Here’s an in-depth look at common cake pan sizes & conversions, as well as how to adjust recipes or make substitutions based on the pan sizes you have. Free printable included.
Unless you have a fully stocked kitchen with dozens of baking pans, chances are that you’ll run into a recipe where you don’t have the specific pan required. In fact, a cake pan substitution is the subject of most recipe questions I receive. I figured it would be easier to store all of this information in one convenient place for us all to reference.
Welcome to my Cake Pan Sizes & Conversions lesson!
This Post Includes:
- Common Baking Pan Measurements
- Cake Pans That Are Similar
- Substituting Cake Pans
- Adapting Cake Recipes to Fit Certain Pans
- Amount of Batter Some of My Cake Recipes Yield
Common Baking Pan Measurements
In this list, you’ll find common baking pan measurements and the volume of batter they hold. **The amount listed is the total amount of batter each pan holds, but you usually only fill cake pans halfway (unless otherwise noted in the recipe you are using).** Most measurements were taken at my home kitchen. Cross referenced with the always trusted Joy of Baking, as well.
Measurement Conversions
- 1 inch = 2.54cm
- 1 cup = 240ml
Round Pans:
6×2 inches (15 x 5cm) = 4 cups (960ml)
8×2 inches (20 x 5cm) = 6 cups (1.4 liters)
9×2 inches (23 x 5cm) = 8 cups (1.9 liters)
Square Pans:
8×2 inch square (20 x 5 cm) = 8 cups (1.9 liters)
9×2 inch square (23 x 5 cm) = 10 cups (2.4 liters)
10×2 inch square = (25 x 5 cm) = 12 cups (2.8 liters)
Rectangular Pans – 2 inch (5 cm) tall
11×7 inches (28 x 18 cm) = 10 cups (2.4 liters)
13×9 inches (33 x 23 cm) = 14 cups (3.3 liters)
Springform Pans:
9x 2.5 inches (23 x 6 cm) = 10 cups (2.4 liters)
10x 2.5 inches (25 x 6 cm) = 12 cups (2.8 liters)
Bundt Pan – volume varies because of various designs
10×3 inch (25 x 8 cm) = 10-12 cups (2.8 liters)
Tube Pan:
9×3 inches (23 x 8 cm) = 12 cups (2.8 liters)
Jelly Roll Pans – 1 inch (2.5 cm) tall
10×15 inches (27 x 39 cm) = 10 cups (2.4 liters)
12×17 inches (32 x 44 cm) = 12 cups (2.8 liters)
Loaf Pans – about 3 inches (8 cm) tall
8×4 inch (20 x 10 cm) = 4 cups (960 ml)
9×5 inch (23 x 13 cm) = 8 cups (1.9 liters)
How to Determine the Volume Yourself
If you want to calculate a pan’s volume yourself, it’s so easy! Simply fill your pan with 1 cup of water at a time and count until it’s full. That’s what I do!
How Much Does This Pan Hold?
Here’s a helpful list of the most common baking pans and the volume of batter they hold, as well as which pans hold the same amount of batter. ***Keep in mind that the volumes listed mean you are filling the pan all the way to the top with batter, which isn’t ideal for baked goods. Unless otherwise noted, filling pans around 2/3 full is the best practice. This leaves room for rising.
- For example, my vanilla cake recipe yields around 8 cups of batter which I divide between 3 9×2 inch round cake pans. (Each hold 8 cups of batter!) Each cake layer has a little less than 3 cups batter each.
Use the following section to determine which baking pans can be substituted for others based on their full volume.
Round Pans
- 6×2 inch round pan holds 4 cups of batter, the same as an 8×4 inch loaf pan. Fun discovery! Cupcake recipes yielding 12-16 cupcakes fit wonderfully in 3 6-inch cake pans. See my post for 6 inch cake recipes for more information.
- 8×2 inch round pan holds 6 cups of batter.
