# Help!!! I need to convert my normal carrot cake recipe to a sheet pan size



## danni6461 (Mar 23, 2013)

Cn anyone help me I need to convert my carrot cake recipe. It is for 2 9" round pans. I need to make a restaurant sheet pan size cake.


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## siduri (Aug 13, 2006)

I'm sure someone here knows the chemistry and can help you convert it - what i do know is you have to probably reduce the amount of baking powder.  Think of the cake as a dome on a building.  If the dome is too high and the span is too wide, the dome falls.  So letting a small cake rise more doesn;t make it fall, but a wider span will not hold up.


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## boar_d_laze (Feb 13, 2008)

A recipe that will do two 9" round pans is about 12 cups volume and will do one 13"x9"x2" sheet pan (which can take up to 15 cups) .  It's probably not worth the time and effort to increase the recipe by 25%. 

Since I'm not sure what you mean by a "restaurant sheet pan size," I can't be more specific about your particular needs.  FWIW, 13"x9"x2" is pretty much standard.  The same amount of batter will work for a 10" x 15" x 1" jelly roll pan.  Also, pretty much standard.   

Keep an eye on cooking time as both the height and mass of the batter in the pan will affect it.  Watch the color, check for "jiggle," and use the toothpick test. 

Stay with the ingredients and ingredient ratios in your recipe.  With all respect for Siduri, don't change the amount of baking powder (if your recipe calls for it).  Because they're so dense, most carrot cakes don't get much rise; and consequently don't get much fall either.  And FWIW, most carrot cake recipes use baking soda instead of baking powder. 

BDL


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## petemccracken (Sep 18, 2008)

In my experience:

Sheet pan = 18"x26"
Half Sheet = 18"x13"
Quarter Sheet = 9"x13"
And those correspond to the sizes of cakes offered at local bakeries in my area.

In talking with local bakers, they use pan extenders which are two inches (2") high for cakes.

Thus, the corresponding volume for a 1 1/2" depth is:

Full Sheet = 18"x26"x1 1/2" = 702 cubic inches or approximately 48 cups (64 cups for 2" depth)
Half Sheet = 18"x13"x1 1/2" = 351 cubic inches or approximately 24 cups (32 cups for 2"depth)
Quarter sheet = 9"x13"x1 1/2" = 175.5 cubic inches or approximately 12 cups (16 cups for 2" depth)
A 9" x1 1/2" cake pan has a volume of 6 cups, a 9" x 2" cake pan = 8 cups

Therefore, a recipe for two, 9"x1 1/2" cake pans is equivalent to a Quarter Sheet Cake and you would double for a Half Sheet and double again for a Full Sheet.

FWIW: 1 cup = 14.4375 cubic inches

I'm confident the baking pros will weigh in on the necessary adjustments for recipe ratios.


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## kaneohegirlinaz (Apr 24, 2011)

What a coincidence danni, I'm doing the opposite for Easter. 

The recipe that I have from Cooks Illustrated calls for a 13 x 9 x 2 pan and I want to bake it into (2) 8 ½ rounds so that it will display nicely on the counter in my pretty domed cake pedestal, prior to Sunday Supper. 

But then a 'restaurant sheet pan' is 18 x 26, at least a full size, right? Are you baking in a commercial oven or at home, that could be a problem.


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## petemccracken (Sep 18, 2008)

K-girl, take a look at: http://www.joyofbaking.com/PanSizes.html

From the way I read it, you need 8 cups of batter, 2-8"x1 1/2" layers @ 4 cups per pan, and the recipe makes 14 cups, assuming the recipe fills the 13"x9"x2" pan.

So, you need 8/14ths = 4/7ths recipe.

Then again, make two 8" cakes!/img/vbsmilies/smilies/lol.gif


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## danni6461 (Mar 23, 2013)

Wow thanks everybody!!!! Great tips! Yes I am baking in a commercial oven... Thank you all again. I hope this comes out good!!!


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