Baking Method and ingredients

Organization

1. Read the recipe through before you start, follow specific steps in order for best results.
2. Look up terms you don't understand. Folding ingredients into a batter is different from stirring, beating, and whipping. Use the mixer attachment specified for mixing, whipping, or kneading.
3. Prep first. Take ingredients out of the cupboard and fridge and put them on the counter before you start.Take out baking pans and prepare them. Put ingredients away as you use them so you won't wonder if you've already added an ingredient if you get distracted.
4. Distracted anyway? In the Audrey Hepburn film Sabrina a character said something like, "A cook who's unhappy in love forgets to turn on the oven, a cook who's happy in love burns things." A cook who has three kids running around the kitchen is likely to forget to turn on the oven and burn whatever's on the stove. It happens.

Useful Ingredients and Utensils

Parchment paper for rolling out dough, baking pizza, lining baking pans, protecting your baking sheet when using it to roast meat or make oven-breaded/floured meat or fish, and keeping delicate fish from sticking to a fry pan. To fit paper in a roasting pan, dampen parchment paper with water, crinkle it up to make sure the paper is evenly moist, then fit the paper to the pan. Trim excess. When baking, don't wet the parchment, cut it to fit the pan (trace with the point of a knife or needle and then cut with scissors) and grease/flour if recommended.

Use a spatula, not a spoon, to fold in ingredients and scrape bowls clean of batter and dough. A flat spatula is best for scraping while a scooped spatula can be used as a spoon. A mini spatula scrapes out measuring cups and is fun for babies to hold. For heavier batters, a one-piece silicone spatula works best because the spatula end can't fall off the handle. If you have annoying people in your house who use your baking spatulas when frying eggs, silicone is the better choice because rubber can melt.

Baking Pans:

Aluminum pans are best for baking, better than Pyrex glass, stainless steel or dark non-stick metal. That said, I use a Pyrex glass dish often for baking lasagnas and roasting chicken and have also used them successfully for baking squares and sheet cakes.

Sturdy pans that last are stainless steel with an aluminum coating. An aluminum pie plate bakes a flaky crust. Excessive use of aluminum is apparently bad for brain health, but eating a rich dessert every day isn't healthy anyway. My aluminum pie plate is the one I use for the seasonal spring rhubarb pie and for apple pie in the fall.

Silicone baking pans don't rust or shatter and are easy to clean but they are floppy, and if you cool baked cakes or squares in them, the bottoms can get soggy. Recently I have read that harmful substances from silicone can get into your food and leach into your body as do microplastics. If using silicone, as soon as you can, transfer the cake to a wire rack for cooling. I had a silicone baking pan but gave it away, the floppiness bothered me.

Use round or square pans for sponge cakes and butter cakes.

To make a 9 x 13" rectangular cake, use a recipe formulated for a sheet cake.

A springform pan (with a clip to remove the sides) may leak if a thin cake batter is used. Unless a springform pan is specified for the recipe, only use a springform pan for cheesecakes, some sponge cakes, and cakes with a crust or crumbly biscuit base.

Cakes like pound cakes are often baked in Bundt pans, deep high-sided pans with a hole in the middle. These cakes are baked longer and at a lower temperature.

Temperature:

Most cakes are fully baked when the temperature in the centre is 200 to 205 degrees F (93 to 96 degrees C). If unsure, remove the cake from the oven and poke a digital thermometer into the middle of the cake to check. 

Ingredients:

Use the type and amounts of ingredients specified in the recipe for consistent results.

Experimenting can be risky when baking for special occasions.

Butter:

• If a recipe calls for unsalted butter and you have salted, omit 1 tsp. salt from the recipe for every pound of butter used. Recipes will specify unsalted butter because different brands of salted butter may  have varying amounts of salt added.
• Take butter out of the fridge at least 30 minutes before you start to bake.
• Butter is supposed to be at room temperature before adding to a cake, ideally between 65 - 67 degrees F, still a little cool but not cold. If you leave it on the counter in a hot kitchen and the butter gets too soft it's not ideal to use. You want it not warm enough to be squishy or melting, but just warm enough to leave a dent when your finger touches the surface.
• Microwaves are not ideal for warming butter to room temperature, better to measure and cut the right amount of butter when cold and then cutting in pieces to speed up the warming time.
• Butter that's too cold doesn't whip properly and butter that's too warm and soft won't retain air, so butter temperature is crucial to baking.
•  To convert tablespoons to cups when measuring butter, divide by 16. There are 16 Tbsp in 1 cup of butter. So 4 Tbsp = 4/16 cup = 1/4 cup of butter.
• If a recipe calls for canola or vegetable oil, it won't necessarily improve the cake if you substitute butter. Many cake and muffin recipes rely on oil for moistness, so stick with the specified ingredients.
• My mom, now 91 years old, says butter no longer tastes the same. She read that some farmers started feeding their dairy cows palm oil, resulting in butter that tastes like oil and cream that separates when whipping. Try using more expensive butter from grass-fed cows on your hot homemade bread and see if it tastes different. Make your own butter by whipping organic heavy cream until it turns into butter.

