Cake Mixing Problems

by Jon
(Ann Arbor, Michigan)

I made a chocolate cake and the flavor is fantastic but its really really -dense-. Where did I go wrong? The ingredient ratio or possibly I messed up the method? Did I mix it too much?


Chef Todd Says:
Gee, Jon, there are a lot of things that can go wrong with cakes. There is a "Cake Baking Faults" PDF under "Resources" on this website. It may help you.

A dense cake can have many causes; not enough leavening agent, wrong type of flour, over-mixing to create gluten, wrong type of fat that doesn't emulsify liquids, not enough air incorporated during creaming, or oven too hot. So, I can't tell you which ONE you did wrong. It's a method, practice, try different things, observe successes and learn from failures. It's a journey.

Chef Todd.