Rotate the cupcake pan: If you notice uneven baking in your oven, halfway through baking, rotate the cupcake pan 180 degrees to ensure even heat distribution. Check for doneness: Test the cupcakes for doneness by inserting a toothpick or cake tester into the center.
Try beating the cake batter for a minute longer or so the next time. Or consider "reverse-creaming" to mix the batter: Stir together the dry ingredients and the butter, then incorporate the other liquid ingredients, such as eggs and vanilla. Mind your temp. An oven that is too hot can also cause uneven baking.
The trick? Simply roll up some foil into little balls, and place them to the side of your cupcake cases to form your desired shape.
If you add too much batter to the cupcake cavities, the batter will rise too much and will consequently fall and deflate, which will leave the middle of the cupcakes looking sad and sunken. How to fix: fill up each cavity with up to 2/3 of the way with batter.
What is this? On the downside, flat cupcakes can be denser and less moist than domed cupcakes, so they may not be the best choice if you're looking for a light, fluffy cake. Domed cupcakes [1] have a rounded top, which is achieved by using more baking powder or baking soda in the batter.
Don't overfill your cases, your cupcakes will rise so if you want your cupcakes to come to just under the top of the cases fill 2/3 of the way up. Turn your oven down, we bake at 170C (non-fan) or 150C (fan). An oven thermometer is perfect for checking the correct temperature in your oven.
Freeze your cupcakes upside-down
Then, flip them upside down, press them on a parchment-lined baking sheet, and throw the tray in the freezer for about 10 minutes. Once you pull them out, the cake and frosting should have smushed down into a flat, even layer, creating a perfect surface for creative decorations.
Too much flour will absorb all the moisture, making for a dense and dry crumb. Also, under whipping the butter may cause your cupcakes to be dry and dense. You want to whip the butter to the point where it's fluffy and airy, the air in the butter will provide lift, and fluffiness to the final product.
Uneven-shaped cakes
If your cake ends up an uneven shape, this could be because there is either too much liquid in the mixture or too much baking powder – or simply that the oven was not hot enough.
In order to bake cake evenly, you have to insulate its edges. Preventing the temperature of batter at the edge from increasing quickly allows the cake to rise longer before it sets. A cake whose edges rise at nearly the same rate as its center will remain flat across the top — no dome, perfect for stacking and icing.
Making cupcake flowers is a quick and easy decorating hack, and all you need is a piping tip and a spoon. With a round piping tip, pipe four to five dollops of frosting on your cupcake in a circle. Use a small spoon to gently drag the dollop toward the center of the cupcake, creating an effortless flower petal.
Preheat the oven
Most cupcakes bake well between 325°F and 375°F. Conveniently, these are the same temperatures that cakes are usually baked at too. You can probably use the temperature the cake recipe calls for, or you can adjust it if you're looking for specific results.
Step 6: Bake and Cool Cupcakes
For chocolate, vanilla, and most other cupcake recipes, you'll want to bake for 15 to 20 minutes in an oven preheated to 350°F. Test for doneness by inserting a wooden toothpick into the center a cupcake. If the toothpick is clean when you remove it, the cupcakes are done.
Consider baking your cakes at lower temperatures for longer to bake a flat cake without a dome. wrap the outside of the cake pan with a damp towel: The damp towel will insulate the edges of the pan, slowing the baking process. use cake strips (which you can buy on Amazon): cake strips work just like a wet towel.
Fill cupcakes only 2/3 full so they have space to rise. Bake one cupcake tray at a time. If you have to bake two – have the oven fan on so it will distribute heat evenly but at a lower setting. Rotate the pan in between cooking this will help them rise evenly too.
A peak is usually caused by an oven that's too hot! The cake surface is baking quicker than the batter in the middle. This causes it to burst out of the top like a mini volcano. Turn your oven down a bit and bake for a little longer.
Remove cupcakes from the pan to cool
Because the cupcakes are smaller than regular cakes, we do not want them to continue to bake so they do not dry out. Once I remove cupcakes from the oven, I usually allow them to cool for 2 minutes in the pan, and then remove them to a wire rack.
If your batter has a high liquid content, shrinking will occur after baking. The liquid produces a lot of steam. This steam puffs up the cupcake, but will evaporate after baking and your cupcakes will shrink.