Good and EASY sheet cake

[ea56]

Yes, I did forget to mention that with pyrex you need to lower the temp by 25 degrees. I have also tried this in the past and it does help with less dense baked goods, like a cake with eggs and baking powder and/or baking soda. But brownies, at least fudgey ones are dense in the center already. And although I've not baked the Hornets Nest Cake, from the sounds of the ingredients, I would imagine that it is similar in texture to a fudgey brownie and that's why I suggested trying an aluminum pan. The heat is distributed more evenly and I get better results with recipes like this one using an aluminum baking pan. I've been baking for over 50 yrs, I bake something every week and not to be immodest, most people think I'm pretty good at it. But by all means give the pyrex a try at the 25 degree lower temp., if it works, great, if not why not give my suggestin a try.
Eddie

 

[norgeway]

I usually

Bake in glass or Corning, but I believe your oven must be WAYYY to hot to have browned that much, I always drop the temp 25 degrees for glass, but I didn't think to put that down, its one of those things I do automatically, just as I drop the temp when baking biiscuits on a dark pan.

 

[ea56]

I think that Han's may be on to something about your oven temp Stan. Those older gas ovens are smaller and I think that the heat may be somewhat uneven while the thermostat is cycling on and off to maintain the set temp. I also had the thought that baking the cake at a lower position in the oven may help too. The upper areas of any oven are usually hotter. I personally prefer metal or aluminum for cakes, brownies and bread. But for pies I won't use anything but pyrex. You get the best bottom crust using pyrex because it holds the heat and bakes the bottom of the crust quicker and clear through, you'll never get a soggy bottom crust this way.

Everyone that bakes alot has their personal preferences and methods. No one method is better than the other, its what you are used to and what works best for you. We can all learn from one another and pick and chose what we like best. I frequently look up several recipes when I'm going to bake something that either I haven't baked in a while or never before and I will take tips from all of them to come up with my own version. It makes the experience more interesting for me and this way I'm always learning something new and hopefully improving my skills.
Eddie[this post was last edited: 2/14/2017-17:44]

 

[warmsecondrinse]

Funny note about "automatically" making adjustments.

I got into a conversation not long ago about cooking on a woodstove. The firebox is under 2 rings. 2 more rings are off to one side with a space underneath and the oven is below that, next to the firebox.

One guy said it must be tough cooking when you can't regulate the heat under whatever pot you're cooking in. Another agreed. The third guy looked at me like, "WTF?". I had no answer..... We couldn't figure out how there could possibly be a problem with regulating heat, whether you wanted simmer or rolling boil.

It never occurred to me or the other guy to mention that you slide the pot across the whole big, flat cooking surface to get the temp you want (and/or open or close dampers). We totally overlooked the fact that this was a separate step that needed to be specifically mentioned...... It was just ingrained from watching older people cook that way.

Of course, there's always an asbestos pad nearby and you can make use of the breadwarmer above

Jim

 

[stan]

Jim

I kinda know what you mean when using these old stoves, some things you just get use to, and certain adjustments become ingrained.
While mine is a step up from wood burning, there is no themometer, or heat setting. (No cycling)
The oven temp is regulated by flame height. It's nessesary to hang a oven thermometer.
Once desired temp is reached, I just sort of know where to set the flame to hold that temp. The old girl holds steady with no problem.
Since my mishap with the cake I discovered that it was totally operator error!
I paid attention to where the needle was pointing on my oven themometer, but didn't actually look at, or read the number it was pointing to!
So.. what I thought was 350 was really 400!
That combined with the glass pan that Eddie pointed out, was the formula for the "hot mess" LOL
I'm also suppose to be wearing glasses now but..
So.. I will try this again but with a aluminum pan as Eddie sugested, the cook and seve pudding, and at the correct temp!
Thank guys

 

[ea56]

Stan

considering that your oven doesn't have a thermostat I'd say your first attempt a the Hornets Nest Cake was pretty successful even if wasn't perfect. It's difficult to bake this way and you sure seem to know what your doing. Good luck with your next try I know you'll do fine.

Jim's story about the wood stove reminded me that my family used to rent a log cabin in Chester, Calif.in the late 50's and it had a wood stove. My Mom mastered it right away, probably because when she was a girl in Kansas that's what her family had. It wasn't until 1935 when they came to Calif, that they had a gas stove. Mom even made an apple pie in a cast iron frying pan in the wood stove and it was delicious.
Eddie

 

[stan]

Cast iron!

Now ur taking!
If I've got cast iron and a little lard, I'd be hard to beat. I've got 8 different cast iron pans. And I use em all.
Maybe I'll back this cake in one!
Don't know if I know what I'm doing, But I'll use these damm cheaters next time too!

 

[ea56]

Stan,

if you use cast iron to bake a cake I would bake at 325 F instead of 350 F as cast iron retains heat just like glass does, also, since its dark it attracts heat too. For a pie its great, because you want lots of heat right away to bake the bottom crust quickly so it doesn't get soggy. Baking is science, just like cooking is and its important to understand what the effects of different baking pans have on the finished product.

BTW, anyone that has problems with cookies getting too brown or burnt on the bottom, be sure you are using SHINY baking sheets! Never use those Baker's Secret cookie sheets if you want cookies that aren't burnt. Remember, dark attracts heat and if the cookie sheet is dark your cookies will burn. This means you also have to pay attention to washing both the top and the BOTTOM of the cookie sheets. If there is any residual grease on the bottom of the cookie sheet, the next time you put that bad boy in the oven, guess what, that grease will turn dark brown on the bottom and your cookies won't come out the way you want them to. Also, rotate the cookie sheets half way through the baking time, move the bottom sheet to the top rack and turn it from front to back, likewise with the lower sheet. Your cookies will come out beautifully.

Now I'll apologize for digressing LOL. And, Han's please forgive me for going off topic, I didn't mean to hijack your thread!
Eddie

 

[stan]

Good tips Eddie

We are back on topic..
I cooked up another..I used the cheaters so I could see what the hell I was doing, went for a round aluminum pan, used simi sweet chocolate chips (not the whole bag) 1/2 cup of chopped pecans, the cook n serve (instead of instant)
So.. 350 for sure this time, and some alterations. It's cooling now, so will know soon if I've git to throw it to the hogs or not!

 

[stan]

Forgot

Here's a pic

 

[ea56]

It looks like it came out perfect and I bet it is delicious too!
Eddie

 

[joelippard]

Darn Good!

Finally got around to making this today and boy is it good!  I altered slightly by using chipped pecans and making the powdered sugar glaze for the top.

 

[frigilux]

Between the cake mix, pudding, and chocolate chips this delicious cake is already pretty sweet...but the powdered sugar glaze looks nice on it.
I melt canned white frosting to use as a glaze on scones, muffins and certain coffeecakes. I pour a thin stream diagonally over the top, then turn the pan and go diagonally from the other angle. Makes a nice crosshatch pattern. May have to try that with this one, too.