Reddit Is Obsessed With This Traditional Armenian Perok Cake, So I Tried It

Sifting dry ingredients can be skipped because it adds extra steps without clear benefit. The batter is thicker than typical cake batter, closer to cookie dough consistency, so mixing may be easier with a mixer rather than handmixing. Because of the thickness, the batter needs to be pressed into the pan using hands. Doneness checks with a knife can pull up wet jam from the center, making it hard to judge whether batter is fully baked, so the cake must be baked thoroughly before removing. Lattice pieces may break if the oven is too hot or if the dough is too warm, so refrigerating the dough before rolling can help prevent issues.

"While I sifted the dry ingredients for the sake of accurate testing, I'd skip it in the future. Between making the batter, adding the jam, and making the lattice, sifting was one too many steps for me to make this recipe feel seamless. And according to King Arthur Baking, it's often unnecessary."

"As the original recipe notes, the batter is thicker than regular cake batter. Mine was more like the consistency of cookie dough. In the future, I'd use a mixer instead of handmixing since it takes some elbow grease to mix the butter with the flour."

"Given how thick the batter is, be prepared to use your hands to press it into the pan. When you stick a knife in the center of the cake to check for doneness, you'll also pull up some of the wet jam, so it can be hard to tell whether the batter is still wet or not. Make sure the cake is fully baked before pulling it out."

"My lattice broke a bit while baking, which may have indicated my oven was too hot. If you have a finicky oven like me, err on the side of caution. It also may have been because my dough was too warm. In the future, I'd refrigerate it before rolling it out."

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