Everything You Need to Bake Cakes 2026 (original) (raw)
Everything You Need to Bake Cakes, According to Professional Bakers
By ,a senior kitchen and dining writer at the Strategist. Previously, she was an editor at Bon Appétit and has worked in food media for nine years.
Photo-Illustration: The Strategist; Photos: Retailers
Welcome to Baking Week on the Strategist, where we’ve been obsessively researching and testing all the bakeware, tools, and gadgets that can make you a better baker. For more, head to our Baking Week hub.
Baking a cake can be as simple as a hand-whisk, one-bowl, loaf-pan operation — or as complicated as an intricately frosted, multilayer affair. Either way, good bakeware and tools will set you up for success. To come up with a comprehensive list of just such items, I spoke to a myriad of professional cake bakers — experts who develop recipes, have written cookbooks, and own bakeries — about their own favorites. You’ll find the basics, like all sorts of cake tins and pie plates and Bundt pans, as well as top-tier measuring spoons, mixing bowls, and the like. There are also some more unexpected gems, like a truly beautiful cake tester, a case to organize piping tips, and a KitchenAid beater attachment that does a better job of reaching the interior edges of the stainless-steel bowl than the original’s. Read on for everything you could possibly need to bake cakes.
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Nearly every professional baker I’ve spoken to over the years — Claire Saffitz, Clio Goodman, Kaitlyn Wong, and Odette Williams, among others — recommends Fat Daddio’s cake pans. The classic round shape comes in every size imaginable, but a nine-inch is the most standard to keep around. Whether you’re making a more involved layer cake or a quick one-bowl batter, it’s the size nearly every recipe calls for.
Fat Daddio’s pans are a light-silver color, which is necessary for an even bake all the way through and made from anodized aluminum (as opposed to untreated aluminum). Both types heat quickly and evenly, but anodizing aluminum makes it nonreactive. “Sometimes standard aluminum pans change color over time and you can get funky flavors,” Saffitz says. These pans are also straight-sided, which several pros point out as being more important than you think. Though it might not be immediately apparent, certain cake pans have slightly slanted or rounded sides. For all cakes, straight sides make it easier to run an offset spatula around the edges to release, and the final product simply looks nicer. For layer cakes, it’s imperative for stacking neatly.
It’s also worth noting that Chicago Metallic’s cake tin, as well as Nordic Ware’s, got a couple of recommendations from certain experts too. These are both untreated, but baker and cookbook author Samantha Seneviratne says she washes hers by hand and discoloration isn’t an issue.
Fat Daddio’s makes a slew of other bakeware too. I’ve picked out some common pieces here: a rectangular shape, a springform for styles like cheesecake and upside-down cake, and a loaf pan.
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Strategist senior editor Winnie Yang likes her Lodge cast-iron loaf pan for quick breads since it makes them “really well browned with crunchy sides and edges,” she says.
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To be honest, I don’t think a single professional baker would recommend using a nonstick cake pan (and certainly none of the ones I spoke to did). They’re more likely to have rounded edges, are generally more expensive, and they’re not built to last forever because they rely on a coating that will, no matter how careful you are, eventually get scratched.
But the truth is I know a lot of home bakers prefer the material. If you’ve worked hard on a cake, the last thing you want is for it to be ruined by sticking (an unlikely scenario if you properly grease and line your pan, but not impossible, of course). If that’s you, I think Caraway’s bakeware is a more solid bet than a lot of other options out there for a few reasons. It is, overall, quite durable (I’ve used its ceramic nonstick skillet extensively and its loaf pan a handful of times). If the surface does show wear over time, it’ll likely stop working well — but there’s no need to panic as it’s made from ceramic without toxic PTFEs. And perhaps more imperative to the success of your cake, the inside is a light color (which a lot of nonstick is not). This means you’re far more likely to get an even bake, as opposed to a too-well-done outside and gloopy inside.
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You can go simple with your Bundt cakes, but baker and cookbook author Vallery Lomas is partial to these decorative Nordic Ware pans, which come in a myriad of beautiful intricate designs. “They’re so well made,” she says. “They distribute heat evenly so that you get an even bake throughout no matter how intricate the pattern is.”
