Hi All,
My nieces birthday is approaching and i would like to make a pillow cake with tiara. This will be my first time making both so i have a few questions.
Tiara
Ive seen them made in Royal Icing and Gumpaste. I am probably going to use gumpaste since most posts says they are sturdier.How much do you charge for making this?
Cake
Has anyone ever used the Double Chocolate cake from Epicurious to make a carved cake? http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/101275
I just want to know if it will hold up.
How many layers can a carved cake handle. My regular cakes are 3-4 layers of buttercream? Will this hold up?
How do you determine the servings on a carved cake. I will be making an 8" pillow cake. According to earlene's chart that is 24 servings, but with all the carvings i think the servings will decrease.
Also when pricing do you still charge based on the 8" cake since that is what you originally baked? My price would be 24*$3.00 which would total $72.00. Should i charge more for the carving?
Thanks!
Zakia
Hi All,
My nieces birthday is approaching and i would like to make a pillow cake with tiara. This will be my first time making both so i have a few questions.
Tiara
Ive seen them made in Royal Icing and Gumpaste. I am probably going to use gumpaste since most posts says they are sturdier.How much do you charge for making this?
Cake
Has anyone ever used the Double Chocolate cake from Epicurious to make a carved cake? http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/101275
I just want to know if it will hold up.
How many layers can a carved cake handle. My regular cakes are 3-4 layers of buttercream? Will this hold up?
How do you determine the servings on a carved cake. I will be making an 8" pillow cake. According to earlene's chart that is 24 servings, but with all the carvings i think the servings will decrease.
Also when pricing do you still charge based on the 8" cake since that is what you originally baked? My price would be 24*$3.00 which would total $72.00. Should i charge more for the carving?
Thanks!
Zakia
TIARA
I charge $10.00 for the tiara (but I use chocolate, and put about 6 layers on it so it's still nice and sturdy and quick to make)
CAKE
I haven't ever used THAT recipe so I can't say for sure how it would hold up. I know if you add a pudding mix and extra egg to a cake mix and lessen the oil it makes it nice and sturdy and dense and great for carving. I determine servings on my carved cakes by using my imagination LOL seriously though...that's how I do it...I imagine how big it will be and then tell them about this many servings and charge accordingly. some people DO charge for the amount of cake BEFORE they carve...I just up my per slice charge to accomodate and charge for the number of servings they actually get.
I'll attach a photo of one of my pillow cakes with tiaras and this one happens to be an 8" cake too...I told them it was 12 servings because it was a single layer, with the top slightly domed (just didn't level it). Double layer 8" is 24 so half of that is 12 serv. I don't carve THAT much away when making a pillow anyhow.
I have a "carved cake" price of 3.00/serv. my tiered cakes are 2.00/serv. if that helps give you an idea of my area (I'm the most expensive cakes around too)
so my pillow cake would be $36.00 with fondant that adds another $.50/serv. for a total of $42.00 add the tiara and it's a $52.00 cake. I really can't go much higher than that in my area and my cost and time to make it are not that much (I can do a pillow cake quicker than a sheet cake belive it or not lol) so I'm happy charging that amount.
Hope this helps you out some!
Tina
Thanks!
I never thought to make the tiara out of chocolate.
i think im going to practice making the tiaras and based on the time it takes to make one i will come up with a price range.
I think im going to use the chocolate wasc for this.
your photo is similar to what i want to do, except that i will do a square on the bottom.
Maybe i will adopt a carved cake per serving, once i actually do one
.
Thanks for your help.
yeah, this cake is quirky to price for me......I charge a tiered cake price for the bottom layer and a carved cake price for the top.......i can't charge the carved cake for the whole thing or it is overcharged and if I charge a tiered price for the whole thing it's undercharged...and if I just charge my price for a 10" round and then the carved cake it's undercharged!
yeah, this cake is quirky to price for me......I charge a tiered cake price for the bottom layer and a carved cake price for the top.......i can't charge the carved cake for the whole thing or it is overcharged and if I charge a tiered price for the whole thing it's undercharged...and if I just charge my price for a 10" round and then the carved cake it's undercharged!
So the full price for the cake pictured is more than the $52?? My daughter and I are sitting here thinking "Wow! That's a great price for that cake, but I thought she said she was expensive!" LOL If you don't mind me asking how much do you charge for the whole cake that is pictured here??? I'm still trying to work out prices myself.
Thank you Connie
Ok dumb question how do you make a tiara out of chocolate, gumpaste and royal icing.
Royal Icing Tiara:
http://cakecentral.com/article113-How-To-Make-A-Royal-Icing-Tiara.html
Gumpaste Tiara:
http://cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopicp-4358323-.html#4358323
Chocolate Tiara:
Im thinking just the same as the Royal Icing Tiara but just use chocolate? If im wrong then maybe Khalstead can explain how she does hers.
I would not use the double chocolate cake for carving. Its a pretty delicate cake. My experience has been that it needs to be handled gently or it will crack/fall apart. If I was willing to risk it, I would surely carve it frozen. I'd still be concerned that the corners on the pillow would break once it thawed, though.
That cake as pictured would be $147.00....of course that one was made for a friend of mine for FREE! $52 would be for the pillow cake and tiara and the 10" round at 38 servings would be $2.50/serv.(my cost for tiered cakes covered in fondant) Seems awefully expensive and I'll probably NEVER get an order for one at that price but it takes a long time to make that cake. Of course it is a LOT of cake too though.
anku........yes, just chocolate......I taped the pattern around a coffee can and then taped a piece of waxed paper over the top of that. then just melted some white chocolate whith a little shortening....about a tsp. per cup of chocolate pieces (gives it a shine and helps it come out smoother) then put it in a parchment paper piping bag and piped over the pattern....I piped the front, then popped it in the freezer, when that set up I turned the can to one side and piped the side of the tiara, freezer, other side, freezer, piped over everything again several more times to build up the thickness so it was more sturdy......once it was all done and hard, I brushed it with super pearl luster dust and then slowly slid the waxed paper down and off the can, then gentle peeled the wax paper off and set the crown on the cake, attaching it with a little more melted chocolate. HTH
Tina
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