BUTTERCREAM UNDERNEATH FONDANT - HELP!

Hi,

I wonder if someone could shed some light into a problem I encounter whenever I use buttercream under the fondant.

I always make sure my buttercream is stiff enough to be nice and smooth. I crumbcoat my cake and chill it for 15 minutes; I then put on a second layer of buttercream – making sure my cake is smooth all the way around and back it goes into the fridge until the next day. When I’m ready to cover the cake with the fondant, I take it out of the fridge and cover it – carefully smoothing out the top and sides… So far so good – but as I start to decorate the cake, I notice that the sides are no longer as firm or as smooth and it feels like the buttercream underneath the fondant is way too soft. In fact, I’ve had instances when I’ve tried to re-smooth the sides and buttercream has seeped out from underneath the fondant. As FYI, my second layer of buttercream is not too thick. I’ve tried covering the cake with the fondant straight from the fridge while it’s nice and cold and I’ve tried letting the cake come to room temperature and that’s even worse.

I’m frustrated because I don’t know what I’m doing wrong. I’ve even tried different buttercream recipes, including using the Wilton buttercream to no avail. I watch videos and the end cake always looks so nice and smooth – any idea as to how I could improve this very annoying issue? The only way I can get a smooth fondant is if I use ganache underneath – otherwise – aaagghhhh! Because I live in Florida, the A/C is on the entire time :)

Many thanks.

P.S. If you look closely, you’ll see the fondant is not completely smooth.