- 9×2 inch round pan holds 8 cups of batter, the same as an 8×2 inch square pan and a 9×5 inch loaf pan.
- 10×2 inch round pan holds 10-11 cups of batter, the same as a 9×2 inch square pan, 11×7 inch pan, 10×15 inch jelly roll pan, 10×3 inch Bundt pan, and a 9×2.5 inch springform pan.
Square Pans
- 8×2 inch square pan holds 8 cups of batter, the same as a 9×2 inch round pan and a 9×5 inch loaf pan.
- 9×2 inch square pan holds 10 cups of batter, the same as a 10×2 inch round pan, 11×7 inch pan, 9×2.5 inch springform pan, 10×3 inch Bundt pan, and a 10×15 inch jelly roll pan.
- 10×2 inch square pan holds 12 cups of batter, the same as a 12×17 inch jelly roll pan, 10×3 inch Bundt pan, 10×2.5 inch springform pan, and a 9-inch tube pan.
Rectangle Pans
- 11×7 inch pan holds 10 cups of batter, the same as a 10×2 inch round pan, 9×2-inch square pan, 9×2.5 inch springform pan, 10×3 inch Bundt pan, and a 10×15 inch jelly roll pan.
- 9×13 inch pan holds 14-16 cups of batter, essentially the same as 2 9×2-inch round pans.
Jelly Roll Pans
- 10×15 inch jelly roll pan holds 10 cups of batter, the same as a 10×2 inch round pan, 9-inch square pan, 11×7 pan, 9×2.5 inch springform pan, 10-inch Bundt pan.
- 12×17 inch jelly roll pan holds 12 cups of batter, the same as a 10×2 inch square pan, 10-inch Bundt pan, 10×2.5 inch springform pan, and a 9-inch tube pan.
Bundt Pans
10-inch Bundt pans are the standard size. I actually have several that are 9.5 inches and most Bundt cake recipes still fit.
- 10-inch Bundt pan holds 10-12 cups of batter, the same as a 10×2 inch round pan (10 cups), 9×2 inch square pan (10 cups), 10×2 inch square pan (12 cups), 11×7 inch pan (10 cups), 10×15 inch jelly roll pan (10 cups), 12×17 inch jelly roll pan (12 cups), 9×2.5 inch springform pan (10 cups), 10×2.5 inch springform pan (12 cups) and a 9-inch tube pan (12 cups).
Tube Pans
9×3 inch tube pans are the standard size. I have a few that are 8 inch and 10 inch and most recipes using tube pans fit nicely in all.
- 9×3 inch tube pan holds 12 cups of batter, the same as 10×2 inch square pan, 12×17 inch jelly roll pan, and a 10×2.5 inch springform pan.
Springform Pans
- 9×2.5 inch springform pan holds 10 cups of batter, the same as a 10×2 inch round pan, 9×2 inch square pan, 11×7 inch pan, a 10×15 inch jelly roll pan.
- 10×2.5 inch springform pan holds 12 cups of batter, the same as a 10×2 inch square pan, 12×17 inch jelly roll pan, and a 9×3 inch tube pan.
Loaf Pans
- 8×4 inch loaf pan holds 4 cups of batter, the same as a 6×2 inch round pan.
- 9×5 inch loaf pan holds 8 cups of batter, the same as a 9×2 inch round pan and an 8×2 inch square pan.
Substituting Cake Pans
I’m piggy-backing this one to the section above because there’s often a need to substitute different cake pans. If substituting a baking pan that holds the same amount of batter, be wary of the baking time because the dimensions of the baked good will change. Always keep your eye on the oven and begin checking for doneness earlier than the recipe states.
Remember, only fill pans about 1/2 to 2/3 full unless otherwise instructed in the recipe.
FREE PRINTABLE
Here is a free printable you can hang in your kitchen workspace: Volumes & Measurements of Common Baking Pans
Adapting Recipes to Fit Certain Cake Pans
Adapting recipes to fit the cake pans you have (or need) can often be complicated. While it’s always best to stick to the written recipe, sometimes you need to make adjustments and that’s where a little math can help.
