Hi all I’m new here - I did a search on the Grand Marnier cake but did not find the answer I need.

I have made this cake twice now and both times it was very crumbly.  When you cut into it, it just sort of falls apart.  I’m an amateur baker so I don’t know how to troubleshoot this issue.  I know this is a very vague question but I hope somebody can help!

Thanks!

BIANCA:
  Good afternoon to you. Welcome into our culinary club & happy to meet you as well. Bianca, I am sorry to learn of your baking mishap. Generally speaking Bianca, Miss Rose’s recipes are tried & accurate. Sooo, I hesitate to find fault with them. I do not always agree with her method of mixing however. Soo, before I discuss any other aspect of baking science I must ask you did you bake this cake in a BUNDT PAN??? Or did you change baking pans???.  Did you change any aspect of this recipe???
  Till then Bianca. Enjoy the rest of the day young lady.

  ~FRESHKID.

Thank you for your reply.  Oh I am quite certain the recipe is flawless - I rather blame my execution for the crumbly texture… I’m just not sure what I did wrong (twice).

I did use a bundt pan and I changed nothing about the recipe.  There are only 2 things I can think of that might be off:
1.  I used raw cane sugar instead of white sugar - although I use it all the time without issue
2.  I measured the cake flour then sifted it.  Am I supposed to sift then measure?

I mixed the batter in a Kitchenaid mixer following the directions… but I must be doing *something* wrong, as I don’t think the cake should be so crumbly!  I was hoping that crumbly cakes result from a known baking sin and someone more experienced could set me straight - but perhaps my problem is not quite that easy to diagnose

Hi Bianca,

I have three recommendations.

1. Use baker’s sugar (also called superfine sugar) which you can find in the baking aisle of the supermarket.
2. Use whatever kind of flour is called for in the recipe. If I recall correctly, that recipe calls for cake flour.
3. Weigh all your ingredients as opposed to measuring them. Weighing is much faster and more accurate, especially when it comes to eggs.

When you say the cake is crumbly, do you mean that it is dry as well? How does it taste?

Bianca, if you are measuring by volume, instead of weighing, then you sift the cake flour directly into the measuring cup, without tapping or touching the cup in any way, the flour just floats down undisturbed to fill the cup.  All you do is gently level it, without jostling or tapping or shaking.  If you are measuring by volume first, then sifting, you are getting way too much flour, which can definitely cause texture problems.  Usually this would make the cake dry, but maybe that wasn’t as noticeable with the syrup.

If you are weighing, then you can sift whenever you like.

As for the sugar, Rose recommends making your own superfine in the food processor, you can use your raw cane sugar to do this, no problems.

This cake taught me that the combination of Grand Marnier and dark chocolate is better than either by itself!

oh dear, yes, try messure by sifting vs measure and sifting, you will notice as much as 1/3 weight difference.

redarding Rose’s method of butter cakes mixing, where you don’t cream the butter and sugar, but instead coat the flour with butter first, it works well as long as the minimum beating time and force are achieved.  honestly, I give it a few more seconds or speed of beating till I see the batter “well developed” ... a concept best explained by watching Rose on youtube!