Anne Willan

Unmolding a Cake

Appears in
top 1000La Varenne Pratique
La Varenne Pratique

By Anne Willan

Published 1989

  • About
Leave all cakes to stand for a few moments before unmolding them. Whisked cakes, and more delicate cream cakes, should be unmolded after two to three minutes so that steam can escape. Angel food cakes, chiffon cakes, and cheesecakes are left to cool in the pan so they do not shrink or collapse, and rich fruit cakes are also cooled in the pan to keep moist. The base of a springform pan may be left under a fragile cake to hold it together.
  1. Run a knife around the edge of the cake, holding the blade against the edge of the pan so that the cake is not cut.

  2. Unmold the cake on to a wire rack. Peel off the lining paper so steam can escape. Paper is often left on rich cakes for storage.

  3. To avoid grill marks on light cakes, tip the cake on to a round of paper and set it, with the paper, on the rack.