MOMPEAGRAM wrote in another thread:
SNIP
To unmold (bundt pan). Place Cake pan right out of the oven onto a towel
in the sink soaked with boiling water. Invert onto rack.

I have a problem unmolding ALL my cakes, regardless of the pan. I usually
spray the bottom and sides lightly with canola and spread with my fingers. I
have tried flouring the pan too.

If I'm reading the instructions above correctly, you invert the pan onto a
rack with the hot, wet towel draped over the pan? Not sure how this works
since the pan is already hot? And does it work for all pans? When I invert
on a rack the stone counter surface always gets really wet so I usually
place on the grates of the stove.

What are the other secrets of unmolding?

Thanks,
Raj V

Raj V wrote:
snip snip snip

I have a problem unmolding ALL my cakes, regardless of the pan. I usually
spray the bottom and sides lightly with canola and spread with my fingers. I
have tried flouring the pan too.

If I'm reading the instructions above correctly, you invert the pan onto a
rack with the hot, wet towel draped over the pan? Not sure how this works
since the pan is already hot? And does it work for all pans? When I invert
on a rack the stone counter surface always gets really wet so I usually
place on the grates of the stove.

What are the other secrets of unmolding?

Thanks,
Raj V

Lining the bottoms of flat-bottom pans with parchment paper helps a lot.

Jim Lahue

Nope. I had stopped using a bundt pan because they notoriously would stick.

So I bought a non stick pan which although non-stick advised me to grease
and flour the pan but do NOT use a spray like Pam.

I wanted to be doubly sure it wouldn't stick and found instructions that
said.

1. place a large towel in the sink just as your cake finishes baking.
2. Pour boiling water on the towel and place the cake pan on the towel.
3. Leave for 10 seconds.
4. Take the pan out of the sink leaving the towel and invert on rack.

I've never had a wet counter from a cake on a rack, so I can't advise you on
that.

I don't know if it would work for other pans as I've never had a problem
with anything but the bundt pan.

Here is the complete file I received.

-= Exported from BigOven =-

Technique For Removing Cake From Bundt Pan

Recipe By:
Serving Size: 1
Cuisine:
Main Ingredient:
Categories: Cakes

-= Ingredients =-

-= Instructions =-
***** NONE *****

(1) Just before the bundt cake is through baking, place a folded bath towel
in the sink and saturate it with boiling water.

(2) When the cake comes out of the oven, Immediately set it on top of the
towel, pan side down, and leave it for ten seconds.

(3) Immediately invert the cake onto a cooling rack.The cake will come out
clean and whole without sticking.


Note: Used this method Feb 23/05. Worked perfectly


** This recipe can be pasted directly into BigOven for Windows. **
** Easy recipe software. Try it free at: http://www.bigoven.com **




"Raj V" wrote in message
...
MOMPEAGRAM wrote in another thread:
SNIP
To unmold (bundt pan). Place Cake pan right out of the oven onto a towel
in the sink soaked with boiling water. Invert onto rack.

I have a problem unmolding ALL my cakes, regardless of the pan. I usually
spray the bottom and sides lightly with canola and spread with my fingers.
I have tried flouring the pan too.

If I'm reading the instructions above correctly, you invert the pan onto a
rack with the hot, wet towel draped over the pan? Not sure how this works
since the pan is already hot? And does it work for all pans? When I invert
on a rack the stone counter surface always gets really wet so I usually
place on the grates of the stove.

What are the other secrets of unmolding?

Thanks,
Raj V

"Raj V" wrote in message
...
MOMPEAGRAM wrote in another thread:
SNIP
To unmold (bundt pan). Place Cake pan right out of the oven onto a
towel
in the sink soaked with boiling water. Invert onto rack.

I have a problem unmolding ALL my cakes, regardless of the pan. I usually
spray the bottom and sides lightly with canola and spread with my fingers.
I
have tried flouring the pan too.

If I'm reading the instructions above correctly, you invert the pan onto a
rack with the hot, wet towel draped over the pan? Not sure how this works
since the pan is already hot? And does it work for all pans? When I invert
on a rack the stone counter surface always gets really wet so I usually
place on the grates of the stove.

What are the other secrets of unmolding?

