Cake not rising enough

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Traveler

Cook
Joined
Sep 19, 2018
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72
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Tijuana
I need some help with a cake that does not rise as much as I think it should.

Pre-heat oven to 350 F
grease and lightly flour tube pan pan

1 cup butter
1cup sugar
2 whole eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups flour (NOT DIP AND SWEEP, I lightly spoon it into a measuring cup and level off)
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
3 TBLSP OF LEMON JUICE
2 tsp lemon zest

Beat butter with mixer for 2 full minutes
add sugar and beat for two minute longer
add eggs, sour cream and vanilla, mix well

Combine flour baking powder, baking soda and salt. Stir well and add to liquid and stir just until combined well. Add lemon juice and lemon zest. Stir to combine. Mixture seems rather thick.
Spoon into tube pan and bake for 55 minutes.

cool and turn out onto a serving plate.

This recipe does not rise anywhere near what I think it should , but I can't figure out why. Are my ratios correct ? Please help.
 
I need some help with a cake that does not rise as much as I think it should.

Pre-heat oven to 350 F
grease and lightly flour tube pan pan

1 cup butter
1cup sugar
2 whole eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups flour (NOT DIP AND SWEEP, I lightly spoon it into a measuring cup and level off)
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
3 TBLSP OF LEMON JUICE
2 tsp lemon zest

Beat butter with mixer for 2 full minutes
add sugar and beat for two minute longer
add eggs, sour cream and vanilla, mix well

Combine flour baking powder, baking soda and salt. Stir well and add to liquid and stir just until combined well. Add lemon juice and lemon zest. Stir to combine. Mixture seems rather thick.
Spoon into tube pan and bake for 55 minutes.

cool and turn out onto a serving plate.

This recipe does not rise anywhere near what I think it should , but I can't figure out why. Are my ratios correct ? Please help.

How old is your baking powder. It can lose some of its umpth if it sits there for some time. Also when you are baking, place the cover back on the can as soon as you take what you need.

I had a can of baking powder that was sitting in the cabinet for some time. I placed a teaspoon in a glass of warm water. Absolutely no fizz. Had to toss it.
 
What kind of flour are you using, Traveler? Your flour might have too high of a protein percentage to allow a good lift. A cake flour will permit a proper rise and give your cake a delicate crumb.
 
My baking powder is just fine. I used it just a few days ago to make biscuits.

Also, I use All Purpose flour and I do not over beat it once it is added to the liquid
 
Question : some recipes say to not over beat after the eggs go in, some recipes say to not over beat after the dry flour mix goes in. Which do you think is correct ?
 
I never heard of beating the butter before adding sugar. And when I buy/take home my flour, I sift it before putting it away. For the stores it's been packed down so dense it needs it. Whether this is a solution for you, I can't answer definitively. Nothing appears wrong with the recipe though.
 
Question : some recipes say to not over beat after the eggs go in, some recipes say to not over beat after the dry flour mix goes in. Which do you think is correct ?
Beating too much after adding flour can cause too much gluten development and make the cake tough.
 
I never use any bleached flour, whether in my breads or for anything else. I guess I just got in the habit of using UNBLEACHED flour when making breads.
 
I always use unbleached flour.

Here are a few things to consider.

- it doesn't matter whether you beat the butter and sugar together or separately. Just make sure your butter is soft and you beat them until combined and "fluffy".
- I find it works best to have the eggs at room temperature and I always add them one at a time, beating on medium until they are incorporated (a few seconds)
- add your flour mixture in about 3 separate steps, incorporating well between.

I hope that helps. :)
 
This recipe seems to be for a pound cake, they never rise to a light texture. The ingredients, the tube pan & thick batter are very similar to a pound cake my family has made for years (I bake it in a Bundt pan).


I have started weighing my flour instead of using measuring cups - 1 cup = 130 grams.
 
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This recipe seems to be for a pound cake, they never rise to a light texture. The ingredients, the tube pan & thick batter are very similar to a pound cake my family has made for years (I bake it in a Bundt pan).


I have started weighing my flour instead of using measuring cups - 1 cup = 130 grams.

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I don't think it's a pound cake. Pound cake has equal amounts of sugar and butter and more eggs for this amount of batter.
 
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I agree. It is not a pound cake. I used to make this years ago and it always came out great. But, perhaps ,now that I'm much older I have forgotten something ? Perhap I changed technique ? ?????? I am going to do it with a hand mixer and NOt a stand mixer. Perhaps I've bee over mixing .
 
I agree. It is not a pound cake. I used to make this years ago and it always came out great. But, perhaps ,now that I'm much older I have forgotten something ? Perhap I changed technique ? ?????? I am going to do it with a hand mixer and NOt a stand mixer. Perhaps I've bee over mixing .

Like I said before, add your flour in two or three batches and stop mixing when it is all combined.
 
With help from a video link , sent by King Arthur flour, I was able to make a vastly improved cake. The biggest problem was that I was way, way overbeating the butter and sugar (creaming).
Tips that helped me:

Butter should be soft but no-where near melted. I finger poked into the stick of butter leaves an indentation BUT the entire stick of butter still holds it's shape.

When proper creaming is achieved, the mixture will be a very pale yellow BUT NOT WHITE. When you rub a bit of it between your fingers the sugar will be ALMOST dissolved. If it feels like a facial scrub, it is UNDER BEATEN.

Using their tips and watching the videos, my Lemon cake rose much , much higher than before.The FAILED cake rose to only 4.75 cm. The successful cake rose to 7 cm. Quite a difference.
 
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