Why do cupcake cases peel?

Oh the scourge of every baker – peeling cupcake paper cases!

They’re fine one minute, beautifully risen golden cupcakes on the cooling rack, turn your back for a minute and they’ve made a bid for freedom with the cases sagging and splitting right the way away from your cakes.

Or worse still, they’re decorated and waiting lovingly for their recipient, a sneak peek back in the box (just to check they’re as lovely as you thought they were – yes own up we all do that) and 2 of the blighters have peeled themselves off out of the batch.

Well I’m here to tell you why it happens in the hope that you can give yourself the very best chance of avoiding the dearth of the peeling cupcake case!

So let’s go right back to the beginning, cupcake and paper cases start out as a flat sheet of paper. Circles are cut out, the cases are crimped (pleated) into shape usually within a long tube (I’m sure it has a technical name but we don’t need to be concerning ourselves with the super fine details here) and then heat is applied to set them into shape. Think curling your hair!

Sometimes a certain brand of cupcake cases are a nightmare to use and really don’t hold their shape well. This is down to the thickness of the paper and the process of their manufacture. If those pleats aren’t put in properly or the paper is too thin then us bakers, have no chance in making them stay.

Always store your cupcake cases in the tubes/tubs that they come in. It stops them getting pushed out of shape and starting their own bid for freedom in flattening out again before they even see a sniff of cake mixture.

Cases left to dwindle out of shape like these are never going to deliver you good results.

And now to the peeling. What causes it? There are a couple of things, the first being…

Steam

When cupcakes are left to cool in the tray, the cooling cake creates steam, around the base of the paper case and up the sides against the hot metal tin. It is important to get them out of the tin right away, not 2 minutes after coming out of the oven, not 10 minutes – straight away out and onto a cooling rack. The steam can escape and doesn’t sit lingering around the case causing it to loosen and peel away.

Think about doing the ironing. How do you get stubborn creases out? An extra shot of steam. That works exactly the same way with cupcake case pleats – expose them to steam and they will start to loosen and ultimately cause a peeling case.

Now back to the ironing. If you’ve a stubborn crease you’d spray it with a bit of water to get it out. That’s the second cause of peeling cupcake cases –

Moisture

Now obviously you don’t want a dried out cupcake but it is important to bake them fully – so they are light and springy without cake mixture wetness left. Cupcakes containing fresh fruit and juice ie. banana, lemon and especially orange are the worlds worst at peeling. Adding too much sugar or flavoured syrup after baking can be a cause too so be cautious.

To avoid the moisture trap cakes should be cooled completely before storing and the best place to store them is in a non airtight container. Most cake tins are fine unless they have a tight plastic seal and the clip it type boxes should be a complete no no. If you trap a cake within an airtight container the moisture from the cake is absorbed into the case and it peels, usually by the next day.

Top Tips for Non-Peeling Cupcake Cases!

Use good quality cases with a good shape.
Use a cupcake tin that holds the case and cake tightly.
Remove the cakes from the tray as soon as they are out of the oven and cool on a wire rack, don’t leave them in the tin.
Avoid overloading cupcakes with flavoured or plain sugar syrup.
Store completely cooled and decorated cakes in a non airtight container.