The Prep Mistake That's Causing Your Cake To Stick All Over

There are many ways for a cake to fail, although seldom are any of them as entertaining as the ones you might see on a One major cake disappointment is when it fails to come out of the pan in one piece, or doesn't want to budge at all. If this happens to you, it might be because the cake is underbaked, or perhaps you didn't let it cool it long enough, but it could also be the result of forgetting to prep the pan. Most cakes require a barrier between the batter and pan in order to release in one piece.

Now, this doesn't apply to every type of cake. Cakes that get their lift from beaten egg whites — these include angel food, chiffon, and sponge -– need the support provided by ungreased pans. Most other types of cakes, though, can stick to the pan if it's neither lined nor greased, even if the cake pan itself is advertised as nonstick.



While you can attempt a rescue by wrapping the cake pan in a warm towel or going the opposite route and sticking it in the freezer until the cake agrees to come out intact, a teaspoon of prevention is worth a cup of cure. Choose your preferred method of cake pan preparation There are several different methods you can use to prep your cake pans, depending on your personal preferences and pocketbook. Some cooks swear by lining pans with parchment paper, although this is obviously easier with square or rectangular pans, since round pans require that you cut the paper to fit.

You can also save a little money by using wax paper instead. Despite the fact that wax paper isn't heat resistant, this being a primary being covered by batter instead of exposed to direct heat means that it won't catch fire in the oven. If you're using a bundt pan or another pan without a flat surface, however, lining it with paper may prove impracticable.

Luckily, a few pantry ingredients can make for an equally effective barrier. You can coat the inside of the pan with shortening, butter, or oil and then sprinkle a light dusting of flour over the grease. Another option is to use a product like Baker's Joy that combines grease and flour, or, as a more budget-minded alternative, make that serves the same purpose, out of equal parts flour, oil, and shortening or butter.

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