how do i stop my cakees from burning on top yet bei ng raw in middle?

[maxmissie]

Just made a banana and choc chip cake, which has bees in fan oven for nearly 45 mins at 180C and yet is nearly burnt on top yet still raw inside. Recipe says cook at 180C for 50 mins so should be nearly done. Have put it on middle shelf and have now covered with foil.

With my old fan oven I used to reduce temp by 20 degrees but if I do that with this new one it still overcooked top and doesn't cook inside. Oven is a whirlpool.

Any advice anyone? Thanks.

Sorry for typos on phone!

I don't know about fan ovens. Was going to say to put foil over, but you've done that.

Lower temperature for longer? Also, have you tried getting an oven thermometer to see what temperature your oven actually is.

I think 180 is too hot. I cook at 160deg in a fan oven. After about 25 mins, if it's cooked on the outside, but not on the inside, turn the oven down to 140/120 and leave the cake in for a bit longer.

Warning - with banana cake - if you hit a banana when you stick a skewer in to test if it's cooked, you might confuse the soggy banana for soggy cake.

My new fan oven is pretty fierce too. I turn it down by more than 20 degrees, and cook for as long as needed. Generally it shouldn't matter which shelf you put it on in a fan oven.

Also, I tend to put baking paper on top when I think it's brown enough. Foil doesn't seem to stop it burning for me.

If it's a real problem can you use the conventional oven setting instead? I know it takes longer to heat up, and isn't as efficient energy-wise, but at least you won't have burnt cakes!

more to the point, how the blazes do you get your chocolate chips to stay where you want them and not languishing at the bottom in a crunchy crust?

i do my banana cake at 150 btw.

Gwendoline - your mixture is probably too wet. Choc drops will drop to the bottom if the mixture isn't thick enough to hold them up. If you add milk, add less, or use smaller eggs, or more flour. (but not all those things at the same time - experiment).