Adventures with my Ankarsrum Mixer

[BakerAunt]

I saw some questions about how the Ankarsrum works on cakes. Be aware that I do not bake butter cakes anymore, as both my husband and I need to limit saturated fats. However, I do bake oil cakes, and I tried the mixer today on "Skillet Pumpkin and Apple Cake," a recipe by Becky Krystal that was featured in a Thanksgiving segment at The Washington Post.

I used the dough roller and the dough knife, just as I do when I mix bread dough. I started by beating the two eggs with the sugar. I set the mixer at the fifth speed and mixed for three minutes. It did a nice job. I mixed in the oil at a lower speed (about 3), then stopped it, added the pumpkin, and mixed it in at 3. For the flour, I set the speed to 1, and with the mixer running, added it by large spoonfuls. I had the dough roller positioned on the side, a little bit away from the bowl for the other tasks. Once I added the flour, I needed to move the arm more toward the center, but the mixer quickly incorporated it.

With most of my oil cakes, I do not use a mixer when adding the flour. I instead use a cake whisk and do it by hand, since overmixing can make for a tough cake. However, given how quickly the Ank incorporated the dry ingredients at a low speed, I will try it again, as long as the final cake texture comes out well. I'll add a note after we sample slices for dessert tonight.

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