Welcome to the Cake Decorators Q&A

Hi, I’m needing help with cake tins and baking times
I’m making a chocolate cake for a friend and instead of baking in my 10″ X 3″ Deep cake tin
I need to bake a cake 10″ X 4″ deep ( I don’t have a tin this size)
So I will be using newly purchased 10″ X 2″ deep sandwich tins
How much more cake batter do I need ?
Also
How long do I bake if it usually takes 1hr 20 mins on fan oven 140 using my usual tins
Thank you

Hi Lorraineau

You need to increase your the batter by 25% and the divide equally between the two tins. Alternatively you can use the on site calculators, increase your ingredients to 4″ depth cake and again divide the batter as mentioned. Select the recipe calculator here:

Brand new: 4 fabulous cake calculators!

In 2″ pans it will take approximately 40 -50 minutes because the tins are shallow. Just keep an eye and nose for doneness as all ovens are different and you know how quickly your beast bakes. 🙂

Thank you very much madeitwithlove much appreciated.

You’re welcome Lorraineau. As I’ve mentioned above, please do keep an eye and nose for doneness.

Hi sorry to be a pest ! But I need some advice with something else.
I’m making at a friends request 10″ 8″ 6″ stacked cakes bottom being fruit followed by chocolate and lemon,
They will all be cooked in 4″ deep tins
What I was wondering is ..
When they are all stacked and on a base board of say 13 ” I think it might look rather … short ! Not like other wedding cakes !
could I also have another board to house the 13″ base, say 16″ it’s just to give a little more height
Or is there another way to give height for example could I place cakes on deeper cake drums and ganache and then sugarpaste right over to the bottom of the boards to give that little bit extra height ?
I am just worried about the overall height of the stacked cakes seeing as my friend isn’t wanting spacers inbetween tiers. Any suggestions you have to help will be greatly appreciated many thanks.

Rather than placing the cakes on a 16″ base drum, it would look more uniform to have more 13″ drums icied together. If you would like the stepped effect, a 16″ board would give that and a little extra height. Wedding cakes can also be place on pretty stands like the ones Paul uses in the wedding section. It depends really how tall you would like the cake to look. Is your friend using a venue? If she is, most venues will offer a stand. The cakes you are doing are standard wedding cake sizes. Once stacked, the assembled trio will look tall. Google ‘Napier cake stand’ and you’ll see the type offered by most venues as part of their wedding service.
There are lots of pretty stands which can be hired. However, you must be certain that they can withstand the weight of your cakes. Reputable hire companies will be able to tell you how much weight their stands will take.
If you have a local cake decorating shop by you, they too hire out wedding cake stands for a very small fee.

Hope some of this information helps.

Thank you
I have contacted my friend and the wedding venue has 3 different cake stands so that’s great, ones is especially for the heavier fruit cakes and is 4 inches tall,so that will give more height ?
Thank you for the tip about stacking cake boards I think I will have a practice ?
Once again your help is much appreciated.
Kind regards
Lorraineau.

Instead of stacking bore cake boards, could you maybe add a dummy cake layer to give the illusion of height?

Hi spacecadet74
My friend who’s cake I’m making only wants 3 tiers all 4″ deep I suggested using a dummy to give height but she’s not happy with that idea, it’s her big day and her cake so I need to do as she is requesting however I personally think 10″ 8″ 6″ all 4″ deep will not look very tall but by the time her cakes are on top of a 4″ high cake stand ( provided by wedding venue) the overall look will not be as bad as I first thought. As long as my friend gets what she’s asking for all will be ok ? I hope !
Thanks for replying to my question.

I have to bake a 12 “ x 12” sqaure cake using moist chocolate cake recipe… what would becthe baking time …

Hi NadiaMaroof

I can’t say with certainty as all ovens vary. However, allow approx 3 – 3.5 hours on the given heat. Keep an eye and nose on the baking at all time. Take extra precautions with double lining the tin ensuring the corners are well protected as these are the ares which will burn easily. Additional protection such as even baking bands and heating cores can help as can covering the surface of the batter with a piece of parchment paper to help reduce drying out and crusting. I’m sorry I can’t give a more definitive answer, the above suggestions are all the precautions I would normally take when baking a large, deep square cake.