annakat, I have made it many times, all a success. When I study a bakers' recipes, I also research their methodology. This is important to get the most out of a recipe. In that recipe, Buddy gives the tip of using a hand mixer on the custard to add to the strength of the structure and to shorten the time. He also says that mixing longer will produce a thicker custard. I do both and I always bump up my thickener in any recipe to an additional 20-30%. With cornstarch and fully cooked flour, that extra is an insurance policy that a custard will not become runny, especially if it is a filling with weight on it or a base for German buttercream.
So on Buddy's, the custard cold is almost the consistency of cold mashed potatoes... able to stand on its own on a spoon and not lose the sharp cut edges. For the cake, room temp is important. For custards, I actually use my chocolate thermometer to watch to get it back to 72 degrees before using. The cupcakes are mega moist and the dome is higher than any I have ever seen. BUT, be careful, the cake and cupcakes do not brown, so you have to really watch it. Because the cake is so moist and dense, it takes a little bit longer to bake.
dawnybird, The reason that your box mix wins is because you haven't baked a scratch cake that is better than the box. This is true of many bakers' skill level. A good scratch cake isn't even compared to a box. It's like cake and pie. I say this because in my experience, people don't stop eating box just because they have had an excellent scratch cake. They just don't have the opportunity to get it every time they want cake. My prices are too high to have mine as the dessert at every Sunday dinner, for example. There are too many pastry chefs, mega-successful bakery owners, celebrity chefs, and just great bakers, to refute your claim. And there are also the multitude of CC members who have risen to the level of master scratch bakers. My customers will not pay the $89.00 that I charge for my homestyle (not decorated) 9 in German Chocolate cake if it was a box. For that price, I had better produce an amazing gastronomic experience. And this cake has a great following.
Indydebi, you just may not like yellow cake. It is my favorite batter taste and the only one I actually prefer with no frosting. When I experiment, the cakes get eaten by family and my daughter's friend by just breaking off a chunk. It is so delicious. I do have a few extra ingredients that take it to a deeper depth of taste, but to the unknow taster, it's just yellow cake. I don't like chocolate and everyone loves chocolate. My white cake has a wonderful flavor plain. Because I don't do traditional wedding cakes (people come to me for my non-traditional flavors), I have never just made a white cake with vanilla frosting, but if I pull a piece of the cake out of my slice, again, I could eat it by itself.
So on Buddy's, the custard cold is almost the consistency of cold mashed potatoes... able to stand on its own on a spoon and not lose the sharp cut edges. For the cake, room temp is important. For custards, I actually use my chocolate thermometer to watch to get it back to 72 degrees before using. The cupcakes are mega moist and the dome is higher than any I have ever seen. BUT, be careful, the cake and cupcakes do not brown, so you have to really watch it. Because the cake is so moist and dense, it takes a little bit longer to bake.
dawnybird, The reason that your box mix wins is because you haven't baked a scratch cake that is better than the box. This is true of many bakers' skill level. A good scratch cake isn't even compared to a box. It's like cake and pie. I say this because in my experience, people don't stop eating box just because they have had an excellent scratch cake. They just don't have the opportunity to get it every time they want cake. My prices are too high to have mine as the dessert at every Sunday dinner, for example. There are too many pastry chefs, mega-successful bakery owners, celebrity chefs, and just great bakers, to refute your claim. And there are also the multitude of CC members who have risen to the level of master scratch bakers. My customers will not pay the $89.00 that I charge for my homestyle (not decorated) 9 in German Chocolate cake if it was a box. For that price, I had better produce an amazing gastronomic experience. And this cake has a great following.
Indydebi, you just may not like yellow cake. It is my favorite batter taste and the only one I actually prefer with no frosting. When I experiment, the cakes get eaten by family and my daughter's friend by just breaking off a chunk. It is so delicious. I do have a few extra ingredients that take it to a deeper depth of taste, but to the unknow taster, it's just yellow cake. I don't like chocolate and everyone loves chocolate. My white cake has a wonderful flavor plain. Because I don't do traditional wedding cakes (people come to me for my non-traditional flavors), I have never just made a white cake with vanilla frosting, but if I pull a piece of the cake out of my slice, again, I could eat it by itself.
