I have read on here that cakes need to set over night. Do I wrap them in plastic wrap then put them in the freezer even if i plan on decorating them asap? How long should i let it set up to get a good firm cake? Any tips and steps would be so wonderful.
Thanks

Hi there, if I'm doing a cake for saturday, I would bake the cake on thursday and let it cool in the tin for 10-15 minutes and then turn it on to a cooloing rack, to coll completely. Then in the night I fill it with buttercream and wrap it with plastic wrap and leave it over night. I don't put my cakes in the fridge. Then on friday, I crumbcoat and cover it with fondant and do the decorations.

I think you can let the cake cool comepletely and torte and fill. I would advice you to leave it at least for 1/2 hour- 1 hour. So if there is any bulging, you can trim it.

HTH.

I bake , cool and wrap in plastic wrap then put in the freezer even if it is just overnight. then frost the next day. Way less crumbs and cake is great!. I works for me.. I always freeze. I never freeze more than a week though. Most of the time I bake the day before (except wedding cakes.. then I bake all week long) and decorate the next day.

Oh.. if you mean settle after you fill?? I fill and then crumbcoat and let sit for 1 hour or so until I have a good crust.. then go ahead and frost..I have had no probs with buldging. again this works for me.

I torte and fill, wrap and let the cakes sit on the counter. There is no need to put them in the freezer at this point. Lately I have been placing a paperback book on top of the cake to weight it a bit. Works even better. They sit at least 6 hous and frequently overnight.

leahs you are always so thorough on your replies , thanks so much for that! I know it helps others immensly

I like to freeze mine overnight also. It makes them easier to work with, cut and even more moist. Waiting for them to thaw is sometimes a disadvantage, but worth it.

The only reason I put my cakes in the fridge is so the second coat moves faster. I am good with the second coat on a cake and I can do it all at once. But I am not going to deny that when the cake goes in the fridge with a crumbcoat, the second coat of icing becomes really easy to apply.
The reason why people cover them with plastic is to avoid the cake getting all sweaty. But that is only necessary if the cake is staying overnight.

Everybody has their own way of doing things to make their work easier for them. You got to find what works for you.


Edna

I will let the cake sit in the pan for 20-30 minutes, then out onto rack to completely cool. Then wrap in foil and pop into fridge for overnight. Always a moist, dense cake - like I like. I haven't ever frozen a cake yet, but I dont' have the space in freezer, so fridge works great!

I bake on monday, wrap in saran wrap then freeze.

Pull out Thursday, put in filling, rewrap in saran wrap and allow to settle on the counter overnight.

Decorate Friday.

I would suggest you make SURE that your cake is completely cool before you wrap it in saran. We have a local bakery in town that does not completely cool her cakes before wrapping, and we know several people who have recieved soured cakes. Because of this I try to be extra careful when I cool my cakes.
JMO,
Good luck!

THANKS SOO MUCH!! everybody. So much useful information . I didnt expect such a large and thorough list of suggestions. Thanks