Bakegab: The Bellgab Bakeshop

[pyewacket]

I've never used a mix. How very dare you!

If you can get over your snooty self, I have a 'doctored' box cake recipe that you might actually enjoy.

Some of the bakers needed their cakes to be much denser to carve into shapes and would add sour cream to the batter to achieve this. I don't know which flavors you prefer, so here's one for chocolate.

I am not familiar with the brands available to you, so I cannot recommend any. I have baked both scratch and doctored box cakes, so I had my American brand favorites.


Ingredients

    ** For a deeper chocolate taste you can add 1 tablespoon cocoa powder and replace the water with 1 cup hot strong brewed or instant coffee.
    1 Devil's Food Cake Mix (I did not like Devil's food and used Dark chocolate variety instead)
    1 cup all purpose flour
    1 cup granulated sugar
    1/4 teaspoon salt
    1 cup sour cream
    1 cup water (We usually replace the water with 1 cup of hot brewed or instant coffee, it enhances the chocolate flavor.)
    3 whole eggs
    2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

Instructions

    Combine dry ingredients and stir. In mixing bowl, combine sour cream, water, eggs, & flavorings. Add about 1/2 of the dry ingredients and blend together, then add the rest of the dry ingredients & mix on medium speed for 2 minutes.
    Pour into prepared pans and bake as at 325 degrees until middle of cake springs back when touched.
    *This also works well for cupcakes!

[pyewacket]

It would be interesting to compare pye's recipe side-by-side with the one Shreddy is using.  It's definitely not the oven; you can bake a decent muffin in those countertop things.

I would like to see his results, too. Its surprising that someone who can achieve such density in his political opinions would have trouble accomplishing the same effect with his baking.  Maybe there is hope.

When you bake cakes, do they 'crown' quite a bit or bake unevenly for you? When I had to bake layers for tiered cakes- it was important to avoid 'crowning' which would occur if the oven temperature was too high causing the center to rise too quickly. There is a product that helps - bake even strips. They help keep the cake level and the edges from over browning/burning. Easy to use with satisfying results.

[SredniVashtar]

Well- la-dee-dah! Now you want to know about ovens- eh?

Here is a nice recipe that can make muffins or loaves:

Ingredients

    1/2 cup butter
    1 1/2 cups sugar
    1 1/2 tbs vanilla
    2 eggs
    3 1/2 cups flour
    1 tbsp baking powder
    1 tsp salt
    2 cups milk
    2 1/2 cups frozen blueberries, thawed

Instructions

    Preheat oven to 350°. Either line the muffin tin with paper liners or spray two loaf pans with non stick spray.
    Using either an electric hand mixer or stand mixer, cream together the butter, sugar, vanilla and eggs.
    Add the flour, baking powder and salt to the bowl. Slowly start to incorporate the dry ingredients.
    As the dry ingredients are being mixed into the butter mixture, slowly pour the milk into the batter.
    Once all of the ingredients are incorporated, turn the speed up and whip the batter until extremely smooth.
    Fold in the blueberries.
    Divide the batter among two loaf pans or muffin tins.
    Bake at 350°. For the muffins, bake for 20-25 minutes. For the quick bread bake for 30-35 minutes or until golden. both should pass the toothpick test before taking out of the
oven.
Let cool completely before slicing or serving.

Thanks. I'll try it with the loaf tin. My experience of using blueberries hasn't been positive, but I'll try and see if I can find the frozen ones, perhaps they'll be better. I've never thought of adding ingredients slowly, I normally throw them in and hope for the best.

[SredniVashtar]

I would up the oil and whatever other liquid you are using and, since I'm guessing you're using that silly self-raising flour, put part regular flour in.

For cakes:  if you are talking about what you call foam cakes (that we call sponge cakes) that Japanese cheesecake vid you posted was all about folding the whites in at soft peaks instead of stiff; that produced the dense, even texture.  If you are talking about sponge cakes, try using regular instead of self-raising if there are plenty of eggs.  Usually the eggs alone are capable of enough lift to make it tasty.  But watch the bake time; nothing dries out faster than an egg-leavened cake.  Be as skimpy as you can.

Also I think your self-raising flour has salt in addition to baking powder so if you're subbing it with regular you might put an extra pinch in.

