I never had this happen before...

Love the texture more than the other version and would like to stick with it, but when I leveled, I could see holes throughout the cake??

Air bubbles while it bakes. I use the same recipe what I do is beat a bit less and when the pan s filled I bang it on the counter a few times..this gets air bubbles out and gives a more even distribution for more even tops!
HTH

Yes, you can drop the pan on your counter a few times (until the bubbles stop coming up). Usually when there are lots of holes in the cake it means the batter was too thick. Try adding just a bit more liquid is the 'banging' doesn't do it.

I have no idea about mix cakes, but large air bubbles generally occur when you don't sift flour. Sifting allows the leavening agent (baking soda/powder) to mix more evenly among the flour particles. If the leavening, whatever it is in your recipe, clumps together rather than spreading out, it will join forces and create fewer large bubbles, not lots of tiny bubbles as it should.

I get air bubbles sometimes when I mix by hand. No problems when I use a mixer... My cakes are denser with hand mixing too.

Thanks very much...this was a practice cake, so I'll definitely try these tips for the real one.

Overmixing can also cause this... it's called tunneling... it happens a lot with quickbreads, but isn't uncommon with baked goods made from a mix if they are overmixed too.

That's interesting because I actually did mix it longer than I normally would.
I was following the instructions to the letter...30 seconds on low, 2 minutes on medium...since it was my first time making it.

That doesn't sound extreme to me though.

I used a stand mixer (KA)...great links, thanks!

These are great links. Thanks, JanH!

I have had problems with holes in my cakes for the past couple of years. I have used different mixers, different speeds, different beating times. I always drop my cakes on the counter or the floor to get the bubbles to the top, but there seem to be an UNending supply of air bubbles and I still have them coming up during the baking time ... I break them as the cake is baking and still have them in my finished products.

My only cake that doesn't have that problem is Epicurious.com's Double Chocolate Layer Cake. It is a really thin batter ... maybe I need to add more liquid to my cakes, but I am a firm believer in 'following the recipe' ...

I've almost resorted to NOT baking, but that certainly won't work!

I will be following this thread ...

This info is very helpful, thank you. just made a pound cake that taste great but have the holes. thinking two possible reasons. 1. oven may have been to hot. 2.Too much flour. learning how to decrease recipe sizes. Recipe was for 9" cake but that too much cake so I decrease the recipe by 25% to make a 6" cake. Also may have to decrease or eliminate bp. Having fun learning.

Was it Betty Crocker? I find that ones makes a lot of holes.

No it's a scratch cake