I am using fromscratchsf's white cake recipe. I need 4  9x13x2 in cakes.

Does anyone know how many cups of batter this recipe yields? (I keep forgetting to measure it out when I make it.)

How many cups of batter do I need to make my 9x13 cake 2" high??

I have found a few charts, but they are conflicting and that's confusing me... lol

while it's about 7 cups of batter for a 9x13 x2" the point is the conflicting charts

i could tell you what i would do but everyone does it a bit different

i'm not being difficult--there just is no perfect answer

depends on your pan and the oven temp and variables like humidity

often corners bake faster so they are shorter than the middle

you could use bake even strips for that

tons of variables

So, provided the other variables are all right, 7 cups of batter should produce a 9x13x2 cake? I saw one chart that said I needed 12 cups. Which would make the cost of making the cake ridiculously expensive!

it's an educated guess http://www.wilton.com/cakes/making-cakes/baking-party-cake-2-inch-pans.cfm

i might use more batter so after baking i could trim the cake down to have the two full inches everywhere

but you can't overload your pans either

the corners are the biggies

it depends on how it looks when i put it in the pan

if it's a nice thick batter i push the batter up into the corners away from the middle

the heat will take care of leveling it backout

you can use a flower nail in the middle placed upside down so it helps heat the inside

Kiras~~In my experience, it depends on the recipe.  I've used a chocolate cake recipe with a huge amount of rise while baking, then it contracts a lot while cooling.  There is a wonderful pumpkin spice recipe that needs about 1/3 MORE batter than other recipes to get a full 2" cake because it has very little rise. 

I use the "amount of batter" charts as a guideline, not a Bible.  The charts will give you an idea of how much is needed, but depending on a LOT of variables, you may need more or less.  Best thing to do is just keep track of your most used recipes, then you'll have your own chart that works for you.

Charts conflict because recipes do :) Different recipes will bake up differently.
I have never used that recipe, but my own recipes range from 8-11 cups for that size pan, I would suggest just filling the pans 2/3rds full, but measure it while you do it.

AI made a handy guide for myself. It won't help the first time you bake but it will help all future baking.

I got a paint stir stil from Home Depot. I measured & makes 1" from the bottom. I fill the cake pans to the line. Works every time. Of course you will need to adjust if you are baking different than 2" cakes.

As I came across each pan, I noted how many cups of each kind of batter I need. Took some time, but now there's no guessing.

Thank you all so much! I do understand how different cakes rise differently and what not. I have heard about the flower nail technique... Do i need to spray the nail or just stick it in the center of the batter? And which way do I put in in?

I also like the idea of using the paint stick to guage how high your batter is in the pan. I've never been good at eyeballing measurements.

If I fill the pan 2/3 of the way, that would be about 1.3 in. I'm pretty confident this recipe rises at least .7". I will definitely try that. I can afford for it to bake too high, I can trim that. But I can't afford for it to fall short....

Again, Thank all of you so so much!

Update: The fromscratchsf white cake recipe yields 9 cups when doubled. I put 7 cups of batter in my 9x13x2 pan and I have a perfect 1/4 sheet cake!!

I couldn't find my flower nail and forgot to check for bake even strips when I went to the supply store. But all turned out beautifully!

One down, 3 more to go....