Newbie needs help
So I bake for friends and family on a regular basis & am assured my bakes are delicious. Decorating wise I still need some practice however my sister has asked me to make an Instagram cake (a sponge cake covered in buttercream and icing). Basically I would like some advice, tips on best ways to do this? Should I pre bake and freeze cakes and decorate frozen? Once thaws would this affect the icing? What’s the best way to ensure the icing doesn’t break when I roll and put it on? Any tips would be appreciated! Thank you
3 Replies
Definitely you do not want to decorate frozen. You can freeze the cake if you want to make it ahead of time. Make sure that the cake has cooled down before you freeze the cake. Unless you have a dedicated freezer for the cakes you do not want the cake to absorb food smells so it should be wrapped in plastic wrap and then foil paper. There is no need to freeze the cake. You can bake and let it cool completely before putting the buttercream. You will need a crusting buttercream which stiffens as you let it sit.
I make my own fondant or you can purchase the fondant. Fondant should be rolled out to 1/8" if you roll out too thin then you might get tears. Make sure that where you are working with your fondant it is cool. Fondant does not like heat. You probably need to look up some tutorials on covering cakes with fondant that will help you out a lot.
Ah thank you so much for the advise, I always assumed decorating frozen was easier? I may just freeze for an hour to allow me to trim, shape & crumb coat it better. What’s a crusting buttercream please? How does it vary from regular buttercream? Last question – once the cake is decorated how long will it keep? x
Thanks again x
Sorry I did not answer sooner…I think by now you have already decorated the cake. Crusting buttercream is what they call American buttercream.
• 1 bag powder sugar (two pounds or about eight cups)
• 1 cup shortening (I used original Crisco)
• 2 tsp vanilla extract (use clear if want white frosting)
• 1/2 cup – 3/4 cup milk
1. Cream shortening and vanilla in mixer for 2-4 minutes. Add in powder sugar, one cup at a time. If you find your mixer struggling, slowing add in milk. Use more milk for a creamy consistency, use less milk for a stiff consistency.
2. Alternate Method:
3. Use 1/2 cup butter and 1/2 cup shortening. Place room temp. butter and shortening in mixer. Put entire bag of powder sugar on top, then add vanilla and 1/2 cup milk. Turn mixer on low and mix until all ingredients are incorporated. Turn mixer up to med-high and mix for 2-4 minutes. Can add more milk to reach desired consistency.
