54. NATURE OF BUTTER CAKE.--The ingredients for a simple butter cake
consist of butter or other fat, sugar, flour, eggs, leavening, and
liquid. The proportion of flour and liquid in cake of this kind is
similar to that of a thick, or muffin, batter, that is, 2 measures of
flour and 1 measure of liquid; but it should be remembered that the
addition of other ingredients, such as butter, sugar, and eggs, alter
this proportion to a certain extent. However, it is possible to make up
a cake recipe from a muffin recipe by using 1/2 as much sugar as flour
and 1/2 as much butter as sugar. With a knowledge of these proportions,
the housewife will be able to judge how near a new recipe comes to
being a reasonable one and what the possibilities of its success are.
[Illustration: FIG. 10]
55. COMBINING THE INGREDIENTS.--The method of mixing all cakes that
include butter as an ingredient is similar. It is explained and
illustrated in detail, so that the housewife may become thoroughly
familiar with it and thus be prepared to apply it in the preparation of
any variety of butter cake. In case a recipe contains additional
ingredients, the way in which these are combined should be noted
carefully and then carried out.
[Illustration: FIG. 11]
56. In the making of any kind of butter cake, the ingredients and
utensils should be collected and conveniently placed if the best results
are desired. Fig. 10 shows these assembled ready to begin the mixing. As
will be observed, layer-cake pans are included in the equipment, but
these may be replaced by pans of other kinds if it is not desired to
make a layer cake. Before the mixing begins, grease whatever pans are to
be used and then dust them lightly with flour so that they will be
ready when the mixture is prepared.
[Illustration. Fig. 12]
[Illustration. Fig. 13]
57. As the first step in the making of butter cake, cream the butter in
the mixing bowl, as shown in Fig. 11; that is, work it with a wooden
spoon until it is soft and creamy. Then add the sugar from the measuring
cup very slowly, as in Fig. 12, stirring continually so that the mixture
will remain creamy. The eggs are the next ingredient to be added. These
are put in whole and unbeaten, whole and beaten, or they are separated
and the yolks and whites beaten separately. If the whole eggs or the
yolks are to be beaten, break them into a bowl and beat them with a
rotary egg beater as Fig. 13 shows. As has already been learned, the
whites, when added alone, should be beaten with an egg whip. When the
eggs have been added to the mixture, beat it well so as to make it as
light as possible and then stir in the liquid. The mixture will then
appear as in Fig. 14. Next add all the dry ingredients to the flour,
and, as illustrated in Fig. 15, carefully sift all into the mixture. If
desired, the liquid and flour may be added alternately, a little at a
time. With all the ingredients combined, beat the mixture vigorously for
a short time to make sure that everything is thoroughly mixed, and then,
as shown in Fig. 16, pour it into the pans that have been greased and
floured. If a two-layer or a three-layer cake is to be made, it may be
divided evenly to fill two pans or three pans, but if a loaf cake is
desired, all of it should be poured into one pan.
[Illustration: Fig. 14]
[Illustration: Fig. 15]
58. BAKING THE MIXTURE.--Place the pans containing the cake mixture on
the bottom rack of the oven in order that it may have an opportunity to
rise properly. The form in which the cake is made determines the correct
temperature for the oven. Loaf cake requires more time for baking than
small cakes or layer cake; consequently, the oven should not be so hot
for cake of this kind as for the other types. A temperature of 350 to
400 degrees Fahrenheit is suitable for loaf cake, while small cakes or
layer cake should have a temperature of at least 400 to 450 degrees. Be
careful not to move the cake in the oven until it has risen sufficiently
and has set; otherwise, it may fall when it is moved. If this precaution
is observed and the cake falls, it may be known that the falling is due
to a wrong proportion of ingredients and not to a draft nor the slamming
of the oven door, as many housewives think. A cake that rises in the
center and cracks open contains either an insufficient quantity of
liquid or too much flour. If, upon being baked, a layer is higher on one
side than on the other, it was probably spread unevenly in the pan
before it was put in the oven or the oven rack itself was not level.
This condition may be caused by uneven heat in the oven.
[Illustration: Fig. 16]
[Illustration: Fig. 17]
59. To determine whether a butter cake is baked sufficiently or not,
several tests may be made. Cake of this kind does not shrink from the
sides of the pan as does sponge cake, but the finger test mentioned may
be applied, just as in the case of sponge cake. If, upon making a
depression in the center of the butter cake, the surface springs back to
fill the depression, it may be known that the cake is done. Another test
consists in inserting a toothpick in the center of the cake. If it comes
out clean, the cake has finished baking, but if some of the mixture
sticks to the toothpick, more baking is required.
60. CARE OF BUTTER CAKE AFTER BAKING.--As soon as a butter cake is
sufficiently baked, take it from the oven and remove it from the pan at
once. See that the cake is loosened from the bottom and sides of the pan
before attempting to turn it out. It can be loosened around the sides by
means of a knife, and usually a slight shaking of the pan up and down or
the inserting of the knife a little under the cake will be sufficient to
loosen it from the bottom. Here the advantage of pans having removable
bottoms is evident. When such pans are used, lift the cake out of the
pan on the removable bottom and, as shown in Fig. 17, run a long thin
knife under the cake until it is entirely loosened from the pan. Then
slip the bottom out from under the cake and allow the cake to cool. A
cake cooler, such as the one here shown, is the most convenient thing to
use for the cooling of cakes. If one of these is not available, clean
towels spread on a flat surface make a very good substitute. Allow the
cake to become entirely cool before attempting to ice it.