To bake my cake, and eat it, too.
October 21, 2020 3:29 PM Subscribe
I have a 9" round cake pan. I need recipes.
This Bon Appetit recipe for a chocolate cake caught my attention since its size is more appropriate that a traditional layer cake for our two-person household:
Web Site.
Video.
I even bought the 9" round pan the recipe calls for.
So now I have the pan, and only one recipe. Who has another cake recipe for this size of pan? It need not be fancy. Yellow cake, spice cake,,,, any of the usual sorts of cake.
This Bon Appetit recipe for a chocolate cake caught my attention since its size is more appropriate that a traditional layer cake for our two-person household:
Web Site.
Video.
I even bought the 9" round pan the recipe calls for.
So now I have the pan, and only one recipe. Who has another cake recipe for this size of pan? It need not be fancy. Yellow cake, spice cake,,,, any of the usual sorts of cake.
Okay, when I was young the first cookbook I ever bought for myself was Sundays at Moosewood Restaurant, and it contains a Provençal recipe for an almond cake (they call it Marzipan Cake, but the ingredients include almond paste and almonds-not marzipan) that you bake in a 9 inch round. It was a dessert that people requested I make throughout the 1990s. You can top it with a little thinned-our apricot jam, or blend up some thawed frozen raspberries and make a coulis. If you’re interested, me mail me and I’ll type out the recipe.
posted by little mouth at 3:41 PM on October 21, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by little mouth at 3:41 PM on October 21, 2020 [1 favorite]
I have not made this (yet!), but I've eaten it, and this Blueberry Cake is moist and delicious. Maybe more of a coffee cake or breakfast cake.
Also, in case you're not aware, many springform pan recipes are for 9" pans. You'll have to take some extra steps to ensure you can remove your finished cake, but most of those should fit fine in your pan (as long as the sides are tall enough!)
Also... the surface area of your pan is 63.6 (pi x (4.5 x 4.5)). That's VERY similar to the surface area of an 8x8 pan (64), so most desserts like brownies that are intended to be made in an 8x8 pan would also work in your 9" round.
posted by hydra77 at 4:00 PM on October 21, 2020 [1 favorite]
Also, in case you're not aware, many springform pan recipes are for 9" pans. You'll have to take some extra steps to ensure you can remove your finished cake, but most of those should fit fine in your pan (as long as the sides are tall enough!)
Also... the surface area of your pan is 63.6 (pi x (4.5 x 4.5)). That's VERY similar to the surface area of an 8x8 pan (64), so most desserts like brownies that are intended to be made in an 8x8 pan would also work in your 9" round.
posted by hydra77 at 4:00 PM on October 21, 2020 [1 favorite]
I love the Marie Helene apple cake recipe. Sometimes I only use 3 apples, it depends on how big they are. It always come out good, and I served it to some socially distanced guests a couple of months ago, and they both raved about it. You might want to put a piece of parchment paper on the bottom, but I never do.
N.B. this calls for a spring form pan, but I bake it in my 9" cake pan, no problems, except for releasing, it's more like a coffee cake, so hence the advice for a parchment at the bottom. But I never bother with that. I usually don't have the rum either, just use the vanilla. It's a really good cake, and so moist.
posted by Marie Mon Dieu at 4:16 PM on October 21, 2020 [2 favorites]
N.B. this calls for a spring form pan, but I bake it in my 9" cake pan, no problems, except for releasing, it's more like a coffee cake, so hence the advice for a parchment at the bottom. But I never bother with that. I usually don't have the rum either, just use the vanilla. It's a really good cake, and so moist.
posted by Marie Mon Dieu at 4:16 PM on October 21, 2020 [2 favorites]
I would be remiss not to mention the Moosewood's delicious, easy, and vegan Six Minute Chocolate Cake. It comes together so easily and so quickly!
posted by cleverevans at 4:25 PM on October 21, 2020
posted by cleverevans at 4:25 PM on October 21, 2020
Oh! You could probably make a Wacky Cake in that pan also. I usually mix it in a bowl and pour it into the pan, you can do whatever you like. My husband used to rave about it.
posted by Marie Mon Dieu at 4:31 PM on October 21, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by Marie Mon Dieu at 4:31 PM on October 21, 2020 [1 favorite]
I make almost all layer cakes in 9 inch rounds. I like Sweetapolita’s recipes.
This one for Vanilla Birthday cake is good. Read her recipes to get a sense of how much it will make. She often reuses the base cake recipes in different quantities. This one makes four 8” rounds so I would quarter the recipe and go from there.
Sure sure sure, 8” round and 9” round ARE different but I just ... proceed as normal and adjust the time a bit?
https://sweetapolita.com/2012/06/how-to-make-a-perfectly-delightful-vanilla-birthday-cake/
posted by kellygrape at 5:04 PM on October 21, 2020
This one for Vanilla Birthday cake is good. Read her recipes to get a sense of how much it will make. She often reuses the base cake recipes in different quantities. This one makes four 8” rounds so I would quarter the recipe and go from there.
