I have an order for a small 8" cake, I would like to bake, fill, ice with ganache and then fondant TODAY. Am I asking for trouble doing it all in one day?

Im doing the same , I think its going to be a long night ! Good luck

I personally think that you will be fine doing it all in one day. Just make sure that you allow the cake to cool completely before you start icing. HTH.

usually, smaller cakes like the 6" and 8" sizes pose less threat of disaster. You could do it as long as you plan out the process throughout the day and make sure the cake is is given time to completely cool, you let the ganache set up completely. Remember the 'fridge is your friend and will help considerably!

I think the big issues are cooling and settling. As the cake stands, it settles lower. If you go straight to fondant, the weight of the fondant could cause a bump to push out between layers. Some people place a weighted object on top to help the process along before covering with fondant.

Do you have time to let it settle for several hours at least?

I don't really have time to let it settle for hours, maybe an hour or so....
I will be ganaching the cake, so it should not bulge...
I have the ganache set up, (made a few days ago)
I will make sure the cake is very cool, and such...

I had to do the same thing yesterday with my wonky cake I just posted. A lot of work in one day but it can be done. After you ganache and scrape, put the cake into the fridge while you get your fondant ready so that the ganache will get a "shell" that way you don't have to let it sit over night. If you're using a fondant that is fridge friendly, you can pop it back into the fridge for about 30 min after getting the fondant one so the fondant can become the same temp as the cake, and you wont get large air bubbles. Have plenty of coffee standing by!

thanks everyone.
I am using satin Ice and a regular fridge.... I find the fan in the walk in fridge scary for use with cakes... It blows baby!

An 8" cake should be fine if you let it cool, and you use a nice stiff filling. That being said - you can still get a nice bulge with ganache. You shouldn't have a bad "blow out" type bulge, but the filling can still push the ganache out and it will "sag" down. (Ask me how I know !)

thanks for the heads up!!!!