Newbie Here.. Silly Question

Decorating By sechrestloans Updated 14 Jun 2010 , 4:25pm by aprilblack

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sechrestloans Posted 12 Jun 2010 , 3:25am
post #1 of 15

I am new to all of this and I have a 50th anniversary cake due. I can never get my teirs to stand straight. My 12 in layers slant to the side and I trim them. Does anyone have tips on how to get them straight easily? I take the cakeboard and trim off that but they still are crooked!!! Thank you all! icon_surprised.gif)

14 replies
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Kandy4283 Posted 12 Jun 2010 , 3:46am
post #2 of 15

Maybe I am confused......

Do you use a lever to level your cakes after they are cooled? I always use a leveler and place the raw side down on a cake board and its always even...what kind of leveler are you using, if any?? Do you have both sides of the leveler even?? Are they not leveling out before or after your frosting is on? Could it be your frosting not level? There are so many reasons why it could not be leveling out....

I know that doesn't help much but I am not too sure!!?? Sorry!

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sechrestloans Posted 12 Jun 2010 , 4:00am
post #3 of 15

I can get the cakes level on the top it is the sides that are uneven? I know it is weird, but it is almost like they bulge out and I try to get them straight. It is almost like I am putting an 11 inch cake on top of a 12 in, but i bakes both 12 inches. Am I confusing it even more? LOL

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Kandy4283 Posted 12 Jun 2010 , 2:14pm
post #4 of 15

hmmm....well, I am not so sure!? Could it be your cake pans that you are using? Are they wilton or a good quality pan? LOL...I am so sorry I don't have an answer for you....

Could it be the type of non-stick spray you are using and its shrinking parts of the cake?

Maybe try using some flower nails in your pan while you bake it to see if it comes out a little more level?

Or are you using not enough batter or too much batter in the pan??


Ahhh!! I know how frusterating it is not to have an answer of why....but just simply try changing some stuff up to see if that helps!

Good Luck!

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stacyllind Posted 12 Jun 2010 , 2:33pm
post #5 of 15

Are you filling your cakes? Try letting your cake settle overnight after filling and then trim it and do your crumbcoat. If you fill it and then trim and frost right away it can cause the bulging. Good luck!!!

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janeoxo Posted 12 Jun 2010 , 2:42pm
post #6 of 15

Ideally you should be baking, filling and crumb coating one day and then decorating the next otherwise when you put the icing on the weight of it will cause the sides to bulge out if it has not had time to settle. If you cannot leave until the next day at least do the baking, filling and crumb coating in the morning and leave the decorating until the evening.

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Melvira Posted 12 Jun 2010 , 3:17pm
post #7 of 15

I get what you are saying and I have had a similar problem that's been vexing me. Each layer (one single baked piece of cake) will sort of slant inward at the top of that layer, so that when you put the next layer on it looks like you have a cake edge that is going in and out. It's QUITE annoying. I was just discussing this in another thread. Unfortunately the only thing I can suggest is to lightly freeze the layers just to firm them up, then fill and stack them, then trim around the edges to make sure they are the same width from top to bottom. I'm going to try this and see if it helps. It's an extra step, a bit more work, but for really important cakes it seems worth it. Good luck and let me know if you find another solution! We're all in this together!! icon_lol.gifthumbs_up.gif

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mayo2222 Posted 12 Jun 2010 , 3:41pm
post #8 of 15

Do your cake pans (same size) nest inside each other? If so its the pans that are causing the problem.

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Melvira Posted 12 Jun 2010 , 3:46pm
post #9 of 15

I'm using the really good Fat Daddios 3" deep pans. They are super high quality, and it still happens sometimes. I've been doing this professionally for quite a while and still haven't figured out exactly why it happens.

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mayo2222 Posted 14 Jun 2010 , 1:15pm
post #10 of 15
Quote:
Originally Posted by Melvira

I'm using the really good Fat Daddios 3" deep pans. They are super high quality, and it still happens sometimes. I've been doing this professionally for quite a while and still haven't figured out exactly why it happens.




I notice that a lot of times when the cake starts to pull away from the pan that it starts at the top and then gradually works its way down and thereby leaving the cake sides with a slight slant. I don't really know how to solve it, but I find that it happens to me sometimes.

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Melvira Posted 14 Jun 2010 , 2:09pm
post #11 of 15
Quote:
Originally Posted by mayo2222

I notice that a lot of times when the cake starts to pull away from the pan that it starts at the top and then gradually works its way down and thereby leaving the cake sides with a slight slant. I don't really know how to solve it, but I find that it happens to me sometimes.




YES!!! WOOO! party.gif

Oh sorry... I'm just psyched that I'm not the only one. icon_redface.gif

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shannonlovebug Posted 14 Jun 2010 , 2:31pm
post #12 of 15

Measure your pans, one could be off, it happened to me with my wilton pans. If that's not the case then maybe you are overbaking? Overbaking will cause the cake to shrink. Good luck!

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LindaF144a Posted 14 Jun 2010 , 3:19pm
post #13 of 15
Quote:
Originally Posted by Melvira

Quote:
Originally Posted by mayo2222

I notice that a lot of times when the cake starts to pull away from the pan that it starts at the top and then gradually works its way down and thereby leaving the cake sides with a slight slant. I don't really know how to solve it, but I find that it happens to me sometimes.



YES!!! WOOO! party.gif

Oh sorry... I'm just psyched that I'm not the only one. icon_redface.gif




I read some where that if the cake pulls away from the pan in the oven, then it is baked too long. Of course, this doesn't help when you bake it correctly and it pulls away as it's cooling. icon_rolleyes.gif

I see the problem two ways. One is the pan like everyone else is here is talking about. If your pans stack inside each other, then they have a slight slant and then when you go to stack them, they will not be even on the sides. I have those stinking pans. icon_evil.gif What I noticed is the way I stack them will help. Quite by accident and not by choice at first I I was stacking them so that the bottom pan had the narrowest width to the top and the top layer had the narrowest width to the bottom, so that when the cake was stacked it had kind of an hour-glass shape. Then I could fill it in with frosting and get a straight side. The cakes in my photos are all made with those evil pans.

The other way I see it is you are describing a bulge after you add the filling to the cake? If it is yes, then you need to let the cake settle for several hours. Plus it helps to do what LeahS has put in her topic "My newest trick" that you can search here on CC. You wrap the cake tightly with saran wrap and the weight the top of the cake. Make sure you do an icing dam if you are using a filling other than your cake frosting. And to give it room to smoosh, I ice my dam about 3/8" to 1/2" inside the cake edge. It works like a charm. icon_wink.gif No more bulge.

HTH

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Melvira Posted 14 Jun 2010 , 3:41pm
post #14 of 15

Actually, if the pans nest, wouldn't you have the opposite problem? Each layer would be wider at the top than at the bottom because the bottom of the pan is narrower in order to slide into the top of the other one? Well, then if you invert the layers when you use them, yes, then the bottoms would be wider.

I know it's not an issue of overbaking in my personal situation, can't speak for anyone else of course, but my cakes are always just baked 'enough' but never dried out. If anything, a lean more toward underbaked because I like them very moist. But I make sure they are done enough to not have 'wet' spots, KWIM? I suppose I'll end up trying the trimming thing. It just seems like SO much more work. icon_rolleyes.gif Lazy much, Mel? Yah.

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aprilblack Posted 14 Jun 2010 , 4:25pm
post #15 of 15
Quote:
Originally Posted by mayo2222

Do your cake pans (same size) nest inside each other? If so its the pans that are causing the problem.




Ditto to this...

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