I need to make a castle cake and looking at my various pans I figured the quickest thing for me is to bake a 12x18 sheet cake and cut/stack instead of baking several layers of smaller cakes.

I have never used my 12x18 pan before so I consulted the Wilton batter chart, which makes me a little confused. It says I need 14 cups of batter, which according to their website is the equivalent of approx 3 cake mixes. Is that right?

I don't use cake mixes but most of the scratch recipes I use are about the same amount as one mix.

Also when you bake such a big sheet I assume it is good to throw in a few flower nails. How many would you put in? 2 or 4?

I use 3 cake mixes for a 12x18. Be sure and post pics of your cake!

I think there's around 5 cups of batter in a cake mix. So that makes sense. That would be about 15 cups. Obviously, different brands are going to differ slightly in the amount that the box yields.

I use 3 cake mixes in my 12x18x3 pan so I think you're on track for the amount of batter. I use 2 flower nails and it works out fine, but more wouldn't hurt either.

I scratch bake and my chocolate recipe needs 2 for the pan but my vanilla cake needs 2 1/2 recipes so I make 3 and then make cupcakes.

Thank you all for your most helpful replies. I bought a whole load of huge cake pans when I first started decorating, but I have barely used any of them. So good advice to new cakers- don't buy the big pans unless you know you really need them. I even I have one (16x16") that I discovered today won't even fit into my oven - DOH!

Oh, I think a new oven would be the more sensible option rather than selling my cake pan, don't you think. Selling it would be admitting defeat! I am sure my hubby will completely agree with me - or maybe not, hm.

Wow, Bakinggirl...you are right! I never thought of seeing if my 16x16 will fit into my oven. I have had it since April, and never used it. Better check. If not, we can sell the PAIR of them on e-bay!!

You know, I have seen the advice a million times here on CC to check if your pans will check the oven, it never even occurred to me that would be a problem in my oven. I consider my oven quite big, but it is a fan assisted oven so where the fan part is in the back it is a bit shallower. So I could fit the pan in, but only at the very top or very bottom of my oven. Burnt top cake anyone?

If yours does not fit either we have to come up with a creative use for two 16" pans, got to be able to build something out of all that aluminium.

That's funny because my husband is in the process of building an outdoor kitchen for my cake obsession. When I went to look for an oven I brought a 16" cake pan with me because my regular oven only holds a 14" and its a tight fit.

I always use cake mixes and I use 3 for the 12x18

You have a nice husband pattigunter! Mind if I borrow him for a bit, would not mind converting my outdoor workshop into a cake shop? And if I do, I will make sure I get a bigger oven! Which oven did you get, out of curiosity?

I've only used my 16X16 once (okay, twice if you count that it was a 2 layer cake). It just fit into my oven - I think it was touching the door! But at least it did fit. Now, if only someone would make a 16X16 cooling rack!!

I'm hoping to convert my laundry room into a 2nd kitchen. It's quite large (as compared to some laundry rooms). Besides the washer/dryer and 2 laundry sinks, it also holds a 2nd fridge, a chest freezer, and a few portable pantries (and several boxes of clothes the kids have outgrown). Doing a 2nd kitchen will also give me the incentive to get rid of stuff - packrats unite!

My dream oven (for home use) is the one that's on "Three And A Half Men", in Charlie's kitchen. Nice big oven (1 1/2 sized, if not double). {sigh} Some day.

That's funny. Maybe with all the metal, we could build a bigger oven! I am thinking of the fact that I do have a cookie pan which is a tight squeeze. If I try to put it in with anything else, the door just won't close without being pushed. Something you really don't always thing of when buying pans (or ovens)

Ok so reading a couple of the posts I can say it takes approximately 3 batters to properly fill up this size pan. With the 3 batters is the cake layered with icing on the middle or something like just iced on top and sides like how Walmart does it?. And what is the purpose of the flower nails that some of u mention here of using?

Thank you!!

I also use 3 cake mixes in my 12x18 pan.  I find for the larger pans I often need a bit more batter than the Wilton chart says.

I've done one wedding cake with a 16" square base tier, and the pan *just* fit in my oven.

Fortunately my local cake shop rents out pans, so I was able to rent that pan rather than buying it and then having to store it in my tiny townhouse.  I'm a hobby baker who only does about 1 wedding cake every 2 years or so for friends, so the odds of using it again are very low.

The 3 batters will make one 2" tall cake layer.  You can torte it if you want to add filling, or you can bake a second layer (with 3 more recipes of batter) to stack on top for a 4" tall cake.

The flower nail or nails are put in the pan flat side down, to help conduct heat into the middle of the cake and make it bake more evenly.

Ooooooh ok, thank you so much for that information..

I would like to know from everyone when you make these big batters which type of mixer do you use? 4, 5 qt and remake 3 batters after one another. Or a bigger at mixer?