If I want the outside of a cake to cook faster because I am using a smaller pan, should I raise the cooking temperature or maybe put the pan on a lower rack?

I would think lower the temperature a little and go a little longer with the cooking. I would have to figure that out by trial and error though. Slower cooking so it goes all the way through seem logical.

Try a little higher temp for shorter then

@JLeslie I was reading our penguin’s answer to the question, so I went back to review the question. She is correct. The desired results are the crispy sugary outside of the cake and the 45 minutes isn’t doing it? It’s not cooking enough. A higher temp would do it without drying out the cake I think.

I would also go with a higher temperature for a shorter time. I have yet to see any great difference in results between racks, unless I’m cooking at very high temperatures.

Is your pan four little cakes in a ring, simulating a bundt pan? I’m having trouble picturing what it looks like.

@glacial I have this one. I really wanted a double pan that would accomodate making two cakes out of one typical recipe, but it was impossible to find so I bought this when I ran across it by happenstance in Target. I’m happy with it, but would have prefered a basic typical bundt patterm for all four. I made little cakes to give to friends, and actually the small size is perfect for a couple.

Oh, that is really cute!

My recipe was about a ¼ cup too much batter, not too bad. Good if you like to lick the spoon or bake a mini so you can have a little bit if you are giving them all away.

My fiance, who has baked professionally, says to do it at a lower temp to avoid the drying out problem, with the shortened time, and then crank up the heat in the last couple of minutes to crisp the crusts.

@wildpotato No fair bringing in a ringer,:) GA

@wildpotato I wonder if just cooking it at the lower temp for a longer time will do the trick anyway? The regular temp is 325 for the large cake, which seems low to me anyway, but it works.