I never have problems releasing cans from their pans. You don't have to fool
around with boiling water or other BS. First of all, I can't ever remember
reading a recipe with instructions to spray the pan with a light coating of
oil. The instructions universally say to butter or grease the pan. Here is
what I do. I grease the pan with solid shortening. Then, I line the bottom
with parchment cut to fit the pan. Then I grease the parchment and add some
flour. I shake the pan to distribute the flour and turn it over, dump the
flour, and tap the pan on a surface to release the extra flour. My cans
always release. For pans that you can't line with parchment, like a bundt
pan, you need to use a GENEROUS coating of solid shortening and then follow
with flour. You can't be skimpy with the shortening. If you want to
streamline the process a bit, you can combine equal amounts of shortening
and flour (i.e., put a cup of flour and a cup of shortening in the mixer and
combine). The resulting mixture is called "pan grease" and can be rubbed on
or brushed onto the pans. A more expensive and less satisfactory approach
is to use a product called "Baker's Joy." This is an aerosol mixture of oil
and flour. PAM has a similar product. Neither of these products will do as
reliable a job as shortening. I know that people will have a conniption
about using, gasp, hydrogenated shortening. If that is an issue, you can
use the new Crisco or Smart Balance. Butter and lard are also good
alternative.

On Wed, 23 Feb 2005 20:37:21 GMT
"Vox Humana" wrote:


I never have problems releasing cans from their pans. You don't have to
fool around with boiling water or other BS. First of all, I can't ever
remember reading a recipe with instructions to spray the pan with a light
coating of oil.


Come on, it says so right on the back of the box, even specifies PAM
sometimes :-)


The instructions universally say to butter or grease the
pan. Here is what I do. I grease the pan with solid shortening. Then,
I line the bottom with parchment cut to fit the pan. Then I grease the
parchment and add some flour. I shake the pan to distribute the flour
and turn it over, dump the flour, and tap the pan on a surface to release
the extra flour. My cans always release. For pans that you can't line
with parchment, like a bundt pan, you need to use a GENEROUS coating of
solid shortening and then follow with flour. You can't be skimpy with
the shortening. If you want to streamline the process a bit, you can


I've met bakers (probably related to some, don't recall) who keep around
a few boxes of cake mix for the purpose of dusting with something other
than plain white flour.

I've been dusting brownie pans with cocoa for a while, it works well. I
was afraid that the bitterness of my non-dutch-process cocoa powder was
going to end up being too bitter on the tongue, but somehow it's not an
issue.



Unfortunately, i have a couple years of technical support experience
under my belt, and try as i might to suppress those memories, I am forced
by my training to point out something that should be obvious. It's not
because, on a rational level, I've made a logical decision that the OP is
ignorant - it's just habit.

Cakes are a bit easier to release from their pans when fully cooled. The
OP *was letting it cool fully before flipping it out, right? It's easy to
get impatient.

I also suspect that super-emulsified cake mixes (duncan hines, etc) make
cakes that tear more easily, or are more sticky, or something.

"Eric Jorgensen" wrote in message
news:20050223140651.3f8034bb@wafer...
On Wed, 23 Feb 2005 20:37:21 GMT
"Vox Humana" wrote:



Come on, it says so right on the back of the box, even specifies PAM
sometimes :-)

I'm sure that when Proctor and Gable still produced Duncan Hines mixed, they
probably specified PAM!


I've met bakers (probably related to some, don't recall) who keep
around
a few boxes of cake mix for the purpose of dusting with something other
than plain white flour.

That's a new one to me.

I've been dusting brownie pans with cocoa for a while, it works well.

Yes. I started down that road, but I thought it would muddy the waters.

Cakes are a bit easier to release from their pans when fully cooled.
The
OP *was letting it cool fully before flipping it out, right? It's easy to
get impatient.

I also suspect that super-emulsified cake mixes (Duncan Hines, etc)
make
cakes that tear more easily, or are more sticky, or something.

I do try to wait 10 minutes before releasing the cake. As you say, the cake
is stronger after cooling. I think that you can have problems if you let
the cake fully cool in the pan. I speculate that the cake steams in the
pan, creating a sticky layer that attaches to the pan. That's been my
experience although the theory may be wrong.

On Wed, 23 Feb 2005 14:01:08 -0500
"MOMPEAGRAM" wrote:

Nope. I had stopped using a bundt pan because they notoriously would
stick.

So I bought a non stick pan which although non-stick advised me to grease

and flour the pan but do NOT use a spray like Pam.


The methyl silicone that the PAM people don't tell you is in their
product and most all release sprays tends to bond with teflon.

