Help I’m at my wits end trying to master the art of Baking

I've just had a similar disappointment. Finally having learnt patience, I can now produce edible bread rather than bricks. So I thought I'd try a new technique to get nice crusts. The bread rose beautifully and I was really chuffed, but the minute I moved it to the oven it collapsed! It's edible, but it's not the beautifully risen loaf I envisaged!

As for sponges, my mum was the expert - I can't match her at at all and mine are much flatter, but edible. She made a basic sponge with 8 ounces of self-raising flour, 4 ounces of caster sugar, 4 ounces of margarine and 2 eggs. I suspect she added some baking powder, too, to give it extra lift. I cheat and increase the ingredients by 50%!! That way they at least look like they've risen.

Try this one

Preheat oven to 160 degrees fan oven, or 170 degrees if no fan.

Grease two 8" non stick cake tins, preferably loose bottomed and nonstick, you can buy them on Amazon. If you have baking paper, cut liners for the bottom.

Put in a bowl
8 oz soft magarine or softened butter
8 oz caster sugar
4 eggs
8 oz self raising flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla essence

Beat well together with a hand mixer, or put in the food processor if you have one.

divide between the two tins and put in the midde of your oven

Set a timer for 25 minutes. Open the door carefully and very gently press the top. If it springs back, it is done.

Leave to cool a little, run a knife round the edge of the tins and turn out the sponges. Peel off the paper and leave to cool on a rack.

Have a go, has never failed for me!

Once you are braver, you can add flavourings, eg coffee or cocoa, or use a loaf shaped tin and pour over juice of a lemon mixed with a couple of tablespoonsful of sugar to make a lemon drizzle

Look forward to a photo!

Goodness, Septimia, for a sponge using 8 oz of SR flour, I use 8 oz soft butter or Stork for Cakes, 8 oz caster sugar, and 4 eggs! (Eggs preferably at room temp.). That’s a very old Mary Berry recipe, doubled. I do often add a round tsp of baking powder too.

That lot goes in 2 x 20 cm sandwich tins, greased and lined, in the oven at 180, 160 fan, for 20-25 minutes.

I’ve never been brilliant at cakes, but this always turns out pretty well. I dare say it helps that I use my trusty old Kenwood Chef to mix it all up.

I always use Delia’s all in one sponge recipe , always works.
But I must say I’ve always used a Kenwood mixer to make cakes, there’s something about the way it beats.

Simple, just 8, 6 or 4 for everything and the eggs would be 4, 3 2. Also works well if you weigh the eggs then use same amounts of butter/marg, caster sugar, SR flour. The 8/4 ratio is not good for a light sponge that would give more of a Madeira cake texture.

I believe that the Kitchen Goddess shares different cooking skills out among us, and if she hasn't gifted you with sponge-making then eat flapjacks.
Seriously, I wonder, from your description if your oven might be uneven. I have an oven thermometer that I can place at different points and get an accurate temperature reading.

I no baker either Tinapink I know a bad workman blames his tools but my gas stove is so old the numbers have worn off the knobs so it’s all guess work also if I go to turn the oven down it goes out so I think I do have a good excuse however I made nice banana bread last week and some cheese straws but my scones were pretty hard the birds seem to find them ok though
I keep trying

Check your oven temperature. Preheat the oven for a good ten minutes. Never open the door until near the end of baking time. Make sure that your ingredients are at room temperature - and, finally, measure everything carefully.

I would try an all in one cake such as Mary Berry's Lemon Drizzle (find recipe on line). You dont have to worry about the order of the ingredients and getting your creaming right it just all goes in together and is wizzed up with your food mixer or similar gadget if you have one. They seem to be fool proof but definitely as someone else said make sure the oven reaches temp before you put it in and dont open the door until its done.

Why not makes biscuits, brownies or flapjacks instead? I often do things that can be made in a pan and then poured into a tray to bake!

I'm trying to bake a cake in my bread machine. I've never done this before and am a bit mystified as to what it is doing.
I have Morphy Richards fastbake bread machine. It makes lovely loaves and dough so I thought I'd use the cake setting today.
I selected the cake programme, put the mixture in, but it seems to want to go through an entire bread cycle.
I'm leaving it in until it looks baked, but I dread to think how it will turn out.

I was taught to beat the butter and sugar together until pale and creamy, add the eggs one at a time and beat again, but to then sieve the flour and gently fold it in gradually with a metal spoon to get air into the mixture. It always works well for me, I get a nice light sponge. Also, I use premium sponge flour (McDougalls) rather than standard self-raising flour, it definitely gives a lighter sponge. Hope this helps.

Opal, that was how we did it before soft margarine arrived. But now I always use the all in one method, sometimes using a mix of soft margarine and really soft butter.

I just baked a Mary Berry's Victoria Sponge, 1st time and it turned out the best cake I've made according to DH. It serves 12 but there's only 3 portions left, it went that quickly. If I can do it so can you Tinapink - it's so, so easy. Try it.

I did say a basic sponge, Witzend, not a fancy Victoria one! Certainly the sponge comes out that bit more substantial, but we like it that way. Nobody has ever refused to eat it, especially chocolate ones made with dark chocolate spread (can't get it now) rather than cocoa. I suspect the frugality with ingredients stemmed from the war.

Pre-electric mixer and all-in-one mixing, I was taught the same method as you Opal, although I do still add the flour after the other ingredients are well-beaten.

I've found that the more solid kind of cake like Yorkshire parkin, and chocolate brownies are easier to succeed with.
And baking bread - it's more of a science than an art, I've been baking bread for years, by hand, and still have flops.

toascalilys method of weighing the eggs in their shells works - it was taught to me by an old friend.

If you weigh two eggs you will usually find they probably are nearer 5 ozs than four so multiples of that works.

My mother used to make excellent fairy cakes and used a 2/3/5 combination - 2 eggs, 2 ozs of butter or marge, 3 ozs caster sugar and 5 ozs of SR flour. It may have been because butter was rationed at the time she decided this but it always worked.

Make sure you use caster sugar, not granulated, for a sponge Tinapink as granulated seems to make a heavy cake. Or just grind the sugar a bit finer.

Brunetre I'm laughing at your sponge disappearing so quickly, it must have been good.

At least I didn't order bananas in my online shop as I was getting fed up of making banana cakes (there are two more in the freezer.)

Sp, sorry Brunette

I know, tbh it was DH who ate most of it. I had one piece then I discovered I've put on 3lbs since lockdown so that's the only reason I've not had more of it. I bet it's all done by tomorrow though

I honestly never though Victoria sponges were anything other than basic, Septimia!

Update on bread machine cake.
I kept checking on it through the window in the lid until it looked baked. Just tried a piece. It is very good.
I thought it might be dry, but it isn't. I am pleasantly surprised.

Baking is a challenge. I have to use coconut flour and coconut oil. Today I produced very good banana muffins. It there have been disasters including a very damp banana bread and hard almond and apple muffins.
I’ve never tried bread.

I think sponges are like animals they sense nervousness!!

Firstly make sure you have all the ingredients in date.
Have the right recipe for the cake tin size.
Make sure your tins are nice and deep, well lined and oiled.
Only use eggs at room temperature.
Get the oven to temperature before the cake goes in and no peeking.
The most foolproof recipes are Delia and Mary all in one methods.
Be bold, brave and beat, beat, beat.