What Happens When You Overmix Cake Batter?

Cake recipes often say "mix until just combined," so what does that really mean?!

It means: you should stop mixing as soon as you can’t see the ingredient that you just added.  If you are adding flour to butter and sugar, you should immediately stop mixing once you no longer see any white powder.

Why Does It Matter?

When you overmix cake batter, the gluten in the flour can form elastic gluten strands – resulting in a more dense, chewy texture.

Overmixed

You Can See The Difference:

White = mixed properly

The white batter looks airier, while the red looks thick and dense.

Red = overmixed

You Can Taste The Difference:

The overmixed cupcakes were gummy. They stuck to my mouth as I ate. The properly mixed ones were light and kept their shape.

Can You Fix Overmixed Batter?

Unfortunately, no. Once you've overmixed, there really is no going back. So mix carefully!

Try mixing properly with these great cake and cupcake ideas!

Ready To Give It A Try?!

Vanilla Cupcakes

Light, fluffy, and moist cupcakes that dome perfectly, and you can really taste the vanilla in every bite.

Chocolate Cupcakes

With a strong chocolate taste and light moist texture, these are the absolute best chocolate cupcakes!

Apple Upside Down Cake

A decadent spiced cake covered in caramelized apples. Try it warm with ice cream.

Carrot Cake with Pineapple

The addition of pineapple to this from-scratch cake makes it incredibly moist.

Looking for delicious dessert ideas?!