Enough of blaming the oven if all your cakes fall apart! Instead, it is worth analyzing the reasons for this pastry mistake. Moni Ríos, who calls herself a ‘pastry engineer’, explains in one of her Instagram posts (@moniriosc) how you can apply this philosophy when creating your sweetest recipes to become a pastry pro. Below, we detail some of the basic mistakes that can lead to a cake falling apart.
Respecting both the cooking times and temperatures stipulated in the recipes is crucial to prevent your cake from falling apart. Lack of cooking will not only spoil the flavor and texture of the cake, but will also cause flaws in its structure, according to this expert. Keep in mind that the last thing that is cooked in a cake is its center, so if it is not cooked well, the cake will lose stability and end up falling under its own weight.
Similarly, pastry engineering is based on measuring each and every ingredient in a cake. In the case of baking powder or yeast, it is advisable not to overdo it. This ‘magic’ ingredient is necessary for the cakes to rise, but too much can cause them to sink. This is because yeast is still a chemical compound, of which one of its ingredients, sodium bicarbonate, is responsible for its expansion. That is, too much yeast generates too much carbon dioxide, which causes the crumb to break down and, therefore, the cake loses its structure and crumbles.
“A recipe, if it is unbalanced, will also have structure problems,” insists this professional pastry chef. Hence the importance of respecting the necessary quantities of each ingredient and not modifying the recipe as we wish. For example, if we remove sugar from the cake because we want it to be less sweet, this will also reduce the stability of its structure. That is why it is important to be clear about which ingredients can be changed and what the ideal substitute is.
The reasons that can break the structure of a cake during baking are diverse and, among them, there are also some errors such as the dough being too liquid or too thick, insufficient mixing of the ingredients or having used a mold that is too large. proportion to the mass.