(It's an FDA loophole - they use it to lubricate the machine that
assembles the machines. They're sloppy with it, but the resulting amount in
the can is below the 'trace residue' level, so they don't have to list it
as an ingredient. Most other brands list methyl silicone or dimethyl
silicone as an ingredient. It's not poisonous.)

(A friend of mine designed the apple mashing machine they used at some
Motts apple sauce factories for some years. If you ever see 'cellulose
fiber' listed as an ingredient in applesauce, it's because my pal designed
the machine to be lubricated with fine sawdust - it's harmless and has less
effect on the end product than oil based lubricants.)

On Wed, 23 Feb 2005 21:11:02 GMT
"Vox Humana" wrote:


I do try to wait 10 minutes before releasing the cake. As you say, the
cake is stronger after cooling. I think that you can have problems if
you let the cake fully cool in the pan. I speculate that the cake steams
in the pan, creating a sticky layer that attaches to the pan. That's
been my experience although the theory may be wrong.


That could be the case. It's actually been a while since i made a cake.
There are Other People in my family who are the designated cake suppliers
at gatherings so i typically only bake a cake when I get a hankering for
pineapple upside-down - which is of course a whole other shooting match.

If the OP's counter is getting steamed by the cake when it sits on the
cooling rack, might that indicate that it's too hot still?

Maybe the trick is to wait until the pan is cool enough to handle but
not so long that the cake itself is room temperature, which is generally
what i end up doing since i somehow can't manage to keep actual potholders
in the kitchen and i find it difficult to flip out a cake while holding it
with bunched up towels.

I'm pretty sure my brother Steve used to flip them over onto the rack
and let them sit upside-down in the pan for a few minutes before gently
lifting the pan off.

"Eric Jorgensen" wrote in message
news:20050223143547.737f6d82@wafer...
On Wed, 23 Feb 2005 21:11:02 GMT
"Vox Humana" wrote:


I'm pretty sure my brother Steve used to flip them over onto the rack
and let them sit upside-down in the pan for a few minutes before gently
lifting the pan off.

Yes. That's what I do. After lifting off the pan, I put another rack on
top of the cake and flip them back to their original orientation.

at Wed, 23 Feb 2005 18:15:05 GMT in
,
(Raj V) wrote :

MOMPEAGRAM wrote in another thread:
SNIP
To unmold (bundt pan). Place Cake pan right out of the oven onto a
towel in the sink soaked with boiling water. Invert onto rack.

I have a problem unmolding ALL my cakes, regardless of the pan. I
usually spray the bottom and sides lightly with canola and spread with
my fingers. I have tried flouring the pan too.

Spraying with a liquid oil I think is part of the problem. That only makes
a thin film and the oil will tend simply to be absorbed by the cake as it
bakes, so there's no oil surface left to ease release.

The key points are to grease thoroughly using *lots* of butter and then
flour generously as well. I put on enough butter that you can visibly see
the layer at every point. Ideally, the layer is slightly opaque because of
the thickness. Then I flour until the grease won't pick up any more flour.
If I'm baking a chocolate cake, I use cocoa. Generally speaking these
methods are so effective that upon release you can read any logo that was
embossed into the bottom of the pan.

--
Alex Rast

(remove d., .7, not, and .NOSPAM to reply)

Where a cake recipe calls to grease and flour the pan -- any shape,
including a bundt pan -- I grease with Crisco using a pastry brush.
Then I flour the pan.

For a bundt cake pan:

I grease and flour as above.

When the cake is done, I put the pan on a cake rack after taking it
out of the oven, and let it cool for ten minutes.

After ten minutes, I take a popsicle stick (or the handle of a thin
plastic fork or spoon) and carefully loosen the sides of the cake. I
also loosen the middle part of the cake where it's touching the center
hole. Usually the outside of the cake has pulled away from the pan
anyway -- it's the middle part of the cake that's more of a problem.

Each time the popsicle stick hits the bottom of the pan -- what will
become the top of the cake -- I push gently to make sure that the cake
isn't sticking to the bottom of the pan.

Then I put a plate or cake rack on top of the pan and flip the whole
thing over, so that the pan is now sitting on the plate or cake rack.
I tap the what is now the top of the pan a couple of times, then
carefully lift the pan off the cake.

