I've started making/decorating cakes about 2 months ago. I have had cake orders for 5 consecutive week with no complaints. A coworker of mine ordered a cake (see below) for someone in her group. It is a 9x13 Magnolia Vanilla Cake (CC recipe) with BC icing, I charged her $25. I followed the recipe and added about a 1/4 cup of sour cream as well, baked the cake at 350 for about 35 min. When the cake came out of the pan I immediately wrapped it in saran wrap until the next day (to hold in moisture,CC tip) She and her group ate the cake about 11:30, At about 2:30 she comes to my desk and tell me that everyone loved the way the cake "looked" which prompted me to ask how did they like the taste. Well, she said she thought the cake was dry and since nobody else said "ooo, this cake is good" she got the impression that the other people in her group were not crazy about the cake either. They didnt say it was bad (or dry), they just didnt say anything at all. So I ask if there is any left over for me to taste and she says no, they ate it all. I said thank you for the critique and she handed me a envelope with $31, I told her she only owed me $25 and she said the extra $6 was a tip. A tip for a cake someone had a complaint about???????? I gave her $6 back to her and told her it was not necessary. She mentioned that she could tell it was from scratch because she always bakes with mixes. I don't know why the cake would be dry, I followed the instructions, added sour cream for extra moisture and wrapped the cake in saran wrap to "lock" in the moisture. Anyone have any ideas as to what may have happened?

Isn't it a bit strange that a cake that is "dry" or not to good would all be eaten? Hate to be skeptical about what your co-worker said but I am not sure what she told you is the case with everyone else.
I know when I cook/bake something for others and it is not up to par it certainly is never all eaten. The only time things are always eaten entirely is when they are excellent tasting.

I'll be curious to hear other thoughts on this subject and I am sorry she said that to you. Try not to be upset! If you got the recipe from CC and it has high ratings then I can not imagine the cake being anything less than very good to excellent.

Lea

scratch cakes in my experience always tend to be a bit dry. I don't know what to tell you as far as how to make it more moist other than maybe giving it a syrup wash before you frost it.

And BTW, the cake is beautiful!!!!

Lea

I've never had a dry cake....but I use box mixes with the extender recipe...you cannot go wrong using that extender recipe...I only do cakes for fun and I've got people telling me my cakes taste like 'gourmet'...I wont use/do anything else!

I am a big worrier myself and very self-conscious about my cakes as well. If I don't hear anything back from a customer I assume the worst! You could ask the other people in her group about the cake just for feedback. Or, you could bake a 6 or 8" of that exact same recipe following the steps you did before and try it for yourself! I'm a box mix baker, but I do make from scratch when it's special, and I have noticed that the texture is very different than a box mix. Maybe she just mistook texture for moisture

Please don't worry too much. It does look fabulous.

Thank you all! I'm trying to be an all scratch baker. I have a really good scratch chocolate cake that is in no way dry and I did try this vanilla cake when i made it once before. I didn't think it was dry! Also, when I removed the saran wrap just before icing the cake was actually wet to the touch. I think she was used to a box cake texture. She did say the cake tasted good. Anyway, I've heard of a simple syrup...how much do you use?

I did 6 inch cakes for people to taste, just to get things going, etc.
The chocolate cake could not have been more perfect. Tasted great because I made cupcakes with the rest of it.

The girl I gave it to called me and stated that she took it to work and she and her co-workers tasted it and everybody liked it, thought it tasted great. But.......it was moist but not as moist as she likes her cakes. She even asked the girls she works with again, and they said it tasted just fine.

So, I talked to a mutual friend of ours. She said that girl doesn't like anything. She always has to complain even when there is nothing to complain about. My friend had a cake also. She said it was great and she had talked to other people that I gave cakes to and they said great.

So long story short. Your person is probably just a complainer and you can't make her happy no matter what. And if she wasn't happy, why the money!!!!!

You know you did fine!!! Let her go!!!