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A KitchenAid stand mixer is the undisputed best-of-the-best, and its tilt-head model is suited for most home baking. It’s sturdy, powerful, mixes well at all the different levels, is easy to add ingredients into, and will last decades.
If you’re going to be making more intense or bigger-batch doughs, you might want to go with its bowl-lift version, which has a larger bowl capacity, a broader base for even more stability, and a bit more power to the motor so it can easily handle thicker mixtures.
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KitchenAid makes a beater attachment that helps keep your batter from sticking to the interior of the bowl so you don’t need to pause the machine frequently to scrape down the sides with a spatula.
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Regardless of whether you own a stand mixer, it’s great to have a hand mixer. It’s easier to pull out and clean, so I use mine on pretty much any occasion where it will work just as well (like with basic cake batters or whipped cream). This particular cordless model comes recommended by baker and cookbook author Jessie Sheehan, who says, “The design makes it crazy-easy to move around the bowl — or even into a second bowl, if you’re multitasking — without having to worry about dragging the cord through your batter, getting it all twisted or tangled, or unplugging it and moving it to a different outlet.”
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Across the board, for all kinds of cooking, GIR reigns supreme in the spatula department. Its Ultimate version, which is a pretty standard do-it-all shape and size, is a favorite of baker Gaby Scelzo. “The handles are heavier than most, so they feel steady in my hand when I’m doing things like scooping thick frosting out of a mixer,” she says. “I love that their heads are firmer than traditional ones — and the lack of bend makes them great for scraping bowls clean. But what I love the most is that they have no ridges for butter and batter to get lodged into. They’re easy to clean.”
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A small offset spatula also comes in handy for spreading frosting (you can make it look smooth or swirled) as well as for getting into the corners of pans to loosen cake and to press down crumb crusts.
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Goodman says if you bake cakes often enough, save yourself the hassle of having to trace and cut circles out of a parchment roll or sheets and get yourself rounds. They fit perfectly into the bottom of a nine-inch cake pan.
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While Saffitz warns that the more common rectangular Silpat mats people use to bake cookies can cause spread, this isn’t an issue with the rounds, a reusable alternative to the precut parchment ones above.
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Another anti-sticking trick: Lomas says every baker needs baking spray with flour in it. “It nets similar results to buttering a cake pan and then dusting with flour, which is a whole extra step and much more cumbersome and wasteful,” she says. The spray is especially useful with intricate cake pans (like the decorative Nordic Ware one above), where it can be difficult to get softened butter into every nook and cranny.
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A scale is the best way to ensure your baking is perfectly accurate. This model from Escali is our all-around favorite. It’s affordable and reliable.
If you prefer to measure dry ingredients without a scale (or are using a recipe or ingredient where the weight isn’t stated), a set of solid measuring cups is necessary. Liquid amounts are always volumetric, so a liquid glass measuring cup is a necessity (a two-cup or four-cup version should work well for most bakes). And you’ll need a set of measuring spoons for salt, baking powder, baking soda, and any spices (the particular set shown here fits into slim spice jars).
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A set of nesting stainless-steel mixing bowls is endlessly useful for cooking and baking, says Goodman. For the latter, use them for prepped ingredients, to mix wet and dry ones together, for whipping cream, for making frostings, and more. They take up only as much room as the largest bowl, are supremely easy to clean, and are lightweight but virtually indestructible.
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A bench scraper is an indispensable tool for lifting layers, smoothing out frosting around the sides and top of a cake, and leveling scoops of flour and sugar if you’re using measuring cups instead of a scale.
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You may already have a serrated knife in your kitchen for cutting bread, but if you don’t, Saffitz, Goodman, and baker Melissa Funk Weller agree that you definitely need one. “The best thing you can do to set yourself up for success when baking a layer cake is to make sure all your layers are even,” says Saffitz. “I prefer a ten-inch knife, perfect for slicing off the rounded domes of the cake, which are just about that same size in diameter when you’ve made standard cakes.” While there is such a thing as a designated cake leveler (it basically looks like a saw), she doesn’t think it’s necessary when this works perfectly.