The only time that didn't worked for me was when I was in a rush and
didn't let the cake cool for ten minutes. Then the top of the cake
stuck to the pan, and I had to scoop pieces out of the pan. I placed
the scooped pieces on top of the cake and covered the top of the cake
with a lot of powdered sugar to hide the problem. Since it was a
chocolate cake, I called it a chocolate snowflake cake. It was a big
hit.

Terrelmay
--
Spamblocker in address. If you must reply by e-mail,
remove the last three letters of the alphabet and .invalid

On Wed, 23 Feb 2005, Raj V wrote:

MOMPEAGRAM wrote in another thread:
SNIP
To unmold (bundt pan). Place Cake pan right out of the oven onto a towel
in the sink soaked with boiling water. Invert onto rack.

I have a problem unmolding ALL my cakes, regardless of the pan. I usually
spray the bottom and sides lightly with canola and spread with my fingers. I
have tried flouring the pan too.

If I'm reading the instructions above correctly, you invert the pan onto a
rack with the hot, wet towel draped over the pan? Not sure how this works
since the pan is already hot? And does it work for all pans? When I invert
on a rack the stone counter surface always gets really wet so I usually
place on the grates of the stove.

What are the other secrets of unmolding?

I don't know about Bundt pans. I have not made anything with a Bundt pan.

For all the square, rectangular and round pans I usually cut a piece of
parchment paper to cover the bottom of the pan. I then lightly oil the
entire pan with vegetable oil. I place the parchment paper in the pan.

After the cake has finished baking I take it out and place the pan on a
rack for 15 minutes. During the 15 minute cooling period I'll check the
cake to see if it is pulling away from the sides. If it is I run a paring
knife around the sides to help it out. If not, I run the paring knife
around the pan after it has cooled (usually 15 minutes does it but I touch
it to be sure).

I'll put another rack over the pan and flip the whole thing over. If it
doesn't fall right out I'll leave it while I do something else (make the
frosting, some rosettes, etc.). When I can life the pan off without
lifting the cake I do so.

The parchment paper will stick to the cake. I'll gently peel this off and
I'm done.

I don't know if this is the best way to do it but it certainly works for
me.

I have occasionally created cakes using special molded cake pans (Dora the
Explorer or Mickey Mouse). For those I use a commerical spray designed for
releasing cakes from molded pans. I'm not sure of the name and I've only
seen it in a specialty store that sells bulk, commerical supplies.

--
Send e-mail to: darrell dot grainger at utoronto dot ca

I have been making cakes for many years and they have rarely ever
stuck. The procedure is as above, greasing and flouring the pans. I
really don't think it makes a difference if you use butter or oil or
Pam. I usually use butter if there is butter in the cake, and oil if
its an oil based cake as many bundt pans are. Cool the cake and turn
over on a rack for a while. Sometimes its helpful to stick a knife
around the edges between the cake and the pan.

I think a big difference is using a non stick pan. I have an ancient
bundt pan that is very heavy and it can be hard to get the cake out of
the pan. I recently bought a new non stick nordic ware bundt (they had
them at TJ maxx) and I sprayed it with Pam and the cake slid right out.

I have been making cakes for many years and they have rarely ever
stuck. The procedure is as above, greasing and flouring the pans. I
really don't think it makes a difference if you use butter or oil or
Pam. I usually use butter if there is butter in the cake, and oil if
its an oil based cake as many bundt pans are. Cool the cake and turn
over on a rack for a while. Sometimes its helpful to stick a knife
around the edges between the cake and the pan.

I think a big difference is using a non stick pan. I have an ancient
bundt pan that is very heavy and it can be hard to get the cake out of
the pan. I recently bought a new non stick nordic ware bundt (they had
them at TJ maxx) and I sprayed it with Pam and the cake slid right out.

"bumblebee4451" wrote in message
oups.com...
I have been making cakes for many years and they have rarely ever
stuck. The procedure is as above, greasing and flouring the pans. I
really don't think it makes a difference if you use butter or oil or
Pam. I usually use butter if there is butter in the cake, and oil if
its an oil based cake as many bundt pans are. Cool the cake and turn
over on a rack for a while. Sometimes its helpful to stick a knife
around the edges between the cake and the pan.

I think a big difference is using a non stick pan. I have an ancient
bundt pan that is very heavy and it can be hard to get the cake out of
the pan. I recently bought a new non stick nordic ware bundt (they had
them at TJ maxx) and I sprayed it with Pam and the cake slid right out.

I would use that method also, but the instructions on the non-stick bundt
pan I bought specifically states do NOT use spray or it will void the
warranty.