Im new to baking and I started today because yesterday I got my first stand mixer. I notice differences in color and texture and blueberry swirls. The professional loaf looks a little softer like a bakery and mine is a bit more rustic feeling with slightly crispy edges. What little things did I miss/ do wrong? I thank all of you wonderful people.🙏
by Old-Machine-5
39 Comments
Looks great to me. I think the only thing you’re missing is the professional food photography used in the other photo to get it to look identical. Comparison is the thief of joy.
I’d gladly take a slice of your unedited beauty!
Photo filters
It’s possible your baking powder or soda has expired, which is why it isn’t getting the same amount of lift. From the picture it also looks like it might be slightly underbaked which can lead to a gummy centre. The crust looks really craggy and beautiful and delicious though, definitely an upgrade imo.
You may have over mixed your batter. You will want flour to be the very last step that you mix in using the paddle on a stand mixer on low and mix just until incorporated. Over mixing can lead to the lack of rising
It looks good to me, can you send me the recipe?
I feel as tho this is simply just filters and lighting
Take it on portrait mode if you have that. Also, did you let it cool completely before putting the glaze on the top?
Smash some of the berries, use a thicker glaze, apply when the loaf is completely cool, maybe? But honestly yours looks amazing! I want some!
Your product looks great! I think you just need another pan. If it’s thinner or has differences in heat conductivity, that can also contribute heavily to your final result. The one you’re using seems to have more width than the other as well. As others have pointed out, lighting and photo filters are a thing.
Personally I don’t think you need to change anything. Wrap your loaf up after it’s cooled, let it sit overnight, then glaze. The moisture should balance out.
Somehow yours looks way more appetizing to me.
It looks like the pan you used is a bit wider, so the cake doesnt look as tall. I think baking it in a less wide (or just smaller) loaf pan would do the magic. Cake looks lovely 🙂
Honestly, yours is more appealing to me. The other looks professional but like… in a grocery store way? I don’t mean it’s bad, it’s just not as appealing to me. Also I don’t care for the icing dripping on the second image. It looks uh… icky.
Better lighting, zoom in and focus the shot directly on the food, use a different camera angle — try shooting from up under — and add that lemon glaze dripping off of the cake.
Smaller loaf pan
More jizz
Maybe whisk wet ingredients together more vigorously (to incorporate air into eggs), fold dry mix into the wet more gently (to prevent beating out the air). Side note I loooove your cutting board
Yours looks better
Photoshop and a sweet glaze for the top.
A better camera, a ring light and an app that has a filter.
Maybe a different loaf pan & more frosting, but I do believe the other photo is edited
I no word of a lie saw this post, got up, preheated my oven and also made one 🤣 Thanks OP!
Hey there! I’ve been a pastry chef for 12 years and let me just say yours looks lovely 😊
Acknowledge the fact that the pic on the right is edited.
Then here is what you can do to get yours a little closer to “picture perfect”, but don’t be down on yourself for what you’ve created already. These are just tips to get that corporate, store-bought look.
Did you use butter or oil? Most commercial places sadly use oil in their lemon pound cake. It creates a much lighter crumb, but with less flavor. If you decided to use oil, I recommend replacing half of your milk with sourcream. This will add a more complex note and people won’t miss the “butter” taste. Also don’t be afraid to ad LOTS of lemon zest. Simply the zest.
Most large-scale bakeries will make a sauce or fruit compote that you swirl through the batter in layers as you pour. A little compote goes a long way while fresh blueberries sink to the bottom and burn.
And finally, not sure if you’ve done this just based on picture, but make a lemon syrup then poke and brush the loaf while it’s hot. You want to get as much syrup in the loaf as you can without it becoming mushy. Then immediately invert, seran wrap, and put in the fridge. I usually add the icing on the following day with some curled lemon zest. Let the icing fully set before you cut.
Photoshop
Ngl I think yours looks tastier. Might be baking powder and maybe a narrower pan, but I agree that it’s mostly photo editing.
Use cake flour (less gluten). Make sure your baking soda and/or baking powder is fresh.
Don’t over mix and use a narrower pan.
It looks better than the second picture, honestly. The other picture looks so heavily edited and it doesn’t even look real. I’m so turned off by that stuff. Show me real food and real photos!
It’s photo filters, lemon rind, and a shitload of icing
Honestly, yours looks better and more flavorful. The other one almost looks like it’s factory-made, in a bad way.
The website photo is definitely enhanced with color saturation and brightness.
It looks like you used a larger loaf pan than the recipe called for
Also it looks like there is more glaze on the 2nd picture
The swirls from the blueberries are the luck of the draw. As long as they are fully ripe they’ll burst/bloom in the batter randomly
it looks very nice for a first attempt
if the edges are crispy, it’s possible you cooked it a bit too long. whenever I make a cake or loaf I take it out when there are moist crumbs stuck to the tester toothpick because it continues to bake once it’s removed from the oven. if you take it out when then toothpick has nothing clinging to it, it’s over baked.
looks like the loaf pan is a different size, doesnt have as thick of a milk/water icing as the other cake, as well as other decor like the fresh blueberries and lemon peel. it’s also down to lighting, as well as you said your cake batter was thinner than in the video. if it’s a pound cake, the batter is meant to be thick n heavy! but tbh your cake looks incredible regardless 🙂 and also imo, the second picture looks WAY too sweet for my liking. lemme have a slice of yours please🤣
Filters and lighting lol
Cum
Gimme a slice and I’ll tell ya.
Jk, it is lighting/filters. Yours looks great, made me hungry.
Better lighting and filters. And as long as it tastes good, it shouldn’t matter.
Only thing that looks different to me is theirs has a glaze/icing and yours doesnt
I think the cakes themselves look similar enough – I think the photography is the only difference here.
Before adding
Ingredients berries ti batter coat the. Well with powder white sugar. Ge eroiusly
Sour cream would help with moisture retention.