Lori's Lovely Cake
Sep 29, 2006 | From the kitchen of Rose
A house is beautiful not because of its walls, but because of its cakes.
– old Russian proverb
lori sent me this most lovely photo and note, and I had to share it. I also happen to love Russian proverbs and especially this one as being of half Russian heritage it explains much!
I just wanted to share this picture of a cake I made this past weekend, using your recipes! Your charts for scaling the base recipes and how to adjust the baking powder are a lifesaver.Two layers are the all American chocolate butter cake, the other two are the white velvet butter cake layers. All cakes are raspberry filled and finished with buttercream and rolled marshmallow fondant.
A side note to anyone attempting fondant ribbons horizontally... use a hand-crank pasta machine for the skinny ribbons, and for layered ones, assemble them and *then* put them on the cake (I use piping gel brushed on the back)... much easier to get them straight that way.
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Woody Wolston in reply to comment from kath beckwith
11/29/2011 12:09 AM
Hi Kath,
We ask which recipe of Rose's are you baking?
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kath beckwith in reply to comment from Asheka
11/28/2011 10:14 PM
when baking a cake why does it crack on the top and not stay whole
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woody in reply to comment from linda
10/31/2011 01:15 AM
Hi Bonnie,
Which cake recipe of Rose's are you making?
Splitting can occur if you are not letting it cool long enough or the cake is domed.
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Bonnie
10/30/2011 07:10 PM
I would like to know why my layer cake split when I take them out of the pan. I let them cool for about ten minutes and then convert them onto a cooling rack and that's when they start to split. Help!!!
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linda
06/15/2009 05:05 PM
my cakes crack when they are cooking, some times when still in cake pan ?
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Matthew
01/21/2008 01:26 PM
Linda,
If they crack during baking, you could be overbeating the batter (developing the structure too much). You might also check you oven temperature to make sure that it isn't running too high.
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Bill
01/20/2008 11:17 AM
Linda:
When do they crack? While they are in the pan?...after the come out of the pan? after they are completely cool? The reason why they crack will depend on When they crack. Also..what type of cake? If they are butter cakes and they are cracking are you a) cooling them for 10 minutes in the pan, then b) putting a wire rack over the cake and invertint it onto the rack, then c) inverting it back to "right side up" onto another rack to cool completely? One of the main reasons for cracking is letting the cake cool upside down. Hope this helps.
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linda
01/18/2008 07:02 PM
why do my cakes crack all the time? i always do what the recipe tell's me and they still crack.can some one tell me were i'm going wrong please. thank-you from linda
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Bill
12/28/2007 05:49 PM
The cakes are coming out of the pan too soon. They should cool for 10 minutes before unmolding. Hope that helps
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robert lipton
12/27/2007 02:14 PM
all rum cake recipes seem to call for vanilla puddung.. this makes a dense cake quite unlike cayman island cake so i'm experimenting..any ideas
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Matthew
11/10/2007 11:55 AM
I don't really have any experience with mixes, but assuming the mix is fine, I would guess you are either over mixing the batter or your oven temperature is off. Also, I would let the cakes cool 10 minutes in the pan before unmolding.
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Maureen
11/10/2007 11:33 AM
When I bake my cakes, from a box mix, they have been cracking everywhere when I take them out of the pan. I do invert them within 2-3 minutes of being out of the oven. My oven is an covection oven, but I do not use the convection setting. Help!
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Rose
02/13/2007 03:11 PM
practice is the best thing but a course builds confidence and ice is great!
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gerri tomitz
02/13/2007 09:58 AM
I only made one wedding cake and that was
pretty successful....but of course I made
it for a friend. How difficult is the
process...and would a course be of help.
I have taken baking courses at ICE in
Manhattan over the last couple of years
and I liked them...
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Rose
12/25/2006 08:28 AM
there are a variety of possibilities: oven too hot, over-mixed so too much gluten development (doesn't happen with my mixing method in the cake bible bc the butter coats the flour and protects it), not enough leavening.
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Asheka
12/25/2006 06:50 AM
When baking a cake, why does it crack on the top and not stay whole?
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Rose
11/06/2006 08:26 PM
most layer cakes are baked fully when they reach between 195 and 205 degrees F. since thermometers vary in accuracy and may be slow to respond, also judge by pressing lightly on the top to see if it springs back and inserting a cake tester. if using a wooden skewer it's fine if a few crumbs still adhere but a metal cake tester when removed should be crumb free.
most layer cakes should not shrink from the sides of the pan until removed from the oven. there are sometimes exceptions which in my books i am careful to mention.
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Betty Manuck
11/06/2006 01:02 PM
What is the internal temperature of a chocolate cake when done?
What about a yellow cake?
Thanks,
Betty
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Rose
11/05/2006 03:22 PM
glenda--i'd be delighted if you will carry my new cake kits. i've forwarded your note to nigel dyche of coastal goods (www.coastalgoods.com) because any day now the kits will be listed on his site and you can contact him directly. let me know in a few weeks if any problem.
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Rose
11/05/2006 03:20 PM
anne, you have posted this question in two places so please see the answer i already posted in the other place. glenda was not responding to your question, she was simply posting a question of her own!
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TUMBLEWEED/GLENDA
11/05/2006 08:22 AM
THE NEW CAKE MIX ?
IS IT POSSIBLE TO BUY FOR MY STORE ?
