The Cake Step You're Probably Always Missing

Most people can agree that biting into a deliciously done cake is well worth the baking process. And while there are all sorts of cake flavors, baking a cake requires similar steps such as mixing, preheating, and decorating. In the past couple of years, there has been a rise in baking at home. With the lockdown, people took to their kitchens for dessert, and the home baking trend skyrocketed in popularity. According to BakeMag, the sales numbers of bakeware increased wildly in 2020, indicating more home bakers than ever before.

With more people utilizing their ovens to bake homemade recipes, there's bound to be some trial and error. Home bakers know the heartbreak that is spending hours working on a particular bake, only for it to not come out as the recipe intended. Fails are unavoidable, and everyone makes mistakes when baking a cake from time to time. However, there's one crucial step that you're probably skipping that can mess up your cake.

Prep and baking are both essential aspects of crafting a delicious cake. However, once the cake leaves the oven, one of the most skipped steps is what should happen. Waiting for a cake is no easy task. We want our dessert fast, and boxed cake mixes and instant cakes in a mug attest to dessert impatience. Although, it is best to wait, and here's why. 

For a beautifully frosted, smooth cake, the step to never skip is to chill the layers. According to Southern Living, a chilled cake is necessary to properly frost a cake. Not only does a cool cake make it easier to frost, but helps with the beauty of the dessert. Chilling leads to fewer crumbs and helps prevent lopsidedness and even disaster in the form of the cake falling. Chill your cake by individually wrapping each layer in cling film and store in the fridge for a couple of hours.

Taking a step back and letting the cake cool in the fridge will up your cake decorating game and elevate your home baking savvy.