Hi - I have an order for a 15 x 11" vanilla sheet cake. I don't normally make sheet cakes and I'm wondering if you can share a great recipe with me (or recommend one from the recipe section)?

I only make scratch recipes......any help would be appreciated!

Hi Robster,

My first question would be to ask if you already have a recipe you like? If you do, why would it not work? I too am not used to sheetcakes, but because of charity work, I have had to learn. So far my recipes have worked. Scratch only for me too. I got help on CC and this is what I learned:

Cut the temp down by about 25 degrees, or the equivalent.

Use baking strips and parchment.

I use two flower nails.

I did have some trouble getting my red velvet to cooperate but I think that is because it is a more liquid batter, and I was making a taller cake than I did in the smaller pans.

So if you do have great recipes, I think you would be happier trying to adapt them. If not, I will be happy to share. You can pm me or I will probably see the post.

I use the strips wet with cold water to slow down the baking on the edges, allowing the middle to catch up.

I use the nails circle down 1/3 from each short edge each in the middle.

These heating cores are good:

http://www.pastrychef.com/HEATING-CORES_p_1992.html

Thanks SCP for the advice. Needed it for my sister, who has requests for sheet cakes.

It hasn't been easy to learn and I have made more mistakes with larger cakes than any other baking experiment, especially red velvet. If I bake two layers, the cake colors are hard to match because of the long baking time. A few minutes changes the hue... not good on a layer cake, even if it is a sheet.

I underbaked centers/overbaked edges on about 5 cakes until I got the temp/nail/strip down correctly. So do give yourself time to rebake if it's your first attempt. But once you get it, you get it.

Yay! Made my first 1/2 sheet cake. 2 bake even strips, 2 flower nails and 325 degrees. Perfection!

Glad to hear it.