Here's How To Bake Cakes That Taste Fresh From The Bakery

Professional bakers have plenty of tips tucked up their sleeves when mastering the art of making beautiful desserts. Whether by using homemade baking powder or coating pans with cocoa powder prior to dumping the batter in them, we're all ears for ways to make our homemade cakes taste closer to something we might pick up from the store. We spoke to artist Jerrelle Guy, author of "Black Girl Baking: Wholesome Recipes Inspired by a Soulful Upbringing" and recipe developer of Chocolate for Basil for tips to help us edge closer to the coveted title of baker extraordinaire.

"When it comes to taste, you should approach desserts like you approach any savory recipe," Guy explained. "There should be a proper balance of flavors and you should try to always use good quality ingredients."

Thinking about the overall tasting profile of your next culinary creation can change the way you go about pairing cake recipes with different flavors of frostings. And with this in mind, Guy recommended some specific ingredients you can use when going for that bakery-fresh taste. "Make sure there's salt and acid, maybe some lemon juice or buttermilk, to round the flavors of the sugars, also use pure vanilla extract instead of imitation," she suggested.

While some recipes like classic yellow cake with chocolate frosting take the guesswork out of coming up with mouth-watering flavor combinations, other recipes like a chocolate layer cake can leave room for interpretation with culinary embellishments. As Jerrelle Guy encouraged, you can consider recipe components holistically and look to create appealing combinations of texture and taste. A classic buttercream frosting can pump up more savory-leaning cakes made with zucchini, or a quick sprinkle of flaky sea salt may be the simple finish your death by chocolate cake recipe calls for.

Taking time to find fresh, seasonal berries to garnish your baked cake may seem time-consuming, but you'll be glad you put in the effort after taking the first bite. "These little tweaks make a big difference in the end," Guy promised. 

Whether you choose to sprinkle quality spices into mixing bowls, toast coconut flakes before using them, or visit a local farm to pick up fresh cream and eggs to stir into your recipe, such thoughtful, intentional efforts will add up and pay off as soon as you begin to pass slices of cake around.