Pound cake with a crust?

[archer_456]

We have a local lady that makes birthday cakes that are to die for. Her pound cakes have this nice golden brown crust on them, and still manages to keep the inside moist. I don't know if it's the recipe, the way she cooks it, or maybe a combination of the both. It can't be a secret family recipe or anything like that beacuse I have had the same kind in other places also. I heard once that the crust is formed from cooking it from a cold oven. I don't exactly know what that means, but I think it has something to do with sticking the cake in the oven without pre-heating it first. Can anyone help us out on this one?

Thanks.

 

[crewsk]

Archer, here is a link to a chocolate pound cake a posted not long ago. http://www.discusscooking.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9182

It has a wonderful crispy crust that forms as the cake is baking. I have never heard of baking a pound cake in a cold oven & yes, that does mean not pre-heating the oven before you put the cake in. If you do that you risk the cake falling. Is the crust you are refering to on just the bottom of the cake or is it the entire outter surface of the cake? All the pond cakes my mom makes & the one in the link above have a crispy crust on the bottom & the rest of the cake is tender & moist. I don't know what causes the crust because I'm not good with the scientific part of baking. Hopefully someone else here will have that answer for you. But in the meantime, I hope this helps you out some!

 

[archer_456]

Thanks for the reply and recipe Crewsk. The crust is kind of hard to explain, it is about 1/8" thick and kind of flakey. The crust forms on the bottom and all sides of the cake (where the cake touches the pan). I wish we had taste-a-vision, I would send you a piece, LOL.

 

[crewsk]

You & me both!

 

[eric]

We have a local lady that makes birthday cakes that are to die for. Her pound cakes have this nice golden brown crust on them, and still manages to keep the inside moist. .

I'm just going to take an educated guest.
1. She's using nice black pans, better carmelization to begin with
2. She's coating the pans with some type of fat (for carmelization purposes or to keep from sticking)
3. She's not flouring after the fat (fat + flour + mixture is the typical steps for something like this)
4. She starts with a very hot oven, makes the contact between the liquid (pound cake mix) and the pan creates a crust.
5. Heat gets turned down or just don't over cook it.

Dryness is a issue of overcooking (this includes protein cooking), not some magic combination of ingredients.

 

[jennyema]

SHe may also be using a convection oven

 

[coxlccp]

Crusty Crust

I know exactly what you are talking about When I was a little girl the lady next door (kind of like grandparents we were very close) made a pound cake with the crispy crust all the way around and it was most awesome! I have never found one like it again! I am searching for a recipe to make one! I have made several, but have not mastered it yet! If i find one i will try and pass it along!

BTW, I have heard it was called a pound cake because it is a pound of butter, pound of sugar, pound of eggs and pound of flour. I haven't found a recipe that actually has those amounts, maybe that is why we are not getting the crust we desire!

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

America's Test Kitchen tested different kinds of bread loaf pans, on both bread and pound cakes. It turns out that dark pans cause a darker, better formed crust, where shiny pans often cause poor crust formation.

Here's a quote from ATK's review of Loaf Pans:

Size was one primary factor that made a difference. Bigger pans allowed the sandwich bread to bake up a bit fluffier than did smaller pans but yielded dense, square pound cakes. Narrower pans were the only correct choice for pound cake and fine for sandwich bread.

Our other primary concern was browning. Light-colored aluminum finishes yielded pale, anemic-looking baked goods. On the other hand, the dark nonstick surface on our previous winner actually browned the bread and pound cake a shade too much. Despite its wide availability and low price, it's no longer our top choice. Glass Pyrex browned nicely, but the real star of the show had a gold-colored nonstick surface that yielded baked goods with a perfectly even, honeyed-copper crust.

I couldn't quote the entire article due to copyright considerations but I suggest that everybody should consider reading it. It's interesting that the winner is available in supermarkets for $6.


Unfortunately the site requires registration, 14 day free offer, presumably pay first then cancel if you don't like it. I turned off my browser's JavaScript to access and get the quote above. (Doesn't get the entire article.) Perhaps a CD member who paid for the site can tell us what the winner was.

 

[Merlot]

America's Test Kitchen tested different kinds of bread loaf pans, on both bread and pound cakes. It turns out that dark pans cause a darker, better formed crust, where shiny pans often cause poor crust formation.

Here's a quote from ATK's review of Loaf Pans:

I couldn't quote the entire article due to copyright considerations but I suggest that everybody should consider reading it. It's interesting that the winner is available in supermarkets for $6.


Unfortunately the site requires registration, 14 day free offer, presumably pay first then cancel if you don't like it. I turned off my browser's JavaScript to access and get the quote above. (Doesn't get the entire article.) Perhaps a CD member who paid for the site can tell us what the winner was.

