bakingbattercake
I'm trying to make a layer of chiffon cake, with a grape flavor but I'm not satisfied with the flavor. I have tried using the juice from the grapes, incorporated into the batter, but it is not particularly potent and the end result is rather bland for my palate.
What would be the best way to incorporate a grape flavor? Is there anything I can do to the grapes to enhance the flavor and maybe add more depth or complexity?
In the past I have had a similar issue with making a butterscotch drink recipe. What I have found is that adding a bit of water to the melted butter (1-2 tsp/1/2 c, 5-10mL/120mL) helps dissolve the brown sugar and prevents graininess and seizing. Sugar is not readily soluble in fat, so it needs water in order to dissolve.
I suspect one of three things happened:
If you heat brown sugar in butter without enough water some will dissolve in the water present from the butter and the brown sugar, but it will become grainy and seize as the water is evaporated and the undissolved sugar granules act as nucleation sites. Meanwhile the undissolved sugars are being lightly fried in the fat from the butter.
Chiffon cake, like it's cousin angel food cake, is mostly air. A big pile of protein bubbles stiffened with a little starch.
One very important step is not reflected in your recipe:
When the cake is completely baked the proteins have set and the starches have gelatinized but the starches are still very soft. The cake won't have its firm structure until the starches have been able to cool and set.
All recipes call for inverting the cake immediately when it comes out of the oven. The cake is allowed to cool, inverted and still in the pan, for a good hour to ensure the starches have set.
Special pans with legs or a long tube center are used for this:
Notice that in addition to the feet that it is a tube pan. This is important because the interior of these cakes is very insulated and won't be able to cook completely before the outside is overcooked.
When my angel food cake pans were packed I had good success using a pot with a mason jar in the middle. I was surprised it came out perfectly.
TL;DR -
Use a cake pan with a tube,
Invert the cake right when it comes out of the oven and let it cool completely.
*Note
Catija is correct that these amounts look way too small for a full cake. If you are trying to bake that in a full sized cake pan it could possibly be over rising and not have enough structure to support itself when it comes out.
Best Answer
Grape juice, purchased as such, is often diluted with water and sugar and other juices. Additionally, many varieties of grapes, especially table grapes, don't have very much flavor at all.
Using grape juice concentrate will add a ton of sugar which you might be able to compensate for in the recipe. Unfortunately, in a chiffon cake, the sugar plays a role in stabilizing the egg foam.
Fresh, undiluted, unsweetened, Concord grape juice has a lot of flavor and color and is not overly sweet. I don't know where one can acquire it as I get it from neighbors who grow it. Perhaps homebrew supply store might have some for small wine batches.
Failing that, grape extract could most easily be used, as renisis commented above, but the flavor will be less fruity and simpler- like grape candy.