I made a 9x12x3 cake..used Duncan Hines boxed mix..made cake with the Cake Doctor recipe adding buttermilk and cocoa powder, eggs, oil etc.
Baked cake at 325..used a flower nail in the middle and used baking strips....cake baked fine until almost done..started cracking in the middle...when done and starting to cool..cake developed a huge sink hole in the middle! I decorated the cake and took it to the customer and didn't charge her...I didn't have time to make a new cake. Does anyone have any idea what might have caused the sink hole? Oven temp has been checked fine....
Cake troubleshooting charts:
http://tinyurl.com/2p5bdu
http://tinyurl.com/32goqe
HTH
Jan...thanks for the websites! After reading them I am thinking I beat the batter too long..I had no idea that you could beat a boxed cake mix too long! I have also been told that the cocoa powder may have been the culprit because of the leavening agents??
A while back there was a thread about DH mixes doing this. Try calling the company to complain, in the last thread people were given coupons for free mix... (I know mixes are cheap, but it can't hurt to call!)
Sifting your cake mixes really helps! I used to run my mixer for 3-5 minutes to get it silky smooth. Once I started sifting, I only have to run the mixer about one minute. Greatest tip I ever got from here on CC (except Melvira's method, of course!)
Sifting your cake mixes really helps! I used to run my mixer for 3-5 minutes to get it silky smooth. Once I started sifting, I only have to run the mixer about one minute. Greatest tip I ever got from here on CC (except Melvira's method, of course!)
Thanks for the tip!
Also, could anyone tell me why my cakes always tend to crack in the middle (especially the chocolate ones). I either use DH or BC cake mixes and it seems to happen quite often. I do use the flower nails and the strips as well when I bake them and I bake at 325 degrees. According to the link in this thread it is most likely due to overbeating but I follow the directions on the box and have used a hand mixer (I just got my KA so haven't tried it yet) and mix for 30 sec first and then an additional 2 minutes. Is this too long? Thanks! 
I consider directions on a box and recipes in general just a suggestion and rarely follow them to the letter! 
I use betty crocker .... I throw everything but the oil in the bowl and mix until just moist, then add the oil ... beat for a few seconds. The whole thing takes less than 2 minutes. Be sure to sift the cake mix.
The reason I add the oil last is because oil and water do not mix but oil and batter do. So I give the mix a chance to absorb the water so when the oil is added, it mixes in faster (ergo less beating time).
Jan...thanks for the websites! After reading them I am thinking I beat the batter too long..I had no idea that you could beat a boxed cake mix too long! I have also been told that the cocoa powder may have been the culprit because of the leavening agents??
adding cocoa powder and buttermilk really changes the acidity levels, requiring an adjustment with the leavening, usually soda...
the cracking sounds like a result of overbeating, but the sinking sounds like a result of the unbalanced leavening. the recipe didnt suggest that? what is your elevation? that can also play a role, but i am surprised the recipe didnt call for additional baking soda to make up for the change in acidity.
I consider directions on a box and recipes in general just a suggestion and rarely follow them to the letter!
I use betty crocker .... I throw everything but the oil in the bowl and mix until just moist, then add the oil ... beat for a few seconds. The whole thing takes less than 2 minutes. Be sure to sift the cake mix.
The reason I add the oil last is because oil and water do not mix but oil and batter do. So I give the mix a chance to absorb the water so when the oil is added, it mixes in faster (ergo less beating time).
Thanks Debi!
Melysa: I've heard that elevation can play a part in cake baking but how do compensate for this and how exactly does it effect the cake? I'm in Calgary, AB, Canada and we are 3440 feet above sea level.
Thanks!
http://www.suite101.com/article.cfm/cake_decorating/31903 i'm mainly a scratch baker, but i do recall that most boxes will say how to adjust the additions for high elevation. however, with the cmd recipes, they are likely developed for sea level (most recipes are) and so i'm not quite sure what changes should be made to the recipe. what was the exact instruction/ingredient measurements that the cmd called for with this cake?
Thanks everyone for your info! I took the recipe right out of the Cake Doctor...needless to say I am trying a new recipe and not beating the mix longer than 2 minutes! As far as elevation goes..I'm smack dab in the middle of the midwest..got me on elevation! 
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