This gluten-free cake needs gluten
December 22, 2013 8:56 AM Subscribe
I'd like to add flour to this gluten free cake recipe, but I'm not sure how much to use. The current recipe makes a very wet batter. Also, would I need to adjust baking powder amount after adding flour?
Agree, your goal is not clear. Do you want to add gf flour or wheat flour? Basically all the gf batters are moist because gf flours tend to need way more water than wheat flour. If you use the same amount of water for a cake with gf flour as for a cake with wheat flour, your gf cake would end up dry.
The finished product you link to looks quite moist. So is this bothering you? Did you already bake it, decided it was too moist and want to adjust this time around? If this is the case, you could add flour. Small quantities at a time (like a table spoon) until you reach a state that you like. But that would work if you're somewhat experienced with baking and batter consistencies.
I would only up the baking powder if a substantial amount of flour went into the cake. (There must be instructions on the package - follow those regarding flour/baking powder ratios). However, adding flour will change the texture of the cake. So if the cake does not need to be gf, just look for a different recipe altogether maybe?
posted by travelwithcats at 10:07 AM on December 22, 2013
The finished product you link to looks quite moist. So is this bothering you? Did you already bake it, decided it was too moist and want to adjust this time around? If this is the case, you could add flour. Small quantities at a time (like a table spoon) until you reach a state that you like. But that would work if you're somewhat experienced with baking and batter consistencies.
I would only up the baking powder if a substantial amount of flour went into the cake. (There must be instructions on the package - follow those regarding flour/baking powder ratios). However, adding flour will change the texture of the cake. So if the cake does not need to be gf, just look for a different recipe altogether maybe?
posted by travelwithcats at 10:07 AM on December 22, 2013
How does it cook up? What kind of texture does it have? That information would go a long way in determining how much more starch and leavening you'd want to add.
posted by oneirodynia at 10:22 AM on December 22, 2013
posted by oneirodynia at 10:22 AM on December 22, 2013
There isn't really any way for someone to ballpark amounts of flour and leavener in a successful manner; that's not how baking works.
There is, and it is how baking works, but that sort of ability only comes after about a decade of constant professional-level baking.
Echoing the questions above: why do you want to add flour to a gluten free recipe (which is specced out for a specific combination of ingredients to make up for the structure provided by the protein matrix of gluten being missing), when you could just use a regular cake recipe? I'm not attacking here, I'm just puzzled as to your intended end result.
posted by feckless fecal fear mongering at 10:34 AM on December 22, 2013 [1 favorite]
There is, and it is how baking works, but that sort of ability only comes after about a decade of constant professional-level baking.
Echoing the questions above: why do you want to add flour to a gluten free recipe (which is specced out for a specific combination of ingredients to make up for the structure provided by the protein matrix of gluten being missing), when you could just use a regular cake recipe? I'm not attacking here, I'm just puzzled as to your intended end result.
posted by feckless fecal fear mongering at 10:34 AM on December 22, 2013 [1 favorite]
You can reverse engineer the recipe using baking ratios but you're probably better off just finding a similar recipe. Smitten Kitchen has a pear cake that might do with the fruit switched out for apples.
posted by elsietheeel at 6:11 AM on December 23, 2013
posted by elsietheeel at 6:11 AM on December 23, 2013
This thread is closed to new comments.
If you just want to make a single-layer apple cake that doesn't happen to be gluten-free, you would be better off just starting with a recipe that already uses flour. There isn't really any way for someone to ballpark amounts of flour and leavener in a successful manner; that's not how baking works.
Based on looks alone, that cake seems to be an attempt to reproduce the common vegetable oil applesauce cake in texture, so I'd start with something like that.
posted by bcwinters at 9:53 AM on December 22, 2013 [1 favorite]