Sugar: 

• Powdered/icing/confectioners sugar is best for frosting and is specified for use in some shortbread recipes. It shouldn't be substituted for "sugar" in a cake recipe as it will effect the texture and rising of the cake.
• "Sugar" in a recipe means granulated white sugar.
• For a cake with a finer texture you can blend the granulated white sugar in the blender to make it superfine, but this blended white sugar will still not be the same as powdered (icing) sugar, also known as confectioner's sugar. You can't blend granulated white sugar for use in frosting and get the same result as if you used powdered icing sugar.
• When a recipe calls for brown sugar, it means light brown sugar unless dark is specified. Brown sugar is sometimes specified in cooked frosting recipes for a richer flavour. Brown sugar is white sugar with molasses added. Mix 1 cup of white sugar and 1/4 cup unsulfured light molasses to make 1 cup light brown sugar.
• For dark brown sugar, mix 1 cup granulated white sugar with 1/2 cup unsulfured light molasses.
• It's easier just to buy a bag of brown sugar, but if you're not going to use it all, think of making your own. Brown sugar will dry out and harden in a sealed container.
• To  keep brown sugar moist and free from lumps, add a moistened clay sugar-keeper, or a piece of apple, or a piece of bread to the sugar in the jar. Best not to buy the biggest bag of brown sugar if you're only going to use a little.
• Brown sugar can be frozen in an airtight container.
• To soften hard brown sugar quickly, place it in a microwave-safe bowl, cover it with a damp paper towel or cloth, and microwave in 20-30 second intervals, breaking up the sugar with a fork between each burst until it's soft.
• Fruit or instant-dissolving sugar is best for mixing quickly into liquids. If you don't have it, use granulated white sugar dissolved in water and heated, to make a simple syrup to add to drinks.

Eggs

• In baking, 1 egg usually means 1 large-size egg.
• 5 large eggs are equivalent to 4 extra-large eggs or 6 medium-sized eggs.
• 1 large egg, white and yolk, is about 2 oz. liquid or 57 grams.
• Egg yolks can vary in size, so some recipes give the measurement of yolks in ounces.
• 1 egg can be replaced by 2 yolks (for a more golden cake) or 1-1/2 whites. But leaving out the yolk in a recipe can change things, because the lecithin in egg yolks helps to bind fats and water. If you don't want to use egg yolk it's better to look for a recipe that only uses the whites.
• If you use 3 or more yolks in a recipe that calls for whole eggs instead, decrease baking powder by 1/4 tsp for every 3 yolks used.

Substituting Baking Cocoa for Chocolate: 

• Use 1 Tbsp plus 1-3/4 tsp. cocoa powder AND 1 Tbsp plus 1/2 tsp sugar AND 1-1/2 tsp unsalted butter for every ounce of bittersweet or semisweet chocolate specified in a recipe.
• To bring out the flavour of cocoa, dissolve the cocoa in at least 1/4 cup hot liquid used in the recipe, then let it cool to room temperature.
• Use the best quality cocoa or chocolate for the best results.
• Cocoa powder isn't the same thing as hot chocolate mix.

Baking Powder and Baking Soda are not the same. Use the ingredient called for.

• To make baked goods rise, baking soda needs to be used with an acid ( for example, sour cream, buttermilk, molasses or brown sugar, or cocoa powder.)
• Aluminum-free baking powder lacks the chemical taste of non-natural baking powders, so use aluminum-free. We usually use Magic Baking Powder which is aluminum-free.
• If baking soda or powder is "expired" or after the best-before date, it can usually still be used safely if it has been properly stored. Test to make sure the product is still effective.
• To test baking powder for freshness, mix a small spoonful with a little boiling water. If fresh, the baking powder will bubble and fizz.
• To test baking soda for freshness, dissolve baking soda in a little vinegar; if it bubbles and fizzes it's okay to use.

