I bought the download a couple weeks ago and FINALLY got a chance to use it today.

I weighed out my batter into my pans and they still sunk on the first try...just a little, so still salvageable.

I was using 3" pans but only put in the amount of batter for the 2" pans she uses.  

The weights didn't work out for me.  The recipe gives the full weight of the batter.  So I added up the amount for a 6" and 8" and there should have been a little left over.  I actually came in under the weight of one of the pans and my batter was gone...On another note, my math could be wrong.  I stink at it!  Hopefully I didn't forget something...

Second time I did a little less batter, didn't weigh it, and it was perfect.  I had some extra and made a couple of 4" pans...I really, really tried to wait and eat it after I froze it.  Ate it warm and it seems pretty good!

I was very awkward with the mixing method just because my brain is so trained on the regular creaming method.  I felt like a fish out of water that never baked before!

Anyway, my questions are:

1)  Cake was pretty tender when warm, of course...does it hold up to fondant well once it's cured?  I'm guessing YES, but wanted to check.

2)  Can you double this recipe for a large mixer?

TIA

I have doubled the recipe... specifically when I made the chocolate and peanut butter versions... It doubles fine...

I haven't covered it in fondant yet, so I wouldn't know...

AI'm wondering if the weights given are for round cakes. I'm baking her French vanilla today in a 12" square, I'm hoping the weights Jen gave will be enough to produce a baked 2" high cake.

She states in her recipe that she only uses round pans... so the measurements and weights are for round pans...

AHaven't made the recipe, but knowing the recipe author, and what she makes, I can safely say that yes, it's fine for fondant. With the exception of my chocolate cake, nearly all of my cakes are soft and fluffy when they're right out of the oven.

A

Did you use the chocolate version of Beyond Buttercream recipe? Is it really chocolately? I'm going to make a chocolate cake but I'm thinking of either using this version or the Hershey Perfectly Chocolate Cake. Would appreciate your input. Thanks!

AI made the chocolate this past weekend and it's divine! I added more water to the cocoa then stated and I also added it when I initially mixed ingredients, not with the eggs. It's quite possibly the best chocolate cake I've had. I always make cupcakes so I can't comment on the pan sizes.

For the chocolate version I added enough water to make a paste... I dont know how much off hand...

I used a combination of black cocoa powder and regular cocoa powder... Its what I had on hand...

It was very very delicious and dark and chocolaty...

Hello!  Just @ me and I'll pop over on any question :D

There was a typo that I just recently figured out - I kept thinking, "but it works fine for me!".  Yeah, I realized for the chocolate version I stated "2 TSP" hot water, it should be 2 OUNCES of water!  OOPS.  It should be a somewhat thick paste that easily blends into the eggs with no chunks.

Yes, it's fine under fondant.

How chocolate-y a cake gets really does depend on what chocolate you use, the ratio of cocoa alcohol content it has, and if it blooms.  I use a 72% bittersweet dutch process that once bloomed, is very rich.  Lots of people like Hershy's special dark.  

Others can make a chocolate cake that does not bloom the chocolate but use either of those cocoas and claim the cake isn't chocolate'y enough.  

Anyway it totally depends on you.

AHas anyone tried the strawberry version? I've made it three times with fresh, frozen and organic berries and just can't taste the berries. Are there any tips or suggestions I'm missing? I would really appreciate a little help. Thanks!:-)

I have made the strawberry version a few times and I always get great reviews but I put it with a strawberry buttercream so maybe that helps.

Ahello! The problem with using fresh berries is the taste is only as strong as the product you are working with. strawberries are just now finally coming into season in California, but they still are pretty flavorless. if you eat a fresh strawberry and you think wow that tasted mostly like water or has that weird sour a taste, putting it in a cake isn't going to make your cake taste any better.

AThank you for the replies! I had read that the berries aren't as flavorful as they once were because of genetic engineering. They are bigger but the taste isn't there. Strawberries will be in season here in a few more weeks. I'm planning on hitting the u-pick fields and freezing as much as possible. I'm excited to try the cake again without store bought berries. Gonna fill with strawberry SMBC...sounds awesome! Jen, love your recipe...you're a rockstar in my world! :)

APlease let me know how is the recipes I just fine the book on etsy I'm interesting to buy it. Etsy is the only place that I can buy it?

AI just wanted to say that I just got the recipe for Mother's Day, and it was the best present. I made an ombré cake with it this week, using her weight instructions, then halving them to get one inch layers. They rose beautifully. The 7" high cake stayed very level on a 45 min drive, and held a 6" cake for 3 hours. The vanilla version is so good my family was eating it plain.

ASo far I've made the all-white, all yolk, 3 whole eggs, cupcakes, coconut and french vanilla. The more I make this recipe the better I get at it. I've learnt that it's easy to undercook. The toothepick can come out clean, but if it's still looking sticky on top it needs longer. Also don't be lazy and use cold ingredients. I did this last time because I was in a hurry. I had to beat my batter longer to get the ingredients to combine properly, resulting in cupcakes with tunnels. Next time I want to try the marbled but with orange flavouring in the yellow component, sort of like a jaffa or 'tiger stripes' cake. I think my kids will love it!

I know it's been a while. I would like to know how did your 12"  round cake turn out?  How high is cake and how many recipe did you use for 12 " ? Thanks :)

I see this is an older post but just wondering - those who made cupcakes from the chocolate version how did they come out as cupcakes? Any tips? Oven temp the same? How far did you fill the liners? Thanks!

