My Dear CC Friends - I turn to you for help!! I am making a birthday cake for my cousin's baby's first birthday party. It is a 2 tier cake with the bottom tier being 12" - 3" deep and it is a marble chocolate chip and the top cake being a 6" - 3" deep pan and it is to be a white chocolate cake. Once decorated, the top cake is supposed to look like a mini birthday cake sitting on top of the larger cake. Anyway, I thought baking a 6" cake would be a breeze, since it is a small pan, but it is giving me the worst problems. The cake is a white chocolate pound cake recipe and I am not sure if the recipe is just too thick for the pan, because it take a very long time to bake and then when it is almost done, it starts to sink in the center (which to be honest, is not too bad, because I can still work with it, but would prefer it not to sink). I am using a baking core strip to so that my top does not get a dome, but the only strip I have is for larger cakes so I have to wrap it around twice around my little pan. I am thinking that is the reason why the cake is rising so fast in the middle when it is baking and the sinking in. What do you guys think? I am also thinking of trying using a wet kitchen towel for wrapping around the little pan so that I can avoid the overlapping and see what happens. Any ideas/suggestions?? PLEASE HELP!!
Do I just lay the flower nail with the pointy part sticking up right in the center of the pan? Do I pour in the batter and then put in the nail or do I place the nail in the pan and then pour in the batter? And in using the nail, will I not have a hole in the center of my cake?
I am having the same problem at this very moment. I have two white cakes in the oven - Wilton 8" pans - 3" deep. I put one full cake mix in each pan and thought that would work as it only filled the pans about 2/3 full each. I wanted to try a few different ways to bake these to see if the turned out differently. In the first pan I used parchment paper on the bottom and easy bake spray in the pan. No flower nail. In the second pan, I used easy bake spray with no parchment paper and a flower nail. Well, they have been in about 10 minutes past the baking time and the center is still not done on either cake. The one without the nail is cooking better than the one with the nail. Both are sinking in the middle, with the one with the flower nail being worse.
I'm confused. Any suggestions???
I'm beginning to think so!! I'd love to hear from people who have absolutely no problems with baking 3" cakes (is there such a thing as no problems? LOL). I'm going to buy some baking strips when I go to Michaels for the sale on Sunday and Monday. Maybe that's what I REALLY need.
I love the 3" pans, but when I first started using them it seemed to take FOREVER!!! I reduce my temp to 325 and use a flower nail.
Auntsushi - I always use a full mix (I use Betty Crocker) in the 8" x 3" pans. I don't have a clue exactly how long it usually takes but just leave it in a while longer and it should get done.
Moralna,
What recipe are you using? I have tried the cake mix doctor's white chocolate pound cake and it sinks in the middle EVERY TIME! I have tried this recipe about a dozen times and every time I do it sinks in the middle, as well as other wierd things happening to me. Just wondering if you were using the same recipe. 
Diana
I think the recipe is part of the problem. White chocolate is very heavy because of the fat content. Not the best choice for a 6" x 3". Yes, lower your temp and try the flower nail. Be sure to grease the nail. I use parchment paper on the bottom. Stick the nail through the parchment paper, with the flat part under the parchment. Be sure to grease the nail and the parchment paper. This keeps it from making a mark. You will just have a very small hole in the center.
Tiffysma - thanks so much (and to everyone else); I think what I will also do is cut the amount of white chocolate that I am using, because the recipe is for a larger pan and I think that might help as well.
Now that I have you all on the line, I would like to ask another question (and please forgive the temporary change of subject) -- I am also covering my cakes in MMF and have had a batch for about a month; it was originally wrapped with a good coating of Crisco, triple wrapped in plastic wrap and placed in a dark, cool place. Do you think that it is still good to use or should I make a fresh batch.
Yes, I bake all of my cakes (including cupcakes) at 325.
I did buy the bake-even strips years ago, tried them once, and now they are packed away somewhere in a box of non-successful cake items! I absolutely hated them. Since I found out about the flower-nail trick I have never had another problem.
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