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Saffitz says a pastry brush has two main purposes. First off, you can gently brush away crumbs from the top of the cake layers as you work, ensuring a clean surface for frosting. Second, you can use it to soak your layers (meaning brush them with a liquid, whether a flavored syrup or coffee or even just milk if you don’t want to impart flavor) in order to add moisture. “That step makes a big difference, especially if you’re making said layers ahead of time,” says Saffitz. “Just be sure you get a brush with natural bristles so that the little hairs don’t fall off. And when you’re done, wash it thoroughly with hot, soapy water so it doesn’t dry stiff.”
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Lucie Franc de Ferriere, owner of the New York bakery From Lucie, relies on cake strips when she bakes at home (which is also where she started her business). Home ovens are notoriously unreliable, often yielding a “domed top, dark edges, and a center that feels like it’s lagging behind,” she says. But the strips, made from absorbent fabric-based bands that you soak in water and wrap around your cake pans, act as insulation, slowing how quickly the edges heat up.
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You can use a toothpick to assess the doneness of a cake — or you can use this especially sturdy, well-balanced, satisfying-to-hold, and nice-looking tester.
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Building and frosting your cake on top of a cake board is a must if you’re going to transport it as it gives the whole construction a sturdy base (just imagine trying to lift a finished cake without any bottom support). But that’s not the only thing it’s useful for: If you buy boards that are the same size as your cake pan, they can also serve as a handy reference for how much frosting to add. Because the batter contracts ever so slightly as it’s baking, you’ll be left with a skinny ring around the base of the cake that will help guide you.
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Scelzo and pastry chef Caroline Schiff both say a rotating cake stand is a must-have. “You can slather on buttercream while you smoothly rotate the cake on the stand with one hand,” Schiff says. “You’ll get an even distribution no matter if you’re going for whimsical swoops and swooshes, complex piping, or a superclean, even finish all around.”
As for this one in particular: “The rubber base keeps it sturdy when I’m building and layering cakes, and the height makes piping small details easier on my wrists,” Scelzo says. “Its weight allows me to control the spinning speed better than lightweight plastic versions I’ve used before. My favorite part is that it’s aluminum and therefore extremely easy to wipe clean.”
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Weller prefers to decorate on a fixed cake stand. “I just ice directly on mine,” she says. “If frosting gets on the edges, I wet a paper towel with warm water and carefully wipe it off.”
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Though more expensive, this option gives you the best of both worlds: a rotating top that’s pretty enough to serve directly from.
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Williams believes a sieve is a must. Along with using it to sift flour (a designated sifter being another one of those single-use tools that is not actually worth the money or space it takes up), she also uses it for dusting the tops of cakes with confectioners sugar or cocoa as well as straining curd for cakes or syrup for naturally-colored dyes.
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When she bakes for work, Scelzo measures ingredients to the exact gram or ounce on a kitchen scale. When she bakes at home for fun, she allows herself to be less precise. “But I still don’t want uneven cake layers,” she says. “My solution is this big ice-cream scoop. I use it to roughly measure how much batter is going in each pan or how much buttercream I’m putting between baked layers — it makes sure everything is mostly even.”
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Fabric pastry bags are reusable, which is a plus — but Goodman and Weller both say this is one instance in which they prefer the disposable item. “I know it seems wasteful, but the fabric ones tend to hold on to grease and then get mold unless you clean them _super-_thoroughly,” Goodman says. Both pros note that this is really only even possible if you turn them inside out and run them through the dishwasher. The good news: This pack of 100 plastic pastry bags should last a home baker a very long time.
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Ateco’s piping tips, recommended by Saffitz and Seneviratne, come in sets of eight, 12, 14, 29, and 55, depending on how much variety you’re inclined toward. “Just make a bunch of frosting and play with them,” Seneviratne says.
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Whatever number you go with, make sure you have a coupler, too. “That’s the little piece that connects the pastry bag to the tip,” explains Seneviratne, “which means that you have more control, and if you want to change the design or size to a new one, you can do so without having to empty the entire pastry bag.”
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“These boxes changed my life,” says Scelzo, who has close to 100 piping tips. Granted, the vast majority of home bakers won’t have quite that extensive of a collection, but individual compartments that hold such small pieces upright make them easy to scan and find whatever shape and size you’re after. It’s also a nice shape for storage, and the lid snaps shut securely.
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