From ATK:

Seven years after our last testing, we wanted to see if anything new could best the bargain loaf pan we had previously chosen as a winner, (which is still available for $6 in supermarkets). Seven pound cakes, seven loaves of sandwich bread, and hours of baking later, we had a motley crew of baked goods and some new thoughts about loaf pans.

and the winner is:

Product Name:Williams-Sonoma Goldtouch Nonstick Loaf Pan Manufacturer:Williams-SonomaPrice:$21.00Recommendation Status:Highly RecommendedTesters’ Comments:This pan yielded perfectly gold browning on both yeast breads and teacakes, and turned out a sandwich loaf that, as one test cook noted, "looked just like a bread should look."
Where to Shop:Williams-Sonoma (877-812-6235 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 877-812-6235 end_of_the_skype_highlighting Cookware, Cooking Utensils, Kitchen Decor & Gourmet Foods | Williams-Sonoma)

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

Great! I think the OP might benefit from giving some thought to the pan s/he intends to use.

Would you mind telling us the $6 bargain winner? That's more my speed, sounds like a better price to performance ratio.

 

[Merlot]

Great! I think the OP might benefit from giving some thought to the pan s/he intends to use.

Would you mind telling us the $6 bargain winner? That's more my speed, sounds like a better price to performance ratio.

It's actually listed a little cheaper! There was nothing on the list as 6 dollars, nor was there any links leading to a 6 dollar pan. I also watched the video twice and the bakers secret pan was listed as the "winner"

Product Name:Baker’s Secret Basics Non-Stick Large Loaf PanManufacturer:Baker's SecretPrice:$4.99 Recommendation Status:RecommendedTesters’ Comments:This past-favorite bargain pan still performed well overall but took browning further than we wanted on both our sandwich loaf and pound cake.

and they had a new one that was still recommended in front of this old top winner and it was:

Product Name:Pyrex Glass Loaf PanManufacturer:PyrexPrice:$6.95Recommendation Status:Highly RecommendedTesters’ Comments:A bargain for its performance, this glass dish fell just short of the Williams-Sonoma pan and was just a tad heavier.
Where to Shop:Sur la Table (800-243-0852 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 800-243-0852 end_of_the_skype_highlighting, Cookware, Cutlery, Dinnerware, Bakeware | Sur La Table)

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

Thanks Merlot! I've often used Pyrex with good results. You just have to remember to not drop it.

 

[Merlot]

Thanks Merlot! I've often used Pyrex with good results. You just have to remember to not drop it.

anytime! if you ever need something from ATK just yell at me, I do have a membership for now
I havent dropped any pyrex lately but I had a brain blowout the otherday and put my 2 eggs I need on to the kitchen table, turned back to the refrig and heard them crack a few seconds later on the floor.

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

When I resume cooking more frequently (when I get a better kitchen) I'll strongly consider joining ATK myself. I've really enjoyed their TV program and I've already purchased one of their cookbooks, which reminds me I'm going to want to cook several of their cookbook recipes too. Their show is always interesting even when covering recipes that I'm not that likely to cook. Some of the ideas they've come up were just killer!

 

[taxlady]

I have had a rotten time with anything from Baker's Secret. I hate the stuff. The non-stick often doesn't non-stick and then it's a bugger to get clean.

 

[babetoo]

I have had a rotten time with anything from Baker's Secret. I hate the stuff. The non-stick often doesn't non-stick and then it's a bugger to get clean.

i don't like them either, taxlady. gave what i had to the vets truck.

 

[lyndalou]

Have you asked the cake baker how she gets the crust?

 

[LindaZ]

I subscribed to Cook's magazine some time ago and they featured a recipie for a "Cold Oven Pound Cake" which was described as having a "delicate crust." I don't have the magazine handy but I'm sure if you researched cold oven pound cake, there is most likely a recipie out there.

 

[FluffyAngel]

I know this is an old thread but in case anyone is still interested, here goes. My Grandmother in her day was not a Baker by profession but everything she touched in the kitchen was a success. Even her mistakes just turned out to be a delicious discovery. Well she had this recipe for a sour cream pound cake that she had made for years perfectly until she got a new bundt pan (that's what she always cooked hers in). Something happened to her old one & she had to get a new one. I don't know what the material is, it's coated, tan in color sort of a fluted bundt pan (the largest one she could find because her recipe made a huge cake - barely stayed in the pan). Well she made her usual sour cream pound cake and she thought it a disaster but she stumbled upon Granny deliciousness. She did grease the pan. She just used butter and flour to do so. And she did not use a cold oven technique. Although there was a "technique" involved. Your not going to believe this but this did it: she put the cake in the preheated oven and just as it started to rise (not after it has risen for a while she would open the oven door and slam it making the cake fall. The cake would rise back up again and still be a full size cake without boiling over the bundt pan and the result was this incredible crust with a wonderful moist rich cake inside. The original accident was simply that her new pan wasn't big enough for the cake recipe & said cake boiled over but the result was even better than the original. I know that's kind of way out there. I have not tried this myself having never understood how she could actually get a second rise out of this cake like it's yeast bread but with no yeast in this recipe. I may see if I can dig up this recipe & give it whirl. Granny never made a mistake in the kitchen, only discoveries.

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

That's an interesting "slam the oven door" technique!

You should post the recipe if you want a more detailed analysis. But even slamming the oven door isn't going to retrogress yeast bread back into the stone age. You'd have to punch it down by hand to get even close.