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How far in advance of delivery do you bake your cakes?

post #1 of 9
1/18/12 at 9:24pm
Thread Starter 
Hello everyone.

I'm new to scratch baking and I'm learning all the little intricate details that can make or break a good cake. So far my scratch cakes have not been as forgiving as box cakes.

I have found that no matter how nice and moist my cakes turn out, if I store them in the fridge (for even 1 day) or freezer, they end up being dry.

Just 2 nights ago I made Rose's White Velvet cake. It turned out great, moist, just lovely. I wrapped it in cling warp and put in a ziploc bag and the next day covered it in IMBC. The cake was great BEFORE it went into the fridge.This evening I brought it out to share with some friends and it was a mess, the cake was so dry even at room temperature.

I am at a loss because I assumed covering it in IMBC and placing it in a covered cake carrier before refrigerating would not dry out the cake.

Since my goal is to ultimately sell my cakes how can I avoid the dryness that comes from storage? How far in advance do you bake your cake and how (and how long) do you store it before decorating it? Does it ever go back into the fridge after it's completed?

Thanks.
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post #2 of 9
1/18/12 at 10:33pm
Do you wrap it in foil after clingwrapping it? How soon are you eating it after taking it out of the fridge?
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A down-to-earth South African who has a growing interest in fondant cakes...I've been bitten by the cake bug!
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post #3 of 9
1/19/12 at 7:43am
I've read on here that the fridge can dry out the cake. Also that cakes are better eaten at room temp.

I don't put any of my cakes in the fridge because of where I am at I would have to deal with condensation issues, so I don't have first hand experince on it.
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post #4 of 9
1/19/12 at 8:22am
I bake my cakes, one day in advance or the same day, it depend. But, my cakes always go back in the fridge in the box and I never received any complains and my cakes are always moist as per my clients. I suggest that you use a simple syrup before frosting / large eggs. If a chocolate cake, the recipe says 1 cup of hot water, use 1 cup of fresh brew coffee instead of the water.
I hope that help, Good work.
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post #5 of 9
1/19/12 at 9:37am
Were you eating the cake when it was cold? That can make it feel dry. Cake should be eaten at room temp.

Having said that, white cakes are more likely to feel like they're dry than other types. A good white cake recipe is hard to find. I tried Rose's white velvet and it's not as good as others I've had. I worked on my own white cake recipe for about four years before I got it to where I want it.

Also, mix cakes have extra gums and softeners added to them, so they feel spongy, and that's what most people now think of as "moist." You're not going to get that gummy feeling to a scratch cake, nor should you, really.

I make everything from scratch and refrigerate the decorated cakes, but I also make sure that they're back to room temp before they're served.
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post #6 of 9
1/19/12 at 3:16pm
Thread Starter 
Thank you all so much. From the responses I see a couple of things I didn't do right.
No I didn't put the cake in foil after cling warp, I'll try that next.

Also the cake wasn't at room temperature when we ate it. The thing is after posting I just left the cake out on the counter and there's a HUGE difference with the texture now that it is at room temp. I'm amazed at how different the cake tastes.

I tried adding syrup over a cake once, the cake was already cooled so maybe that's why I ended up with a soggy surface and dry inside. Also I'm afraid using syrup might make my cake difficult to stack and carve. I'm still a newbie when it comes to cake decorating and don't yet know how to compensate for a lot of cake issues.

I think from now on I will be adding at least one egg yolk in my white cake just to help with moisture. Someone also suggested adding 1 T of vegetable oil to the batter right before pouring into the pan.

@costumeczar do you have any tips I can add to help with my white cakes? I would appreciate some advice on that.

Thank you all so much! There is hope for me icon_smile.gif
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post #7 of 9
1/19/12 at 3:24pm
Warm cake + warm syrup works best!

Increasing the fat in the batter usually works well. I don't have the recipe for that particular cake in front of me, but if it uses milk switch it to half and half or cream to see if that works for you.
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post #8 of 9
1/19/12 at 10:08pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks costumeczar. I'll definitely try that the next time I use that recipe.
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post #9 of 9
1/20/12 at 3:39am
You might have to mess around with it, I don't know how it will work in that particular recipe. If you have that cookbook, though, read the explanations of why each recipe works the way that it does in each section, and you'll get a better idea of how to mess with the balances and get a good result.
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