Cakes

1. Shortened cakes 2. Unshortened cakes There are two different groups of cakes:

 Shortened Cakes contain fat  The type of fat in the shortened cakes:  Butter, margarine, shortening  Use chemical leavening agents:  Baking soda & baking powder  Examples:  Red velvet, pound cake, german chocolate SHORTENED CAKES (Butter cakes)

 Light  Velvety  Porous interior  Thin crust CHARACTERISTICS OF A SHORTENED CAKE

 Unshortened Cakes contain no fat  Sometimes they are called foam cakes  Leavened by air  Beaten egg whites  Example:  Angel food cake UNSHORTENED CAKES

 Large volume  Interior is spongy  Tender and moist CHARACTERISICS OF AN UNSHORTENED CAKE

Baking Tips  Bake cakes immediately after mixing.  Oven too hot= peaks and cracks  Oven too cool= less leavening and browning  Check for doneness using the “toothpick method”

 Short time-  Cake storage container  Couple of days-  Cool thoroughly  Wrap tightly with plastic wrap  Refrigerate up to 2 days  Longer-  Cool thoroughly, wrap tightly  Freeze up to 6 months Storage

 Icing/Frostings  High in fat, sugar and calories  Use pastry bags and icing tips  Some alternatives for frosting are:  Making a glaze  Putting a cut out paper design on top of the cake (ex. snowflake) then sift confectioners sugar over the cake. Decorating of Cakes