Baking a cake is fairly simple. If you want the quick and easy way, just buy a cake mix at the grocery store and you can have your cake made in less than 45 minutes. There is a problem with baking cakes though. Many times the cake will dry out. When the cake is dry, it is crumbly and needs more to help it go down. Luckily, there are numerous ways to fix this situation before it even starts.

If you have heard of ways to lower the cholesterol in cakes, then you know that replacing the oil with applesauce will not only lower the cholesterol, but give the cake a unique texture. Unfortunately, this doesn't always keep the cake moist. If you double the applesauce, then the cake will be more moist. This is a great little trick to not only lower the cholesterol of the cake, but keep the cake more moist, and sneak in some fruit into your diet! But there are others ways as well.

Another way that is endorsed by chefs is to make a simple-syrup to brush onto the cake. The ingredients for the cake are quite simple (thus the name simple-syrup!) You mix together 2 parts water, 1 part sugar, juice and rind from one orange, and juice and rind from one lemon. You boil this mixture until sugar is dissolved and allow to cool before brushing onto the cake. It works well and will keep the cake moist. You can then decorate the cake as desired.

Brown sugar holds more moisture longer than white sugar. Replacing brown sugar for white sugar will keep the cake from drying out and maintain its moistness. Use the same measurements for the brown sugar as your recipe called for the white sugar. The taste difference will be minimal, but the moisture levels will be higher.

The best way to keep a cake moist actually is the easiest. Mix you batter as you normally would then add one small container of yogurt to the mix and bake as usual. This will keep the cake moist for days. The bonus to this method is that you can actually add flavor to the cake by adding flavored yogurt! Adding a strawberry yogurt to a strawberry cake is a great way to get real bits of strawberry. Or add the strawberry yogurt to a vanilla cake for a hint of strawberry flavor and slightly pink color. You can use any of your favorite yogurt flavorings and add to any number of cake flavors. Experiment with different combinations to see which your family prefers.

Keeping a cake from drying out is a frustration for many cake bakers. If you know that your cake will not be eaten within a short period of time, you can also add half of an apple to the cake container to help maintain the moisture. Storing the cake in the refrigerator will keep the cake fresh longer and the apple will keep it from drying out. Try using a variety of methods until you find the method that works best for your cakes.