I was just wondering how people get their cakes to 4 inches high? During the baking process how much batter would you use for an 8", 10", and 12" and would you recommend a parchment paper collar? I've never done one, not sure how to do it, but wanted to try it this week for a 10 inch cake for my best friend's birthday. Thanks!
Cake pans should be filled about 2/3 full. If the recipe calls for 8 x 2 pan, you have to do the math for larger pans. For a 10 inch, I make 1 1/2 recipe. I don't use paper collars. To get to 4 inches, each 2-inch cake should be split in two horizontally, then filled, so that you end up with 4 layers. You can adjust the amount of filling to get to an exact 4-inch cake.
It's called "torting". You'll see people referring to the steps as "levelling, torting, filling, and stacking". "Stacking" usually means placing one tier on top of another with a supporting structure. So, you "torte" "layers" (usually 2 cakes or layers, torted and filled, make a tier) and then you "stack" "tiers".
i get 4" high cakes without torting. When i torte i'm closer to 5" in height. It sounds like you don't have enough batter in your pan to get 2" high cakes for each layer. Wilton has a chart on how many cups of batter you need for each size pan (but the 1/2-2/3 full is a good reference too).
I bake my cakes and then i level while still in the pan (so i know they're 2" tall) i then fill between the two layers and ice. It is usually a little over 4" when i do it this way.
Yes, I've torted cakes before, but not on a regular basis, and wasn't sure how common it was to do. I think I'll have to figure out myself how many cups of water put into a cake pan it takes to reach 2/3. I've used the Wilton suggestion for how many cups, but I find it just comes to the top of the 2 inch pan, and then once I level it's always less. But I can see how torting those cakes would help raise it.
Thanks everyone! 
A common problem with Wilton pans is that they're not always 2" deep. I've measured some and sometimes they're only 1 7/8 or even 1 15/16. it's that little bit of short, that results in your layers being too short, especially after leveling. The pans aren't consistent.
I would recommend trying the collar. I use wax paper - round for the bottom and then cut some strips of wax paper about 3"-3 1/2" in width apply a little bit of oil on the strips to attach to the pan and to each other (overlapping the strips a little.) Fill pan 2/3 full- I think you'll be pleasantly surprised. Good Luck.
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