Bundt pan

A Bundt pan is a deep, round cake pan with a hollow tube in the middle and curved, fluted sides. The tube lets heat reach the center, so a heavy batter bakes through before the outside dries out. The cake comes out upside down, with the patterned side on top. A common size holds about 2.4 liters (10 cups) of batter, and many recipes are written for a 2.8 liter (12 cup) pan.

How to use it

1. Brush every ridge with soft butter or a neutral oil using a pastry brush. Pay close attention to the tube and the fold lines.
2. Add a spoonful of flour, tilt and tap the pan until the whole surface is coated, then knock out the extra. For chocolate cake, use cocoa powder instead.
3. Fill the pan about two-thirds full and tap it on the counter to let out large air bubbles.
4. Bake until a skewer in the thickest part comes out clean. This is the toothpick test.
5. Cool in the pan for about 10 minutes, then turn it out onto a wire rack. Too soon and the cake breaks, too late and the sugar sets and sticks.

Substitutes

A tube pan or angel food pan of the same volume works for the same batter, though the shape is plainer. Two loaf pans can take one Bundt recipe, but the time will be shorter, so check early.

Common mistakes

• Greasing with melted butter. It runs down into the bottom of the pan and leaves the ridges bare.
• Skipping the flour or cocoa coat on a detailed pan.
• Overfilling. Batter spills over the top and the cake domes into a flat base that will not sit level.
• Using a pan smaller than the recipe calls for. Check the volume by filling the pan with water.
• Turning it out after it is fully cold.

In recipes

"Bundt cake" means a cake baked in this shape, often finished with a thin glaze poured over the top. "Fluted tube pan" is the generic name. The shape comes from the European Gugelhupf or Kugelhopf.