I'm thinking I'll use regular flour and hope for the best. I did wonder about using more oil too. If I see those recipes that call for six eggs I usually don't bother because it seems so wasteful. Pye's recipes only called for two or three which makes me wonder if she hasn't been a double agent secretly working for the commies all this time. Use a recipe that doesn't involve three sticks of butter and fifteen eggs and call yourself an American?

[K_Dubb]

I would like to see his results, too. Its surprising that someone who can achieve such density in his political opinions would have trouble accomplishing the same effect with his baking.  Maybe there is hope.

When you bake cakes, do they 'crown' quite a bit or bake unevenly for you? When I had to bake layers for tiered cakes- it was important to avoid 'crowning' which would occur if the oven temperature was too high causing the center to rise too quickly. There is a product that helps - bake even strips. They help keep the cake level and the edges from over browning/burning. Easy to use with satisfying results.

Oh that is cool!  So it is just more insulation on the sides of the pan?  With a little moisture, which can't hurt.  Yes, they poof in the middle and frequently fall back down so I usually end up leveling them with a bread knife.

[SredniVashtar]

If you can get over your snooty self, I have a 'doctored' box cake recipe that you might actually enjoy.

Some of the bakers needed their cakes to be much denser to carve into shapes and would add sour cream to the batter to achieve this. I don't know which flavors you prefer, so here's one for chocolate.

I am not familiar with the brands available to you, so I cannot recommend any. I have baked both scratch and doctored box cakes, so I had my American brand favorites.


Ingredients

    ** For a deeper chocolate taste you can add 1 tablespoon cocoa powder and replace the water with 1 cup hot strong brewed or instant coffee.
    1 Devil's Food Cake Mix (I did not like Devil's food and used Dark chocolate variety instead)
    1 cup all purpose flour
    1 cup granulated sugar
    1/4 teaspoon salt
    1 cup sour cream
    1 cup water (We usually replace the water with 1 cup of hot brewed or instant coffee, it enhances the chocolate flavor.)
    3 whole eggs
    2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

Instructions

    Combine dry ingredients and stir. In mixing bowl, combine sour cream, water, eggs, & flavorings. Add about 1/2 of the dry ingredients and blend together, then add the rest of the dry ingredients & mix on medium speed for 2 minutes.
    Pour into prepared pans and bake as at 325 degrees until middle of cake springs back when touched.
    *This also works well for cupcakes!

I'm going to pass over those hurtful remarks about my political opinions!

I'm not even sure what Devils Food is. Red Velvet cake looks good but I wonder if it's too much work. I like carrot cake but can't be bothered to faff about with the icing.

I like the instant coffee idea, I'll try that. You may have the brain of dead mullet but your baking wisdom almost wins my grudging respect. Almost but not quite.

[K_Dubb]

I'm thinking I'll use regular flour and hope for the best. I did wonder about using more oil too. If I see those recipes that call for six eggs I usually don't bother because it seems so wasteful. Pye's recipes only called for two or three which makes me wonder if she hasn't been a double agent secretly working for the commies all this time. Use a recipe that doesn't involve three sticks of butter and fifteen eggs and call yourself an American?

Are eggs particularly dear over there?  They're about the only thing with any nutritional value in a cake so I can't see any harm in throwing them in by the carton.

My guess is the texture is due to a combination of over-aeration (the self-raising flour has more baking powder than I'd usually use) and, since it isn't as dense, the heat penetrates it faster and dries it out so it's overbaked even though you might time it precisely to the recipe.  So you can try to address it multiple ways.

[pyewacket]

I've never thought of adding ingredients slowly, I normally throw them in and hope for the best.

That's probably your approach to sex, too, but let's not talk about it.

Actually mixing technique is important. Baking is fairly precise because it is organic chemistry at work. Measurements, ratios, and molecular bonds formed by the ingredients determine the results.

[SredniVashtar]

Are eggs particularly dear over there?  They're about the only thing with any nutritional value in a cake so I can't see any harm in throwing them in by the carton.

My guess is the texture is due to a combination of over-aeration (the self-raising flour has more baking powder than I'd usually use) and, since it isn't as dense, the heat penetrates it faster and dries it out so it's overbaked even though you might time it precisely to the recipe.  So you can try to address it multiple ways.

