Hi all,

I am planning to make a cross cake for an upcoming confirmation. I am looking for opinions...shaped pan vs. just carving it up myself....any tips/tricks, etc. Basically, anything you have to offer will be appreciated. I want to be able to torte and fill the cake.

TIA! [/code]

I've made cross cakes many times this way:
Take either a 1/4 or 1/2 sheet cake:
1. cut down the middle lengthwise (basically creating two long rectangle pieces, not two squares)
2. cut one of the two long pieces into equal thirds.
3. place the long, uncut piece on a larger cake board (if you cut a 1/4 sheet, place on a 1/2 sheet board, and if cut a 1/2 sheet cake, put that on a full sheet board)
4. put one of the thirds at the top of the long piece, and the other two on the sides,, making a cross shape.

You can cut and torte all of the cake, just make sure to seal your seams with BC. I hope this helps and good luck!

I made a cake once with a "stained glass" cross on top. It's in my pics. I can send instructions if you are interested.

I just made one last weekend. I made a template on parchment paper. I used an 11x 15 pan. I baked 2 layers, froze them for easy carving and stacking. Cut them out using the template, filled and voila! It was actually easier than I thought it would be. I just uploaded pics.

Jodi

Definitely cut it out of sheet cakes.

I have the Wilton cross pan and I hate it. I've used it two times and that was two times too many. It bakes unevenly and the cake won't come out clean -- it breaks apart in the middle and pieces stick to the pan. I've never had that problem with a pan before! I suppose you could cut some thin strips of parchment to put in the bottom, but frankly, I don't want to go to that trouble to measure and cut them. Also, it's a little too big to fit on top of a quarter sheet cake. So if you want extra servings, you have to put it on a half sheet cake (which for me was waaaay too much), or just make something else altogether. I did cupcakes (both times).

Anyway, if I ever do a cross cake again, I will carve it out of 1/4 sheet cakes. I'll have more control over servings and, more importantly, quality.

I did one about 2 weeks ago. I did it exactly as Cutie described (great minds think alike!).

You can see it in my photos.

I used 2 9x13 sheets to stack so I would have about 40 servings.

Thanks for all of the info! You've been a big help. I will carve it up on my own...I was leaning in that direction anyway but I'm convinced now that it is the best way to go. My question now is this...do you think it will look odd if I bake an 11 x 15, cut it in half widthwise and use each half as a layer of cake? The cake only needs to serve about 10 so I am reluctant to make it too big but I don't want it to look ridiculous or ridiculously small, either....

TIA...again!

you could just bake a 1/4 sheet cake and then cut it the same way... that's about 14 servings.

http://cakecentral.com/gallery/1342628

http://cakecentral.com/gallery/585813