Sure sure sure, 8” round and 9” round ARE different but I just ... proceed as normal and adjust the time a bit?
https://sweetapolita.com/2012/06/how-to-make-a-perfectly-delightful-vanilla-birthday-cake/
posted by kellygrape at 5:04 PM on October 21, 2020
This flourless chocolate cake is amazing, the chipotle is optional. :)
posted by joycehealy at 5:16 PM on October 21, 2020
posted by joycehealy at 5:16 PM on October 21, 2020
Another vote for almond cake. I'm a fan of this one on David Lebovitz's website.
posted by girasoli at 6:26 PM on October 21, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by girasoli at 6:26 PM on October 21, 2020 [1 favorite]
I just made this cheesecake in a 9 inch cake pan (it's from one of Gordon Ramsey's cookbooks). Delicious and not too sweet.
posted by Red Desk at 6:32 PM on October 21, 2020
posted by Red Desk at 6:32 PM on October 21, 2020
Here’s a very easy almond cake that uses almond flour instead of paste - it is delicious!
posted by zepheria at 6:36 PM on October 21, 2020
posted by zepheria at 6:36 PM on October 21, 2020
If your taste runs more towards sour than sweet, Louisa's Cake with lemon curd is wonderful. And generally, Food52 is a great recipe site with a good search function.
posted by rtimmel at 7:14 PM on October 21, 2020
posted by rtimmel at 7:14 PM on October 21, 2020
Sorry, just realized that Lousia's cake calls for a 9" springform pan, not a regular cake pan. Food52 still has a lot of cakes.
posted by rtimmel at 7:26 PM on October 21, 2020
posted by rtimmel at 7:26 PM on October 21, 2020
You can adapt recipes for other size pans to your own pan with this widget. Plug the ingredients in on the left side along with the size of pan the recipe calls for, then enter in your own pan specs on the right and it will generate what the ingredients list should be. It may not have to change at all depending on the recipe in question.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 8:01 PM on October 21, 2020 [2 favorites]
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 8:01 PM on October 21, 2020 [2 favorites]
Any cake fits this pan? Most standard cake recipes call for two 9" round cake pans to make the layers so just halve the recipe.
Any 8x8 recipe is fine in a 9" pan. Maybe check it a couple minutes early to see if a toothpick comes out clean.
Anything that would go in a 13x9 pan can be halved to fit this one. Again, check a few minutes early to see how its getting along.
posted by ananci at 10:34 PM on October 21, 2020 [2 favorites]
Any 8x8 recipe is fine in a 9" pan. Maybe check it a couple minutes early to see if a toothpick comes out clean.
Anything that would go in a 13x9 pan can be halved to fit this one. Again, check a few minutes early to see how its getting along.
posted by ananci at 10:34 PM on October 21, 2020 [2 favorites]
Pineapple upside-down cake works really well in this size pan because of the way the pineapple rings fit.
posted by FencingGal at 5:58 AM on October 22, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by FencingGal at 5:58 AM on October 22, 2020 [1 favorite]
Most standard cake recipes call for two 9" round cake pans to make the layers so just halve the recipe.
OR! Make one 9-inch layer and a few cupcakes or a couple 4-inchers or a 3-inch and a 6-inch and freeze these for later
OR! Make one 9-inch layer and put the rest of the batter in fridge or freezer depending how long you want to keep it, then make the next 9-inch layer when you next feel like some cake. (This is for baking powder/baking soda leavened cakes; if you freeze batter that relies on whipped egg whites for the lift, the cake'll be a thin brick. Which, you know. Might be okay depending what you do to it? It's cake.)
posted by Don Pepino at 6:44 AM on October 22, 2020 [1 favorite]
OR! Make one 9-inch layer and a few cupcakes or a couple 4-inchers or a 3-inch and a 6-inch and freeze these for later
OR! Make one 9-inch layer and put the rest of the batter in fridge or freezer depending how long you want to keep it, then make the next 9-inch layer when you next feel like some cake. (This is for baking powder/baking soda leavened cakes; if you freeze batter that relies on whipped egg whites for the lift, the cake'll be a thin brick. Which, you know. Might be okay depending what you do to it? It's cake.)
posted by Don Pepino at 6:44 AM on October 22, 2020 [1 favorite]
I just made a Chicago-style pizza in mine!
posted by padraigin at 7:07 AM on October 22, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by padraigin at 7:07 AM on October 22, 2020 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: My thanks go out to everyone for the good ideas, especially to Iris for the link to SeriousEats and to rtimmel for the link to Food52. All the suggestions for cakes containing fruit have me thinking about a sweet cake to have with coffee.
I crunched some numbers and found that the recipes designed for a one-layer cake in a 9" pan run 25%-50% larger than for one layer of a layer cake. That gives a useful range for modifying recipes.
Thanks again.
posted by SemiSalt at 4:58 PM on October 22, 2020
I crunched some numbers and found that the recipes designed for a one-layer cake in a 9" pan run 25%-50% larger than for one layer of a layer cake. That gives a useful range for modifying recipes.
Thanks again.
posted by SemiSalt at 4:58 PM on October 22, 2020
This thread is closed to new comments.
Blueberry Crumb Cake, Grandmothers of Sils’ Apple and Yogurt Cake (several of Smitten Kitchen's 'everyday' cakes are one-pan affairs)
Also: How to Scale (Most) Cake Recipes to Fit Any Pan / Cake Pan conversions
posted by Iris Gambol at 3:39 PM on October 21, 2020