1) Determine the volume your pan can hold. You can also determine the actual surface area of the pan in square inches. I actually used Food 52’s article by Alice Medrich on this subject to brush up on my math!
- For square and rectangle pans, multiply the length of the sides. For example, a 9×13 inch baking pan is 117 square inches. 9×13 = 117.
- For circle pans, determine the area by multiplying the radius squared by π. (π = 3.14, the radius is half of the diameter, and squaring means multiplying a number by itself.) For example, the area of a 9-inch round pan is 63. The radius is 4.5. 4.5×4.5 = 20.25. Multiply that by 3.14 = 63.5.
2) After you determine the volume your pan can hold or its square inches, you can confidently make baking pan substitutions.
- For example, if a 9×13 inch pan is 117 square inches and a 9-inch round pan is 63.5 square inches, you can be confident that the volume from one 9×13 inch pan can fit into TWO 9-inch round pans (approximately 120 square inches total).
What if volumes and square inches don’t match up perfectly? You’ll have to adjust the recipe and this requires more math.
For example, if you want to adapt a 9-inch round cake to a 10-inch round cake, you’ll need to make adjustments. A 9-inch round cake pan is 63.5 square inches/holds 8 cups of batter. A 10-inch round cake pan is 78.5 square inches/holds 10-11 cups of batter. Without any adaptions, your 10-inch cake layers will be very thin. You’ll need to increase the batter by 25%.
The get this percentage, work with the cups or square inches. Subtract the number you have (8 cups) from the number you want (10 cups). Divide that (2 cups) by what you have (8 cups), then multiply by 100. (The universal way to find a percentage.) This equals 25%.
How to Avoid the Math
What works for me most of the time (because I don’t trust myself with too much math!) is to 1.5x the recipe or even making 2 batches of batter. (For best success, taste, and texture, I always recommend making separate full batches instead of doubling. Doubling risks over-mixing or under-mixing and could overwhelm your mixer.) Then, I use leftover batter to make a few cupcakes on the side to freeze for another time.
It’s better to have extra batter rather than not enough.
What About Eggs?
If you need part of an egg for when you are adjusting a recipe, crack the egg, beat it, and whatever percentage of that mixture you need. If you need 1/3 of an egg and you have 3 Tablespoons of beaten egg, use 1 Tablespoon. For a more precise amount and if you don’t trust your measurements, you can also weigh the beaten egg on a kitchen scale to determine exactly how much you need.
- Cover, refrigerate, and add any leftovers to your scrambled eggs the next morning!
Amount of Batter Some of My Cake Recipes Yield
The following list will help if you need to adjust my recipes for different pan sizes. These are the recipes I know and all measurements are approximate.
- Checkerboard Cake: about 8 cups
- Vanilla Naked Cake: about 8 cups
- Vanilla Cake: about 8 cups
- Confetti Cake: about 8 cups
- Chocolate Cake: about 6 cups
- White Cake: about 7 cups
- Banana Cake: about 6 cups
- Strawberry Cake: about 7 cups
- Snickerdoodle Cake: about 8 cups
- Coconut Cake: about 7-8 cups
- Red Velvet Cake: about 6-7 cups
- Lemon Cake: about 7 cups
My Favorite Baking Pans
I have a list for you! Stock your kitchen with these 8 best baking pans and these 10 cake baking & decorating tools.
The next time you have a question about cake pan sizes & conversions, I hope you find your answer in this post so you can confidently make the adjustments needed.
Hi Sally and Sally’s team!
