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And would there be a difference in the cake using the whisk and the one using the paddle? If so, what would it be?

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    I imagine using the whisk will add more air to the batter ?
    – Max
    May 13, 2018 at 19:05
  • As that would normally be the desired result in a cake, why is the whisk only recommended for eggs and cream and the paddle recommended for use in making cake batters?
    – user66331
    May 14, 2018 at 5:24
  • You are also likely to tear up the gluten more with a whisk... May 14, 2018 at 8:32

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In the recipe book for my Kenwood (I'll try to find it to post examples), there are some whisked cakes, but most are beaten. This is a UK model, and we tend to use solid fat rather than oil in our cakes. The whisk tends to collect the fat inside, rather than mixing evenly, so you need to knock it down more often. With unsoftened butter the whisk also flexes quite a lot which may not be a good thing long term. When mixing slowly the beater definitely mixes more evenly than the whisk (a reasonable approximation of folding at minimum speed).

Whey baking other recipes I use the whisk for a whisked recipe (usually folding the flour in by hand), and the beater otherwise. It is quite easy to over-mix though.

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  • "collect the fat inside" as in what happens when you make crumbles? May 14, 2018 at 8:32
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    @rackandboneman more like a lump of butter in a wire cage.
    – Stephie
    May 14, 2018 at 9:18
  • Spot on @Stephie. Much cursing and poking with a butter knife follows
    – Chris H
    May 14, 2018 at 9:41
  • Max's comment about air is also important -- if you have significantly more bubbles trapped inside than would be expected, you can have significant doming ... and I suspect for flourless cakes that it might souffle on you. And the whisked cakes would be chiffon and angel food (really light cakes that expect there to be lots of air beaten in)
    – Joe
    May 14, 2018 at 17:39
  • @ChrisH I tend to use that as a pastry blending technique intentionally - just grab the whisk and pestle it into the drier ingredients until the butter is either mixed in or driven out ... May 14, 2018 at 17:54

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