 5 of those biggest, unbelievably popular myths, and some advice about what you must believe in instead.
1. Opening the Oven Door before the Cake is Fully Baked, Ruins It
Yes, your mother did tell you not to be a curious cat and open the oven door to check on you cake because it will sink in. She may be right but only for the initial 10 minutes or so (when it has set). The oven is hot enough, and won’t let anything happen to your cake with a whiff of room temperature air. It will rise like it would have, had you not opened the door.
What You Must Do Instead
Once the cake is set, it is rather advisable to check on it to see that it may not get too brown on one side. It is even better if you can rotate it to give it some well-rounded heating.
2. For Cakes, Margarine Makes for a Healthy Alternative to Butter
Yeah yeah! And, one of those health freaks spread the rumor that margarine is a healthier alternative to all-that-fattening butter, and you believed it? The fact stays that, as far the calorie count is concerned, both compete neck to neck. And, when it comes to the taste and the texture of the cake, there is no edge that you may achieve with margarine over the use of butter.
What You Must Do Instead
Simply use butter like your mother and grandmother used to. They didn’t care a fig about getting fat, and a cake made of margarine won’t get you fitter either. So, give into the taste, and let butter be hailed.
3. Red Velvet Cake Needs Red food Grade Color
The eyes see what the heart wants, and because the red velvet cake has the word “red” in it, we add edible color to it, in order to prove that it is not a misnomer. The truth, my friend, is that the original red color of the cake developed as the vinegar, buttermilk and cocoa in it reacted with one another. These are the ingredients that made it red, and a velvety cake, indeed.
What You Must Do Instead
Do not use added color; try looking for an authentic red velvet cake recipe, and your eyes will see what the heart wants.
4. You Must, as a Rule of Thumb, Line the Tin with Baking Paper
Well, surely some store that wanted to get the baking paper sales up, succeeded in making people believe in the premise that they must line the tin with baking paper, prior to baking any cake. Fact check – it is just an option; not a necessary.
What You Must Do Instead
Don’t fuss over baking paper if you do not have it. Simply grease your tin with butter or the cooking oil that is a staple in your kitchen. Dust it with some flour. Shake the extra flour off by inverting, and then simply pour the batter. The cake will turn out as good.
5. You Must Use the Exact Same Tin Size as in the Recipe
So, the recipe recommended ingredients for a 20 cm tin but you have an 18 cm? It would be sacrilegious if you use the size that is 2 cm small? Pah! It works just right. All recipes recommend that the batter not be filled till the brim. Even when the cake is baked, it still doesn’t spill over in most cases.
What You Must Do Instead
If your tin is a bit smaller or a bit bigger (1-2 cm), it is allowed, by all means. The only difference will be a taller deeper, or a shorter shallower cake. That is all.
So, it’s about time you stopped believing in those cake-baking myths that do you no good. Whether you’re in Paris, Philadelphia, or Pune, cakes should only be about pure pleasure; not only having them but baking them too. Happy baking!
All Image Source: punebakers.com