i need help. last night i did a test run of a blueberry cake that i’m making for a christmas party tonight and for some reason the middle collapsed. why would it do that? any ideas?
update #1: the second cake came out perfectly. the trick – smack the cockles out of the cake mixture once it is poured into the pan, causing all the bubbles to rise up to the surface. i don’t know much about baking, but it seemed to work. next task for today…biscotti…
update #2: per yum’s request, the recipe is below. it comes from rocco’s italian-american (a cookbook infested with typos).
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– 1/2 cup canola oil
– 1 1/2 cups sugar
– 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
– 1 tablespoon almond extract
– 4 eggs
– 2 cups flour
– 1/2 teaspoon salt
– 2 tablespoons baking powder
– 1 1/2 cups blueberries
– confectioners’ sugar
* 2 tablespoons of slivered almonds (my addition to this recipe)
preheat the oven to 350 degrees. lightly grease a 9-inch cake pan.
with an electric mixer beat the canola oil and sugar together until you have a light, grainy paste. add the vanilla and almond extract and mix to combine. then add the eggs one at a time, allowing each to be fully incorporated into the batter before adding the next. turn off the mixer as soon as the last egg has been mixed in.
in a separate bowl, mix the flour, salt, and baking powder together. turn the electric mixer on a low setting and add the dry ingredient mix gradually to the batter. stop mixing as soon as the dry ingredients are fully incorporated and you have smooth, thick golden batter. pour the batter into your cake pan and shake to even the top. drop the pan with the batter onto the counter a few times to allow the bubbles to rise to the top. really, i’m serious. pound it a few times on the counter. smack it up really well otherwise your cake will collapse in the middle (see picture above). place the berries on the surface of the batter, close together, pushing them in very slightly, covering the entire surface. sprinkle the slivered almonds on top as well.
bake for 45 minutes and test by inserting a cake tester or sharp knife into the center. it will come out clean when the cake is done. the top of the cake should be golden brown. it may take up to an hour. if after 45 minutes the top is brown but the inside is still uncooked, lower the heat to 325 degrees and test every ten minutes. remove the cake and let it cool for about ten minutes. sprinkle generously with confectioners’ sugar and serve hot or at room temperature.