I’ve been an avid cook for years and have successfully baked plenty of cookies and brownies and simple cakes, but recently I’ve been baking more and actively trying to improve my skills. Your website has been invaluable in this quest! Whenever I want a specific recipe, you’re my go-to source. This article, as well as all of your other tips and tricks, is so helpful. I struggle with math mightily (and have a tendency to second-guess myself a lot in general) so this is just so, so helpful. Thank you for all of your hard work, well-written and -designed posts, and detailed, clear approach. It is much appreciated! <3
Hello Sally,
I wanted to try and bake your German Chocolate cake. It calls for 3 -9×2 pans…..I only have 8×1 pans what should I do?
Thank you,
Candace
Hi Candace, I would turn that cake into a 4 layer 8 inch cake then. Fill the pans about halfway with batter. The bake time will be a little shorter, but you can test for doneness with a toothpick.
Hi Sally, for tube pans, how is the height accounted for? I have a two piece 6″inch tube pan. When the pan is assembled, the height from the bottom of the cone disc surface till the top of the edge of the outer ring top is about little less than 2&(3/4) inches. but the height of the cone from bottom surface to the top is a around 3&(1/4) inches. Would quarter amount of a 10″ tube pan recipe batter fit in it?
Similarly for an 8″ tube pan of similar height would half the 10″ tube pan recipe batter fit in it?
Hi Sally,
I think your article suggests I could substitute 2 8-inch round tins for 3 6-inch round tins. Am I correct in this interpretation?
Thanks!
That works– I’ve done it before with this recipe. I can’t recall the exact bake time for the 8-inch cakes, but you can use a toothpick to test for doneness.
Hi, so if I had made a batch for a 2 layer 9 inch cake, could I take that batter and divide it up between multiple 4 inch cake pans (filled 2/3 or slightly less) to make smaller layered cakes? Or would it require reformulating the recipe? (I’m fine with different baking time with smaller cakes. Thats doable for me. And I’m fine with having some leftover unused batter.)
Also I love your blog and recipes so much! Thank you for this article.
Hi Brooke, thank you so much! Yes that’s correct– you can use cake batter from a 2 layer 9 inch cake to make smaller cakes in smaller cake pans. The bake time, of course, would be shorter.
My cheesecake recipe calls for a 9 inch springform pan that is baked for 1 hour and then left in the oven for 6 hours. I would like to make a few cheesecakes in three 6 inch pans, do I still bake and hold in the oven for the same time? Your reply will be greatly appreciated. Thank you!
Hi Kate, I’m unsure of the exact bake time for a 6 inch cheesecake. You will use the same oven temperature and then use your eyes more than the timer for bake time. If making our classic cheesecake you will bake until the center is almost set. When it’s done, the center of the cheesecake will slightly wobble if you gently shake the pan.
Hi Sally,
I’m making a cake that calls for a 10″ stainless steel bowl, (it’s a dome cake). Since it may be the only time I ever make this cake, I really don’t want to buy the bowl. Also, I am making it for the flavor not the shape. What size round pan should I substitute? Thanks.
Hi Sylvia, We are unsure of the capacity of that size bowl. Your best bet is to make the batter, see how much it yields, and then use the appropriate size pan.
Hi Sally,
If cooking in a “quarter sheet pan” calls for 30-35 minutes, and you want to split into three 6” round pans, how long would you bake in the 6” pans?
Also, if a recipe calls for “glucose” but doesn’t specify glucose powder or glucose syrup, can you use either? I am feeling hopeless after tirelessly looking online. Thank you!
Hi Anna, Most 6 inch cakes bake for around 18-21 minutes. You can read all about that size in our post on 6 Inch Cakes.
I suggest asking the author of the recipe you are using if they mean syrup or powder – you may be able to tell if the recipe is calling for mixing wet or dry ingredients (or if for example it says you can use corn syrup instead then you know it’s talking about glucose syrup).
Hello again, thank you SO MUCH for your help! I don’t see any substitute suggestions… it’s the milk bar birthday cake recipe. Not sure if anyone on here knows? It wants the “glucose” in the frosting. If it should be powered and I use syrup, will that greatly affect the recipe? All I can find anywhere is syrup.
I’m putting one tube cake recipe in two loaf pans. How much different will baking times be?!