Eggs vary a lot in price. I don't get the cheapest usually but don't splash out on the expensive ones. I'm not sure why I have this feeling about eggs, it just seems like a lot. Maybe that's why I've been going wrong and my cakes turn out a bit anaemic. Still, it seems like there are several fixes I could try. I hadn't considered that self-raising flour might be the problem. Perhaps it's one of those illogical things which the Brits are attached to, like using a bowl in the sink to wash the dishes. Yes, I do that too.

[SredniVashtar]

That's probably your approach to sex, too, but let's not talk about it.

More or less. Although fewer midgets are involved when I'm baking a cake.

I wasn't going to mention this but you forced me into it. What's going on with that kid and the teddy bear on the top of that cake. What's he doing with his hand? Checking for a hernia?

[pyewacket]

More or less. Although fewer midgets are involved when I'm baking a cake.

You are lucky that your midget friends have such low standards.

I wasn't going to mention this but you forced me into it. What's going on with that kid and the teddy bear on the top of that cake. What's he doing with his hand? Checking for a hernia?

I understand there is a lot of confusion about gender these days, but that kid is a she not a he and her teddy bear is not an anatomically correct toy. Your observations of the innocent tableau I created for a child's cake makes me wonder about you- and not in a good way.

[SredniVashtar]

You are lucky that your midget friends have such low standards.

Oh, zing! Somebody's been sleeping in the knife drawer.

[SredniVashtar]

I understand there is a lot of confusion about gender these days, but that kid is a she not a he and her teddy bear is not an anatomically correct toy. Your observations of the innocent tableau I created for a child's cake makes me wonder about you- and not in a good way.

This is a sore point for me. When my parents presented me with Barnaby on my 3rd birthday, I demanded that he be fitted with all the appropriate parts. When they refused I stuck them on myself. I could even make them move by attaching a bit of fishing line and waving it up and down.

[K_Dubb]

Eggs vary a lot in price. I don't get the cheapest usually but don't splash out on the expensive ones. I'm not sure why I have this feeling about eggs, it just seems like a lot. Maybe that's why I've been going wrong and my cakes turn out a bit anaemic. Still, it seems like there are several fixes I could try. I hadn't considered that self-raising flour might be the problem. Perhaps it's one of those illogical things which the Brits are attached to, like using a bowl in the sink to wash the dishes. Yes, I do that too.

Haha yeah it's like that video -- I've always done stiffish peaks to fold in because more air is better, right?  But she made a compelling case.  Now I can't wait to try it.

[pyewacket]

Oh that is cool!  So it is just more insulation on the sides of the pan?  With a little moisture, which can't hurt.  Yes, they poof in the middle and frequently fall back down so I usually end up leveling them with a bread knife.

This is what makes baking such a fun challenge. If you understand the process of physical and chemical changes that occur you can get more consistent and desirable results.

   1 Fats melt
   2 Gases expand and form
   3 Sugar dissolves
   4 Proteins coagulate
   5 Starches gelatinize
   6 Gasses evaporate
   7 Caramelization occurs
 
I found that higher temperatures caused the process to cook the cake batter unevenly.

The lower the temp- between 300 deg to 350 deg- the finer/fluffier the 'crumb', although your outer edge might be gummy. 400 deg will yield a rougher texture and a dark, more caramelized crust (which could result in a burnt taste).

Please let us know the results of your experiments. I got my best advice from fellow bakers testing and adjusting their recipes.

[Kidnostad3]

That's probably your approach to sex, too, but let's not talk about it.

Actually mixing technique is important. Baking is fairly precise because it is organic chemistry at work. Measurements, ratios, and molecular bonds formed by the ingredients determine the results.

I just blew a sip of coffee through my nostrils and the people here at the coffee shop are looking at me askance. 

[ACE of CLUBS]

   1 Fats melt
   2 Gases expand and form
   3 Sugar dissolves
   4 Proteins coagulate
   5 Starches gelatinize
   6 Gasses evaporate
   7 Caramelization occurs
   8 Shit stinks

Please let us know the results of your experiments. I got my best advice from fellow bakers testing and adjusting their recipes.

George Noory sucks . . . . ?

[Kidnostad3]

George Noory sucks . . . . ?

