Cake recipe not coming out of pan

[BakerSparky]

I've made this cake recipe for over 5 years. Birthdays, showers and even a wedding cake. Everyone loves this cake ad the recipe was great because it has multiple sizes. I tried to make it for a birthday party. I made it 7 times and each and every time I made it it wouldn't come out of the pan. It was glued into the pan, done on the outside but didn't really seem done on the inside.

I didn't know what I did different. I tried using different pans, bought new flour, eggs/butter at different temperature, checked the oven temperature, lined the pan, cooked it longer, used cake release. Nothing worked. Anyone have any suggestions?

 

[ChesterV]

I opened the photo attachment you have, but I couldn't read anything on it, so I have no idea what the recipe is.

If you've been making this cake for years and all of a sudden it's not working, I would think these things--

*Something is wrong with the oven. I would have it checked out to see if maybe the heating element is bad in it....or if it's gas, if its only lit on one side of the oven. The oven thermostat could also be going bad or have stopped working.

*Possibly you are making the layers too thick? Have you tried making thinner layers?

*Weather can play a HUGE part in how things cook and bake. All of the cakes that did turn out right, what time of year was it? Was it hot? Raining? Cold? What kind of weather was it when the cakes didn't turn out right? Humidity and high altitudes can wreak havoc on baking sometimes.

*What kind of water did you use? Were you in a different city? Hard water works differently than soft water.

*Did you keep opening the oven door? If you keep opening the oven door while something is baking, it can cause cakes to go limp, sticky, or flat...especially if it is during the "prime" baking time when the oven door should never be opened.

Hope that helps.
It's hard to tell when I can't physically look at the oven used.
Sometimes it's not the recipe at all, but the mechanical devices we use to bake them.

 

[Becky]

Welcome to the forum!

Sorry to hear about the problems you've been having with the cake. Just so I understand, did anything change between the times it has worked for you in the past and the 7 recent attempts?

 

[BakerSparky]

Welcome to the forum!

Sorry to hear about the problems you've been having with the cake. Just so I understand, did anything change between the times it has worked for you in the past and the 7 recent attempts?

I made it years. Then for a birthday party I tried making the same way as always. It wouldn't come out of the pan at all. I then attempted 7 more times making adjustments as listed above. None of the attempts worked. Unfortunately then due to lack of time and frustration I had to opt to use cake mixes.

 

[BakerSparky]

I opened the photo attachment you have, but I couldn't read anything on it, so I have no idea what the recipe is.

If you've been making this cake for years and all of a sudden it's not working, I would think these things--

*Something is wrong with the oven. I would have it checked out to see if maybe the heating element is bad in it....or if it's gas, if its only lit on one side of the oven. The oven thermostat could also be going bad or have stopped working.

*Possibly you are making the layers too thick? Have you tried making thinner layers?

*Weather can play a HUGE part in how things cook and bake. All of the cakes that did turn out right, what time of year was it? Was it hot? Raining? Cold? What kind of weather was it when the cakes didn't turn out right? Humidity and high altitudes can wreak havoc on baking sometimes.

*What kind of water did you use? Were you in a different city? Hard water works differently than soft water.

*Did you keep opening the oven door? If you keep opening the oven door while something is baking, it can cause cakes to go limp, sticky, or flat...especially if it is during the "prime" baking time when the oven door should never be opened.

Hope that helps.
It's hard to tell when I can't physically look at the oven used.
Sometimes it's not the recipe at all, but the mechanical devices we use to bake them.

Thank you for your suggestions.
It was the same oven that I always use and have used with this recipe before. Everything else we bake in the oven turns out perfectly just the cake. I did put a thermometer in and test the temperature in the oven and the temperature was right as well. We cleaned the oven and that hasn't helped either.

Unfortunately changing the layers thickness helped it to be cooked better all the way through however still wouldn't come out of the pan.

The altitude and water would be the same as it was in my home kitchen. It was in the fall. Made it at that time of year. In the winter...in the summer.....always worked until this time Wasn't raining....not sure what the humidity would have been like. It's typically pretty dry here since I live in the prairies.

Oven door stayed closed until near the end when I opened it to check it .

 

[Becky]

That's so weird! I can't figure out what might be causing it. Have you tried new cake pans? Sometimes when they get old the non-stick coating can wear off.

 

[ChesterV]

Im with Becky on this. That is just weird.


This sounds like a chemical imbalance, as the sugar is caramelizing between the cake and the pan, instead of incorporating into the batter/cake, which causes it to act like glue and stick to the pan.
I would guess that the flour being used is not chemically bonding with the sugar for some reason, so the sugar is still separate from the flour, and not being completely incorporated.

Or it could be the oil, butter, or grease you are using in the cake mixture is different, and it is not reacting with the sugar, causing it to not bond with the flour too well.

I've had this happen to me too, but not to this extent. For me and the recipes I was using, I just cut down on the amount of sugar, and I didn't have any problems.

