A Guide To Making Incredible Cakes
Amazing cakes seem to be all over the place lately, from Instagram to Facebook. The designs are becoming more and more elaborate. You don’t have to have a cake business to be good at making cakes. In fact, if you start to make your own, you can save so much money on special occasions as well as treat your family and friends. This beginner’s guide to making incredible cakes will help you to get started:
Have The Right Tools Available
Having the right tools available is essential if you want to make incredible tasting and looking cakes. You’ll need a rolling pin, a set of scales, and measuring cups to name just a few things. If you want to make really fancy cakes, you’ll also need modelling tools and decorations to make them look pretty. The right tool really can make all the difference!
Our favourite tools:
Follow The Recipe Exactly
Cake making isn’t really a time for you to experiment and make up your own recipes. Making nice cakes is all about chemistry, and getting the amount and order of things right. If you’re following a recipe, make sure you follow it exactly. This will ensure you create the perfect cake. Read the ingredients and instructions through twice before you start to make sure you have everything you need. Some instructions may be hidden further down the recipe.
Start With Simple Cake Recipes
Some recipes are going to be more complicated than others. Start with simple recipes until you’re used to making cakes and want to branch out. Even simple cakes can taste delicious if you use the right ingredients and follow the recipes properly. Some people find making rainbow cake easy, even though it looks really complicated and impressive.
Do Cake Making Classes and Workshops
If you want some one to one instruction and to get some tips from the experts, classes and workshops could be just the thing for you. You can even do them online if you don’t want to travel! Learning at your own pace could help you to become an even better cake maker. You don’t necessarily even have to pay for classes and workshops. You can find free tutorials on Youtube, and even watch programs like The Great British Bake Off. This will help you to hone your skills and pick up valuable tips from experts for nothing at all.
Practice As Much As You Can
Practice makes perfect. Don’t start by offering to create a christening cake if you’ve never made one before. Practice before hand, making smaller cakes and practising your decorations until you’re coming up with professional designs. Cake journal and other sites can give you valuable tips on creating decorations for your cakes.
Anybody can make an amazing cake, even if they are just starting out. Go with a simple recipe and design and see how you get on. Then you can perfect your baking and decorating skills. Eventually, you’ll be able to make colourful, impressive, more complicated cakes with layers. Have fun practising and come up with some of your own designs too.
Know How To Frost It
Frosting your cake properly will ensure the texture is perfect. If you don’t frost it right, bits of cake can get all caught up in the frosting and ruin the consistency. Put a thin layer of frosting over your cake and then put it in the freezer for 15 minutes. You can then go in with a nice thick layer of frosting to finish it off!
Never Forget To Prep Your Cake Pan
Prepping your cake pan is essential. Using the right size and type is important, but you also need to prep it. You can use parchment paper, butter, or oil to ensure your cake doesn’t stick. Many beginners tend to make mistakes like this.
Know Your Flours
Different flours will create different cake textures. Know your flours in order to create lighter and heavier cakes when you need to. Flours with higher protein tend to have more gluten, and are therefore thicker. Know whether you want your cake to be light or heavy and choose your flour accordingly.
Use The Middle Of The Oven and Rotate
Place your cake in the middle of the oven to ensure even baking, but don’t stop there. Rotate your cake once it’s set to create the perfect golden finish. You may need to keep checking on it. If you’re making a layered cake, you may also want to swap shelves. This will ensure that each layer is perfectly cooked and risen.