Salt 

• Different salts differ in coarseness or grain size, flavour, and intensity.
• If an older recipe says "salt" it usually means iodized table salt.
• Many newer cooking recipes mean kosher salt when "salt" is specified. You can usually substitute table salt for kosher salt.
•  A recipe may also specify sea salt, pickling salt, or seasoned salts.

Yeast:

Varieties are traditional cake yeast (refrigerated), dry quick-rise, dry instant quick-rise, traditional dry, and there is instant dry yeast specifically for pizza dough or for bread machines.

Quick-rise instant dry yeast has smaller granules and dissolves more easily so it can be mixed directly with dry ingredients and then very warm water or milk is added (120 to 130 degrees F).

Traditional dry yeast is sprinkled over warm water (110 degrees F), sometimes with a little sugar added, then stirred in and set aside to stand (usually around 5 minutes), so its larger granules can start absorbing the liquid and activate.

Fresh cake yeast is kept refrigerated and is hard to find now in North American grocery stores.

It's often called for in European pastry and bread recipes and traditional pizza dough.

Cake yeast is usually crumbled in lukewarm water. Follow the instructions in the recipe and on the yeast package.

Flour

Types of flour are: all-purpose, self-rising, cake flour, bleached or unbleached, bread, whole wheat, corn, rye, spelt or rice.

Using unbleached flour will change the texture of a cake formulated for regular bleached flour and vice versa.

Cake and pastry flour should be used when specified in a cake recipe.

To substitute all-purpose flour for cake flour,  for each cup of all-purpose flour, measure 1 cup all-purpose flour, remove 2 Tbsp of flour  and replace it with 2 Tbsp of cornstarch to make 1 cup of "cake flour." By weight, measure 122 grams of flour and add 28 grams cornstarch to make 1 cup cake flour (150 grams). 

 If a recipe calls for bread flour you can substitute all-purpose flour if you add gluten. In general, add 1 Tbsp gluten for every 3 cups of all purpose flour.

Canadian flour is "stronger" (has more gluten) than some American all-purpose flours.

When using a bread recipe specifying bread flour published in the United States, try using 1/2 cup less Canadian bread flour to start. Add more flour by tablespoons until you get the desired dough consistency. It's usually not necessary to adjust flour amounts if using Canadian all-purpose flour.

Substituting whole-grain flour (e.g. spelt flour) in a recipe might take some experimentation because whole grain flours absorb more liquid. You might have to add a bit more fat and liquid to the recipe or the bread will be too dry.

Whole grain flours, coconut flour and rice flour are best stored in an airtight container in the fridge.

All flour must be stored in a dry place. Keep flour in a wide-topped cannister so you have room to dip and scoop out the flour. Then spoon the flour into the measuring cup till heaping, then level off with a straight edge. (Measuring precisely is important for cakes and fancy cookies, not so important when you are baking quick things like pancakes from scratch, without a recipe.)

The shelf life of flour is about 8 months, but obviously, discard earlier if it has a bitter or off taste or visible mold.

Measuring

1. Espresso powder, dry milk powder and corn starch measure differently by the tablespoon than they do by fractions of a cup. Use the measuring implement specified in the recipe to get a perfect result.
2. Weighing solid ingredients by grams gives more accurate results, so if you have a small kitchen scale, measure by weight if instructed.
3. Use a liquid measuring cup to measure volume of liquids and dry measuring cups or scoops for ingredients like flour or sugar.
4. View liquid measures at eye level.
5. Level off a dry measure of flour or sugar with a straight, not curved, edge.
6.  A digital thermometer is useful for testing temperature before adding yeast to a liquid and also when making candy. Get one for baking and another for the BBQ or for measuring the temperature of cooked meats.
7. Having an oven thermometer is essential, because even 5 degrees off can make a big difference if you're making pastries or macarons. Oven thermometers will hang or sit on a rack in your oven next to your baking pan and if the thermometer doesn't read exactly what you've programmed the temperature in your oven to be, adjust the oven temperature until the thermometer you've placed in the oven reads what your recipe requires. Test your oven temperature by placing the oven thermometer in the oven while pre-heating.
8. Spoon dry ingredients like flour into a measuring cup, then level with a straight edge. Scooping flour from a bag or container with your measuring cup can pack in too much flour. When making cake, sift even pre-sifted flour, then spoon into a measuring cup for best results.
9. When measuring sticky ingredients like honey or corn syrup, grease the measuring cup, or use the same cup to melt or measure any butter or oil needed in the recipe first.
10. Be very careful when measuring flavouring like lemon into a cake or icing. Too much lemon extract or artificial flavouring can result in a bitter flavour. If a recipe calls for only a few drops of lemon juice, wash the lemon then price one end with a fork and squeeze out the desired amount. When measuring real vanilla extract, don't worry if you spill a little extra into a cake, up to double the amount. Even 1 Tbsp is usually okay and sometimes improves the flavour, if you like vanilla.

