Does anybody know how I could help with this problem.  The sides of my cake layers are not always straight.  They have this indentation that goes all the way around them.  I've researched the net and looked here, but I can't find anything.  I might not be using the right search words though???  I'm embedding a pic, but for some reason it won't show up anyway but sideways!!!  The chocolate layer is what I'm talking about.  That ring indentation that goes around it???  It doesn't always happen, but I cant figure out what I'm doing to cause it????

The only thing I've read about this is that you may be coating the inside of your pan too heavily with whatever you use.   Is that possible?

ddaigle -

That could be it!  I will pay close attention when I am preparing my pans for batter...We'll see if that does the trick!  Thanks so much!!!!

AThis happens to me sometimes too. I've noticed it happens more with Wilton pans than with my shiny metal raft ones. If the batter is a doctored mix, I also noticed adding a bit more mix from another box seems to help too.

yeah, it looks like the structure is collapsing at some point. I don't treat the sides of my pans at all because i read somewhere that the batter needs to be able to stick to the sides in order to rise.  

Thanks Frosted Moon (love that name) and ellavanilla!  I am using doctored mix and Wilton pans...so...I'll try extra mix.  Also ellavanilla, what brand of pans do you use?

I finally figured out that it happens to me if I overbeat the batter.  Stopped doing that, and stopped greasing the sides of the pans (just line them with parchment, and then run a knife around the sides when it's done).  It hasn't happened since I made those changes, 8 cakes so far so good!

I had that happen a couple of times and the only thing I could think of was that I over beat my batter.  From what I understand is that over beating can cause larger air pockets so it will collapse when it starts to cool. And about your picture...did you turn your camera sideways to take it ? Sometime the program used to up load the photos will turn the photo to a standard landscape size like 4X6 instead of how it may have been taken like  in a portrait setting.

I did a little research and yes over beating the batter "is probably one of the most common reasons why cakes sink " and also old baking powder and too much leavening like baking powder, baking soda or yeast.

I don't think it's over beating.  I always time my mixer so that I'm beating the recommended time???  I'm using a doctored mix. So I can't do anything about leavening.  I will pay attention to that though when I'm doing a scratch cake.....So much to think about!!!!

AMixing times in recipes are usually for a specific type of mixer - a hand mixer takes longer than a stand mixer, and 'medium' or 'high' speeds are often open to interpretation.

Yes...but if I always mix the same time and it doesn't happen every time, then I can assume it's not the mixing.   I'm going to try the parchment paper method and see how that goes.....