Cake Never Rises! Please Help Me!!
Decorating By smartsexystylish Updated 24 Sep 2007 , 10:29pm by FromScratch
Ok I have no idea what I am doing wrong.
Any cake I make doesn't rise. I am using a box of Betty Crocker Vanilla mix. I don't beat it too much, I do exact directions and measurements yet it still doesnt rise!!!
Brand new pans.
Tried 4 different ovens.
So far it's been 9" Round pans and one 9x13" sheet that hasn't worked out for me.
Any suggestions? Any ideas to try?
Ack! I want to pull out my hair!!!
Hmmm...First off if you are using a boxed cake mix, check the experation date on the box. If you are using an old expired cake mix then you would have problems with the cake rising . Also check to make sure your oven is set to the right temp and be sure to preheat it before putting in your cake. Once you put your cake in the oven, (middle rack) set the timer to the right time and dont open the oven door until just before the timer goes off. Maybe someone else can offer more tip's.
there are special directions for high altitude if that applies to you. I've also heard that some people let thier eggs warm to room temp. before using to help the cake rise better.
I am pretty sure the cake boxes haven't been expired (buy them all seperatly whenever a cake is needed - I don't have room to stock up on cake in my place)
The oven has been set to the correct temperature, even above and below. I always end up with the cake come with a big hump in the middle and not even rising to the pan height. (even my 1 1/2" pans didn't work!!)
Middle rank is normally where it is. and I've been told not to open the door until it's ready to take out (First time I kept opening door)
NeoMommy - I don't know what you mean special directions for high altitudes? I may try to let my eggs warm up though, as I just take them out of the fridge and use them...
Any other tips/ suggestions / advice?
Thanks so far!! Appreciated!!
High altitude is up in the mountains somewhere where you are way above sea level, and the directions are different-- I forget exactly why. It has to do with pressure and such, I think.
Some of my cakes don't end up 2" thick either, but they do taste good and seem "light" enough, so maybe yours really are OK.
It is pretty common for cakes to rise more in the middle than on the sides, esp. with pans that have slanted sides.
Have you tried using straight-sided pans? Since I switched, the middle "hump" that you experience has decreased significantly. I still have to level the top a bit, but there is much less waste w/ a straight-sided pan.
Make sure that you are beating the cake enough, and I would also get an oven thermometer to make sure that your oven is running at the right temp.
What NeoMommy was referring to is, if you live in a place like Colorado where you are significantly above sea level, the way you prepare your cakes will be different than what we "low landers" do.
i think i agree with the altitude theory. i live in a low altitude location and i've had issues with recipes doing this to a larger extreme...SINKING! so i had to adjust the recipes and it resolved the issue. on the back of the cake mix box, it should give specifics, such as adding x amount more flour etc... for higher elevations. when i adjusted my scratch recipes, i adjusted the leavening (powder and soda). follow the box and see if that makes a difference.
you may also want to try heavy duty alluminum pans or the bake even strips (wilton) for the thinner pans. it will help the cakes rise more evenly, not just in the middle.
try duncan hines , and add 1 tsp of baking powder to 1 box of mix , i was told this by a lady that has been baking for a long time. you can try it with the betty crocker too i only like to use duncan hines.
How much batter are you putting in the pans? If you atre using one mix for two 9 inch or one 9x13 you are not using enough batter. I measure my batter and a 9x13 takes takes about 7-71/2 cups of batter. I don't use 9 inch pans so I don't know what they require but my 8 inch pans take 4 cups batter each so i would think about 5 cups.
I don't think I am affected much by the altitude thing as I am in Canada...
I am going to try adding baking powder and maybe that would work.
As for the pans they are slanted, so I will go and purchase some straight ones and a thermometer so hopefully that will fix the problem as well.
Batter wise: I am using one box for 2 - 8" 1-1/2" (half the mix each)
for the sheet pan I used a box and a half.
Sometimes I notice that my cake gets "weighed" down (instead of rising) and the batter is still sometimes mushy (happened once with a 9" x 4" pan and the sheet pan) and I tried leaving it in a little longer but the mix wouldn't rise, so I took it out when it was slowly starting to burn.
It's just so frustrating when I can decorated awesomly (Well, I think so) but making the cake is the most difficult process for me.. Ugh!
