Please Help Why Did This Cake Shrink So Much!

Decorating By deijha Updated 12 May 2006 , 4:37pm by deijha

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deijha Posted 6 May 2006 , 12:54pm
post #1 of 7

Sorry this might be a little long, but Im hoping someone can tell me why this shrank! So I tried a flower pot cake. I found a clay pot at Walmart with the rim on the inside, which was talked about in another post about how to make the rim on the cake like a flower pot on the outside of it. Doug suggested making a mold of tin foil and try that. Well I made the mold but then found this pot so decided to do that. Ok I used DH cake mix with extender and 1 box of pudding, extra egg. It took it 1 hour and 45 minutes to bake but it did well it rose and was just domed over the top of the pot. I took it out and let it sit for a little under 10 minutes then went to turn it out. And it had shrunk to almost below the rim. WHY DID IT SHRINK? It is about half the size it was when I took it out of the oven. I have never had a cake shrink like that. I tried to get the picture to show the size of the pot and the cake to compare. I hope you can see it ok. Its a bit crooked, I think I didnt have my tin foil flat on one side, but I can fix that. I cut off the dome to flatten the top. It did pick up the rim which is what I wanted to see it do. Hopefully someone will have an idea. Thanks guys
Jeanne
LL
LL

6 replies
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jguilbeau Posted 6 May 2006 , 1:00pm
post #2 of 7

I am not positive, but I had heard if you over whip/stir your cake batter, it could cause a lot of air. Air would cause the cake to fall.

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deijha Posted 6 May 2006 , 2:09pm
post #3 of 7

Thanks jguilbeau, I didn't over beat it. The cake didn't fall it shrank. Like putting a shirt in a dryer and it comes out one size smaller. But thanks for the input. Maybe someoe else has another idea? I am waiting.

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talking_head Posted 9 May 2006 , 5:57pm
post #4 of 7

I had a similar problem.. but with a much smaller container.. a soup can. I tihnk it has to do with the fact that its more vertical than horizontal and the cake rises too fast in the oven and when you take it out, the trapped air escapes causing it to fall. Atleast thats my theory and I could be wrong. You can try baking the cake in two sections to reduce the height. This is easier with soup cans, just use tuna cans, for a flower pot, you might have to put in a fake base or smething to get the rim or add one later on made of fondant.

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spottydog Posted 10 May 2006 , 5:17pm
post #5 of 7

I have that problem when I add pudding for some reason. It has consistantly happened to me.Very fustrating!!!

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NEWTODECORATING Posted 10 May 2006 , 5:19pm
post #6 of 7

I am sorry I really don't have an answer for you except to say I did the same thing last month. I soaked my pot for 1 1/2 hours in water first, so it wouldn't dry out and crack. I used 1 1/2 cake mixes and laid a metal cloths hanger over the top of the pot. I balanced my heating core in the center of the pot with it, and filled it 2/3 with cake batter to plug the whole when I took the heating core out. It came out ok and no shrinking. Maybe a heating core would help you. I hope someone else has a better answer for you.
Kimberly

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deijha Posted 12 May 2006 , 4:37pm
post #7 of 7

Thanks you guys, I didn't use a heating core, I don't have one. I usually use a rose nail, I did use pudding in the cake, but I always do and have never had this problem before. I am wondering about the trapped air. This was the first time I have tried this, so maybe I need to do it again, practice pratice like always. But thanks for everyones opinion it helps a lot.

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