I am making this 10 inch square cake and everywhere i read it says that is recommended to use a heating core for cakes 10" and above is this true? I do not have a core but I do have baking strips. Can I use the baking strips intead of the heating core?

Another thing; Can Royal Icing be painted with any kind of dust? I ask because I was practicing some drapes with RI and then I tried painting them and my mix of vodka and pearl dust kind of broke the RI. ANy suggestions?

Thanks for your help

The heating core helps the cake batter in the center of a large pan bake thoroughly.

Bake Even Strips help to prevent the edges of the cake from overcooking.

If you don't have a heating core, you can substitute several greased and inverted flower nails.

HTH

If you don't have a heating core, you can substitute several greased and inverted flower nails.

HTH[/quote]

Flowr nails, of course. why didn't I think of that!
Thanks alot

I use flower nails only. It works much better than a heating core and a very small hole once it's baked!

I've painted royal icing before, but you should wait until it's completely dry and then use either lemon extract or vodka to paint with. Both dry faster than water.

I've never used flower nails or heating cores in my life so my answer to your question of are they necessary is "no". Baking strips only.

But I think each person should try a number of methods and decide which one works best for them and/or their personal preference.

50 years of baking and I've never used a heating core. I did use the flower nail once in a cake just to see what everyone was talking about.

Utter silliness.

Turn your oven temp down and increase the time.

i have used a heating core is the cake is deep and more than 12 inch not 10.. 10 can be baked easily with no heating core.

and yeah i think if the cake is shallow its fine but if its deep u defenetly will need it.. the stirps and the flour nail wont do much

I have never done a 16" but I have done recipes up to 14" and never used anything but baking strips and the cakes have come out fine. I bake at 325 for a longer period of time.

I bought a 3 inch pan set from Wilton, and that heating core is the silliest thing ever. It's so huge!!!! I just used a flower nail and called it good, worked fine.

And I used lemon extract and luster dust to "paint" a royal icing tiara. Just let your stuff dry all the way before touching it.

I'm with Leah. And if I need a really big cake like an 18" and I am worried about it (only with chocolate, the white is still fine) then I will bake 4 1" layers instead of 2 2" layers (I would be torting it later anyway, so it saves me the trouble too)

once I noticed that a large cake was not baking evenly in the middle and I made a heating core out of reynolds wrapped, shaped it like the inside of a calla lily and guess what smaller piece left with a hole and throwaway, I usually just bake at a lower temp for a longer time and have no problems.

Thank you very much to you all. I will definately follow your advices

I don't use a heating core either, I used it once and it seemed like a pain in the butt. I also dont' use bakestrips. I was having some really uneven baking until I starting baking at 300 for 30 minutes (for large cakes) and 325 for the remaining time. Since this change I have barely had to level my cakes and they are cooked nice and evenly.

This might be a silly question but how do you use the flower nails do you put them in the bottom of the tin before your mixture or wait till your cake has firmed up in oven and place it in then? wont it just sink if you add it at the start and place it on top of cake mixture?

I always have problems with big chocolate cakes not cooking in the middle and takes me forever and i just end up with a dried out cake!
Thanks

I spray them with Pam then place them, point end up, on the prepared pan. Pour the batter over and when the cake is baked, invert on the cooling rack and just pick them off. The hole they leave is minimal. I used to use a heating core, but much prefer the nails. (The only advantage to the core was I could sample the cake when cutting it to the required size to insert.)

Jan

I have baked up to 16" ALWAYS with strips to prevent waste, but never with a core. Never had a problem.

http://cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-746525.html

Thanks for the link and comments will defiantly be trying out the nails next time.

Thank you thank you....this was the best advice.  I am making a wedding cake for 200 and am doing  14, 12, 10, 8, and 6 inch tiers.  Yesterday I did the 12 and 14 inch tiers and did exactly like you said and put the pans in for 30 mins at 300 and then turned it up to 325 unitl they were done.  Each pan took a different amount of time because of the size and amount of batter, but it worked out great.  No nails, no core, no strips.  And they were pretty level.  To make more level, I always put a linen towel over the cake when it comes out and push down with even pressure...this levels the cake.  Then leave the towel on for 10 mins and remove.  I rarely have to level a cake.

If I didn't use a heating core my bigger cakes would take too long to bake at a low temperature.  

You put the nail in the cake before you pour the batter make sure you grease it just as generiously as you do your pan. That being said I used it once and it was awful will never do it again all I ended up with was a cake with a big center (and I made sure I leveled that batter the best I could before putting it in the oven) you could no longer see the nail so I had to trim off the top around the nail then try try to flip it to get the nail out.... I like the heating cores I use them on anything 12 or over. If yours didn't come with directions lol don't forget to grease them good inside and out and put batter in the inside. I forgot once and the baking cake just pushed the core right out lol oops ...once the cake is baked just pop out the core put the small piece of cake back in my layer then level no trouble at all. I also make sure I soak my baking strips very well in ice water before wrapping the pans which I wrap right before I put them in the oven. Its not near as much work as it sounds once you get used to it and it makes for a very moist and evenly baked cake. and definatly drop your temp to 325. That's my two cents lol

I use the heating core nails in larger cakes - 12" and above.  I use the Ateco heat core nails because they don't rust, and are perfectly flat on the bottom.  They are so easy to use, I just do it, and have not tried to see how it would work without them. I just can't bring myself to risk throwing away all the  time effort and money wrapped up in these bigger cakes.   I also use the bake even strips with my pans that are not double walled  (love those, can't find them anymore).  Here is an 18" hex cake I made this week.   Prepare the pan with your cake release of choice. Place a parchment cut to fit in the bottom of the pan.  Poke holes where you want the nails to be.  Place the nails (pointed side up of course) under the parchment with the ends poking up through.  This holds them in place, and after baking, they are very easily removed because the base is outside the paper.  I don't bother to grease the nails, it really isn't necessary.   HTH.  

A

I always use bake even strips, and I use heat core nails for cakes 12" and up.  Put the heat core nails in the pan after applying your cake release. (I like the ateco heat core nails.  They are flat on the bottom and don't rust. )  put a parchment liner on the bottom with the nails poking through.  pour in your batter.   For a larger cake (12" and above)  I lower the oven to 310 degrees, convection.  When the cake is done, and you flip it onto a cooling rack, it is easy to remove the nails because they are outside of the parchment.  Here is an 18"  chocolate hex cake I did a few days ago.  Level, and perfectly baked throughout.  It also helps to have a great recipe.  It is possible that the heat core nails don't really make a difference, but why take a chance with all those expensive ingredients!

If you don't have a heating core, you can substitute several greased and inverted flower nails.

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I made a 10" round this weekend and did not use a heating core or flower nails (don't own either one) and my cake turned out perfect (baked at 325 instead of 350 too).

AI tried using the nails once to see what all the fuss was about. Ditto a heating core. IMO, its just unnecessary silliness that overcomplicates getting the cake out of the pan. But I've only got 50 years of experience. . .

Does the 30 minutes at 300 and the rest at 325 method work for deep pans?  I need to bake a 12" cake and a 14" cake, both in 3" deep pans.

 also, I have found if you pour your batter and get it straight into the oven it doesn't crown as badly as when I let it sit a few minutes... I use the heating core, no problem, it just creates a bellybutton I can stick back in easily (grease inside and outside, well!); I make my own cake release: 1 c. veg oil, 1 c. shortening, 1 c. flour and mix well.... No need to grease and flour pans, just use a silicone brush and apply liberally to pan. Only let cake cool in pan 9-10 minutes, gently shake sides and invert on cooling rack to finish cooling