Can convection baking help protect against underbaking for a larger diameter cake (10 or 12-inch)?  I have a lemon wedding cake recipe for which I often have difficulty getting the largest layer fully baked, or at least the center is very dense and does not have the same delicate crumb as the outer portion of the layer or the smaller diameter cakes.

The recipe uses buttermilk and separated eggs, where the whites are beaten and folded into the batter at the end.

Hmmm, not sure, but might be worth a try.  You could also try an inverted flour nail the in center to help conduct heat.

Is the cake dipping in the center or baking up flat?  If it’s dipping, it’s possible a leavening adjustment is necessary for the larger pan.

Hi - thanks for the response!

The cake bakes nicely level. The cake tester also comes out clean. I only notice when I go to tort the layers (for lemon curd filling), that the underbaked layer is very dense in the center. I have not heard of a flour nail…that sounds intriguing!

You might try putting the pans on a pre-heated baking stone.  I haven’t tried this for cakes, but when I make a tray of dinner rolls, the inner ones bake much more slowly when I don’t use the preheated stone.  Conduction is a much more efficient means of heat transferal than convection.