Good Afternoon and Happy New Year! ! Cakes! Today we are: Learning vocabulary Learning about different kinds Next Class: Baking Cake Next Class: Baking Cake

Cakes…  Are one of the most popular desserts  Add festivity to many special occasions  Make a plain meal special  Are high in calories

Cakes: 2 groups Shortened and Unshortened  Shortened – contain fat  Also called butter cakes  Contain leavening agents  Are tender, moist and velvety

Unshortened -contain no fat  Also called foam cakes  Are light and fluffy  Leavened by air and steam  Angel food and sponge cake  Angel – contain just egg whites  Sponge-contain whole eggs  Paula Deen's Molton Cake Paula Deen's Molton Cake Paula Deen's Molton Cake

Chiffon Cakes  Cross between shortened and unshortened  Contain fat like shortened  Contain beaten egg whites like unshortened  Large volume but not as light as unshortened

Cake Ingredients  Flour  Sugar  Eggs  Liquid  Salt  Cream of Tartar – in unshortened cakes

Flour  Gives structure to a cake  Gluten develops when flour is moistened  And mixed holds the leavening gases that form as the cakes bake  Cake flour or all-purpose flour  Cake flour makes it more delicate and tender  Has lower protein content=yields less gluten  More finely ground than all-purpose

Sugar  Gives sweetness to cakes  Tenderizes the gluten  Improves the texture of cake  Should be free of clumps  Especially have to watch if using brown sugar

Eggs  Improve both the flavor and color of cakes  Coagulated egg proteins also add structure to cakes  Angel and sponge cake – eggs are important for leavening  hold the air that is beaten into them, evaporation of liquid from the egg whites creates steam

Liquid  Provides moisture  Helps blend ingredients  Most call for milk  Could also be:  Buttermilk  Sour milk  Fruit juices  Water

Salt  Provides flavoring  Cakes require a smaller amount than quick breads and yeast breads

Fat  Tenderizes the gluten  Shortened cakes may contain:  Butter  Margarine  Hydrogenated vegetable shortening  Chiffon cakes contain oil instead

Leavening agents  Added to most shortened cakes to make the cakes rise and become porous and light  Most call for baking powder or baking soda

Cream of tartar  An acid  Makes egg whites whiter  Makes cake grain finer  Stabilizes the egg white proteins  Increases the volume of the baked cake

Flavorings  Not essential  Help make cake special  Can add spices, extracts, fruits, nuts, poppy seeds, coconut  Good Eats Cake Good Eats Cake Good Eats Cake