Q: I have a castle-shaped bundt pan that makes fun cakes, but is incredibly difficult to clean.
Is there a trick I'm missing to get all the cake crumbs out of those nooks and crannies and turrets?
Sent by Kristen
Editor: Kristen I have that exact same pan, and I've found that one of the keys to cleaning it well is to soak it. Once it has been soaked for an hour or two, all of those last crumbs wash out underneath a stream of water.
Readers, any extra tips or advice for cleaning a fancy bundt pan?
Related: Fun Product: Nordicware Castle Cake Pan
(Image: Amazon)
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Yeah, agreed, soaking in hot soapy water is the most important step. And then if needed, try a brush (rather than a scrub sponge) to get into all the crevices.
use an old toothbrush?
Make sure you use a good spray release -- sprays with flour leave fewer crumbs.
Since I have a toddler, I still have a bottle brush on hand from when I needed to clean bottles. This works really well for oddly shaped pans and also for cleaning mini muffin pans as my regular scrub brush just can't get into the corners as well.
Soak and then dishwasher! (if it's dishwasher safe)
Like Brooklynnina, I also find using a dish brush after a good soak does the job.
Oh, and while Nordic Ware does recommend using Baker's Joy or Pam with Flour it also cautions against using anything that contains lecithin because it reacts with the non-stick coating and can cause a build up of gummy residue that interferes with the performance and cleaning of the pan. But both the recommended sprays have lecithin so I feel a little confused and have always just used a DIY Baker’s Goop.
I second the bottle brush. An inexpensive bottle brush (99 cent store item) is great. I use one to clean my heart-shaped bundt pan, glasses, jars, etc.
"Laid-back" dish brush from full circle. I use it on everything and it hasn;t scratched yet. The angle of the brush does the magic. Inexpensive bottle brushes are great but the wire might scratch the coating of your bundt pan.
The first thing I thought about was my bottle brush! I don't have a baby, but I bought one of those baby bottle brushes to clean some jars, and it's turned out to be really handy for cleaning all sorts of hard-to-clean items. I even use it to scrub vegetables!
Baking soda makes a difference. Soaking and using a brush are key. Baking soda boosts the cleansing power of hot, soapy water. As soon as you lift it off the cake, rinse it in the sink & fill it with hot soapy water with a little baking soda. It's worked wonders on baked on mac & cheese or that enameled cast iron pot of oatmeal residue forgotten on the stove all day.
funny that this post came up! we just made a castle bunt cake and the pan is waiting for one of us to make the first move...
whoops! bundt