How to Line a Cake Pan

Spray the cake pan with nonstick cooking spray. Sometimes this is enough to keep the cake from sticking, but if you're making a layer cake, you don't want to take any chances.

Cut down a piece of parchment paper to fit the bottom of the round cake pan. You can do this by setting the pan on a piece of parchement paper and tracing the bottom of the pan, then cuttiung out. To get a more accurate fit, however, fold the paper in half length-wise twice, then fold it diagonally to make a triangle, then fold the triangle in half length-wise to make a skinnier triangle. It's the same folding method you might use to make a paper snowflake (see the video for referecnce). Then turn the cake pan upside down and lay the triangle on the bottom with the point at the center of the pan. Mark where the edge of the pan is with a pencil, then cut off the extra. When you unfold it, it will make a circle that fits perfectly into the bottom of the pan. 

Place the parchment paper in the bottom of the prepared pan and coat both sides with the nonstick spray. Placing the parchment paper in the pan then flipping it to the other side will coat both sides with the spray and will give you extra insurance that your cake won't stick to the bottom of the pan. Make sure the parchement paper doesn't curl up the sides. If it does, trim it, because otherwise batter can get stuck under the paper. 

Now you're ready to bake!