How Do I Know 11 X 15 Cake Is Done?
Decorating By notjustcake Updated 13 Apr 2007 , 8:14pm by starkissdtears
ok baked these suckers last night. I used two flower nails on one an two on the other I baked them seperately at 325 for a really long time. guessing 45 minutes I added a few minutes at the end until my knife came out clean then I took them out. I let them cool overnight and got them out of the pan this morning and the nails made a bit of a hole in them cause they moved when I flipped the cake, on some parts of it feels very spongy and some parts very moisty like the center where the nail was. the bottom and tops of the cake were brown and on one of the cakes on one of the sides it was kinda crumbywhen I trimme the top off. Is this right or should I make it all over again? How would I know if it's done if I can't cut into the midle?
smell
looks: no jiggle in the middle, golden brown, nicely risen, sides just pulling away from pan
touch: springs back when pressed
toothpick: comes out clean (method many use instead of knife -- I only use knife on custard based pie/quiche)
as for flower nails -- turn out onto cooling rack not board -- nail will go through spaces and not tear cake.
thanks for the flower nail tip Doug I didn't use my cooling racks because I was afrai the cake would break!!!
I'm not sure why you wouldn't use your cooling racks, but if you're that concerned, you can put a sheet of parchment between the cake the cooling rack.
Don't use metal implements to test your cake. They're more likely to give a false positive because the crumbs just slide off. Use a toothpick or bamboo skewer and test in several places. If the top of the cake has browned, i.e. crusted, make sure you slightly widen the hole you're testing, otherwise the crusty top may 'clean off' your skewer as you pull it out of the cake, giving an inaccurate reading.
IMO, 45 minutes is not long enough. In any event, I don't go by time. I just bake it until it's done. Even if I have to test it several times.
At the bakery we do large cakes all the time a couple weeks ago did a 16x3 round (two of em actually) We have an oven that is huge. I don't use the heating core in them either. But to tell when it's done, I touch the top and if it doesn't make a bubbly popping sound (kinda like little hissy pops) and the top springs back then it's done. If I waited for the sides to pull away it would be overdone.
Ok so it looks like it's done except for some parts it feels a little more moist could it be because it's butter cake? I don't know if I should start over?
is it doughy in the middle or just moister than the sides? It just might actually be done....actually. Does it crumble apart? Is it sunken in the middle? Does it taste ok? It could very well be that the recipe is just that way, a very moist cake. If it's not sunken inthe middle and tastes ok I would just frost it n go (frosting hides a multitude of flubs). If it's still doughy then(well yeah) it isn't done. But I didn't get that from the post. Just that is seems to be overdone on the sides and just done in the middle. You might just have to live with that n call it good.
I do 11x15's almost once a week, and I use the flower nails. I bake mine at 325 for 37-40 min. You can tell if a cake is done by putting a toothpick in the middle. If it comes out clean or with just a crumb or two it is done. A cake will also pull away from the sides when it is done. Even after you take a cake out of the oven it will continue cooking on the inside for a couple minutes after. I don't understand your problem with the flower nails. They always leave small holes in the cake, but nothing icing won't cover. Your cakes should be fine if your knife came out clean.
I'm not sure why you wouldn't use your cooling racks, but if you're that concerned, you can put a sheet of parchment between the cake the cooling rack.
Don't use metal implements to test your cake. They're more likely to give a false positive because the crumbs just slide off. Use a toothpick or bamboo skewer and test in several places. If the top of the cake has browned, i.e. crusted, make sure you slightly widen the hole you're testing, otherwise the crusty top may 'clean off' your skewer as you pull it out of the cake, giving an inaccurate reading.
IMO, 45 minutes is not long enough. In any event, I don't go by time. I just bake it until it's done. Even if I have to test it several times.
When I don't have toothpicks I have used uncooked spaghetti noodles. It seems to do the same thing. Works great for me. 
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