Method

1. Unless otherwise specified in the recipe, have all ingredients at room temperature, especially butter and eggs, unless the eggs are to be separated (white from yolk.) 
2. Separating an egg (white from yolk) is easier when the egg is still cold, right from the fridge. A cold yolk will more likely stay firm and not run into the white.
3. Don't leave cracked eggs or unshelled egg white or yolk out of the fridge more than 2 hours or bacteria may grow.
4. Never crack eggs above the batter in your mixing bowl in case bits of shell fall inside. Crack eggs by lightly tapping with a knife or against the side of a separate small bowl or measuring cup.
5. Beat eggs with a fork or whisk. If you see that a small bit of shell has fallen in with the yolk and white, use a larger piece of shell to pick it up.
6. To separate an egg, lightly tap the cold egg in the centre of the shell, divide the shell in half, spill out as much white as possible into a small bowl, then slide the yolk from one eggshell half into the other, letting the white separate from the yolk and drip into the bowl. Place the yolk in a second bowl.
7. Cold eggs still in the shell, fresh from the fridge, will usually come to room temperature in about 30 minutes. If rushed, try placing the cold raw eggs in a bowl of warm water for 5-6 minutes. Or place cold eggs in a bowl, cover with hot tap water, wait 1 minute, replace water with fresh hot tap water, wait 5 minutes. I have warmed refrigerated eggs by placing them in the kangaroo pouch of my sweatshirt but this technique isn't recommended.
8. To beat egg whites: Separate the white from the yolk while the egg is still cold. By hand, beat very cold egg whites in a bowl over another bowl of warm water. Using a mixer, beat cold egg whites in a cold stainless steel mixing bowl with a small pinch of cream of tartar added per egg white. Adding cream of tartar isn't necessary if mixing in a copper bowl. Fold beaten egg whites into  batter using a spatula.
9. Egg substitutions: 1 egg can be replaced by 2 yolks (for a more golden cake) or 1-1/2 whites. If you use 3 or more yolks in a recipe that calls for whole eggs instead, decrease baking powder by 1/4 tsp for every 3 yolks used.
10. Take butter out of the fridge 30 minutes before baking if your kitchen is warm, 1-2 hours before baking in a colder kitchen (or leave out on the counter the night before if baking in the morning.) Recipes will say "room temperature" but the butter should be 65-67 degrees F. which is a little cooler than many kitchens. Avoid microwaving butter to soften. If you have to microwave, remove the foil wrap, wrap in parchment paper and microwave in 5-second intervals just until soft to the touch (not hot or melting) but don't risk ruining the butter if you're making a special cake.
11. Prepare pans before you start baking. Cakes that do not rise (like cheesecakes) are baked in a pan greased with butter. For cakes that rise, grease the baking pans with solid shortening and then flour. Greasing and flouring allows batter to grip the slippery sides of the pan for a better rise. To flour a pan after greasing, sprinkle flour then tilt the pan, tap, rotate, tap. Invert to shake off excess flour. Line the bottoms of cake pans with parchment for easiest release, especially when making chocolate cake. Grease and flour the parchment so it peels easily off the bottom of the cake.
12.  If you bake often, mix: 1/2 cup flour, 1/2 cup shortening, 1/2 cup canola oil and store this mixture in the fridge to use when you need to quickly grease and flour pans.
13. Place aluminized fabric or silicone cake strips around the outside of a cake pan to keep the centre of a cake from "peaking "so you get a straight even layer, and so the outside edge of the cake layer won't over-bake. Cotton cake strips need to be pre-soaked in water.
14. Adjust oven racks to proper height. Sheet cakes should bake on a rack positioned in the lower third of the oven. Otherwise place racks and baking pans as close to the centre of the oven as possible, with room for air circulation between pans.
15. Preheat the oven unless the recipe says not to do so. In some bread recipes the last dough rise is in pans in the oven and the loaves remain there while the oven preheats to begin the baking.
16. Occasionally test the oven temperature accuracy by setting an oven thermometer on the middle rack.