Hi Jo Anne, Different recipes all have different bake times so it really depends on which specific recipe you are using. If it’s one of our recipes let us know and hopefully we can help!
Pans… namely heart shaped ones. Are the batter amounts for 6 in. and 9 in. round pans equivalent to 6 and 9 inch heart shaped pans of the same depth?
Making a tiered cake for a small wedding in two weeks- next challenge is to find a red velvet marble cake recipe…
Love your blog and the recipes! ♥️
I have a great old recipe for zucchini bread that says to bake it in a tube pan or two loaf pans for 55-60 mins., but it doesn’t say what size loaf pan. I use a bundt pan for 60 mins., but I’d like to be able to make it in loaf pans–gifting a loaf is nicer than gifting half a cake. Any suggestion for the proper size of loaf pan to use?
Thank you.
Hi Chris, Most standard loaf pans are 9×5 inches. If yours is larger or smaller the bake time may need to be adjusted.
What about changes in baking time for various recipes? And does oven size affect it? I ask this b/c I often use 6″ pans but I have a 27″ oven…four pans barely fit. Does circulation around pans affect baking time? I’m guessing yes. I also tried using cake strips and although it told me to bake for 25-30 minutes, after 50 minutes (with an oven thermometer in my oven to confirm the temperature), they sprang back but were still a little gooey in spots so I threw them out. I love using cake strips but I have no idea how to adjust peoples’ recipes for them…any ideas?
Hi Jody! The bake time will change depending on the size and thickness of the cake you’re baking. Air circulation definitely affects the baking time, as does how many cakes you’re baking at once. For example, if I bake two loaves of quick bread in the same oven at the same time, the bake time usually needs to be extended. I don’t use cake strips, so I don’t have any advice on those. So sorry!
Hi!
I’ve read somewhere that it’s not good to let batter sit for too long but I don’t have a lot of pans to bake all my layers. I’ve read in a previous comment that you can let the batter at room temperature. Would that be ok and not affect the texture/taste of the layers that have waited on the counter?
Hi Caroline, It is best to bake batter as soon as possible. When the batter is mixed together the leaveners are activated and if the batter sits for too long your cake won’t rise very well. In a pinch, letting the batter sit for 30 minutes or so while you wait for your pan to be ready should be ok. If however you are making a two layer cake and you think it will need to sit for a long time you can cut the recipe in half, bake one layer, and then make another half of the batter and bake that.
I am making a no bake cheesecake. It calls for 6- 4 inch spring form pans. I do not have that small of pan nor do I have that many. Can you tell me what size spring form
Pan I can use to make it just one big cheesecake? Also it calls for 2 sleeves of graham crackers for the bottom of the pan. If that helps to make sense of the size I can use.
Hi Liz, I can’t be certain but I would try to use that recipe in a 9-inch springform pan. You may also enjoy my no bake cheesecake recipe.
Hi, I have two 7×2.5 inch pans. That’s all I’ve got so far and I only bake cakes on my trusty convection turbo broiler so I can only bake one pan at a time. I already made a chiffon cake because luckily, I’ve found a recipe with just the right measurements for my pan. Can you please give me the measurements for your vanilla cake for one 7×2.5 round pan? Thanks you so much!
Hi Hannah, To get the batter to fit exactly you will have to do some math! See the section above called “Adapting Recipes to Fit Certain Cake Pans.”
Hi Sally,
Your recipes are wonderful! Love reading through your website…beautiful pictures and great information. Thank you! Question… can I double/triple your cupcake recipes? I have read different things about doubling recipes and was curious about your take on it. TIA:)
Hi Kelli, thank you! For absolute best taste and texture, I strongly recommend making separate batches of cupcakes/cakes. Working with a higher volume of batter often leads to under or over-mixing.
