Everyone knows them, sadly not everyone likes them. Loaf cakes are usually simple and straightforward. When baked correctly, they are perfect, but it’s also possible to make a few mistakes. The result could be a dry cake that starts to crumble as soon as you look at it. Nobody likes that! Fortunately, you can easily prevent this from happening. In this article, we will show you a few basic tips and tricks to avoid those mistakes. Well, and we got some examples of extremely tasty loaf cakes, of course.

As the name suggests, loaf cakes (or pound cakes) are loaf-shaped cakes that are baked in loaf tins. ;P We all know them from kids birthday parties as well as from the coffee shop around the corner or maybe even pre-packed from supermarkets. This type of cake can be found in a lot of places. ;P

What Aunt Annie puts on the table for Suzie’s birthday party is, of course, something completely different compared to what you can buy in a supermarket. In our opinion, the packaged products on the supermarket shelves (which are supposed to stay fresh for several months) are nowhere near as good as freshly baked, homemade loaf cakes. I don’t really want to know what you have to add to those cakes to make them last that long… ;P

Anyway. In theory, you can eat loaf cakes at any time of day or night. A slice of a nutty loaf cake is just as good for breakfast in the morning as it is for the coffee break in the afternoon or as a sweet snack when you’re out and about. Loaf cakes are always a good option and are, fortunately, also quite easy to prepare. Even for baking beginners, this type of cake is usually not a problem at all.

If you like to bake loaf cakes, you have countless options. These cakes can be baked with many different ingredients and with all kinds of flavors. From a simple marble cake to a delicious banana bread, there is a wide range to choose from. With a few basic tips, the result is almost always really great!

Use a good loaf tin.
The materials used for loaf tins can be quite different. Metal, earthenware, or even silicone are all suitable for this type of cake tins. The most important thing about those baking tins is that the heat is evenly distributed so the cake bakes properly. Our recipes often include links to baking tins, which we think do a very good. We actually prefer metal baking tins and stoneware.

The baking tin should always be prepared.
In 99% of all cases, we use baking parchment (plus a little fat or oil) to prep our loaf tins. This is definitely recommended for metal and ceramic tins. Silicone molds only have to be greased, no baking parchment needed.

Bring everything to room temperature.
We don’t always stick to this rule, but if you have the time, you should always bring ingredients such as milk, butter, or eggs to room temperature, if possible. Ingredients simply combine better when they are at the same temperature, which has a positive effect on the texture of the cake.

Never stir the batter too much.
If you want a fluffy texture, you should stir a cake batter as little as possible. However, this does not apply to all of the ingredients. Butter, sugar, and eggs can and should always be mixed/beaten well so they combine well and trap some air bubble. Only when flour comes into the mix, you need to hold back. Prolonged or vigorous stirring would contribute to gluten formation, which has a negative effect on the texture of a cake.

Measure/weigh your ingredients.
When baking, you should generally stick more closely to the instructions of the recipe. This applies to ingredient quantities as well as rising times and/or baking times. In contrast to cooking recipes, baking recipes are often less forgiving if you change something. One reason for this is that certain ingredients only do what they are supposed to do when everything is right. Chemistry and physics play a significant role in baking. A few grams more sugar or flour are rarely a problem, of course, and using a medium egg instead of a large egg rarely does much harm… When using baking powder or baking soda, however, you should follow the instructions in the recipe closely. Too little will prevent the cake from rising properly, and the result may be a brick instead of a cake. Too much of the leavening agent can also mess everything up – that cake may rise more quickly, but may also collapse again because the cake had no chance to create a proper structure. Nobody wants that. ;P

Observe baking times & temperature.
As mentioned above, baking has a lot to do with chemistry and physics. For example, liquid in the dough needs a certain temperature to evaporate and loosen the dough. Some ingredients also only react with each other once a certain temperature has been reached. Sometimes these processes take longer, sometimes less. Recipe developers have usually tested the temperatures and baking times several times in order to achieve the best possible result. Of course, you can never take all factors into account – every oven heats differently and the humidity in the kitchen, for example, can also influence the baking result. Saying that – a little experience never hurts. Or testing the cake with a wooden skewer in order to check if it’s done or not. ;P

Never open the oven too early!
We’ve just talked about temperatures and humidity – both of which are very important for a good baking result. For this reason, you should let the oven do its work in peace and don’t open the oven until at least halfway through the baking time (unless the recipe calls for different actions, of course). Fortunately, there is a glass panel in the oven door for impatient bakers, so they can at least check visually. ;P During baking, somewhat of a »microclimate« with a certain temperature and humidity builds up in the oven, which has an influence on the baking result. If you open the oven too early, this microclimate is destroyed in one fell swoop. The result can be a collapsed cake. So better not do that! ;P

Leave the cake to cool in the baking tin.
We don’t always adhere to this rule ourselves, but in general it can be said that in 99.9% of all cases it makes sense to leave a cake to cool in the baking tin for a while. Hot cakes are (with a few exceptions) quite soft when coming out of the oven, and 10-15 minutes inside the baking tin gives those cakes enough time to cool and set in a restricted environment. This applies to pretty much all cakes, not just loaf cakes.

Correct storage.
This is more of a general tip – cakes stored correctly will last longer and won’t dry out as quickly. No matter how perfectly a cake has been baked, if it is left out in the open for a long time, it will eventually dry out. For this reason, you should always wrap cakes well if you want them to last longer. You can use plastic wrap or aluminum foil here – a little more environmentally friendly is reusable wax paper or simply an airtight Tupperware or similar. Easy-peasy.

Emergency rescue for dry loaf cakes.
If a loaf cake does come out of the oven dry, e.g. because you have baked it for too long, there is a simple solution: a cake soaking liquid aka. sugar syrup. For some cakes, a soaking liquid is necessary for a perfect outcome anyway, but it can also be an emergency solution for dry cakes. Sugar, water, lemon juice or other flavoring ingredients can be stirred together and then simply drizzled over the cake. The cake will regain any lost moisture and will stay nice for longer. There is also an example of a cake that needs to be »drizzled« with a syrup below. ;P

Enough tips and tricks. Now off to the recipes – of which there are plenty on the blog. We tried pretty much everything already that can be baked. Chocolate loaf cakes, nutty cakes, something with oranges and lemons, cakes with or without icing, vegan, gluten-free, sugar-reduced… it’s a lot. ;P Just take a look. There is something for everyone!

1. Tiger Cake (Pumpkin Chocolate Marble Cake)

2. Zucchini Lime Cake

3. Banana Bread with Chocolate & Walnuts

9. Spinach Pandan Loaf Cake

10. Lemonade Pound Cake

11. Chocolate Spice Cake with Cinnamon Glaze

12. Almond Orange Cake (low-carb)

17. Tea Cake with Almonds & Figs

18. Mango Coconut Loaf Cake

19. Easy Blueberry & Lemon Loaf Cake

20. Zucchini Loaf Cake (sugar-reduced)

21. Six Spices Damson Plum Pound Cake

22. Black ‘n’ White Coffee Cake

23. Lemon Coconut Drizzle Cake (sugar-free)

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