The Cake Pans Magnolia Bakery Uses For Every Cake

The Magnolia Bakery is legendary. Often considered the first to kick off the "Cupcake Craze" of the late '90s, the Bleecker Street bakery first opened its doors in 1996 and starting making iconic cupcakes to use up extra cake batter, per Eater. The personal-sized treats sparked quite a sensation, especially after "Sex and the City" briefly featured the cupcakes on the show, according to Time Out. But the bakery is more than just cupcakes: people clamor to both the original storefront in New York City and their many additional bakeries throughout the world to get their hands on a host of baked treats, including an array of decadent layer cakes, from confetti to German Chocolate and lots of options in between (via Magnolia Bakery).  

A place that does as much business as Magnolia needs to turn out good cakes every time. With lines of people right outside the door (per Free Tours by Foot), they don't have time to try again if their cakes don't come out right or they get stuck in the pan. That means great recipes, but it also means great cake pans that perform well, every time.  

Magnolia's Chief Baking officer Bobby Lloyd explained the choice in an email (per Food & Wine) "A few years ago, we had to replace all of the cake pans at our bakeries. We knew we needed the best, which meant Fat Daddio's heavy gauge aluminum pans — they stand up to a lot of wear and tear so our cakes are consistently delicious." Sounds like the folks at Magnolia Bakery are fully convinced that Fat Daddio's are the best in the baking business. 

Fat Daddio's pans are used by many in the industry including Junior's, per Built Bakery, as well as home cooks — they have earned thousands of enthusiastic reviews on Amazon praising their quality. Anodized aluminum has many things to recommend: While it's not heavy, it's durable and heats up and cools down quickly. Fat Daddio's are well-made pans that can last for decades. The only caveat? They lack a non-stick coating. That means you don't have to worry about the possibility of toxic chemicals ending up in your food, but it also means they're a bit more trouble to clean (per Tech Gear Lab), which is the only aspect reviewers seem to find objectionable. 

After all, once you've got the right pan, the rest is cake.