25 Nov 2014

How to bake a flat topped cake | How to prevent domes in cakes

I have been wanting to share this for long but somehow never got to it! Today I am going to share a very simple tip that will help you bake flat cakes. There are many ways to control the dome and this is the easiest for me. No domes, no cutting off the excess and wasting some bits cakes. I don't know where exactly I got this tip from, long before I started baking, I did a lot of research on baking. Went through tons of websites reading up on various aspects of baking and this is one tip that I have found very useful.


How to bake flat topped cake


If you don't frost your cakes then this won't be an issue. There is a beauty in domed 'naked' (no frosting) cakes. You know, my family is so used to domed cakes that every time I bake a flat topped cake, they ask me why I can never bake a beautifully domed cake!! After all the effort I put to make the cake flat, I get these comments!! If you do frost cakes regularly then this is a handy tip.

I am so used to this now, that whatever cake I bake, whether it's a simple naked cake for my family or a beautifully frosted cake for a party, I follow this method. These are simple strips made from old turkey towels, you can use any old thick cloth too. 


How to prevent domes in cakes


Why the dome - The cake domes because the outside cooks faster than the inside. Heat from the walls of the cake pan get conducted to the sides of the cake a lot quicker than the center of the cake, the sides cook a lot faster while the middle is not done and bakes a lot slower and domes. These wet strips help is conducting the heat evenly by keeping the sides cool at the beginning of baking.

There are a lot of bake even strips available in the market like these wilton bake even strips but this is the cheapest and easiest method to follow.

I have been baking for long and and as far as I can remember I have never had to cut off the top the cake to get a leveled top (unless I forget to use these strips). You can see for yourself - check out this orange cake or this eggless orange cake or this Christmas fruit cake or this eggless mango marble cake or this.... well you get the picture!


How to prevent domes in cakes


How to make these strips
Wrap the towel around your cake pan and mark the height and length and cut it off. Make a strip for each pan.

What you need
  • Old thick towels strips
  • Metal safety pins
  • A bowl of cold water
Method
1. When you are getting all the ingredients to bake a cake, get a bowl of cold water and soak the strips in the bowl. 



2. After you pour the batter in and tap the pan, squeeze out the excess water from the strips and wrap it around the cake pan and secure it with a safety pin.
3. Bake as usual. You may have to bake for a few more minutes.



How to prevent domes in cakes


Notes
1. Do not use plastic pins. Make sure you use only metal pins to secure the strips. If you use a pin with plastic head, it will melt in the heat.
2. You may have to bake your cake a few extra minutes than what's mentioned in your recipe if you use wet strips.
3. You can make these strips for square tins as well.
4. Make sure the cloth you use has some texture in it, if it's too soft, it will slip off.
5. Make sure the strips are cut to the right circumference of your pan. Let it not overlap too much.
6. Keep the safety pins ready. Otherwise, the oven will be pre heated, the batter ready in the pan and there I am running around the house like a chicken with it's head cut off searching for the suddenly elusive pins!!


Until next time,


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40 comments:

  1. Thanks for sharing this useful tips to avoid domes in cakes..

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  2. very very useful one dear,thank u for sharing

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  3. That's a very useful post. Can we use this method for loaf pans as well?

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    1. I have only used disposable paper loaf pans for cakes so I've never tried this method on it :)

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  4. Thanks for the tips. I will consider to prevent the dome.

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  5. oh wow !!! thats such a useful info

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  6. this is very much important when you are frosting the cake...Very useful post

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  7. Thats a very informative post...would love more such posts from you...!

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  8. wow dear wonderful and very informative :)

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  9. Thank you Beulah, this is very useful information for all bakers.

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  10. useful post dear..y cant u start a blog for baking goodies ?????????????????:))))))))

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    1. Exactly what I was thinking! My blog is getting too crowded!!

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  11. Thats a great post. Very useful...Thanks for sharing.

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  12. Useful post beaulah. Thanks for the tip.

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  13. Its really a useful post Beulah :) i was searching the solution .. its a timely help..Thank u.. You are becoming the baking guru for bloggies :) will come with some of my queries ;)

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  14. Good post . Thank u for sharing

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  15. I always had a domed cake.Solution found .Very useful post.. Thanks for sharing....

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  16. brilliant idea since these days the baking pans are so thin. Previously they were made much thicker.

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  17. I am definitely going to do this this week. I'm sick of having to cut the top off my cakes to decorate them!

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  18. is it.. tats a grt one.. will use it

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  19. Thanks for the wonderful info !

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  20. This is one very useful info... thanks for sharing

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  21. Thank you for sharing this wonderful tip!

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  22. Thank you for the tip it was very useful

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  23. Hi ... nd tnx for this tip
    have to try it. earlier when i was using a bigger OTG i didnt c\face much of a problem, now with a smaller morphy richards one i nvr seem to b baking right. it peaks too much
    though i have seen your posts in KFG, hadnt seen this site earlier. am glad i found this one
    BTW, instead of the pin, can we use velcro strips to fasten? or will the heat pop it out? or melt it?

    BTw am a dentist too...almost retired one though :D

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    1. I think you can use velcro, let me do some research and I will get back to you and good to come across another dentist :)

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    2. Tnx Beulah
      just came back to take down the recipe for carrot cake. going to visit my daughter and planning to make this one.
      planning to make an apple walnut one also...i make it regularly, but in the new otg the edges burn out and centre remains gooey :(

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    3. That carrot cake recipe is one of my favorite! You will get used to your new oven soon. Good luck! As for the velcro, from what I read online, looks like you can use it. Don't use any kind of plastic, it will melt.

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    4. tried the carrot cake. was a little dense. tastes good though. maybe i made in a hurry and so it turned that way . will make it once again when i return

      the apple walnut cake cracked yet again. i didnt use a sleeve though...cos the mould i used was a slimmish one
      suja

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    5. Thanks for the feedback, carrot cake tastes great after a few hours, it's so full of flavor!

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  24. This comment has been removed by the author.

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