17. Butter cake layers are usually baked at 350 degrees F. Baking them at a lower temperature may result in layers that are coarse in texture and lacking in volume.
18. Cake baked at 375 degrees F or higher may peak in the centre and over-brown at the top, so oven temperature needs to be accurate.
19. If a cake seems to be browning on top too quickly, place a pan of warm water on the rack above.
20. Make recipe adjustments if cakes are baked at high altitudes (3000 to 7000 ft): decrease baking powder by 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon (or the sugar content if no baking powder is used) and increase liquid content by 1 to 4 tablespoons and increase oven temperature by 25 degrees F.
21. Stainless steel mixer bowls can be cold, good for whipping egg whites and whipping cream, but not ideal for mixing yeast doughs with a dough hook. When mixing yeast dough, warm the bowl before you start by washing it in hot water and then drying thoroughly with a towel.
22. Whip cream in a cold bowl. Put both the bowl and beaters in the fridge to get cold before whipping.
23. When a recipe says to "cream butter and sugar," use the paddle attachment in a stand mixer to beat the butter first for 5 minutes, then add the sugar and beat another 5 minutes to get a light, fluffy mixture. The sugar's sharp edges cut through the butter's fat and create air pockets that lighten the texture of baked goods. Mixture will go from grainy to creamy, increase in volume, then lighten in colour. Wait for the slight colour lightening before adding other ingredients.
24. Once all ingredients are added, don't leave the mixer running and overbeat the cake. Over-beating can result in cracked cake layers.
25. Scoop batter into muffin or cupcake pans. An ice cream scoop with a lever will measure an equal amount of muffin or cupcake batter in each muffin cup for even baking. Fill cupcake cups or liners 2/3 full to get a nicely domed cupcake.  If you want muffins with a crispy-edged spillover "muffin top", fill almost to the top of the muffin pan. 
26. Cookies: Small cookie scoops measure out same-size cookies that will bake evenly. Space cookies evenly on a room-temperature baking sheet, leaving room for dough to spread. Room temperature cookie dough spreads more than chilled dough and results in thinner, crisper cookies. Chilled cookie dough spreads less as it bakes, and makes cookies with softer, chewier centres and crisp edges. Cookies will burn on the bottoms if you leave them in the oven too long, or if you don't cool cookie sheets before re-using. To use them again right away, run cold water over the back of the sheet and then dry.
27. Cake batter should be poured into pans right after mixing. Don't mix cake batter hours ahead of time to bake later. Don't refrigerate cake batter in the bowl as it will lose leavening power. (see #29.) However, some pancake and waffle batters (like buttermilk) are better when they're refrigerated overnight before cooking.
28. Fill Prepared Cake Pans no less than half-full and no more than 3/4 full of cake batter. Putting too much batter in a pan may cause the cake to spill over the edges of the pan and the cake may cave in from lack of support at the edges. Instead of overfilling a pan, use another pan if you have one. If pans are less than half full the cake will bake dry with a pale surface. If there is too little batter in the pan, reduce baking time but also increase baking temperature by 25 degrees so you get a golden cake top. If a recipe calls for two 1-1/2" deep pans and you try to bake it in one same-diameter 3" pan, the deep pan will require more baking time at a lower temperature. For example, if you use a 3" deep cake pan and fill the pan 3/4 full, bake at 300 degrees F until done--not at the temperature you would for the same amount of batter divided into more shallow cake pans.
29.  If you can't fit the pans in the oven at the same time, if you have room, put the extra filled pans in the fridge just until the first set of cake layers has baked, but remember not to leave them in the fridge any longer than necessary.
30. Spread cake batter to the edges of the pan with a spatula and make level. Then tap the pan gently, flat down onto the counter, to further level batter and remove any big air bubbles, before placing the pan in the preheated oven.
31. If you're trying to make a special shaped cake with different sizes of pans see the chart for pan sizes and batter quantities below.

