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High-quality Bundt pans are easy to maneuver, bake evenly, produce attractive cakes, release your baked goods effortlessly, and are a snap to clean up.
There is no single recipe used to make a Bundt cake. Rather, the term refers to the shape of the cake, which generally has ridges or grooves and a cylindrical hole in the middle. Though the cake has been around for centuries, it didn't get its "Bundt" moniker until Nordic Ware trademarked it in 1950 to describe its new line of pans.
Today, there are dozens of companies selling their own Bundt pans, only you will often see these pans referred to as "fluted tube pans" to avoid potentially infringing on the trademark. Nordic Ware continues to be the most popular brand thanks to its selection of countless designs.
Bundt pans are used for a variety of purposes, including molding frozen desserts and gelatins and baking festive breads. For this guide, though, we are going to focus on which pans are best for crafting cakes.
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Using a Bundt pan to bake cakes is quite simple. First, you use a baking spray or shortening to grease the pan - use pastry a brush to get into all of the crevices. Slowly add the batter - any cake batter will do - to the pan. Once it's all in, tap the pan a few times to get the air bubbles out. For even baking, spread the batter so it's higher on the sides than the center.
Once the cake is ready, remove it from the oven and place it on a wire rack to cool for about 10 minutes. Tap the pan a few times and invert it over a cooling rack to let the cake slide out and cool completely.
A good Bundt pan must produce cakes that are attractive to look at. There are two factors that play into this. First, the shape of the actual pan will give you a good idea of what your baked goods will look like. The designs range from your classic symmetrical round pan with ridges to incredibly intricate grooves for catching glazes. The other factor to consider is the product's tint. Typically, the darker the pan, the darker your cake will be. So, you will likely want a pan that is lighter in color.
Several different materials are used to make Bundt pans: silicone, ceramic, glass, and an array of metals. We only included aluminum and steel pans in our guide because silicone is floppy and fails to brown correctly and glass and ceramic do not conduct heat well. A heavy-duty aluminum or steel pan with a nonstick surface will cook your cake evenly and give it a nice even browning.
While researching the best Bundt pans, we read through hundreds of expert and buyer reviews and ratings of dozens of models. Our guide features pans that have a track record of ease of use, performance, and durability.
The Wilton Perfect Results Non-Stick Fluted Tube Pan features a nonstick surface and is made of steel so it bakes evenly, releases your food effortlessly, and is easy to clean. This container is dishwasher safe, though Wilton recommends washing by hand.
It produces cakes that are approximately 9.25 inches in diameter and 3.37 inches high so they are slightly smaller than your usually Bundt cake. Wilton backs the quality of this pan with a 10-year limited warranty.
Cook’s Illustrated gave the Wilton Perfect Results Fluted Tube Pan high marks because the handles are easy to grab thanks to built-in ridges. The reviewer also gave this pan the highest rating for ease of use and release. However, the writer did note that the shallowness of the cake fluting led to a less impressive-looking finished product.
Kitchen Byte recommends this Wilton pan because of its low price and 10-year guarantee, but the reviewer found the metal to be somewhat thin and didn’t trust it in the dishwasher.
About 89% of the people who reviewed the Wilton Perfect Results Non-Stick Fluted Tube Pan on Amazon gave it five stars. Buyers had an easy time maneuvering this lightweight pan, and since there are no deep grooves, it’s easy to clean. There are also several comments about how easily the pan releases cake after baking.
One buyer tested out the pan and found it held 10 cups of water. She didn’t recommend putting that much batter in, though, because it would overflow as it expanded during cooking. She suggests putting a catch pan underneath if you’re concerned about overflow.
Pros: Lightweight, easy to maneuver, excellent nonstick surface for quick release and effortless cleanup
The Cuisinart Chef's Classic Nonstick Bakeware Fluted Cake Pan is made of a heavy-gauge aluminized steel that is designed to bake evenly. Food releases easily thanks to the nonstick Whitford Xylan coating. To prevent warping, the edges are extra-thick rolled.
You can even pop this pan into the dishwasher for easy cleaning. Cuisinart offers a quality promise of great performance for a lifetime.
Food & Wine recommends the Cuisinart Chef’s Classic Nonstick Bakeware Fluted Cake Pan because the cake it produced was browned uniformly, cooked all the way through, and there was no crumbling or cracking as the reviewer slid the cake neatly from the pan. However, she was not impressed with the appearance of the cake’s “under-defined” ridges and curves.
Why you’ll love it: The Nordic Ware Jubilee Bundt Pan is an excellent tool for creating breathtakingly beautiful cakes that also taste great.
It only makes sense that the company that invented Bundt cake pans would have the most attractive collection to choose from. Nordic Ware has developed dozens of different pans featuring intricate designs, including pine forest, Star of David, fleur-de-lis, and more. Check out the entire selection here.
The Nordic Ware Jubilee Bundt Pan is one of the best. It’s made of cast aluminum, which is ideal for even baking. The pockets in the resulting cake are great for catching glazes, and the diamond pattern has hidden hearts in its design. As with all of its Bundt pans, Nordic Ware makes this pan in the United States and backs it with a lifetime warranty.
Good Housekeeping recommends the Nordic Ware Jubilee Bundt Pan because it bakes cakes evenly and quickly, the resulting cake is easy to remove from the pan, and the texture is excellent. The reviewer tested the pan by baking a store-bought cake mix. The testers were impressed with the crisp, thin crust and the moist crumb. They didn’t like that it isn’t dishwasher safe, but it was easy enough to wash by hand thanks to the nonstick finish.