Lu

I know it tells in the Cake Bible I poured so much simple syrup once I soaked the cake it turned to mush I think you are right people are so used to box mixes . Do you use cake flour? It makes a much more tender crumb.

I think youre right lu9129...she is a complainer (I know that from working with her). I think if she asks for another cake, I'll tell her I am booked. Oh yeah she was making changes to the design up until the last minute. It's like I quoted her one price for a simple cake then all of the sudden she wanted to add alot of details for the price quoted. I think I'll pass on her for a customer!

Cakenutz...I've never tried cake flour, this particular recipe calls for both all purpose ans self rising flour. Can you sub cake flour for all other flours?

your cake looks fab.
I always do cakes from scratch never have done a box mix, cos I prefer to know what goes into mine. I think in England we don't use box mixes as much, but I think its whatever your preference is. I've always been luck (so far)! and have never had a dry cake. Some people just like to moan so I would take no notice.
You dont' say a cake is not good, then eat it all THEN offer a tip!! Something not quite right somehow!
I'm sure you'll have plenty of customers who will think your cakes are great!
cheers
Jan

I will say this....that when you are used to boxed cakes, scratch cakes taste different. My dh went to a work thing the other night and one of the wives made the cake....he brought a piece home for me. I tasted it and immediately could tell it was scratch...it was good, but different. It just has a different texture to it. Now, my dh didn't like it, but he still ate it
I think the fact that she tried to give you a tip on top of the money for the cake says something. She was just sharing what she thought of the cake....it will happen alot over the years with customers. You just learn from it and move on to the next one.

Thanks everyone for all the encouragement and advice! My DH didn't understand what I was going thru but I knew my CC friends would

Yup- I echo that if it were "dry" noone would have eaten it. I have evidence of this as my daughters 1st B-day cake (The one with the top tier bug) in my pics was cute, but it tasted AWFUL, I was trying to do a Pina Colada cake, it was dry ECKKK ......... and it is STILL sitting out in my garage on the floor- waiting to be thrown in the trash. (The bottom tier is styrofoam so I have to dismantle to throw it away.)
Anyway, point is if it were DRY noone would have eaten it (except maybe a baby turning 1
Maybe she is just so used to a mix cake and scratch cakes are different. I have found my clients to not like any of my cakes from scratch.

I have had one complaint and that was " the cake was yummy, but not what I thought it would be, but I am going to go eat the rest right now"

The cake is lovely and why would she tip you.....Come on!

Some people just looooooooove to complain, because their voice, no matter what, is music to their ears!

I dont bake from scratch, but I think most people are used to boxed mixes and my understanding is that they are unusually moist. So that is what people are used to. Your cake may have been perfectly fine, just not ultra moist the way that a boxed cake might be. Like someone said, it could be more of a texture thing too.

Well, as far as moistness goes - the scratch cakes I made as a kid from the BC cookbook were indeed dry. But as an adult, the scratch cakes I have made are just as moist if not more so than box mixes. I am wondering if your coworker got an edge piece where it might have been more cooked, and most of her coworkers got the more moist pieces. Plus there's the whole not used to scratch taste. It's like getting a burger from McDonald's and making one at home. Completely different tastes and textures. Mmm I could go for a nice grilled burger right now! Your cake looks great and I think you should take her "critique" (which who knows, maybe she thought was helpful) with a grain of salt.

I wouldn't worry too much about it. If they ate it all and no one else actually voiced to her that it was dry or whatever, she has no way of knowing what they were thinking. Maybe her standards are too high1 Sounds like you did everything right and then some!

If all the cake went then it cant have been that bad at all. So dont worry about it too much. If no one has ever metioned it before it was probably just her taste.

ok, this is what I did. I made another cake (exact same recipe but with chocolate BC) and brought it to work. I put it out in the breakroom, it went like crazy and I got lots of compliments! If fact the lady I made the first cake for actually ate 2 pieces!!!!!!!!!!! I think she's just a complainer, why do people have to be like that? Oh yeah, she asked me to make another cake for her on the 24th...go figure!

she is full of it! all she may want is a discount on the next order or want any reason to pay you less! (even though i think she got this one for a deal!!)

