You found the right ingredients in your cupboard. You’ve followed the recipe step by painstaking step. But somehow, somewhere, you messed up the baking recipe and your cake looks absolutely nothing like what it’s supposed to. (On the plus side, it might scary enough for Halloween!) One of the best places to see some unexpected fails is the ‘Expectation Vs. Reality’ subreddit, home to 709k people who just love sharing that the Universe sometimes has a pretty good sense of humor. We’ve collected some of the best cake fails they’ve featured for you to enjoy, dear Pandas. So scroll on down, and upvote the best worst cakes.
Your cake might come out bad because of a dozen different reasons. You might have mixed up Celsius and Fahrenheit on the oven or accidentally used stale ingredients without checking the expiration date. Whoops! But fear not, brave baking adventurers, for all is not lost.
Bored Panda reached out to talented baker and pie artist Jessica Clark-Bojin to talk about when we should follow recipes to the letter and when we should experiment with our baking. Scroll down for our interview with her and with Canadian baker and cake designer Darci.
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Belle Cake
From A Kids Party To A Bachelorette Sorry Real Quick
My Darth Maul Birthday Cake Ate Too Much Cake
Pie artist Jessica told us that tinkering with baking recipes can be a bit tricky. We ought to learn how to walk before running; however, sometimes, experimentation can pay off if we've got the right attitude.
"There are certain chemical reactions that need to happen for pastry to become pastry, for cake to become cake, and if you alter certain variables (heat, time, acidity, etc.) you may get a result you aren’t thrilled with... That said, you may be pleasantly surprised!" she said.
Tried A Mirror Glaze
Daughter Wanted A Homemade “Little Mermaid” Cake. I Tried Really Hard
Merry Christmas Everyone!
"And what better way to learn, 'Oh! That’s what an egg does in this recipe' or, 'Oh! That’s why they say to chill the dough overnight first' than by jumping in and trying it? If you’ve got the time, and are cool with learning from failure (something I do all the time) tinker away!" Jessica suggested that the best way to get in-depth knowledge about baking is to get stuck in.
However, if you're short on time and ingredients (and most importantly patience), it's best to stick to baking recipes without deviating from them. "Or take a few hours to research the chemistry involved in your recipe and what the correct ratios for substitutions are," the baking expert said. "There are lots of great books on baking chemistry out there—if you’re a tinkerer like me I highly recommend you check ‘em out!"
Well I Tried
I Was In Rehab For Hard Drugs At 21, And This Is Still By Far The Biggest Failure Of My Life
My Wife Made A Dragon Cake For Her Mother's Birthday...
Cake maker and designer Darci from Canada, founder of Kake by Darci, told Bored Panda that if you understand why you're breaking the rules and if you get what each item does in a recipe, it's easier to start creating your own delicious concoctions.
"Baking is a science. Every ingredient has a purpose," Darci said. "Leaveners provide lift. Gluten/flours provide structure. Eggs [act as] binders. Liquid / oils [provide] moisture. Sugars [give] tenderness and sweetness."
Elsa Cake
It looks like that cat-looking lady that had wayyyy too much plastic surgery....
That looks a little, say, like if the worlds uglyest persons kid......
The one in the right looks like NeNe Leeks from Real Housewives of Atlanta & Celebrity Apprentice😳😹
This Attempt At A Rainbow Crepe Cake
Nailed It!
Previously, Darci told Bored Panda more about baking cakes and the major mistakes that people tend to make with Darci as well. Now, according to Darci, some of the most common mistakes that people tend to make are related to adding the ingredients in the wrong order. You might have heard that baking is an art, but Darci reiterates that it’s a science and you should be careful and precise while making your cakes.
You should also take care to weigh your ingredients properly and make sure not to over- or under-mix them. “All of these small factors can make or break the cake!” the Canadian baker said.
Most of us can immediately tell when a cake looks good or bad. That line becomes blurred if you add too many unnecessary details. “I prefer simple designs and simple details. I feel like you can have a beautiful cake and go overboard with too much—flowers, candy, colors, textures. It can be a fine line between too much and not enough,” Darci told Bored Panda about the importance of simplicity.
There Was An Attempt By My Dad To Make My Brother A Patrick Star Birthday Cake
Elmo / Elmer
Minnie Gained Some Weight
So remember, dear Pandas, when in doubt: keep things simple, follow the recipe to the letter, and only start experimenting with baking when you’ve got a dozen cakes under your belt! Otherwise, your cake might just end up on the ‘Expectation Vs. Reality’ subreddit.
I Way Over-Estimated My Abilities
My Sister Attempted To Make A Red Velvet Christmas Tree Cake
Tried My Best To Make A Roach Cake For My 8 Yo
Friends Parents Tried To Re-Do A Chewbacca Cake They Found On The Internet For His Birthday...
