10 Replies

I found it best for me to leave my buttercream to firm over night before putting fondant on. It helps stop the weight of the fondant putting pressure on your cake causing it to bulge. Do you have a cooler room you could put it in (not fridge) that would help the fondant to firm and set better.

Perhaps you are not rolling your fondant thin enough? If its too thick it can weigh your cake down. A thicker crusting buttercream might also help keep it from bulging. Good luck!

I always had a problem with bulging until I switched to the ganaching method. I put a ganache dam on the perimiter of each later and chill that till hard, then I fill the dam with my filling of choice just until it is flush with the dam, then place the next layer on that and proceed until the cake is stacked. Then I chill the whole cake in freezer for 10 minutes and then ganache the entire cake and smooth smooth smooth until it is perfect like glass – I finish it with boiling water and pastry brush to get it absolutely flawless (the fondant will show everything and accentuate the flaws rather than hide them). I let the cake sit out overnight (or chill depending on the perishability of the frosting) and cover it in fondant the next day. I’ve never had a bulging problem since I switched to this method. there are tons of tutorials on line about it. good luck.

I live in the Caribbean and I use American buttercream under my fondant too. I usually put my buttercream covered cakes in the fridge overnight and take them out the next day into an air conditioned room about 30 minutes before I’m ready to cover them with fondant. They will condense a little so all you do is take a paper towel and gently press on the cake to remove excess water. Now you have a firm cool cake to work with and you don’t need to brush the buttercream since it’s already wet. The fondant goes on and there’s no bulge.

I love the taste of buttercream— what I have been doing lately is frosting/filling/stacking with buttercream— let the buttercream firm up a bit in the freezer— then I put a coat of ganache over that. It really seems to give the cake so much more structure and stability and holds the weight of the fondant beautifully. Tastes yummy and looks really pretty when you slice it.

Using a stiff buttercream damn between your layers, should help you with bulging (Sharon Zambito method) the consistency should be stiff enough that you can roll the bc into a ball. To make the stiff bc, simply add extra powdered sugar. Also letting your cake settle overnight or placing something with substantial weight on top of the cake (heavy enough to push the bulge out, but not too heavy to destroy the cake) after you’ve damed and filled it helps to get rid of thebulge. Then before you cover the cake with fondant… if there’s a bulge .. cut it off then cover. HTH

I find that several different things can cause the fondant to bulge – it’s happened to me several times! When you cover a cake with fondant, there’s always going to be some “settlement” of the cake – so make sure that you are not rolling your fondant too thick, or the weight will create a bulge. As has been mentioned by the other bakers, keepiing your cake cool is also important in preventing unwanted bulges. Also, make sure you don’t have any air bubbles.

I prefer to crumb coat my cake the day before and leave it in the refrigerator over night. If you don’t have time to do this, then refrigerate it at least 2 hours. When I’m ready to cover the cake, I allow it to rest for 10-15 minutes before proceeding. If I’m using a border, I will cut my fondant slightly above the cake board so that when the cake settles, it won’t bulge on the bottom. I know most bakers won’t do this, but this method has worked for me so far.

Good luck – I know how frustrating it is to finish a beautiful cake only to find a bulge the next morning!

:))))

the air between the layers causes bulge. i leave my cake filled an wrapped in plastic wrap outside or inside my room where its cool over night with a large tile on top. the next day i cover in fondant. sometimes when there is too much filling this also causes bulge. there is a whole topic at cakecentral

I would change over to ganache in your climate, I did, and I haven’t looked back :) x

use the dam method and you won’t get the bulge. After you have dam and filled and stacked you then shave the exterior of the cake with a knife to ensure the sides are straight. After that fill the centre from the outside pushing the buttercream into the joint.. Crumb coat and refridgerate. Pull out and buttercream and put back in the fridge for a few hours. Then fondant nice and thin. Then refridgerate again. All of my fondant cakes are in the fridge, with flowers, figurines everything. Never ever had a problem. I use IMBC so my cakes have to be put in the fridge.