My cakes always come out domed, that’s why I tend to make two halves in sandwich tins. They still have domes though and I waste a lot of cake with trimming and my hips just can’t afford it. I’ve tried cake pops but they are just not my thing (i.e. I can’t get them to work) So I decided to pick up some tips on how I could make a flatter cake and have less waste.
Tip 1: Insulate the tin. You can buy insulating strips for your cake tins, or if you are a cheap skate like me, just use doubled up greaseproof paper tied on with string. Insulating means the cake is cooked more evenly, usually the sides cook quicker which means the middle domes.
Tip 2: Make sure you are extra careful when folding in the flour. You know it has to be done slowly right? Do you sometimes get lazy like me and just stir it in without thinking? I creates too much air and the cake rises unevenly.
Tip 3. Cook the cake on a slightly lower temperature for a longer time. This ensures the heat is evenly distributed through the cake and prevents the sides cooking first.
Tip 4: Make a slight well in the centre of the cake batter before cooking. I’ve tried this several times before and it doesn’t really work, but might help with a combination of the other tips.
So, I had a go and baked a regular sponge cake in one 8 inch cake tin using all four of the above tips.
Here is the result:
What do you think? I was quite happy that it came out fairly flat. It did sink a little right in the middle and I think another 5 minutes of cooking might have prevented that, although the cake was cooked. I had to put a piece of greaseproof paper before it had cooked properly as it was starting to get quite brown on the top. I turned it over to decorate it and didn’t have to trim it all, so success, no wastage.
Mostly Cake 