Dry edges on sponge cake, nest 2 sheet pans for insulation?
I'm tweaking a thin sponge cake with nut flour that I want to roll with a filling. My third attempt at the cake was delicious, but it didn't bake evenly. The edges were dry and there was a slightly sunken, dry section in the middle. The sections that weren't dry were great! I'm using a half sheet pan that's quite thin and may be a bit warped. I have another one just like it. Could it possibly help to nest the two pans to create an insulated baking environment?
Best Answer
There are a couple of things that can lead to uneven heating in an electric oven. Here a couple of things that can help.
- Let the oven 'thoroughly' preheat. Are you putting the cake in before or just as the oven preheats? Let the oven sit for a good 5 minutes after it has reached the desired baking temp.
- Keep the oven door closed until the expected baking time has been reached. Each time the door is open a significant amount of heat escapes, causing the elements to come back on for a longer period, this will cause the heat to circulate in an uneven pattern.
- place either a pizza stone or another baking sheet on a rack above the cake (with enough room for the cake to rise). If the broiler element is coming on the direct heat might be causing the dry center (note: if you had a gas oven then I would put the stone a rack below the cake.)
- finally, lower the temperature 25°F and extend the baking time.
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How do I stop my cakes from burning around the edges?
Cover the cake with a sheet of aluminum foil halfway through the baking process to prevent the top of the cake from burning.Why does my cake crumble around the edges?
There are three main reasons for this: a/ the oven door has been opened before the cake has set, b/ the cake didn't go in the oven as soon as the mixture was ready or c/ there's too much raising agent. 6. The sides of my cake are crunchy or burnt.Why does my cake have a hard crust on top?
From my own personal experience hard crust can be caused by over greasing and flouring cake pans, too much sugar in recipe, and over baking.. When a pan is over greased the crust can literally fry and if flour is used it can burn, forming a dark hard crust on a finished cake.Why does my sponge rise in the middle?
Why cakes rise in the middle. The heat on the edge of the cake, the part that is right up against the edges of the pan is much higher than the heat in the middle of the cake. The edges heat up faster so they bake faster, which means the structure of the edges set quickly.Sponge cake recipe for cake design by ItalianCakes.
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