Let me introduce you to Bake Even Strips. They're from Wilton, and I have used them for years. These save you a lot of time and a lot of cake!
(Note: I got these a dozen years ago, that's why they look so... loved. The newer ones don't have this little extra flap of fabric, so you just pin it right through the other end.)
Occasionally, you may need to add an extra few minutes to bake your cake, but they keep it nice and level. Why? Because they keep the outside of the pan cool. See, your cake domes in the middle because the outside cooks faster than the inside.
Don't mind that this cake is kind of lumpy. It's a chocolate-covered cherry cake, so it's supposed to look like that.
Click the link for the photos comparing cake baked with and without the Bake Even Strips.
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They used to be called "Magi-Cake", and weren't a Wilton product. They work well but my cakes still have a slight dome effect, 1/8-1/4", usually not enough to bother trimming. I'll have to try ice water, I've always just used medium tap water. I use a T-pin rather than a straight pin, having lost the original pins years ago.
ReplyDeleteFor a while there was a silicone variety that didn't need soaking, Rose's Heavenly Cake Strips or some such.
I had never heard of Bake-Even strips, but I went and found some after reading this. They work awesome! It's so nice to not have to cut 1/2 the cake off because it's a mountain in the middle! Thanks for the tip!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you like them! I agree, they are awesome!! - Beki
ReplyDeletedear beki, I have a small question abaout bake-even strips of wilton.
ReplyDeleteI used for the first time a few weeks ago.I used first bake release inside all surface of the pan (the bottom aand all around the sides). After baking in my owen I noticed that the sides of the cake were not straight, they were very separated of the aluminium of the pan. I don't understand why...? Do you think I used too much "bake easy"?thanks so much
Marta,
DeleteI have had the same problem when I didn't bake my cake long enough. Be sure your cake is completely baked through. I find that occasionally you have to add some time when you use the Bake-Even Strips.
- Bwki
DEAR BEKI. MI CAKE WAS COMPLETELY BAKED WHEN I CHECKED IT OUTSIDE THE OVEN...I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHAT HAPPENED, BUT I SAW THROUGH THE GLASS OF MY OVEN THAT THE CAKE WAS SO VERY EARLY, A FEW MINUTES AFTER IT BEGAN TO BAKE IT... OBVIOUSLY, AS THE SIDES WERE NOT STRAIGHT AT THE BEGINNING, WHEN I STOPPED MY OVEN THE CAKE WAS BAKED CORRECTLY BY THE SIDES VERY UGLY.
ReplyDeleteTHANK YOU SO MUCH,
MARTA
Hi 😃 my baking pans are 7.5cm deep, however my baking strips are 3.5cm in height, so it won't cover the full pan from top to bottom. Will it still work? If so, where should I place the baking strip, at the top or bottom part of the pan? Thanks
ReplyDeleteYou can see in the top picture that my pan is 3" tall and the strip is 1.5".
DeleteI put it at the top of the pan.
Good luck.
Beki