Sheet Cakes...1 Or 2 Layers?

Decorating By kteacher027 Updated 28 Aug 2008 , 6:40pm by kteacher027

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kteacher027 Posted 28 Aug 2008 , 1:51pm
post #1 of 8

This may be a silly question...but when you all make sheet cakes (two 9"x13" size..side by side)...do you make 1 or 2 layers for the sheet cake? I'm doing 2 flavors. Just would like advice. People are starting to ask me to make them cakes...and I'm excited. Also about how much do you charge? I'm new to all this...but have taken 3 courses and LOVE IT. I absolutely am addicted to this site as well icon_biggrin.gif

Thanks!
Kelly

7 replies
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jammjenks Posted 28 Aug 2008 , 2:03pm
post #2 of 8

I always do one layer for sheet cakes, but you'll find mixed answers there. Lots of people do two layers. It would really come down to how much your customer needed and how they wanted it.

As for pricing, that is a very gray area. Lots of things, such as overhead, ingredients costs, time involved, local competition, etc., factor in to pricing. What you need to determine is how much you want to charge per serving and multiply that. Some people charge only $1 while others charge $4 and up. A good place to start is to check around with local bakeries and see how much they charge for comparable cakes. A word to the wise is to not sell yourself short from the beginning. It is difficult to raise prices after you have a good client base started.

Good luck and congrats on getting these orders!

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charleezgal Posted 28 Aug 2008 , 2:06pm
post #3 of 8

I'm learning that there are no silly cake questions. It's a process that everyone has to go through........including me!

I collar the inside of my pans and ad 1/2 recipe more of cake batter (I make mine all by scratch) to get it to rise fully to the top, and then it is a nice 2" tall cake. If I don't collar it, and it is "short", then I may stack two of them to equal a decent high cake.

I use real butter, all natural ingredients, organic sugar and flour etc. I cater to customers that frequent healthfood stores and charge $29.00 for one single layer fully decorated 9x13.

I'm new too. I love CC and all the help they haven given me.

I hope this helps you a bit. thumbs_up.gif

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chefbarbie0513 Posted 28 Aug 2008 , 2:26pm
post #4 of 8

Hello Charleezgal, How do you collar your pans??

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charleezgal Posted 28 Aug 2008 , 2:36pm
post #5 of 8

Hello,

I don't have any of the wilton collars yet, so I make my own using parchment paper. I cut strips of parchment that are just a little taller than my pan. Then I tape them togther and put them on the inside edges of the pan. They tend to want to fall down, so I use a dot of icing or butter here and there to make them stick. Once you pour in your batter, they stand up just fine. You will see that your cake rises above the rim of your pan and the parchment acts like a taller pan for you. It's great.

You can then level your cakes easily right in the pan to the right height.

I think I saw on CC a tutorial for collaring your pans this way. Do a search on collaring pans and see what you get. I hope this helps you.

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CarolAnn Posted 28 Aug 2008 , 2:38pm
post #6 of 8

In the last couple years I've been doing layered sheets. By that I mean tort and filled, where I bake a nice high cake, split it thru the middle for two thin layers then fill and ice. I HAVE made two layer sheets, using two separately baked sheet cakes, but I to me they are too high and look disproportionate and unprofessional.

When I sell a tort and filled sheet cake it is usually to be cut in wedding or party servings and not in square sheet cake servings. It makes enough difference that a 1" x 2-3" slice makes a very nice size serving, not to mention a pretty one. I charge $10 more to tort and fill sheets of any size. If you're going to t&f or stack sheets you want to make sure you level very carefully. Have fun!

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chefbarbie0513 Posted 28 Aug 2008 , 3:02pm
post #7 of 8

Thanks I will do that search

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kteacher027 Posted 28 Aug 2008 , 6:40pm
post #8 of 8

Thank you all for your input. I think I might of sold myself a little short for this one...but it is my first customer. I will definately take into consideration your advice on pricing. I never heard of collaring, so thank you for the explaination. I hope to try a tort one day as well.

Thanks all! Happy Baking icon_biggrin.gif
Kelly

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