Oh! I have a related question. What can I do about making layer cakes in my crappy little apartment size oven? Last time I tried 2 nine-inch pans and they won’t fit on the same rack. 🙁 I know you shouldn’t let cake batter sit for any length of time. Should I put them on separate racks and swap ’em out half way? Other strategies? Besides moving into a place with a bigger kitchen?
Thanks!
Hi Laura, If needed you can bake on seperate racks and rotate half way through. Or bake one pan and let the other sit loosely covered at room temperature until the first is finished.
This is the best article I’ve seen. Most sites don’t have 6″ round pans or have the calculations you have. You have everything. I’ve seen some sites that you have to adjust the baking oven temperature as well as the time but I think leaving it at 350 and adjusting the time is simpler.Thanks!
Hi Sally,
Thanks for this guide! I want to bake a recipe developed for a 6inch cake pan in my 8x4x3 inch loaf tin. How do I adjust the baking time, given that my loaf tin is deeper than the cake pans? Can I use the same amount of the ingredients?
Thank you so much, this is all so confusing!
Hi Ann, I expect your recipe to take only a little longer in the oven if using that loaf pan. A toothpick to test for doneness is most helpful.
Hi Sally,
All your recipes and tips about baking are really helpful. I’m planning to invest in new baking pans for my kitchen, that could be used for most recipes. I’m planning to buy 3, 8×3 inch pans which holds about 9 cups each. So, that in this way I can use this for both the recipes that call out for 8×2 inch pan and 9×2 inch pan (by adjusting the temperature). I would like to get your advice on this before purchase. Eagerly waiting for your reply.
Hi Aysha, Most of my cake recipes that call for a 9 inch pan can also be baked in 8 inch pans. Your layers will be a bit thicker and may take an extra minutes or two of bake time.
How does more volume of batter affects the baking temperature and time??
For example, I want to bake in just one 8-inch pan a cake that should be baked in 3 8-inch cake pans.
Hi Emma, Only using one pan when a recipe calls for three will be way too much batter for your cake. The cake will not rise or bake properly. The general rule of thumb is to not fill a cake pan more than 2/3 full. For more tips I recommend checking out my 10 Baking Tips for Perfect Cakes.
I plan to make a Strawberry Double Decker Cake for a dear friend. I want to use two 6-inch pans. I know that it will not take all of the batter for that one cake, so I’d like to know if I would have enough to make 2 additional cakes, or 1 cake in an 8×8 pan? Thanks in advance.
Using my strawberry cake batter, you’ll definitely have enough for 2 additional 6 inch cakes or an 8-inch cake.
Hi Sally!
I have a coffee cake recipe I love that uses a bundt pan. The batter usually fills the pan about 2/3 of the way full. However, my family has requested that I make the cake in a 9×13 so I can add crumble and a glaze drizzle. Are those pans interchangeable?
It’s hard to answer without knowing the size Bundt pan you have or the recipe you are using. A standard Bundt pan holds 10-12 cups of batter and a 9X13 pan holds about 14 cups. You might be interested in my New York Style Crumb Cake or my Old Fashioned Sour Cream Crumb Cake (doubled for a 9×13 pan).
I’m unclear about what you mean by 4 cups of batter fitting into a 6×2 round. I just made two 6×2 rounds using my 12 cupcake batter recipe and it took less than 2 cups of batter into each of the 2 pans. And I used up all the batter.
Do you mean the max capacity is 4 cups of batter? I usually only fill my rounds just over half full so there’s no spilling over etc.
Thanks for any clarification 🙂
And thank you for your website!
Hi Christina! See “How Much Batter Does This Pan Hold?” section where I chat about the total volume/how much batter goes into each.
I’m in the process of investing in new cake pans. Do you recommend 9×3 or 9×2? What’s the advantage for a novice baker. Also, I’m getting recommendations for Fat Daddio’s pans but they’re non-stick and can MUST be washed by hand.
What are your thoughts on non-stick v. non-non-stick?
Thank you!
