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40 Hacks to Help You Become an Expert Baker

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Gourmandize
Use a Metal Rack for Cooling 38/40

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Use a Metal Rack for Cooling

Speaking of cooling, avoid letting cakes cool in their baking dish, otherwise you run the risk of humidity accumulating at the bottom. Once cool enough to handle, remove from the mold and let come to room temperature on a metal cooling rack so that the heat can escape from the top, sides and bottom of your cake. 

The same goes for muffins and cupcakes—remove them from their baking tins and let cool on a wire rack. This is especially important for cookies: using a spatula, take them off the baking sheet and place them on a rack to cool in order to stop the cooking process.


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Ingredients

  • 2 large water or soda bottles (empty)
  • 2 cups flour
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2 sticks butter
  • 6 eggs
  • 1 tbsp baking powder
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 4 tbsp cocoa powder

Method

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
  2. Ready 2 large plastic bottles, cleaned and dried.
  3. Add 1 cup of flour to each bottle.
  4. Add 1/2 cup of sugar to each.
  5. Melt butter, then add equal halves to each bottle.
  6. Add 6 eggs, 3 in each.
  7. Add 1/2 tbsp of baking powder to each.
  8. Add 1/2 cup of heavy cream to each.
  9. Shake the bottles thoroughly until the contents are well mixed.
  10. In one of the bottles only, add the cocoa powder.
  11. Beginning with the cocoa powder mixture, add a dolop of batter to the center of a circular
  12. baking tin. Do the same with the other mixture, placing the dolop directly in the center of the previous one.
  13. Continue with alternating additions of each mixture until all batter is used and the tin is full.
  14. Place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes.
  15. Serve and enjoy!