I use a crusting all-shortening frosting but am having some trouble getting the right consistency. The recipe calls for a range of milk: 1/3-1/2 cup. I had added milk somewhere within that range, but the frosting seemed like it would be too thick to spread. So I added more milk, possibly even putting the total milk above 1/2 cup.

Sure enough, it was easy to spread. But did I add too much milk or is there something else going on here? The frosting doesn't seem to want to stay put.

Originally, I scraped it off the sides with a bench scraper held perpendicular to the bottom, so the sides were at a beautiful 90 degrees. Now they're not, as seen in photo.


I slid the bench scraper along the bottom cakeboard, so the frosting was flush with the cakeboard. Now it overhangs the edge of the cakeboard (it's flattened further from when i was trying to smooth it out a bit more)


So, do I just need to add less milk next time?!? And be gentle (so it doesn't rip the crumbcoat) yet firm (so the frosting actually moves) when applying the stiffer stuff?

(There's a reason they call them "practice" cakes, I guess. )

Could the cake be settling a little bit?