I have been searching for an 8-inch, round, stainless steel cake pan. It has been impossible to find. I have searched the Internet and your Web site extensively. I've found the Norpro stainless steel cake pan, but only in the 9-inch size. Does ANYBODY carry the pan I'm looking for?

 All we keep thinking is, "why does she want a stainless-steel cake pan so much?" You didn't tell us why you want stainless steel; obviously it's something you want to keep to yourself. We know it's none of our business – we're a little ashamed to admit it, but we just can't stop wondering.

We have found tons of 8-inch aluminum cake pans. We have found 8-inch nonstick pans that are made of steel with a silicon-based nonstick coating. We have found aluminized steel, but apparently that's not close enough. We have searched restaurant supply stores and sites, all to no avail. The Wilton Cake site says, "pure aluminum is the best material for baking cakes; [it] creates a light, golden brown surface, beautiful for decorating. Thicker than ordinary bakeware, [it is] built to distribute heat evenly for more consistent baking."

We apparently live in an aluminum world, but you want stainless steel. Deep down, we believe if we knew why you wanted this specific pan, everything would make sense, a miraculous solution would present itself, and we would be able to help you find it. Lacking that crucial bit of information (which is none of our business), we throw up our hands and see no alternative but to give up.

If you are one of the people in this world who believes that everything happens for a reason (or a TV writer, all of whom apparently believe that everything happens for a reason), perhaps it's time to realize that you are not meant to bake an 8-inch cake in a round, stainless steel pan. Would using a 9-inch round stainless steel cake pan or an 8-inch square stainless steel cake pan do you in? (There we go again, being nosy. It’s not a pretty habit…).

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