I have made cupcakes from many of the versions... 

I start with the oven temp at 375 when I put them in and for 5 minutes... then I turn it down to 325 for the rest of the baking time...

I fill the liners about halfway... I find that they rise enough to finish filling my papers...

The cupcakes are still rather flat though... but I don't particularly like them to dome...

Thank you AAtKT. I don't want the domes either for what I want to do with the tops. :)  About how many did you get from one recipe?

Has anyone else had a problem with this recipe rising high over the pan on the side but leaving a slight indentation in the middle? I wanted to rise high on the sides and in the middle so I can level it straight in the pan and get an exact 2 inch cake. I love the taste in crumbof this cake but I need the rising to work for me! I've tried everything I know to do but I can't get it to work the way the pictures are in the book. I've made the White (several times) the yellow and the chocolate and it turns out the same each time. It works out ok in the end but it's frustrating. 

@cupcakemama3-

I also have tried the recipe a few times and can't quite get it right. It taste pretty good though. I weighed my batter in the pans and used the amounts given, it was too much. I use 2" pans. Then I put less in the pans, and it didn't overflow, but it just wasn't how I wanted it. I also think it was under baked. My toothpick came out clean, but it was a little sunken in the middle, which other posters were saying it looked under baked. Then the cake would stick to the pan, which I had never had a problem before with other recipes. I finally bought some parchment circles (I am too lazy to cut them myself) and tried that. I did get better results. I let the cakes cool for 15ish minutes, but maybe that wasn't long enough because the pans still felt real hot. I don't know. I gave up on the recipe for now, and will come back to it sometime in the future. I am sure I am just doing something wrong or different than what needs to be done. So many people have success with the recipe. Oh I forgot to add, I have only made the whole egg version, if that makes a difference.

I truthfully never count how many cupcakes I get when I make it since I never only make one recipe when I do make it... Sorry...

I do not have problems with the recipe sticking in my cake pan either... 

I have tried the egg white, whole, and yolk only versions in both basic vanilla and chocolate... some of the other variations I have done with only whole eggs... I basically like them all... but we do each have our own tastes...

@FromScratchSF  

Any help or suggestions for cakemama21 and myself?

Do you use shiny metal pans or dark pans? Do you use the magic strips?  Those silver strips around the edge that help it rise more evenly?  It kind of sounds like your pans are getting too hot on the outside to me  as for the sticking, I used a low quality spray one time, and may cake stuck, even with the parchment.  But Pam or the baking spray with the flour mixed in(brand name, not generic) have never given me trouble.  You might also check to see if your oven temp is off, or it could be cycling on and off too much if the sensor went bad 

Cakemom21, it definitely sounds under baked, if it sunk in the middle. But I'm not sure what issues you're having beyond that? Why is it not the way you want it? 

Cakes take a long time to cool. Did you set your pan on top of the oven? Or did you set it away from the oven, somewhere cooler?

I used this recipe about a dozen times. I found it had a number of problems.

The indentation in the center so confounded me I actually photographed several of the cakes I baked to use as reference as I researched cause and cure. I found the issue was too much leavening.

 I too had issues with a very high rise on the edges, and indentation in the center. Again it was a leavening issue. The excessive leavening caused the cake to peak in the oven, then sink as it cooled.

Another issue was uneven air bubbles and coarse crumb; cause too much leavening and uneven distribution of leavening.  The dry ingredients really need to be sifted,not whisked.

wet crust, aftertaste, sticking to pan that was sprayed, parchment, and lightly floured.  By the time I analyzed, researched, tested, and retested fixes, I had a whole new recipe.   On the plus side I learned to never waste ingredients and time on a recipe without analyzing it first.  

@Norcalhiker  what did you do to fix the leavening? I thought about decreasing the baking powder. It seems like way too much to me and my opinion. But I haven't gotten a chance to try that. So glad to know someone else has had the same problem. I have been going crazy with this. I baked a different white cake the other day from scratch and it turned out perfect so I know its not me. 

Cupcakemama3, I converted the recipe to metric after the 3rd or 4th try since metric is more accurate.  So I have to reconstruct from my notes. 

I believe the original recipe called for 3 1/2 teaspoons baking powder and 5/8 teaspoon baking soda.

I used

1 1/2 tsp (8g) baking powder

5/8 tsp (3g) baking soda.

baking powder = baking soda + acid salt + cornstarch

in the US baking powder is double acting.  The first chemical reaction happens when baking powder comes in contact with moisture.  The second chemical reaction occurs when it's subjected to heat.  When there is too much baking powder, the batter will rise too quickly (peak in the oven) then fall.  I thought a reduction in baking powder would better control the overall rise.

and too I thought the baking soda amount was right at 5/8 (3g) for a two-step method batter.  Baking soda requires an acid for the chemical reaction.  There was certainly plenty of acid between the sour cream and buttermilk to activate the baking soda.  In fact, I thought there was too much (which I believe is cause of the wet crust to form) so I reduced the sour cream.  If I remember the original recipe was whopping 8 oz (227g)!   I reduced it by 25% (6oz or 170g).  

To be perfectly honest I ended up changing everything...I changed the flour to a blend of organic low protein AP and pastry.  I changed the amount of egg whites. I changed the amount of butter.  I think the only think I saved was the fat concept of butter, buttermilk, and sour cream.  I even changed to the sheet cake method with a 375 bake.  I can get a cake mixed, poured, in and out of the oven in 29 mins.  Now that's my idea of cookin:)