🎶But old man river, he just keeps rolling along.🎶

[pyewacket]

This is a sore point for me. When my parents presented me with Barnaby on my 3rd birthday, I demanded that he be fitted with all the appropriate parts. When they refused I stuck them on myself. I could even make them move by attaching a bit of fishing line and waving it up and down.

If you put half the effort into your human relationships as you do manipulating your doll's bits- you would't have to worry about baking your own muffins.

[K_Dubb]

If you put half the effort into your human relationships as you do manipulating your doll's bits- you would't have to worry about baking your own muffins.

Oooh ouch!  God can you imagine baking for Shreddy?  You give him something fresh to have with his tea and takes a bite and screws up his little face with a look of utter disgust "Darling this muffin is insipid!"

[AZZERAE]

All I ask, at this point, is for Sredni to work his “embittered shortarse” line in - somewhere (anywhere).

[SredniVashtar]

If you put half the effort into your human relationships as you do manipulating your doll's bits- you would't have to worry about baking your own muffins.

It was a teddy bear, not a doll. It's fascist moral majority types like you that got me expelled from so many kindergartens. So what if his parts were somewhat larger than usual? It's called having an inquiring mind, and I'm not putting up with lectures from a woman who produces porno birthday cakes.

[SredniVashtar]

I just blew a sip of coffee through my nostrils and the people here at the coffee shop are looking at me askance.

I'm sure they're used to you drawing attention to yourself. At least, when you shuffled through the doors, you remembered to wear your pants this time.

[Roswells, Art]

I found more pictures of my sugar art and cringe at my early efforts. the good thing with this sort of decorating is that you can always improve. You learn to add more detail to your work and it is fun to look back to compare the results over time.

I made several baby shower cakes and could see the progression as my skills improved.

Here is my first one. Not too bad but my work was not neat and lacked detail.



This cake 'topper' was made about a year or so later and was more detailed.



This was the last one I made and it was my best at the time. Much more attention to detail and much neater work. I also made the cake for it and decided to just pipe the frosting and not fuss with smoothing it.



Close up of the lamb. He was fun to make. 

Those cakes are divine! I'm glad this thread is expanding to sugar arts and confections and since it is made with yeast, brewing should also be included.

[Roswells, Art]

By all means!  Any fruitcakes that sound good, or anything using an unusual leavening agent (potash, pearl ash, hartshorn) would be of particular interest.

In one of your holiday baking posts you mentioned ammonium bicarbonate as a leavening agent. I was curious enough to buy some but haven't used it yet. It sits unopened in my freezer. I would like to use it to try making springerle cookies. They look so elegant:





They don't look like they would taste so good though, heh.

[Kidnostad3]

All I ask, at this point, is for Sredni to work his “embittered shortarse” line in - somewhere (anywhere).

Stop slobbering and ask him for a date FFS. 

[Asuka Langley]

[K_Dubb]

During one of your holiday baking posts you mentioned ammonium bicarbonate as a leavening agent. I was curious enough to buy some but haven't used it yet. It sits unopened in my freezer. I would like to use it to try making springerle cookies. They look so elegant:

They don't look like they would taste so good though, heh.

I think they're usually anise-flavored.  There's nothing wrong with them as a cookie if you can get past that.  There's also a creatively named "Polish Ammonia Cookie" that has peppermint I've been meaning to try.  People talk about how their grandma made them wait several days to air out the ammonia before eating, which is nonsense; the ammonia is gone as soon as they're cool.  Grandma just didn't want them to hoover her hard work all at once hahaha

[Roswells, Art]

I think they're usually anise-flavored.  There's nothing wrong with them as a cookie if you can get past that.  There's also a creatively named "Polish Ammonia Cookie" that has peppermint I've been meaning to try.  People talk about how their grandma made them wait several days to air out the ammonia before eating, which is nonsense; the ammonia is gone as soon as they're cool.  Grandma just didn't want them to hoover her hard work all at once hahaha

That's charming. It reminds me of rambunctious children being blamed for causing a baking cake to fall. The culprit wasn't the children bouncing off the walls but the baker opening the oven too early to see if it's done.

I have no prejudices against anise or peppermint. I'll try them both.

[pyewacket]

Stop slobbering and ask him for a date FFS.

I'll bake the wedding cake!