Last weekend I made Strawberry cupcakes using the Strawberry cake mix from the Cake Mix Doctor. I ended up with very runny batter and while the cupcakes were done they were "wet" and didn't rise at all.

Recipe from CMD Book:
1 package (18.25 ounces) plain white cake mix
1 package (3 ounces) strawberry gelatin
1 cup mashed fresh strawberries with juice (1 ½ cups whole berries)
1 cup vegetable oil, such as canola, corn, safflower, soybean, or sunflower
½ cup of whole milk
4 large eggs

Last night I tried to make a Strawberry cake using a modified version of this recipe from a member here and the cake baked up so much it overflowed the pan and got all over my oven creating a yucky mess! I decided to leave them bake and pray that I filled them too full (followed Wilton's guide for filling a pan) but then all of the darn sudden they sank! I did use rose nails inverted to help heat the cakes... it tasted great and the texture was what I was looking for....

Recipe from CC member here and it got rave reviews!

1 box (18.25 oz.) Duncan Hines Classic White Cake mix
1 box (3oz.) Strawberry gelatin
3/4 c. vegetable oil
1/2 c. water
4 eggs
1/2 pt. frozen whole strawberries, thawed

I guess me and Strawberry cake w/jello do not make a good match!

Any thoughts as to what is going wrong? I would like to have a good Strawberry cake recipe!

I'm sorry they didn't work out for you. Here's the recipe I use and it always turns out great (as long as it's not overmixed...if you overmix it it will fall).

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Strawberry-Cake-from-Scratch/Detail.aspx

I use the "scrumptious strawberry lemonade cupcake" recipe that is in the recipe section here. Very close to what you are using except that it calls for buttermilk. Also, I always use Pillsbury cake mixes - don't know if that makes a difference or not.

Anyway, it is very good and by far my most requested cake flavor. I also use it with small cakes, but it probably would not be good for the bottom layer of a stacked cake.

Good luck.

Sorry to read about the trouble you had. I have the 1999 edition of that cake recipe book and my recipe differs a bit. It includes 4 Tablespoons all-purpose flour and 1/2 cup granulated sugar and for the strawberries, it just calls for 1/2 cup finely chopped fresh strawberries and juice. Mine rarely juice out much as I chop them just before I begin the cake. I've made this recipe many times and it always gets good reviews. I posted a picture of a baby shower cake (2-tiered) and the bottom tier was made with this recipe. I used Sharon Zambito's buttercream with 1/4 butter and added a layer of sliced fresh strawberries in between the two layers. I used the stiffened buttercream dam and doweled the cake and had no problems with it at all. It was moist and delicious. Keep trying!

Too much oil and/or sugar is one reason why a cake will sink...

3/4 - 1 cup oil is quite a bit for one cake mix.

Handy cake troubleshooting charts:

http://tinyurl.com/2p5bdu

http://tinyurl.com/32goqe

http://tinyurl.com/6c745g

http://tinyurl.com/6lpjww

http://tinyurl.com/yay22w

HTH

I've made that recipe multiple times, sometimes with success, sometimes not - and that's how I realized that there's a reason that in the book she tells you to use THREE 9" round pans. It's because this cake will sink in the middle if you add what you consider a "normal" amount of batter to a pan (1/2 - 2/3 full). You can only use enough to barely cover the bottom of the pan. If you do that, it bakes flat as a pancake all around, no sinking in the middle. You then get three thin, flat layers, that make a normal-sized cake when you assemble them. And it's really, really good... but it has that idiosyncracy.

kelleym - good call out! I didn't even think about this! I will agree it tasted GREAT! But I was so mad when it bubbled around and spilt out of my pans like thick soup! My hubby was laughing so hard and I was soooo mad!

I definitely need to find a good recipe b/c when I made them as cupcakes a couple of weeks ago they sank too. Hopefully I find one, or I might be stuck with using the strawberry cake mix!

JanH - thanks for the links; I will take a look at them!

If you don't mind baking from scratch, Summer's Scratch Strawberry Cake on here is great:
http://cakecentral.com/recipes/15348/summers-scratch-strawberry-cake

I'm not a big fan of gelatin in a cake (weird texture), so I tried the above recipe. I used fresh strawberries instead of frozen and added a tiny bit of pink food coloring. It was delicious.

I tried the recipe posted by CookieD-oh, it tasted great!

With the moisture from the strawberries, i probably would have reduced the oil to no more than 1/4 cup (4 tablespoons). One box of mix usually only calls for 1/4 to 1/3 cup of oil.

Ah, 3rd times the charm! Finally!! Thanks to daltonam for a post in another Strawberry Cake thread discussion - I went with the strawberry version of the Darn Good Chocolate Cake and it turned out FABULOUS!

DH Strawberry Cake Mix
1 box vanilla jello pudding
1 cup sour cream
1/2 oil
1/2 water
4 eggs

This is a winner in my book!

Oh yum! I will have to give that a try too!

I just did (yesterday) the WASC from kakeladi with strawberry cake box mix....

WOWZY!!!! awesome flavor.... super moist... no sticky top.... tasty... delicious... beautifully pink.... I have nothing bad to say lol.... I love it!!!! will try again with other flavors....

Now I'm off to make the 1-2-3 IMBC.... first time also.... or is it the 1-2-3 SMBC??? well I have the recipe upstairs... too lazy go go checl lol... but I will be making it today so it will be my first time making BC that's not Edna's or Sharon's Recipe... wish me luck and I will update...

Dalis4joe, I just made the Sinful SMBC from the recipe section this weekend, and was very pleasantly surprised at how easy it was - not to mention how tasty. I had to walk away from the bowl several times. LOL, had a lot of teaspoons to wash because if it.

It didn't smooth out completely perfect for me but it's so easy to spread that I can tell I'll get the hang of it soon.

Ooohhhhhh maaaaaaaaannnnnnn then what am I doing wrong???????? it's been on for like 15 minutes (Swiss Merengue) and it's not getting stiff at ALL!! it's super liquidy and I dunno why??????? anyone ??? is there a way to fix it?????

I melted the sugar and egg whites on a water bath like it says... then once it wasn't grainy anymore I turned to the KA mixer..... beat until cool to the touch (the bowl) and looks silky... start adding the butter.... that's when it got super soft and liquidy.... and it's not changing.... anyone? please?

mpetty: Kewl.... I was expecting to say what u just said lol....

What receipe are you using? I use the Well Dressed Cake SMBC receipe and I've never had any trouble with it. Did you heat your sugar and egg whites to 160 degrees? I'm stumped.

Sorry, since I don't know if you're making SMBC or IMBC scratch what I said about heating the sugar and egg whites to 160 degrees

From what I've read, your problem could be that the butter was too warm. I've read other people having the same problem and the suggestion was to put in in the frig for about 30 minutes to cool it down, and then rewhip it. It might curdle at first if it's pretty cold, but eventually it'll come to the right consistency.

I just reread your post and noticed you mentioned the meringue being silky. I was told the meringue needed to be stiff before you add the butter. You might try cooling it in the frig and rewhipping, before throwing it out.

FYI wth the second batch I made, I had trouble getting the meringue to get any volume, so in desperation I turned the mixer up to full blast and beat the heck out of it. It eventually came around...