Hello everybody,
I am struggling with the height of my cakes. To me they just look like some cakes that were baked at home (before filling and frosting). My cakes never rise to the edge of the cake pans and they never rise over the edge. What can I do to have taller cakes? I don't like to fill my cakes because when they are cut they look like pancakes with filling. BTW, I use box cake mix and I follow the instruction to the "T". Should I try a different temperature? Should I add something to the cakes to help them rise? My cakes are, in my opinion, are nice, on the outside (when filled and iced), but I think that they would be even nicer if I could have taller cakes. HELP ME PLEASE!!! 
Thank you all in advance.
No, I haven't tried the strips. I thought that they were only for helping the cakes cook evenly. I didn't know that they would help the height of the cakes. I will try the strips. I have used the flower nail and it did help the cake cook evenly. At this point, i am willing to do anything that will help. 
Thank you.
No, I haven't tried the strips. I thought that they were only for helping the cakes cook evenly. I didn't know that they would help the height of the cakes. Thank you.
The science behind the baking: The reason the baking strips help reduce doming is because they cause the cake to bake more evenly.
Metal is a conductor of heat. THe batter next to the metal will heat up and bake faster than the batter in the middle of the pan. Once the cake on the outer perimeter is baked, then the cake is set and not flexible. Because the cake has baked faster on the outer perimeter, the cake has not had a chance to rise to it's full potential, thus resulting in outer edges that are one to one-and-a-half inches tall.
In the meantime, the batter in the center is still baking and expanding, but since the sides of the cake have already set, then the cake has nowhere to go but up, thus creating the doming effect. The center of the cake is potentially 3 inches high or more.
The baking strips, when wet in cold water, help keep the metal pan a little cooler. Therefore the outer edge of the cake is not baking a lot faster than the center of the cake. The batter temperature on the outer edges is roughly the same as the batter temp in the middle of the cake. So the cake is baking at an even rate .... the sides are not baking and setting faster than the center of the cake ....the cake is rising at an even rate .... Thus even baking AND a nice side effect is reduced doming.
If you want tall cakes, you have to over fill the pans. indydeby just posted a thread on this and showed a picture of what her cakes look like. I fill mine a little under 3/4 of the way. They rise above the pan, but don't spill over.
Add bake even strips, and you'll be in business.
Stephanie
You need more cake mix. To fill an 8" cake pan you need 3 1/2 cups batter for one 2" layer. So for a 2 layer cake which is what most cakes are, you will need 2 mixes. 1 mix makes about 5 cups. You can fill an 8" pan up to 2/3rd full. I hope this helps. For an 8" I don't use a flower nail(only 10" or up), but baking strips are the best.
Also, the WASC and Cake Mix Extender here in the recipe section work Really well 
If you want tall cakes, you have to over fill the pans. indydeby just posted a thread on this and showed a picture of what her cakes look like. I fill mine a little under 3/4 of the way. They rise above the pan, but don't spill over.
Add bake even strips, and you'll be in business.
Stephanie
Do you have a link?
Ok, I use baking strips, my question is this...I seem to be losing the metal pins that come with them. Ive looked in stores, including Michaels and Hobby Lobby for them and cant find them.
Ive tried hardware departments also in stores like Walmart...any suggestions???
THANKS!!!
Ok, I use baking strips, my question is this...I seem to be losing the metal pins that come with them. Ive looked in stores, including Michaels and Hobby Lobby for them and cant find them.
Ive tried hardware departments also in stores like Walmart...any suggestions???
THANKS!!!
Office supply binder clips - the black ones. They work beautifully, and you don't stick your fingers in the pin ends. I use the large and X-large sizes.
Those are simply bent "T" pins... You should be able to find them in the sewing section. I have heard of people also using binder clips.
HTH,
Pat
I just bought my 3rd set of baking strips . . . . . LOVE them, never bake a cake without them. However, the first thing I do when I buy a new set of baking strips is throw away the pins that comes with them and use black binder clips you can get at an office supply store. I usually use 3-4 around the pan and it holds the strips in place much better than the pins.
B2B
Great idea to use the binder clips...I don't really like the T pins. Maybe now I might use my strips more. But really, I've found that using more batter and baking at 325 really yields me excellent results. My cakes rise high and level.
If I use mix I'll use 1 box for a 6" round. Other than that, I automatically use 1 mix or more PER PAN.
Here's my general breakdown:
6" round: 1 mix for 2 pans
8-9" round: 2 mixes (which comes out to 1 mix per pan)
10" round: 3 mixes (divide into pans evenly, which is 1 1/2 mix per pan)
7x11 sheet: 1 mix
9x13 sheet: 2 mixes
11x15: 3 mixes
12x18: 4 mixes
To me it seems like there used to be more batter to these boxes!
When I make a scratch cake, if the cake already yields enough for 3 layers, I'll just make 2 full layers. Otherwise, I double the recipe to be able to have more batter and use the leftovers for cupcakes.
I'm new... I've never heard of baking strips. What are they, and how do you use em?
The binder clips are a good idea. I just use metal paper clips and they work just fine. I was desperate one day and tried them. Walaa. Just another idea.
yup!baking strips is the way to go..i have had this problem before until i came across indydebi's thread(i would have to say thanks again indydebi 
) discussing the science of baking & even baking strips. i tried it & they work wonderfully. just like what smbegg said, i fill my pan almost 3/4 of the way, the cake comes out even & taller/higher than the pan w/o spilling.. ..try it you'll love it
bobbie
I'm new... I've never heard of baking strips. What are they, and how do you use em?
The science behind the baking: The reason the baking strips help reduce doming is because they cause the cake to bake more evenly.
Metal is a conductor of heat. THe batter next to the metal will heat up and bake faster than the batter in the middle of the pan. Once the cake on the outer perimeter is baked, then the cake is set and not flexible. Because the cake has baked faster on the outer perimeter, the cake has not had a chance to rise to it's full potential, thus resulting in outer edges that are one to one-and-a-half inches tall.
In the meantime, the batter in the center is still baking and expanding, but since the sides of the cake have already set, then the cake has nowhere to go but up, thus creating the doming effect. The center of the cake is potentially 3 inches high or more.
The baking strips, when wet in cold water, help keep the metal pan a little cooler. Therefore the outer edge of the cake is not baking a lot faster than the center of the cake. The batter temperature on the outer edges is roughly the same as the batter temp in the middle of the cake. So the cake is baking at an even rate .... the sides are not baking and setting faster than the center of the cake ....the cake is rising at an even rate .... Thus even baking AND a nice side effect is reduced doming.
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