Perfect cupcakes

by elaine
(lincolnshire)

My grandson and I made some cupcakes without eggs. They looked really nice rising in the oven then they sank. Why? I know we put a bit too much baking powder in would that be what it was?

Hi Elaine

Thank you very much for your question.

I don't think too much baking powder would cause the cupcakes to sink in the middle as baking powder is a leavening agent which helps them to rise. However, if your baking powder is out of date, this would cause the cupcakes to sink in the middle.

If the baking powder is within the date range, it could be that your oven is not hot enough or that the cupcakes have not been baked long enough.

Did you check that the cupcakes were fully cooked by inserting a skewer into the middle of a couple of cakes? If the skewer comes out clean it means that the cupcake is cooked.

You could also try increasing the oven temperature by 15-25F.

Another factor that can make a difference to baking is the altitude of where you live. If you live in a high altitude area it can cause baked goods which use baking powder or baking soda to rise excessively and then fall. The solution to this is to decrease the quantity of your rising agents.

Not using eggs is not likely to be the cause of your cupcakes sinking. I have a couple of recipes on my site that don't require eggs and they rise well. If you are making eggless cupcakes for allergy or vegan diets I would recommend my chocolate obsession cupcakes as this recipe always produces perfect cupcakes.

I hope this helps.

Regards