I'd love some tried/ tested and loved recipes for certain parts of cake decorating.

1.The buttercream filling that doesn't ooze out of the sides

2.The cream or icing that spreads all over a cake before fondant icing
(not sure whether this stuff is the same as the buttercream filling!?)

3. Frosting that can be used for piping and decorating

Think that's it......

oooo does the frosting used to decorate with dry hard or stay soft and how long after the cake is covered and filled with cream/frosting should it be eaten??

I'm a beginner so sorry for all the questions!!

any help appreciated thankoo!

xxxx

Well my most used frosting is Wilton Class Buttercream.I've never tried it for under fondant (it will work). I use it for covering my cakes and decorating.It works for filling cakes if you use a tip #12 around the edge.I would eat it within 3 days (covered).It's humid here where I live and it takes a while to harden. It won't get super hard,just crisp. You can get meringue powder at Michal's. Here's the recipeStiff consistency)

1 cup solid white vegetable shortening
1 teaspoon Wilton Flavor(Vanilla,Almond or Butter)
2 tablespoons milk or water
1lb. pure cane confectioner's sugar (approximately 4 cups)
1 tablespoon Wilton Meringue Powder
A pinch of salt(optional)

Cream shortening, flavor and water. Add dry ingredients and mix on medium speed until all ingredients have been thoroughly mixed together. Blend an additional minute or so, until creamy.

Use stiff consistency for roses and sweet peas.If icing cracks when piped out, icing is probably to stiff. Medium consistency:Add 1 teaspoon of water to each cup of stiff. Add one additional tablespoon when using whole recipe.Medium is good for stars,figure piping,borders and flowers with petals that lay flat. Thin consistency:Add 2 teaspoons of water for each cup of stiff.Add two tablespoons of water for the full recipe. Thin is good for writing, vines, leaves and icing a cake.

Hope this works!
(I also have another recipe I like. If you want it just let me know!)
Have fun!
Krista
( If you want to see a cake all using this icing look at the flower cake.It went to the other side of Kansas, held up and won a purple!)

The favorite buttercream recipes of most CC-ers are Indydebi's and Sugarshack's.

What you are calling "buttercream filling" is just buttercream icing, unless you are confusing pastry cream/custard/Bavarian cream with buttercream? Buttercream icing can be used to fill, frost/ice, and decorate a cake, including piping and making flowers.

To prevent ANY filling from "oozing" the filling needs to be thick in consistency, should be spread no more than 1/4" thick, and should be put on the cake layer AFTER a good, thick, icing dam is piped.

ETA: Depending on the recipe used, the buttercream may or may not "crust". If you are using a European buttercream (Italian Meringue, Swiss Meringue, or French), then it will NOT crust. If you are using an American buttercream (containing some kind of fat, either butter or vegetable shortening or both and powdered sugar), then it WILL crust.

Royal icing (made from powdered sugar and egg whites) is for decorating ONLY and does dry hard.

Depending on whether you are using a perishable filling (fruit fillings, mousse and custard type fillings) or not (flavored icing or ganache) will affect the "life" of the cake. Cakes with perishable fillings should be kept refrigerated. You need to let them come to room temp, about 1/2 hour, before serving, howerver. Cakes with non-perishable fillings can be stored on the counter. Properly stored and covered (one the cake has been cut into, you need to cover the exposed cake with plastic wrap), most cakes have a life of about 5-10 days (although, in my experience, they are always eaten much faster than that!).

Everything you ever wanted to know to make, decorate and assemble tiered/stacked/layer cakes:

http://www.cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-605188.html

Above super thread has popular CC recipes for crusting American buttercreams, several types of fondant and doctored cake mix (WASC with flavor variations) - and so much more!

Here are several sites with a lot of nice recipes:

http://www.sweetcelebrations.us/recipes

http://www.ladycakes.com/Recipes/RecipesIndex.htm

HTH