PAN SIZE in inches x depth	CUPS OF BATTER
Round 6 x 2” deep	3 - 4
Round 8 x 2	6
Round 9 x 2	8
Round 10 x 2	10 - 12
Square 8 x 2	8
Square 9 x 2	9
Square 10 x 2	10 - 12
Rectangular 11 x 7	10 - 11
Rectangular 13 x 9	13 - 15
Jelly Roll (flat) 10 x 13	8 - 10
Jelly Roll (flat) 12 x 17	10 - 12
Springform round 9 x 2.5	10
Springform round 10 x 2.5	12
Bundt 10 x 3	12

Baking the Cake

1. Cakes are generally baked uncovered, but for a cake that needs to bake for more than 40 minutes, like a fruitcake or some pound cakes, to prevent over-browning, you can cover a cake loosely with greased foil after 40 minutes baking time has passed.
2. After putting pans in the oven, set the oven timer and stay within earshot so you hear when the dinger goes off.
3. Check for doneness. Don't open the oven door more than 5 minutes before the cake is supposed to be done, as this can cause a cake to fall. After rising to its highest point, a cake will lower a little just before it's finished baking. Cakes over ten inches wide will shrink a little from the sides of the pan. Cakes under 10" wide should be removed from the oven before they shrink from the edges. Test for doneness by inserting a cake tester or long toothpick in the centre of the cake layer; it should come out clean with no crumbs clinging to it. Tap the cake gently in the centre with your finger, if it's done it will feel firm and spring back a little to the touch. Or remove the cake from the oven and poke a digital thermometer in the middle of the cake, 200-205 degrees F is done.
4. If a cake falls, the reasons could be: the eggs were too cold; you used too little flour or too much liquid; the baking powder or baking soda wasn't fresh; there was a lot of noise or thumping in the kitchen; the oven door was opened too soon; the cake was under-baked.
5. A loaf of bread is generally "done" when a thermometer inserted into the centre of the loaf reads 200 degrees F. If you take the bread out too soon, return it to the oven to finish baking. After loaves are removed from the oven, cool bread in loaf pans on a rack for 10 minutes before turning out of the pan, then finish cooling on the rack. Bread loaves may be brushed with butter while still warm for a softer crust.
6. After removing cake layers from the oven, cool on a rack 10-20 minutes before taking out of the pan unless the recipe says otherwise. Butter cakes, nine inches or larger in diameter, might crack if unmolded from the pan straight out of the oven. After cooling 10 minutes in the pan, take the pan off the cooling rack and lightly grease the rack so the cake won't stick to it when you take it out of the pan. Slide a metal spatula around the edge of the cake, pressing against the pan, not the cake, to loosen it before inverting the cake onto the greased cooling rack. Then re-invert the layer, so the top of the cake doesn't crack. Sponge cakes are usually cooled while still in a springform pan, upside down, the edges of the pan propped on inverted glasses. (See the recipe for Apricot Torte.)

Frosting Cakes

1. Never frost a cake before it's completely cooled. Allow at least 3-4 hours for cooling, depending on the depth of the layers.
2. See the post on Frostings and Icings.
3. A pound cake is good with a simple dusting of icing sugar when cooled.
4. To make a simple icing glaze add milk, orange juice or other liquid to powdered sugar by the teaspoon until you have a glaze thick enough for drizzling or spreading on the top of a cake or cinnamon buns. Let the icing glaze drip down the sides.
5. A cake that's a little dry can be saved by using a silicone baking brush to moisten the cake top with a couple of tablespoons of flavoured simple syrup, maple syrup, a liqueur like Bailey's Irish Cream or Amaretto, or a milk and vanilla mixture. You don't need to frost a cake that's been "soaked" with syrup. Cake that's a little dry will work well in a trifle as the cake will get "soaked" by the gelatin, custard, fruit and whipped cream.

Storing Cake: You can bake a cake a day or two in advance as long as you keep it covered and airtight to help retain moistness and freshness. Wrap cooled, unfrosted layers in plastic wrap and store on the counter on a covered cake plate or in a cake box. Fruit cakes like those made for Christmas keep a long time, which is why they were the make-ahead cake of choice for wedding cakes in the past.

Freezing Cake Layers:

• If unfrosted: Wrap unfrosted cake in plastic wrap and then heavy-duty foil to freeze air-tight. To thaw, remove from freezer and thaw while wrapped. Unfrosted cake can usually last up to two months in the freezer.
• If iced: place in freezer on a plate until frosting is very firm, then wrap in plastic wrap, then foil. Airtight wrap method: Place cake in centre of foil, bring two long sides together so that edges meet. Fold edges over several times until close to the cake. Then do short ends the same way. To thaw, remove from freezer, unwrap, place in container and defrost overnight. 
• If decorated: place wrapped cake in a rigid box or plastic container before putting in the freezer.