How to Easily Bake Your First Cake
These days, it seems like almost everyone is learning how to bake cakes, but where do you start if you haven’t made one before? For many – it’s a skill that’s passed down through generations, but there are also plenty of aspiring bakers who don’t have that option. Cakes are everywhere today – and baking has now become a trendy and fashionable pastime when it once seemed dated. Thankfully, there are some great tips that can help you get started, so you too can bake your first great cake!
Baking can be so much better than going to the shop and buying a cake. Not only can it be cheaper, but it’s also a fun and creative way to relax in an afternoon. You don’t get to fill your house up with lovely baking smells when you buy a cake at the supermarket. Baking in your own time also allows you to make a unique cake that fits your exact tastes and requirements.
Don’t Get Carried Away
As a beginner, it’s understandable that you might want to create some grand masterpiece that stands up to many you’ve seen on tv or in the cake shop – but it’s best you start small. Whilst many people get into baking so they can make fabulously impressive creations, you don’t want to try and achieve too much, too soon. That’s why you might find it best to start with a simple but classic pound cake – which can be both easy and fun to make, even if you haven’t got all the right equipment yet. You don’t even need an oven or a proper baking tin – the pound cake is so versatile that you can use almost anything.
How Did my Cake Go Wrong?
Let’s say you’ve tried to bake your first cake, but it didn’t quite work out. Even if you’re an experienced cake maker, you can still make mistakes. The following tips can be an excellent way to address those problems and help ensure your next cake is much better.
The crust is too dark: This is a common problem, but thankfully it’s easy to fix. It normally means your cake is getting too hot, either through the top of the oven or from elsewhere. The simple solution is to turn the temperature down slightly. Sometimes trial and error can help you get the best results. This is also normally the same for if the cake comes out burnt on top – you need to be turning the oven down.
Your cake comes out too small: Again, another common problem that can be easily addressed. This time there are a number of possible reasons. Again, the oven temperature could have been too high or perhaps you use an incorrect amount of water in the cake. Slightly annoyingly, your batter temperature might have either been too high or too low – sometimes this can be fiddly to correct.
The cake falls in the middle during baking: This can happen if the oven isn’t hot enough or if you move the cake about a lot during the baking.
There are loads of different things that can go wrong, but don’t get too disheartened. Everyone had to start somewhere, and you’ll find that with a bit of practice you’ll be getting it right every time.