Quite a few months ago I had a post on my facebook page about running out of Bakers Spray. Lots of smart and seasoned bakers chimed in, and almost half of them suggested this weird thing called GOOP or Homemade Pan Release. I use this on all my bundt cakes, such as my award-winning Cream Cheese Pound Cake and Chocolate Pound Cake.
What is Homemade Pan Release?
Or GOOP as grandmas call it. It’s cheap. It’s easy. It works. The recipe is beyond simple. Take equal parts of:
- flour
- vegetable oil
- shortening
Blend them together. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 9 months.
How to Use Homemade Pan Release
To use your ‘goop’, simply grab a pastry brush and spread a generous amount around your cake pan. I re-loaded my brush about 3-4 times for one 8 in cake pan. One thing that I am conscious of is the sides, I do not go all the way up the sides. Try to only put the goop up as high as the batter would be. (about an inch)
If I use it all the way up the sides it tends to coat the cake around the edges as it bakes. Not a problem per say, just a preference on my part. 🙂
Tips for Using Homemade Pan Release
I whisk my ingredients by hand, but you can certainly use a mixer. If you use a mixer the ingredients will still be creamy but will be slightly fluffier right away.
For the most part, I do not allow the cakes to cool to room temperature in the pan, I try to remove them from oven and then invert them to a cooling rack. In my experience, when the cakes were allowed to completely cool to room temperature in the pan they did not release as well.
Be generous with the goop.
Store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator. When I left mine on the counter for an extended period of time it seemed to separate faster. If you find the mixture separated at all, simply re-mix.
You can easily halve or even quarter this recipe. I used the above recipe for about 5 months. (I bake a lot.)
I have used this with success on all types of cake batter, thick and thin. However, some people suggest using more ‘goop’ with chocolate cakes and runny batter.
Can I Make This Gluten-Free? Or Use Other Oils?
I haven’t tested those, but lots of folks in the comments have. This one stands out, so I believe that YES! It will work with gluten-free flour.
“I love love love this! We have a home with celiac disease and I used gluten free flour with xanthan gum, butter flavored Crisco and sesame seed oil. I’ve found nirvana! I’ll try it with different GF flour with different binders, but the sesame seed oil and butter flavored Crisco sealed the deal for me.”
A baker's best friend!
- 1 cup (125g) all-purpose flour
- 1 cup (205g) shortening
- 1 cup (218g) oil
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Place all ingredients in medium bowl and whisk well by hand. The mixture will be smooth and creamy.
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Store in airtight container in the refrigerator.
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When ready to use:
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Dip a pastry brush into the mixture and spread over bottom and sides of cake pan.
Do you iuse this in frypans as well or only for baking?
Hi I do not have access to shortening, any substitute please? Tia
Hi, Nasreen! I work with iambaker and am happy to help with questions. You could use solid coconut oil if you can find that. I hope this helps, and have a wonderful day!
Hello …. firstly I love your recipes & have used many of them ….. But I live in Brisbane, Australia and cannot find “shortening” …. could you please suggest a substitute for shortening?
Thank you very much
Hi, Alice-Dorothy! I work with iambaker and am happy to help with questions. The closest I found to shortening is ‘Copha’, pure coconut fat. I hope this helps, and have a wonderful day!
I like this recipe!
And will use when I am baking.
Thanks
Thank you for the “goop” recipe.
Great way to grease pans. My husband worked in a bakery in the 1950’s and they used this goop to grease the pans! Claudia, use a silicone brush instead of one with fibers.
We don’t use vegetable oil or shortening. We only use olive or coconut oil and lard . Can I substitute olive or coconut oil for the oil and lard for the shortening? Thank You!
It’s “per se”, not “per say”. It’s a Latin term. Sorry, this is a huge pet peeve of mine!
I love love love this! We have a home with celiac disease and I used gluten free flour with xanthan gum, butter flavored Crisco and sesame seed oil. I’ve found nirvana! I’ll try it with different GF flour with different binders, but the sesame seed oil and butter flavored Crisco sealed the deal for me.
I’m hooked.. sincerely love and appreciate what you do…
This stuff is wonderful, thank you for sharing!! My cakes released immediately and almost fell on the floor lol, I’m so used to my cakes needing a little help coming out of the pan. Thank you a million times!!
I just love this recipe. It’s like a gift from heaven. Thank you Amanda for sharing it.
OMG!! I’d give this a 10 if I could. I’ve been decorating cakes for 45 years and I’ve never heard of this. This works awesome for bundt cakes as well as every other cake. I love that you don’t have clumps of flour on the cake once released. I was cutting out wax paper liners to fit my pans. This is so much faster, easier. Sometimes the cake would stick to my wax paper. With this cake goop it comes out perfectly. I make 1/2 of a recipe and it’s lasted a long time in the fridge since I don’t make a lot of cakes. Thank you for sharing!
How long will it last in frig?
How long will this keep for please?.
Hi, Jan! I am part of the iambaker team, and I’m happy to answer your question. As stated in the post, this should be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 6 months. Hope this helps!
How long will this last and do you need to refrigerate this? Thank you
Hi, Kerryann! I am part of the iambaker team. As the post states, this should be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 6 months. Hope that helps!
Ilove this recipe but i am wondering how to make a chocolate goop for my chocolate cakes
I made a batch of goop to use with a Nordic pan. Worked perfectly. Today I made a chocolate cake and I usually use parchment circles. Well I tried the goop and the cakes came out of the pans perfectly. No discoloration at all. Love this stuff.
This is wonderful.
Have used for years.
@LYNNETTE SHIMMIN, BSN RN CLNC
You could try BUCKWHEAT Flour. It makes divine extremely light, and fluffy gluten free cakes.
Buckwheat sponge cake This recipe was passed on to me.
eggs, separated
¼ cup cold water
2/3 cup (150g) caster sugar
1/3 cup (55g) buckwheat
1/3 cup (50g) corn flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
Preheat oven to 180°C.
Line base of two 20cm springform tins with baking paper.
Grease sides of tins and lightly dust with corn flour.
Using electric beaters whisk the egg whites and water until very stiff. Slowly add the sugar and beat until dissolved.
Gently mix in the egg yolks.
Combine the buckwheat, corn flour, and baking powder; sift onto the egg mixture and gently fold through. Divide between the 2 prepared pans and bake for 20 minutes.
Remove from the oven and cool in the pan for 5 minutes before turning out onto a rack to cool completely. To serve, spread one cake layer with your choice of fruit, jam, or citrus curd, top with whipped cream, and then the second cake layer. Dust with icing sugar before serving. I have added enough cocoa to taste, and made into a chocolate gluten free cake. It is amazing.
💖 this is the best GOOP (LOL) ever!
Cakes come out beautifully without flour “residue”.
GOOP where have you been all my life? I just finished baking a family favorite “Chocolate Sour Cream Pound Cake” and for so many years I always worried about the sticking to the bundt pan. I cannot believe I have not found GOOP before, I have a perfect cake for 2021 Christmas!! Thank you!!🎄🎄🎄
Wow! I was going to ask if I can use solid coconut oil in place of shortening, and the first comment I see answers that very question! Thank you!
Shortening is NOT lard!
Lard is ‘animal’ fat.
Shortening is a ‘vegetable’ based solid.
They are often used interchangeably.
Use whatever you prefer, but… they are definitely NOT the ‘same’!
Rowena, how many eggs for the Buckwheat cake ?