Thank you Norcalbaker 59. Should we lower the oven temp by, say, increments of 10 degrees per baking batch to see what happens? The cloth baking strips would not be practical bc of the large quantities, but I'm very excited about lowering the temperature.
If you’re baking at 350°F try a test batch at 325°F. I know that may sound like a dramatic drop, but it really isn’t.
I’m assuming your oven is convection. Convection is designed specifically for large production to circulate heat on multiple racks and between each pan. So commercial ovens are already baking much hotter than a conventional oven.
The type of metal and any coating on your cake pans also contributes significantly to doming. Anodized aluminum, dark metal, nonstick coatings conduct heat more intensely than a natural light metal pan. So the type of metal cake pan is another consideration. Manufactures of these anodized aluminum dark metal, and nonstick types of pans actually recommend reducing baking temperature by 15°F-25°F because of the way these pans conduct heat.
I bake my cakes at 325°F. The rare exceptions are cakes with a lot of add-ins, like carrot cake or hummingbird cake. I know several professional pastry chefs who bake at 325°F. And like me, they don’t have to level their cakes either. 350°F is just too hot for most cakes.
Cake batter bakes from the outside toward the center. When the oven temperature is too high and/or the cake pan is conducting heat to intensely, the batter in contact with the metal heats and sets too fast. That batter actually has not has a chance to rise to its full potential. Meanwhile the batter in the center of the pan continues to rise to its full potential. But since the edges were set too soon the cake bakes low on the outside edge and high in the center, giving it a dome shape. If the heat is extreme the cake will crack in the center because the edge has set way too soon and the center ends up erupting like a volcano.
So if you lower the heat on the outside of the pan, it keeps batter in contact with the metal cool long enough to rise and set with the batter in the center of the pan.
The other thing you’ll find is when the cake bakes up level the cake is usually more moist and does not have a hard thick dry crust. If you notice on my orange chiffon cake there is no brown crust on the sides. Is comes out of the pan that way. That is due in part to the formula, but it’s also due in part to a lower baking temperature and a natural light metal pan. The crumb of the cake is very tender and moist. And even though the top of the cake is brown in color, that crust is very very soft. I actually just peel the crust right off; it’s so soft it comes right off. I don’t have to use simple syrups on my cakes. If I use them it’s to introduce a flavor, not to add moisture.
