need cake advice

[mom'sfolly]

I volunteered to a make a cake for my son's crossover into boyscout ceremony because it is on his birthday. Being the kind of person I am, I baked a trial cake using a cake mix. It turned out to be a good idea. I tried not to get one of those super moist ones, but even the "regular" was too soft to come out of a 9x13 pan in one peice.

I'm making a much larger cake than that, and I'm thinking of making a basic egg levended cake; but I'm looking at about 12-18 eggs per layer. Does anyone have a good recipe for a cake that can be turned out of a huge pan without breaking? I need something firm enough that the homemade lemon curd between layers won't make it into a nasty oozing mess.

Thanks

 

[smith2]

I have made big sheet cakes out of mixes before, but you have to cut the oil/marg. down and put in more egg yolks to make the cake more firm. Too many whites and too much oil will make the cake lighter and fluffier, thus letting it fall apart very easily. I don't have a specific recipe, I usually just cut down the oil and egg whites by about 1/3.

 

[miss_jayne]

really butter and dust the pan heavily too. that will help.

 

[toletiquesbysam]

Quote:
That's what I was going to write, grease the pan good and then coat it with flour and that should help the problem!

 

[miss_jayne]

Quote:
That's what I was going to write, grease the pan good and then coat it with flour and that should help the problem!

oh, if it's chocolate cake, dust heavily with cocoa. (sam! we're genius twins! woot!)

 

[ranchhand]

Line the pan with parchment paper, cut big enough that there is some sticking up all around, as a handle. (Grease the paper on the outside, against the pan, so it won't stick to the pan). Clip the corners of the paper down into the corner if you want exact fit. Once it's done, you can "lift" the cake enough to loosen it, then turn it out. Peel parchment paper off the bottom of the cake, invert using a sheet pan underneath.

Finally, after 15 years as a retail supervisor in a bakery, I have something helpful to pass along!

 

[mom'sfolly]

I buttered and floured the pan, and the cake came out beautifully, but broke as it hit the cooling rack, about a 1/2 fall. I usually cut the cake into layers and then fill them but this cake was too soft even to cut well. I'm going to try another practice cake again tonite. I'll let you know how it goes.

 

[ranchhand]

Try the parchment paper method, and always use a cookie sheet/sheet pan under it for handling. Ever been to the Upper Crust BaKery at 45th and Burnet, in Austin? That's where I learned the magic of parchment!

Hello, fellow Texan!

 

[shortcake1806]

Place your cooling pan directly against the top of your cake pan. Then turn it over. If it were a large single layer cake try covering a large enough peice of stiff cardboard with aluminum foil for the cooling. Don't let the cake drop at all.

 

[ams3651]

partially frozen will help it too and make it easier to frost.