WE HAVE CARRIED BOTH YOUR CAKE BIBLE BOOKS FOR SEVERAL YEARS
THANKS
GLENDA
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Ann Cerrone
10/30/2006 03:37 PM
Question: Queen Mother Cake. I have Maida Heatter's recipe and an old Gourmet Magazine version. The old one uses 8" pan and lower heat..350 to 325.
Maida...9"pan 375 to 350. What difference in result might I get??
Texture etc???
Thank you
Ann Cerrone - NYC
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Rose
10/14/2006 08:50 AM
your timing is excellent--just yesterday i made cupcakes from each kit to test the first run and perfecto! moist and delicious.
it will be added to nigel's within the next week or two.
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laurie donovan
10/14/2006 08:37 AM
In the November issue of Food and Wine I read that you have launched a line of cake mixes that can be found on a site called "coastalgoods.com" but the only thing that came up for that site were exotic spices. Is there another website I should try? I love to bake from scratch but I am always on the lookout for a great mix. Thank you! Laurie
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Rose
10/07/2006 09:25 AM
i can't see why it wouldn't.
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Juliana
10/07/2006 05:57 AM
Hi Rose,
Can the waterbath method be used for all cheesecake recipes, even if the recipe does not state so?
Thanks.
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Rose
10/06/2006 07:09 AM
thanks for your input roxanne. i'll also add one of my favorite waterbath tips:
instead of wrapping the springform pan in the two layers of heavy duty foil absolutely necessary to avoid the risk of seepage from the waterbath, simply place the pan in a slightly larger silicone pan.
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Roxanne
10/06/2006 06:59 AM
I do the same as Zack does. I bake the cheesecake until the internal temp is about 150. I never take it higher than that. Carry over cooking as it cools will finish setting it. I also don't like the waterbath method (usually doesn't go well with a springform pan). I use the New York method of 500 degrees for 10 minutes then turning the oven down to 200 (without opening the door) and baking the cake until it reaches 150 (usually about 70-80 minutes at my location of 5,280 feet). This method gives the cake that nice nut brown crust that is the classic characteristic of a New York cheesecake.
I get perfect cheesecakes everytime with this method--cool, thick, and creamy in the middle which turns to velvet than suede then cake like at the edges.
Of course, for a wedding cake, a brown crust isn't desirable :), so I can see the waterbath method being used here.
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Zach Townsend
10/03/2006 08:09 PM
I'm just realizing something with my comment about the 150 related to this recipe. Since the oven is turned off at 50 minutes and the door left closed, the cake may be reaching its highest temperature several minutes AFTER that point, before it begins to cool down inside the oven. So removing the cake and taking its temperature at 50 minutes will probably not represent the highest temp it reaches. But it still may be a good test if you find the cake at its nearest hottest point is significantly below 150. Might be a good indication your oven is truly running slow.
Rose's recipes are tried and true - so it must be the temperature in your oven keeping the temp of the cake too low. I hope you try again and post your results! Have you ever taken your oven's temperature? I find cheesecakes fascinating.....
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Rose
10/03/2006 07:08 PM
all this is true except that i really love baking it at 50 min. and then letting the baking continue without heat for 1 hour so 50 min. wouldn't be enough without that extra. i guess the solution if one has a problem like this is to bake it until 150 or 160 and not use the residual heat.
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Zach Townsend
10/03/2006 03:27 PM
Shelly,
It would be interesting to know what the internal temperature of the cheesecake is when you take it out of the oven at 50 minutes. If it's quite a bit below 150, that's a good indication it might be underdone and that your oven is running slow. I usually follow a rule of thumb that any cheesecake should make it up to an internal temperature of 150 (taken in the center with an instant read thermometer) to ensure coagulation of the eggs has the best chance. I've used this as a guide as I've made cheesecakes in different ovens, to know I'm at least where I need to be temperature-wise (I always bake mine in a water bath). And then of course there should be the important visual clues that Rose mentioned.
One warning about thermometers, if for some reason you were doing this with a cheesecake you did not bake in a water bath, the hole caused from the probe can make the cake crack - but I've never had this happen for one baked in a water bath. I've baked about 150 cheesecakes over the last three years and have never had one crack from the probe - and the 150 temp., along with the visiual clues, has helped a lot when deciding if its done. However, if it's 150 and still jiggles quite a bit around the edges and seems liquidy, it's still not done. Take it up to about 160 (which at 325 degrees usually takes my oven about another 10 minutes).
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Rose
10/03/2006 02:56 PM
the baking time is correct so your oven must be running slower. when you take the cake out of the oven it should giggle only very slightly. if it seems too loose you'll need to bake it longer to save it but best to make just one small version at a higher temperature and see how long you need to bake it in your oven.
i've made them many times as have others so i know it works!
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shelly arsenault
10/03/2006 12:34 PM
I attempted to make the three tier cheese cake from the wedding bible and it appeared not to cook all the way through. I even cooked each layer by itself in the water bath. I attempted it again the next night thinking I missed an ingredent, but again it did not cook. Is the cooking time of 50 min. correct, or should it be 1hr. and 50 min.? Needless to say this was a big expense, and I had to revert to a regular cake for the wedding? If you could answer this question with any and all advise it would be truely greatful. I would love to try again. Many thanks.
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Zach Townsend
10/02/2006 03:03 PM
Bravo Lori!
Zach
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