Hi Karen! I usually bake 9-inch cakes in 9×2 inch pans. It’s rare a cake will rise taller than 2 inches unless the recipe specifically instructs a deeper cake pan. Nonstick or not, it’s always best to grease your cake pan and/or use parchment paper rounds.
Hi sally
Thanks for this website. I have a question. I am using 7 inch size cake pan 3 inch in height, recently i used the same pan to make a cake 4 inch in height using papers rolled as a wall. ( as one of my friends told), but my convection didnt do the cake good. Its center part did not get cooked. The top and bottom went well. Am i doing anything bad.
Regards
Aby Mathews
Hi Aby! A 4 inch tall cake, like the one you baked, would require quite a long time in the oven to bake properly. I’m unsure of the exact time your cake needs for the 3 inch tall pan because it depends on the recipe, but it may be helpful to lower the oven rack to help it bake more evenly and tent it with foil to protect the top and sides from over-browning before the center is cooked.
Hi Sally!
Big fan of your recipes!
I want to make your upgraded German chocolate cake recipe using 6 inch round pans instead of the 9 inch pans. Can I just halve the recipe and bake for less time? I did the math and it looks like I would technically need to increase the ingredients by ~12% if I halved it, but that seems almost negligible to me and a lot easier to just cut it in half instead of halving and then adding 12% (now I’m confusing myself lol). Having said all that, can I just halve the recipe and bake them for 10-12 min?
Thanks a ton for any help you can provide!
Jon
Hi Jon, My Super Moist Chocolate Cupcakes fit perfectly into three 6-inch pans, and you can add a tsp of espresso powder if you wish to give it the same flavor as the cake. You can see the baking directions for this in my post on 6 inch cakes. Then yes, you can cut the ingredients for the filling and frosting in half and that should work!
Thank you so much for the reply, Sally! I ended up just halving the recipe and doing it in two 6 inch pans and it worked out pretty well. Did one layer of filling in between, one on top and frosted the sides and did piping around the top circumference. Ended up pretty beautiful, but now I have to try the cupcake recipe in 6 inch pans! As if I needed another reason to bake more cakes though Thanks again! The cake was delicious!
Hi, thank you so much for the information. I tried your vanilla cake but my oven doesn’t have space to fit more than 1 pan at a time, so I left the other pan with batter on the kitchen counter while the first one was baking. The 2nd one didn’t come out as good as the first one; and I’m thinking it’s because it was sitting and waiting (all the air bubbles disappeared?). Should I halve the recipe instead? Thank you so much,
Hi Rani, It’s best to bake the batter at once. Baking powder and baking soda are initially activated once wet, so I always recommend baking cake batter right away. If your oven only fits one pan at a time you can certainly cut the recipe in half and after the first cake is finished and the pan completely cool, repeat the process for the second cake.
This information is very helpful, but my question is…how does changing pan size change baking times? I’m also wondering if there is a rule of thumb for changing oven temperature when changing pan size…thank you
Hi Pat, there is usually no need to change the oven temperature if swapping pan sizes. The bake time will change if the thickness of the baked good changes. For example, if you use an 8 inch pan instead of a 9 inch pan, the baked good will be thicker and therefore it will need additional time in the oven. Less surface area means more bake time since the batter isn’t spread out as thin. Hope this helps!
Yes, thanks, makes total sense!
I’m so glad I found this. I’m making your vanilla cake tomorrow and was just wondering what conversion was necessary to change it to an 8” pan. Now I can figure it out myself! This is going to be a super helpful reference from now on. Thanks so much for all of the effort it must have taken!
I received couple of 3 inch deep cake pans…one an 8 inch round and the other a 6 inch round… for Christmas. Do you have any suggestions for baking with extra batter? I think I can bake a cake, then slice it in half for layers, but I have not seen any recipes for deep cake pans. Can you help?
Hi Debbie, as long as you fill the cake pans 2/3 full and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, you should be fine. Since deeper cakes take longer, it would be best to tent the cakes with foil to protect the top and edges from browning too quickly.