Is a 9×13 cake too big for your family? Or, do you want a shape that is prettier to serve or easier to display on the counter? Try this!
We all love the ease of a no-mixer 9×13 cake. But in my family, we don’t usually finish a full 9×13 of cake before it goes stale. And there’s the added problem of how on earth do you keep a 9×13 cake on the counter in a way that looks neat and inviting?
I had a similar problem when I was regularly making sourdough focaccia in a 9×13 pan (specifically this USA Pan which is highly recommended for focaccia) but we didn’t need that much bread each time.
I came across these Pullman loaf pans which are 4×13 – almost exactly half a 9×13!
So instead of making one focaccia board, I split the dough into two narrower ones. (I actually like to double the recipe and make one 9×13 and 2 4x13s at a time. Like that there are options in the freezer.) Note that these pans should be sprayed well so they come out easily.
And this led to the solution of the too-much-cake problem.
Why not just make a 9×13 cinnamon swirl cake into two long loaf cakes?
Less waste AND it fits into a loaf shaped cake dome, such as this type from Waterdale or this type from Amazon.
I baked these loaf pan-sized cakes for about 7 minutes less than I would a full size cake and they were perfect. Best part? One for now, one for the freezer!
If you still want to serve a whole 9×13 cake, but you want it to simply look nicer, you can also bake a whole 9×13 cake recipe in one 4×13 pan and have a tall loaf cake, instead of a flatter loaf that’s just half a 9×13.
Because this pan has higher sides, it can fit the full amount of this marble cake batter.
You can also take advantage of this loaf pan idea using disposable pans! 5 lb loaf pan like these (available in most groceries) fits a 9×13 cake batter perfectly, and comes out much prettier than it does in a 9×13. Want to make 2 smaller cakes? Use the 3 lb size loaf pans.
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