The only suggestion I can make in this instance would be to get "old fashioned" and use waxed paper or parchment paper as a pan liner. Since you are having the issue of the cake stick to the pan, I would suggest cutting pieces to fit your pan and then use your fingers to coat both sides of each piece of paper, and then line the pan with them.

Cut one long strip to cover the inside of the sides of the pan, and then cut the piece for the bottom of the pan. A nice thin coating of butter on both sides of the paper will adhere the paper to the pan, and will also work as an agent to help the cake keep from sticking to the pan.

If this doesn't work, the only other suggestion I can make is to try and bake it in a silicone pan, heavily sprayed with anti-stick spray. Since the pan is silicone, you should be able to peel the pan away from the cake.

 

[ChesterV]

I'm not sure how you are mixing your batter, you might try this method---

1. Measure all of your dry ingredients out and sift them all together in one mixing bowl.
I would sift them three times over to make sure they get sifted very well.

2. In another bowl, mix all of your wet ingredients (eggs, milk, water, oil/butter/grease, flavoring, etc...). Use a whisk or a hand mixer on low, and mix these until they are just getting a bit foamy.
Let them sit in the bowl for a few minutes.

3. With your whisk or hand mixer (I would use a stand mixer if you have one), start slowly pouring in the wet ingredients into the dry. Do not over mix.


I have found this is the best way to mix batter for cakes. I used to have a lot of issues with cake, including sticking to the pan every once in a while. I found that by making my batters this way, I had the least amount of problems.

 

[Becky]

Good advice @ChesterV

 

[ChesterV]

Good advice @ChesterV

Nobody would ever guess I'm addicted to cake.............right??????

 

[BakerSparky]

Im with Becky on this. That is just weird.


This sounds like a chemical imbalance, as the sugar is caramelizing between the cake and the pan, instead of incorporating into the batter/cake, which causes it to act like glue and stick to the pan.
I would guess that the flour being used is not chemically bonding with the sugar for some reason, so the sugar is still separate from the flour, and not being completely incorporated.

Or it could be the oil, butter, or grease you are using in the cake mixture is different, and it is not reacting with the sugar, causing it to not bond with the flour too well.

I've had this happen to me too, but not to this extent. For me and the recipes I was using, I just cut down on the amount of sugar, and I didn't have any problems.

The only suggestion I can make in this instance would be to get "old fashioned" and use waxed paper or parchment paper as a pan liner. Since you are having the issue of the cake stick to the pan, I would suggest cutting pieces to fit your pan and then use your fingers to coat both sides of each piece of paper, and then line the pan with them.

Cut one long strip to cover the inside of the sides of the pan, and then cut the piece for the bottom of the pan. A nice thin coating of butter on both sides of the paper will adhere the paper to the pan, and will also work as an agent to help the cake keep from sticking to the pan.

If this doesn't work, the only other suggestion I can make is to try and bake it in a silicone pan, heavily sprayed with anti-stick spray. Since the pan is silicone, you should be able to peel the pan away from the cake.

Thank you. We did try it with different pans (not silicone however) and with parchment paper. It just stuck to the parchment paper. The sugar/flour is a great idea. I think I am going to have to try it again when I'm not under time pressure and see if it happens again. Maybe experiment with the sugar/flour ratio.

Thank you

 

[BakerSparky]

I'm not sure how you are mixing your batter, you might try this method---

1. Measure all of your dry ingredients out and sift them all together in one mixing bowl.
I would sift them three times over to make sure they get sifted very well.

2. In another bowl, mix all of your wet ingredients (eggs, milk, water, oil/butter/grease, flavoring, etc...). Use a whisk or a hand mixer on low, and mix these until they are just getting a bit foamy.
Let them sit in the bowl for a few minutes.

3. With your whisk or hand mixer (I would use a stand mixer if you have one), start slowly pouring in the wet ingredients into the dry. Do not over mix.


I have found this is the best way to mix batter for cakes. I used to have a lot of issues with cake, including sticking to the pan every once in a while. I found that by making my batters this way, I had the least amount of problems.

Thank you very much. I do use a stand mixer. I normally do mix the dry ingredients and wet ones separately but to be honest as frazzled and frustrated as I was I'm not sure if I was mixing them separate. I am going to try it again with this suggestion and see if it works.

Thank you

 

[BakerSparky]

I've made this cake recipe for over 5 years. Birthdays, showers and even a wedding cake. Everyone loves this cake ad the recipe was great because it has multiple sizes. I tried to make it for a birthday party. I made it 7 times and each and every time I made it it wouldn't come out of the pan. It was glued into the pan, done on the outside but didn't really seem done on the inside.

I didn't know what I did different. I tried using different pans, bought new flour, eggs/butter at different temperature, checked the oven temperature, lined the pan, cooked it longer, used cake release. Nothing worked. Anyone have any suggestions?

Thank you everyone for all the advice. I made the cake last week. Left all the ingredients on the counter for about an hour to make sure they were room temperature, made sure to sift all the dry ingredients. Made sure the rack was mid-oven, used my cake release and it worked this time. I will make it again in a few weeks to see if it actually will reliably or if it was just a fluke. Not sure what made the difference but thank you all for your suggestions.