Your cake is beautiful! Do not doubt that for aminute..some people will never be happy or never admit that it is better than theirs. That and also some ppl HAVE to complain about SOMETHING...it is just a shame she picked on you!

And i agree with all others...if it was "dry" then why was it eaten! that there proves there is no problem!

And a little tip for all, i too get nervous as to how the cakes will taste, so i went out and bought those re-usable muffin silicone liners, and i use a bit of the batter and make 1 cupcake, just to make sure all is well!!

I had a co-worker like that. She ordered two cakes for Thanksgiving and I made them just like I always do and gave them to her. She came in after the holiday and of course complained about them. I had never had a complaint before this one. She has never had a complaint about any of the cakes I have brought into the office. So I felt so bad and made her another one and my husband was furious with me. He said I will never be able to please everyone. She came in the next day and said the cake was much better. She complains about everything. On that same day I did the exact same cake for another person in the office and she said her cake was fantastic. There are just some people who just want to be miserable. Don't take it personal. I haven't had a complaint since. Knock on wood.
Faye

sinderella...your not the first person to tell me that people just don't want to admit it was better that theirs!!!!
She wants a yellow cake for the 24th and guess what....she's getting a cake mix cake!!!!! Unfortunetly I already commited myself to doing the cake on the 24th but in the future, I will be booked!

well, simplysweet i come from a LONG line of cooks and bakers ( i am italian btw) and it is always a competition!!

Im a trained chef and i can bake like its nobody's business!! Every get together we all bust out our best foods and desserts and there is always those ppl that say, "yeah its a little drier than mine" mean time for the next 3 hrs they are busting my chops for the recipe...dryer my butt!!

The point im trying to make is everyone has their pride, and some feel that their pride will be compromised IF they admit to something being good...its not ur fault, its just the way wonky ppl work!

Good for you for making her another cake, very good for u to stuffing it to her with a box mix, and horray to be able to not let it get to u!

My MIL always disses on my baking goods. She doesn't usually say, "oh it's a bit dry" or something along the lines but as people eat it, she goes on and on about how fat it'll make people and how many unhealthy ingredients I use.

The thing is, she can't even make cookies from a tube you just pull apart and put on a sheet. She can hardly (and sometimes fails at making) make a boxed lasagna.

I've realized with her it's just a jealousy issue. She suddenly feels bad at never having given her son proper meals so she tries to tear me down and make one of my good qualities a fault.

Some people I think really enjoy just being difficult, complaining, and acting jaded about stuff that's actually quite good. I think it makes them feel like they're "High society" or some crap like that because they don't get excited over good food, etc. It's pretty stupid since most people (and I'm guessing your coworker is included) just don't eat gourmet food on a daily basis, and why pretend to be pretentious and have "had better" if you really haven't? It's a personality problem with the difficult client, not your fault as a chef/baker. Don't take it too seriously.

That cake is beautiful and everything you said you did sounds right. I have a theory about some co-workers. It's really hard for them to say anything super nice in a competitive work environment. I think the fact that there was no cake left and that she gave you a tip says it all. People at work always want to be on top of the food chain (LOL) and well she wasn't this time. I think she is a tab bit jealous of your talent.

Some people are just weird about cakes -- I have an acquaintance who always wants/hints for a free cake. This person has a beer budget with champagne taste, if you know what I mean. For her cakes, she'll ask for all the extras i.e. chocolate chips, cream cheese icing, etc. When I tell her that the extras bump up the price of the cake, she always tells me "forget it... just do a basic cake." After her last order, and b/c I decorate as a hobby, I decided not to take any more orders from her b/c she's too high maintenance.