Hey, this is my first time posting.

My question is, How do I put together two large sheet cakes 12x18 to make one...Do I just put them side by side and ice them or do I join them together somehow...and how do I transport them without them looking broken up or split down the middle.... I have four of these large cakes to make....any advice is greatly appreciated......

Missnnaction

Use a very sturdy board under them.. by board, I mean a piece of plywood .. something that won't give .. you can put them side by side, together and put your icing on them ... it shouldn't crack between the cakes if you use a really good board

Thanks so much for your help....

yes just make sure you cut the tops so they are flat and same hight as each other then put them side by side and ice them like you were icing one cake make sure you use a very sturdy cake board. wood or plastic.

..also, put some icing in between the two cakes before pushing them together. This will sorta act like a glue to help hold them together!

My husband saves me large sturdy card board shipping boxes. I cut the boxes to form large cake boards- Sometimes I used shipping tape to secure one on top of the other to form an extra heavy cake board. I then cover with white freezer paper, shiny side up. These are very sturdy and will not bend with heavy/large cakes.

I place four 8x12 sheet cakes side by side to form one 12x16 cake. I 'bump' the cakes up to each other and then cover all with icing which also goes into any opening between the cakes, you can not tell they are separate cakes.

See my personal site for 'Missy's wedding cake with a square 16"x16" bottom and also Donnie and Grandpa's birthday cake (Lord of the rings and tractor cake)

http://kathysuchyrichards.tripod.com/

Would recommend a wood board also. You can go to home depot and have them cut scrap wood to the size you need. It is also very inexpensive.
traci

definitely use a sturdy board -- wood or MDF are great. you could cover both with food-safe adhesive vinyl (contac paper, tie-tac) in a colour or pattern to complement your cake. side-by-side placement of multiple cakes then masking and decorating as one cake works just fine; i used to do it all the time when working doing cake production for a coffee franchise in canada -- all we baked in were 8 inch squares and rounds, and i made all sizes up to full slabs...i even made square and rectangular cakes from round cakes when a customer would order at the last minute and all i had left were rounds!

as everyone else has said, be sure to make the top of your icing as level as possible so you don't see a dip in the middle where the cakes meet. you can also dab your cake board with some icing here and there which will help "glue" the bottom of the cakes to the board and help prevent shifting while decorating and during transport.