The most helpful commenter, stilljojo, was apprehensive to try such an intricate pan at first but found that the process was effortless. She used an oil spray on the pan. Afterward, she ran a silicone spatula around the cake to loosen it from the pan. This worked out well.
Other buyers have had similar experiences. One home baker recommended using a clean brush to make sure the oil spray gets into all of the crevices.
Pros: Produces beautiful cakes that are evenly-browned and have a moist crumb, lifetime warranty
The key difference is the Platinum Collection has large handles that help with putting the cake in and taking it out of the oven as well as flipping it to release the cake from the pan. With its 10.5-inch diameter and 4.5-inch depth, this pan is the largest in our guide, which might save you from overflow problems.
The Wirecutter chose the Nordic Ware Platinum Collection Bundt Pan as the best option because of its beautifully defined shape, heavy-duty but not cumbersome construction, and effective nonstick coating. In her tests, the reviewer found that it made perfectly browned cakes.
This pan was also the winner in Cook’s Illustrated’s tests. The reviewer liked that it could hold up to 15 cups of ingredients, has large handles that are easy to grip, and it also produced the most attention-grabbing cakes in their tests.
One buyer remarked that her pan arrived scratched and had flaking paint. Another said there were sharp burrs left on the pan. Fortunately, if you experience these problems, you can return your pan to Amazon for a replacement or refund.
The vast majority of buyers were happy with their purchase. They like the sturdy feel of it and how evenly it bakes.
Pros: Well-defined shapes, sturdy, easy to grip handles, browns evenly, holds up to 15 cups of batter
Cons: The quality of the pan’s construction is inconsistent
In addition to a wide rim made of heavy-gauge steel, the sides have rubberized “SureGrip” handles that minimize the chance for slippage. The nonstick surface is designed to be scratch resistant, release food quickly, and clean up easily.
The Wirecutter also recommends this pan because of the effective nonstick coating and even browning. Though, the reviewer notes that the shape is not as beautiful as the Nordic Ware option. The reviewer at Sally’s Baking Addiction uses this pan in her kitchen because of its durability and the great cakes it bakes.
Though it still requires a little oil, one commenter noted that you need to flip the pan with a plate on top because the cake comes loose faster than you might expect. Others mention that the cake came out without leaving a crumb in the pan.
A high-quality cake pan cooks both sweet and savory foods evenly without burning, releases baked goods with little fuss, and cleans up effortlessly.
While researching the best cake pans, we examined the reviews and ratings of hundreds of buyers and experts. The cake pans featured in the slides below produce superbly-browned foods, are built to last a lifetime, and they make it easier to create perfectly-shaped cakes.
High-quality springform pans cook cakes evenly, release your baked goods without fuss, and have bases that leak minimally.
While researching the best springform pans, we examined hundreds of buyer and expert ratings and reviews of several models. Our guide features pans that have a track record of easy usability, durable construction, and frustration-free performance.
Here are our picks for the best springform pans you can buy:
High-quality loaf pans cook your baked goods evenly, release them with little fuss, and are made of heavy-duty materials.
While researching the best loaf pans, we examined hundreds of buyer and expert ratings and reviews of dozens of models. Our guide features pans that have a strong track record of performance, durability, and versatility.
Here are our picks for the best loaf pans you can buy:
top-quality baking sheet is easy to handle, cleans up effortlessly, and bakes food without warping or buckling.
While researching the best cookie sheets, we examined hundreds of buyer and expert reviews as well as the ratings of dozens of pans. The baking sheets included in our guide have a sturdy construction, bake foods evenly, and are simple to clean.
A great set of cookie cutters makes those delicious holiday treats you've prepared even more of a pleasure to make and share.
While some of the sets on our list have a definite Christmas feel, we've also made sure to include sets that are appropriate for other winter holidays, for the winter season more generally, and also some suitable for all-year use. Because while many people make most of their cookies close to the winter holidays, plenty more folks keep right on baking in the spring, summer, and fall, too.
The best mixing bowls are light enough for easy use, clean up effortlessly, and are designed to last.
In our search for the best mixing bowls, we looked at dozens of different alternatives. Based on what buyers and experts had to say, we narrowed our list to five excellent products that exhibit a track record of strong performance, ease of use, and durability.
The best rolling pins are comfortable in your hands, easy to use, and are made of durable materials.
Our picks for the best rolling pins are based on our research of countless expert and user ratings and reviews. The main criteria we used for choosing the best rolling pins were their durability, design, and ease of use.
Measuring cups are a must-have for anyone who loves to bake and cook. Most star bakers and Europeans use kitchen scales to ensure that they get the perfect amount of each ingredient into their recipes, but us mere mortals in the US typically stick to recipes based on dry and wet cup measurements.
However imprecise cup measurements may be, you can still find great wet and dry measuring cups that will get you closer to accurate measurements for recipes.
The best measuring spoons are accurate, easy to read, have metric and US measurements, and will last you for the rest of your life.
We combed through countless user and expert ratings and reviews of dozens of measuring spoon sets while researching our list. We settled on our top picks based on their design, accurate measurement, strong track record, and the manufacturer's willingness to stand behind their product with a warranty or guarantee.
Here are our top picks for the best measuring spoons:
