How to prepare pastry cake

The usual ingredients are hot water, lard and flour, the pastry is made by heating water, melting the fat in this, bringing to the boil, and finally mixing with the flour. This can be done by beating the flour into the mixture in the pan, or by kneading on a pastry board.

In a nutshell, all pastries are cakes, but not all cakes are pastries. And the main difference lies in the fact that cakes involve many ingredients that are nutritious too, while pastries use only a few ingredients.

Use a serrated knife

It seems like a straight blade would be cleaner, but actually a serrated blade cuts through cake more easily. A thin blade, like a tomato knife, is best, but a serrated bread knife also works. Use a gentle sawing motion to cut. (Here’s how to keep your knives sharp.)

When a cake is freshly baked, it needs time to set. Keep the cake in its pan and let it cool on a rack for the time the recipe specifies – usually 15-20 minutes – before attempting to remove it. Try not to let it cool completely before removing it.

The layers you‘d like to cut should be chilled, as a cold cake is much sturdier than a cake at room temperature. I like to bake my cake layers the day before and store them in the fridge.

Freezing cake:

Freezing also allows you not only to bake the cakes in advance but also to carve more intricate shapes without the cake crumbling and falling apart. How hard your cake freezes depends on the settings of your freezer. It may be necessary to let your cake defrost slightly before attempting to carve.

Don’t Frost a Warm Cake

Baking pros in our test kitchen emphasize that it is essential to let the cake completely cool before frosting. Better yet, you can let the cake sit in the refrigerator for a while to make the process even easier.

Cakes, whether kept at room temperature or in the refrigerator, should be stored airtight to keep them fresh and moist. If storing in the refrigerator, it’s best to chill the cake uncovered for about 20 minutes in the freezer or refrigerator to let the frosting harden.

A: You don’t have to. Chilling cake in the fridge before frosting can make it easier to manipulate and level, but it’s not necessary. Just be sure your cake is cooled to room temperature before leveling or frosting.

Un-iced: If you don’t need to ice your cake until the day, you can bake your cake at least 2-3 days ahead of time. Ideally, make an iced cake the day to keep it fresh. Refrigerated: Your cakes will last longer in the fridge, but for an event you won’t want to push it longer than about 3 days.

Refrigerating your cakes

Kept in the fridge, cake with buttercream or ganache topping will last for 3-4 days. If the cake has custard, cream, cream cheese or fresh fruit it will last 1-2 days at most.