Over Mixing? Whenever I over mix my vanilla cake it comes out a bit dry and bready….rememeber lumps are your friend :]

By Wired Whisk on 05.31.08 2:35 pm | Permalink

I was going to tell you that high-elevation is most likely the cause (apparently Arizona has a lot of high-elevation cities), but I noticed you are located in Phoenix, which is 1,117 ft. above sea level. To adjust for high-elevations, you would have to be above 3000 ft. That being said, there could be several other reasons why your baked goods are coming out too dry.

1. You are over-beating your batter. Over-beating causes gluten to form and creates a more dense, dryer cake. If your cake involves beating egg whites, over-beating the egg whites is also a problem.

2. Ratio of dry ingredients to liquid ingredients is high. You could try playing around with the measurements, but that has the potential to be disastrous. If you do, I would cut down the amount of flour. Also, look for recipes that have more eggs and liquids, like milk or oil, which will give you a moister cake.

3. Amount of leavening (baking powder or baking soda) is too high. If you are using too much leavening, it will cause your cake to rise too fast and eventually collapse.

4. Make sure your oven is calibrated properly. Buy an oven thermometer to properly check the oven temperature. Baking at too high or too low a temperature can cause dry cakes and breads.

That’s all I can think of right now, but if I remember anything else, I’ll post it. I’m thinking #1 might be the main problem.

I hope some of this helps you out!

By Tanya on 05.31.08 2:53 pm | Permalink

I agree with Tanya…all those are great points. But, sometimes, when I do all that I still have dry cupcakes. So, to make my cake a little more moist, I substitute canola oil for butter for a small portion. For example - if the recipe calls for 3/4 cup softened butter, I will use 1/2 C butter and 1/4 cup canola oil. Don’t know if that’s cheating, but it always works for me!

By Daiana on 05.31.08 6:26 pm | Permalink