Been trying scratch recipes all week... - Page 6

While a picture will help--really you are looking for a few crumbs that come out with the toothpick. If the toothpick still has batter on it, it is not done. If it looks gooey it is not done. You should see a few smallish crumbs that look moist and tender.

when you add pudding to a recipe, you add a box of powder into the dry ingredients. you make no other changes.

Ooh have you actually done it? Does it do anything to the texture/moistness of the cake or does it just add flavor?

I'm not into the pudding thing but I am very curious of the results.

Jen

it to me seems to make it denser yet moist... i use it just to add flavor tio some cakes. like my banana cake ( i add fresh banana too) but for my chocolate cake recipe I add it when i need to to be more stable. its such a moist cake its perfect for normal rounds but if i need to alter it in any way (like topsy turvey) i add the pudding mix so it doesnt just fall apart.

so in my white cake i use it just for flavor & for chocolate for texture. I dont add it to anything for moistness bc my cakes are perfect w/o to why bother!

Interesting! Well OP, there you go.

J

And no go on the picture, they came out way too blurry. Sorry,

jen

Do you add sugar free pudding mix or regular? In the doctored mixes I've been told that it's too much of a sugar unbalance using the regular.

I got this recipe from Roland Winbeckler (he used it on a cake competition show) I have made it a few times, and it is very good..

French Vanilla Sour Cream Cake

2 1/2 cups sifted flour
1 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 Tbsp + 1 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup butter, softened
1/3 cup vegetable oil
3 whole eggs, room temperature
1/2 cup lukewarm water
1 small pkg dry instant vanilla pudding mix
1 cup sour cream
1 tsp vanilla


Preheat oven to 325; combine by hand flour, salt, sugar and baking powder in mixer bowl. Add remaining ingredients and mix with mixer on low. Increase speed to medium and mix for 2 minutes until wello blended. Bakes 2 - 8" rounds/app 40 min

Note: I used the pudding mix with sugar, but I think you could use sugar free and it would be fine..

Jen/others,

I had never combined a scratch recipe with a boxed pudding mix before, but I've made this cake a couple of times and OH EM GEE. It's awesome! Pound cake like texture, tight crumb, ZERO air bubbles or pockets, and sticks to your mouth moist.

http://www.food.com/recipe/extra-moist-lemon-sour-cream-and-vanilla-pound-cake-94496

i use regular

I typically make all of my cakes from scratch. That doesn't mean I wont try different things. As a kid my favorite cake came once a year at Thanksgiving. It was a pistachio cake...pudding in the mix, pudding in the frosting. My Aunt, who makes the cake, always says..."If it ain't broke, don't fix it."

I found a new recipe the other day and thought I'd try it. I love to play in the kitchen and experiment. I like to know my options. This recipe is very, very moist.

It calls for a box mix...which I replaced with-

2.5 c cake flour (softasilk)
1 2/3 c sugar
1 Tbsp + 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt

Then I followed the rest of the recipe for-

Pistachio-Cardamom-Caramel Cake

http://www.designmeacake.com/id46.html

replaced * 1 box of white cake mix (I used DH)
* 1 cup of cake flour
* 1/2 cup of white granulated sugar
* 2 teaspoons baking power
* 1 envelope dry pistachio pudding mix
* 1 teaspoon of salt (*If using salted pistachios omit salt).
* 1 teaspoon of grind cardamom.

*Sift dry ingredients twice and set aside.

* 1 cup of sour cream
* 1 stick of butter (at room temp.)
* 1/4 cup of veg. oil
* 1/3 cup of cream cheese at room temp.
* 1/4 cup of brown sugar

*Cream these ingredients in the mixer for about 3 mins. or until completely blended together.

* 4 large eggs
* 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
* Lorann pistachio oil flavor

*Add these ingredients to mixer until blended with the other ingredients.

* 1/2 cup of vanilla caramel coffee creamer
* 1/2 cup of caramel ice cream topping
* 3/4 cup of buttermilk

I made my own caramel coffee creamer with half-n-half which I mixed with home made Dulce de Leche and used that to also replace the caramel ice cream topping. I didn't have Lorann pistachio oil...I was thinking the oil would impart more flavor than the pudding mix. And I'm not convinced the pudding mix actually adds any moisture. I can leave it out next time and know for sure.

It was a little sweet so I wondered if I could reduce the sugar and still retain the moistness. Maybe it was just too salty. 2 tsp. is a lot. It's baked at a low temperature, similar to mud cakes...maybe this is also an important factor.

I just found this article and found it helpful.
For Great Cakes, Get the Ratios Right

http://www.finecooking.com/articles/ratios-for-great-cakes.aspx

Anyway...it's a moist cake...

Sugar_Fairy, I'm so glad to see your post! Welcome home! Boy would I love to get my hands on that book by Shirley Corriher. I looked at the article by her that jolle100 posted the link to and it's fascinating, as is the cake recipe she posted - one more to try out in our quest for the perfect cake!

That cake is a good cake. Though I noticed no difference using whipping cream. But I've been making scratch for such a long time that I no longer get dry. Definitely post here when you make it. Others would probably loved to hear your results.