Why did my pound cake turn out dry?
I baked a pound cake in an enamel glazed fluted pan and it turned out dry. Was it the pan or what could it be? I followed the recipe. Any help on this would be appreciated.
Does it have something to do with the heat ? But how and why ?
Best Answer
Have you tried baking it for a shorter amount of time? Cakes become dry if they are baked for too long. if you use a tooth pick, it should not come out clean, but with crumbles attached. Clean = dry. Crumbles = moist and done. wet = not baked enough
Pictures about "Why did my pound cake turn out dry?"
Quick Answer about "Why did my pound cake turn out dry?"
If it's dry, the cake may have been over-baked. The cake can also be too dry if you added too much flour (or not enough butter or sugar). You can try lowering the oven temperature. Or remove the cake from the oven a little earlier.What do I do if my pound cake is too dry?
2. Formulate a cake soak: You can make a cake soak using simple syrup (equal parts sugar and water), evaporated milk, buttermilk, or a liqueur. With a wooden skewer or toothpick, pole holes in the cake. Then use a pastry brush to blot the liquid over the surface of the cake layers to moisten the cake.How do you make pound cake moist?
Adding buttermilk, sour cream, or cream cheese gives more moisture and flavor to the cake. The acid in buttermilk and sour cream produces a very fine crumb because it tenderizes the gluten in the flour. Sour cream and cream cheese add so much richness that cakes made with them are super moist and almost springy.What is the secret to a good pound cake?
"Pound cake should be light, with a finely textured, moist, and even crumb," says Claire Saffitz, BA's associate food editor and baker extraordinaire. She has created, tested, and made dozens of pound cakes, plus she's well-versed in the science of baking (yep, it's a science).Why does my cake get hard and dry?
Possible reasons your cake is dry: Excess flour or baking powder. Too little shortening, butter, or sugar. Oven too hot or cake baked too long.Why do cakes come out dry?
More answers regarding why did my pound cake turn out dry?
Answer 2
It is most probably because of recipe. If a recipe is off balance with its ratio of dry and wet ingredients this is a main cause of baking failures.
In cakes there are generally four main ingredients which are flour, eggs, sugar and fat. Whilst flour and eggs are the major structure-builders, sugar and fat actually soften the cake's structure by providing moisture. If you have too much of the structure-building flour and eggs, the cake will be tough and dry. If you have too much of fats and sugars, the cake might not set and probably will collapse. Therefore the ratio of these four main ingredients are really important.
For pound cakes ideal ratio is 1:1:1:1 ratio. Which is also known as flour=sugar | egg=butter rule as well. This means flour and sugar should be equal in weight (not in volume) and eggs and butter should be equal in weight as well.
Although you have the ratio and your cake is still dry I suggest you to improve softeners (fat or sugar). Another good alternative is to use liquid oils such as sunflower oil instead of butter.
Good luck for your future cakes..
Answer 3
I have found, in my many years of baking, that simple over baking is the major cause of of a dry pound cake, I always decrease the baking time from a recipe for at least 15- 20 minutes.
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Images: Cats Coming, Anna Shvets, Ketut Subiyanto, Anna Shvets