Whether you’re just starting to discover a love of baking or you’ve been in the kitchen for years, there’s always something new to learn! That’s part of what we here at 12 Tomatoes love about the art of cooking and baking. Check out some of these tips on how to get the perfect cake, easy non-stick tricks, and an amazing hack for saving a dried out cake!
Getting A Flat Cake Every Time
We’ve all been there – you spend time and energy working on the perfect cake (or, ok, we admit that sometimes we use the boxed stuff), only to pull the cake out of the oven and have it all lumpy and uneven. There’s a surprising and odd way to ensure you get a perfectly flat cake every time…
Soak a dish towel in water and secure it around the cake pan using safety pins. This prevents the cake from bubbling up and turning into a dome! Try it out for yourself!
Cupcake Liner Hack
Want to make cupcakes but don’t have any liners? This has happened to me on multiple occasions, and I usually end up pouring the batter right into the pan. I always regret it when I’m prying them out with a knife!
Avoid that frustration by using parchment paper instead. Cut a square and push the parchment paper down into the hole of the cupcake pan with a glass. Pour your batter in and then easily grab the cupcake once it’s baked.
Perfectly Even Cake
So you know how to get a perfectly flat cake, but what about when you want to cut it half and put a layer of delicious frosting? If you’re anything like me, you can’t cut a straight line to save your life. Seriously, this goes for cutting pizza, cake, and paper. It’s a real problem in my life. At least I have a handy trick for helping me cut cake!
Measure your cake and stick toothpicks all around at the halfway point. Then, grab some floss and position it right above the line of toothpicks. They act as a guide to help get a straight, even cut!
Pan Liner Hack
Most bakers know to line a cake pan, otherwise you’re in for a real treat trying to get your cake out once it’s baked (see cupcake liner hack above for confirmation). However, those round pans can be tricky to get the liner to fit. If you have crinkled edges, your cake will have crinkled edges too! Trust me when I say crinkled cake edges are no fun to frost.
Instead, fold a square piece of parchment paper into a cone. Place the tip in the center of the pan and then cut the parchment paper cone right where it meets the edge of the pan. Unfold the cone to reveal a perfect circle that fits right inside!
Save A Dry Cake
Did you bake your cake a little too long on a low temp and dry it out? Sometimes adding too much flour also dries out a cake. Sure, you can smother it in frosting and hope for the best (and really, you should probably smother it in frosting either way, am I right?) but here’s a little trick to make your cake nice and fluffy again!
Mix equal parts honey and hot water and brush the mixture over the cake. It’ll soak the watered down honey right up and you’ll have a delicious, fluffy cake to go with the gobs of frosting. What’s not to love about that?
