hello, I have been wathing ace of cakes and cake boss and I think I may be addicted to them lol

Anyway reason for post is that I live in Scotland and have never heard of a sheet cake and seem to be able to really man handle them. My cakes are so fragile before I decorate them.

Can some one please let me know what a sheet cake is and are they easier to work with or is that just that they are total professionals.

oh and a recipe for a good basic cake would be great too thanks.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sheet_cake

A sheet cake is a cake baked in a large, flat rectangular pan such as a sheet pan or a jelly roll pan. These single-layer cakes are almost always frosted, and may be decorated on the flat surface on the top. In the United States, these inexpensive cakes are commonly available in grocery stores, and are often served at office and birthday parties.

Sheet cakes may be made in any flavor, with chocolate and vanilla being the two most common. They are made from a single piece of cake. Ingredients, such as nuts, chocolate chips, or coconut may be stirred into the cake batter or sprinkled over the top.

If the cake has been split and filled, it becomes a layer cake.

Sheet cake refers to the size not the flavours or recipes. Not really a uk thing, unless it's the more impressive kitchen/ cutting cake.

Tv competition cakes are edible but not great - think extra dense and over baked. That's why the challenges where the taste is part of the judging are extra stressful.

There is technique is moving ur cakes, u need the right equipment too - like cake boards and flat baking sheets.

As for recipes, in the uk most people use maderia or victoria sponge, or pound cake for something stronger or carving.
xx

Hello pinkjacs. A sheet cake is a flat, single layer cake that is usually two to three inches high. The dimensions are 9"x13", in metric that's 22.5 cm x 33 cm. The 9"x13" is the standard, used by everybody in 99% of home made cakes; the home version is cheap and has slightly outward angled sides , not straight sides. It is called a 1/4 sheet cake by bakers. A very common bakery size is the 1/2 sheet, or 28 cm x 38 cm. In the USA you can buy a home-use-style sheet cake pan literally anywhere. Type in the search term 9x13 cake pan and you'll see.

The shows Cake Boss etc. chill their cakes and use a pound cake consistency batter so that's why they throw them around like they are made of plastic. They are also professionals who handle thousands of cakes and have probably cracked or even dropped quite a few to get to where they are now.

There is a wealth of info here on CC! Type in the search term, durable, or 3D, etc. and you'll get great recipes. You can also search for WASC (white almond sour cream) , and pound cake. You'll need to get scratch recipes since you won't have access to box cakes which many of us use as a dry ingredient base for cakes. Hardly anyone in the States enjoys fruit cakes. American cakes are much lighter.

ah this all makes sense thanks.

I make Madeira cake and its a lovely sponge but no matter what I do it raises really high in the middle (even when I hollow the middle out a bit). I will have a look at the search for different recipes and cardicard also pmed me so I will try that too. My mum makes a great fruit cake but only popular christmas and weddings really

thanks again

you maybe need to lower your oven temp a bit then - rising in the middle can happen when the outside bakes too fast, so the cake as a whole cant rise, it can only rise in the uncooked middle.
also look into bake even strips, lots of posts on them and their alternatives.
when the cake comes out of the oven, press down on the bump straight away, with something flat (palm of hand covered by clean tea towel will do) and then you have less leveling to do.
maderia cake is really good, and can take a fair bit of abuse, so maybe jsut get in soem practice and build your confidence
xx

Another option for getting rid of that hump in the middle is to place a greased flower nail upside down in the middle of the pan. Helps to distribute heat. Or, as brincess said, flatten the dome right away with a cake board. That's what I do. Doesn't affect the texture of the cake either.

brincess_b and Rose_N_ Crantz are absolutely correct. I'll be PM'ing you with a really detailed page of How to Get a Level Cake and Smooth buttercream Icing. I typed the page up yesterday for a fellow newbie, but it's too long for this reply box. The information is gleaned from about a 1000 different sources and has worked really well for me.

thanks very much guys.

Apti thanks for the PM

You are very welcome, pinkjacs! By the way, I've learned since typing that instruction sheet that it is much better to wait 2 hours for your cake to cool instead of "minimum 30 minutes to 1 hour".

Post photos of your cakes when you make them so we can all share in your success!