Sounds to me like you need a heating core in the middle. Just put a greased/floured flower nail upside down in the middle of your pan before you pour the batter in. This will help heat the middle of your cake. No hump, no mushy middle. I even use them in my 8" pans because those seem to dome the most. Also make sure you're baking at 325.
It sounds like the oven temp, especially if the outside is getting done before the inside. I had the same problem. I bought a thermometer, and sure enough, my oven was 51 degrees off. I checked it at several different times to make sure it wasn't fluctuating, and it was always off by 51 degrees. Now I bake cakes at 275, instead of 325, and they come out perfectly.
Also, you might want to start using a cake extender. I've found one box mix isn't enough for two 8" rounds. I use to use two mixes, then just make 6 cupcakes with the leftover batter, but now I use just one mix and a cake extender. Fill the pans almost 3/4 full, so they bake up over the edge, and I can level them straight across that way. 
Hope this helps,
Holly
I have found that by reducing the baking temp to 300 and baking a little bit longer that my cakes rise more - just about the top of my 2" pans. I still get a slight hump in the middle, but now when I level I have a cake almost 2" high rather than 1.5" (for example). My cakes also have a lighter texture to them since they rise higher. I use box mixes and use Dream Whip and an extra egg to make my batter.
Just my 2 cents!
~Chelle
if you have a large mound in the center it is rising just not evenly... slanted sides will not cause this.... it is the outside baking before the cake has a chance to rise.
check the oven temp with a thermometer... I prefer to bake at 325
I always use the strips to prevent the hill and get perfect cakes.... others swear by a flower nail I use both in large cakes.
You can underbeat a cake... it you have tunnels you could be over beating it....
the mound in the middle is alot of cake which means it is not on the sides.
Meg
Here are cake troubleshooting charts:
http://tinyurl.com/2p5bdu
(short list - joyofbaking.com.)
http://tinyurl.com/3dmp96
(long list - Sarah Phillips of baking911.com.)
Wilton's cake preparation and serving charts:
http://www.wilton.com/cake/cakeprep/baking/times/index.cfm
(Advises batter requirements by pan sizes (2 or 3" deep) and servings by pan sizes.
Here's the expanded flavors WASC cake recipe:
http://tinyurl.com/2cu8s4
A half recipes makes 7 cups - the perfect amount for a 13x9x2 pan.
HTH
Add 1 Tbsp meringue powder to 1 box mix. Also, Duncan Hines is the best, IMHO. Baking strips help, too.
try using bake even strips. also, you can let your oven get real hot (so the cake will "pop"), like 450, then lower it to 250 and bake it longer. i also use pilsbury box mix and i always add a box of pudding to it. to me, betty crocker lumps and gets holes in it. i do this everytime i bake a cake, i never have a problem with my cake ot rising...but the bake even strips work...i love them!
Sounds like your cake IS rising (hump in the middle) .... it's just not rising even like you expect it to.
I don't use a heating core or flower nails .... I use baking strips (refuse to make a cake without them); grease-only-no-flour in the pans; bake at 325. I am also a Betty-Crocker-Only-Baker.
Here's a pic of how my cakes always turn out:
http://forum.cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopic-334013-0.html
Here's "the science" of how baking strips work and why you get the hump:
http://forum.cakecentral.com/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&p=3467363#3467363
ditto all the suggestions - bake even strips will work wonderful! Or even just damp cloths tied around since Wilton bake even strips can add up in price!
And you mentioned in the original post that you tried 4 different ovens; so at least one oven was probably close, but definitely get a thermometer and bake at 325 for a longer time - it really does helps.
As well... how full are you filling your cake pans? 1/2? 2/3? (I've never used a straight cake mix so unsure of how much 1/2 a mix fills a cake pan)
Oh, you're in Toronto are right? Then don't worry about the high altitude, Toronto is fairly low altitude.
Best of luck and don't give up. Have you thought of tyring a scratch mix of a different brand of box mix?
I agree.. it sounds like you aren't using enough batter. I have never found one mix to be enough for 2 8 inch pans never mind 2 9 inch. I don't use mixes anymore.. haven't for YEARS.. but I do remember that one mix was never enough for a nice tall layer.
Bake at 325 for longer with an inverted flower nail in the center and use more batter.. and extender if you have to or 2 mixes. It's worth the extra couple bucks to have nice full pans.
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