Ordered Cake On Left, Received Cake On Right
Grooms Cake Disaster, What We Wanted vs. What We Got
I think this is another case of someone going into a Walmart-like bakery and expecting artistry.
My Aunt Tried To Make A Cake Of Dolly Parton For A Friend
The same cake - Just after a really good night out on the town.
I Tried Making Japanese Cotton Sponge Cake...
A Spoderman Cake
Peacock Cake Of Dreams
The Wedding Cake We Ordered vs. The Cake We Picked Up
Snow White Cake
This is what i see everytime i see a BP article with the headline "I Draw Disney Princesses"
I Tried To Make My Girlfriend A Galaxy Mirror Cake
Some blended and crushed sand cookies and its will look like a beautiful seashore
Yup. My Wedding Cake
Ordered The Cake On The Left, Got The One On The Right
Better luck next time with the homemade cakes but I would refuse to accept the disasters that were ordered from so called professional bakers,
I just don't understand how so many people overestimate their abilities by far. I know I couldn't make an Elsa cake that looks great, so I try something much easier. It's not that hard.
I don't think it's overestimating oneself, it's more like taking the challenge to try something new, or simply the will to practice. They may have learnt from their mistakes and make better looking Elsas next times.
Load More Replies...But, you have to understand that not everybody is born with the art of decorating cakes. Its great you tried, and if you keep practing, you may get better. I know people who make mistakes when baking. Its not a big deal. Hopefully it tastes good, and it becomes a funny joke in the future. But, if you ordered it from someplace... maybe don't go back...?
Out of all the cakes I bought my daughter growing up she remembers the little cakes I would make for her birthday princess tea party her and I would have the morning of her bday every year. She's 18 and we still do it ever since she was 1.i made these little princess icing dresses w a little Barbie in it like she had a fancy dress they were far from perfect but cute and I got better at it every year and she adores them. Lol
This is why I don't bake. Baking is a chore for me rather than a joy and I'm not even remotely good at it.
the home disasters; love them more than the expectation! if a friends made me bad homer in the bush cake.. id love that more than if it was bought perfect! ..although ..store bought advertising what they cant produce..shame on you shops!
I've been trying to do "fancy" cake decorating since I was 10. Note: I said *trying*.... To each their own. Some can sing and dance. Some can decorate a cake like it's gonna be in the Louvre. And some of us are better left ot handle stitching wounds and embroidering pillows...
Apparently my mom is way better at cake decorating than I ever gave her credit for. The nice looking Little Mermaid cake is what my cakes looked like every birthday growing up, so I just took for granted that that was easy. She had a full set of cake tips and various shapes of cake pans, and everything. And they looked like what she intended. /hugs to Mom
All these cakes seem to have lots and lots of frosting. To me that's successful.
Better luck next time with the homemade cakes but I would refuse to accept the disasters that were ordered from so called professional bakers,
I just don't understand how so many people overestimate their abilities by far. I know I couldn't make an Elsa cake that looks great, so I try something much easier. It's not that hard.
I don't think it's overestimating oneself, it's more like taking the challenge to try something new, or simply the will to practice. They may have learnt from their mistakes and make better looking Elsas next times.
Load More Replies...But, you have to understand that not everybody is born with the art of decorating cakes. Its great you tried, and if you keep practing, you may get better. I know people who make mistakes when baking. Its not a big deal. Hopefully it tastes good, and it becomes a funny joke in the future. But, if you ordered it from someplace... maybe don't go back...?
Out of all the cakes I bought my daughter growing up she remembers the little cakes I would make for her birthday princess tea party her and I would have the morning of her bday every year. She's 18 and we still do it ever since she was 1.i made these little princess icing dresses w a little Barbie in it like she had a fancy dress they were far from perfect but cute and I got better at it every year and she adores them. Lol
This is why I don't bake. Baking is a chore for me rather than a joy and I'm not even remotely good at it.
the home disasters; love them more than the expectation! if a friends made me bad homer in the bush cake.. id love that more than if it was bought perfect! ..although ..store bought advertising what they cant produce..shame on you shops!
I've been trying to do "fancy" cake decorating since I was 10. Note: I said *trying*.... To each their own. Some can sing and dance. Some can decorate a cake like it's gonna be in the Louvre. And some of us are better left ot handle stitching wounds and embroidering pillows...
Apparently my mom is way better at cake decorating than I ever gave her credit for. The nice looking Little Mermaid cake is what my cakes looked like every birthday growing up, so I just took for granted that that was easy. She had a full set of cake tips and various shapes of cake pans, and everything. And they looked like what she intended. /hugs to Mom
All these cakes seem to have lots and lots of frosting. To me that's successful.