I cannot remember where I saw this but on one of the food network shows about cake decorating it mentioned that if you get the dome in your cake from baking to lay a towel over the top and press down firmly as soon as the cake comes out of the oven while it is still hot. It makes the cake a little denser and better able to support being stacked in a tiered cake. I have been doing this with all my cakes and it works great, the density I think is perfect and the cake is still really moist and yummy. Plus if i do endup having to use my leveler I end up cutting a lot LESS cake off the top than if I didn't "smoosh" it. I press down the dome BEFORE I take out of the cake pan BTW. Maybe a money saver for those who don't want to spend the money on those rings you soak in water and wrap around the pan.

So that's what I've been doing wrong. Sheesh!

I've been "smooshing" them AFTER taking them out of the pan. And they look like they are collapsing in the middle.

I'm glad you posted this one. Thanks

I tried this for the first time yesterday (I had read about doing this on CC) and it worked just great! No leveling necessary. Do press on them just as they come out of the oven and still in the pans (I pressed on mine with a cookie sheet). Perfect!

I do this same technique with cupcakes ..

I lay my cutting board or cookie sheet over the top and weigh it down with a can on each end ...

Nancy
St. Joseph, Mi

I lay a kitchen towel over the "hot" cake, then take a cake board the same size as the pan I'm using and use that to press down........ it levels the cake PERFECTLY all the way around....

I've been doing this forever! It's such a time saver! And money saver! especially for those larger sheet cakes when ya don't have the money or resources to get one of those great big levelers lol. Everytime I give someone directions/help on making a cake I tell them to "smoosh" (I call it that too lol ) the cake when it comes out and is still scolding hot lol. I can't use a cookie sheet or anything because of the flower nails in the cake but I normally just lay a clean kitchen towel folded over once ontop and if the pan is really wide I use my entire forearm to press gently lol. It works in a pinch when I don't have anything else lol. I never thought of the cake board... the nails could just punch right thru that! Gonna try it today

Wow! I have not heard of this! Does the cake top stick to the towel when you take the towel off??

And the towel doesn't stick to the cake?

I am newer to decorating but my grandmom told me to do this years ago and no it doesn't stick. I use a thinner towel, not a terry cloth towel. But I am sure it doesn't matter. This works for me every time and it does make a moist cake more dense.
Good thread!

Thank you! Now I have to bake a cake today just to try this method!! This place is so great for ideas!

I actually flip my pan upside down as soon as it comes out, hen lift it a bit to make sure the cake will come out, drop it back down and let it cool for a while that way. I hardly ever have to level a cake anymore. I even got a tip from a girl in one of my wilton classes to use paper towel under the cake and between the cake and the pan when cooling to avoid that extra moisture drippage that can happen.

I have done this for years also! I just use a paper towel on top of the layer as soon as it comes out of the oven. Just make sure it is completely done and you will most likely not have to level!

I just started doing this recently after reading the tip on CC and it works like a charm.

I do this all the time! Much easier than dealing with the wet strips or towels around the pan.

Thanks for the tip I have never heard of this before. How long do you Smoosh? and do you do the entire cake or just the dome area?

I do this too! I love it, quick and easy and works great and don't have to do any leveling. I only use my leveler to torte!

I just started doing this a few months ago....and i love it!!! no leveling or uneven cakes!

I've been doing this RELIGIOUSLY ever since I first read about this technique on this website. Never have I received more praise about how moist and perfectly dense my cakes are. I was serving one of my wedding cakes a couple of months ago, and received so many comments about how perfect each slice was. No crumbly cake falling apart anywhere...just picture perfect slices of cake and ALL BECAUSE OF THE WONDERFUL TIPS SHARED ON THIS WEBSITE

For my birthday, my mom suprised me with a little chocolate cake. When she showed it to me, she was BEAMING. The first thing out of her mouth was, "And I "compressed" it just like you do!!!' Sooooooo cute!

ONE COMPLAINT (from my dad) about "compressing" the cake. Anytime he smelled the sweet smell of cake coming from the oven, he knew he didn't have to wait long for "cake tops" LOL The other day he wandered into the kitchen and said, "Uh.....you don't cut the tops anymore??" He was craving one of the cake tops, and I had totally let him down.

Other than that....Ladies and Gentlemen: If you don't currently "compress" your cake when it comes out of the oven, please start now. You'll thank yourself (and Cake Central) later!

katie11,

I put a paper towel between the cake and a cookie sheet (by using a cookie sheet I can flip it back over in the pan as much as I need to) and flip, once it is flipped I lift the pan off the cake put one more sheet in between the cake and the pan and put the pan back on. I usually leave it for about 30 minutes.

I am SOOO glad you are not talking about the groom feeding the bride smooshing LOL!

And YES - I have been a cake smoosher for years, and I do get the same complaint - no cake tops for tasting

I have tried this a few times now and it is great. Thank you to whoever posted this tip a few months ago.

i do pretty much the same i lay wax paer out flip my cakes after they get out ogf the oven wait for them to cool flip over and peel the wax paer away instant leveler!