My son wants a Transformers cake for his birthday on Sunday. I have decided to make our special occasion cakes and have no idea where to start! Help!
Hi, there are a lot of transformers cake in the gallery. Just do a search and I'm sure you'll get some great ideas.
HI!! Welcome to Cake Central!!!
There are lots of ideas for transformers I did a quick gallery search and these are some ideas:
http://cakecentral.com/modules.php?name=gallery&meta=search&type=full&search=transformers+&album=-&search_user=
Here are some helpful links on caking:
Videos on how to ice a cake:
http://www.google.com/search?q=colorflow+site%3Acakecentral.com&hl=en&rls=com.microsoft%3Aen-US%3AIE-SearchBox&rlz=1I7RNSN_en&num=10&lr=&ft=i&cr=&safe=off&tbs=#q=how+to+ice+a+cake&hl=en&lr=&safe=off&rls=com.microsoft:en-US:IE-SearchBox&rlz=1I7RNSN_en&prmd=ivnse&source=univ&tbm=vid&tbo=u&sa=X&ei=XJeoTdG3BJGctwenjIneBw&ved=0CCoQqwQ&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.&fp=ce8b2692f38d3756
How to color icing:
http://www.google.com/search?q=colorflow+site%3Acakecentral.com&hl=en&rls=com.microsoft%3Aen-US%3AIE-SearchBox&rlz=1I7RNSN_en&num=10&lr=&ft=i&cr=&safe=off&tbs=#sclient=psy&hl=en&lr=&safe=off&rls=com.microsoft:en-US%3AIE-SearchBox&rlz=1I7RNSN_en&tbm=vid&source=hp&q=how+to+color+icing&aq=f&aqi=g1&aql=&oq=&pbx=1&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.&fp=ce8b2692f38d3756
How to make buttercream icing:
http://www.google.com/search?q=colorflow+site%3Acakecentral.com&hl=en&rls=com.microsoft%3Aen-US%3AIE-SearchBox&rlz=1I7RNSN_en&num=10&lr=&ft=i&cr=&safe=off&tbs=#sclient=psy&hl=en&lr=&safe=off&rls=com.microsoft:en-US%3AIE-SearchBox&rlz=1I7RNSN_en&tbm=vid&source=hp&q=how+to+make+buttercream+icing+&aq=f&aqi=g5&aql=&oq=&pbx=1&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.&fp=ce8b2692f38d3756
How to level a cake:
http://www.google.com/search?q=colorflow+site%3Acakecentral.com&hl=en&rls=com.microsoft%3Aen-US%3AIE-SearchBox&rlz=1I7RNSN_en&num=10&lr=&ft=i&cr=&safe=off&tbs=#sclient=psy&hl=en&lr=&safe=off&rls=com.microsoft:en-US%3AIE-SearchBox&rlz=1I7RNSN_en&tbm=vid&source=hp&q=how+to+make+buttercream+icing+&aq=f&aqi=g5&aql=&oq=&pbx=1&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.&fp=ce8b2692f38d3756
Frozen Buttercream transfer which is an excellent beginning technique:
http://cakecentral.com/articles/73/how-to-create-a-frozen-buttercream-transfer
Oh and google is your friend!! They also have some excellent you tube videos
I did see the pics in the gallery and they all look cool, I just have no idea where to begin to make them lol. Thanks for the links, those really helped! This may sound like a stupid question but do you all make your own batter too or is the store bought ok to begin decorating on?
personally i always use dunkan hines for my cakes 
or if you want to try a doctored mix, try the White Almond Sour Cream cake (http://cakecentral.com/recipes/2322/white-almond-sour-cream-cake-wasc). personally, i don't make cakes from scratch unless its carrot, hummingbird, etc because i don't like the flavor/texture of scratch cakes, but go with what your family is used to
as far as a basic process goes, i'll share mine so maybe it can help. not everyone does it this way lol, but it works for me
1) mix up and bake your cake
2) take cake out of oven and let sit in pan for about 20 min
3) flip cake out of pan and wrap tightly in saran wrap
4) i put the cake in the freezer overnight (i feel it locks in moisture) but not everyone does, so if you choose not to just let the cake rest a few hours until its completely cool. if you freeze, take the cake out before next step.
5) put the cakes on a level surface and put the pan you used to bake it in on top of it with a heavy can in the middle of it. this will weight the cake down and prevent a bulge later. while the cake is leveling for a few hours, make your buttercream and fondant (unless using store bought)
6) after cake has rested, cut off the top hump using a leveler or bread knife
7) if torting, cut cake in half and fill with buttercream or filling
place a dollop of icing on the cake board and secure cake to it upside down (so that the part you leveled in step 6 is resting against the board, this gives you a level top)
9) ice the cake in a coat of buttercream (its ok if a little bit of crumbs get in this layer)
10) place cake in freezer for about 10 minutes or until 1st layer of buttercream is firm to the touch
11) take cake out of freezer, and ice another layer of buttercream over the original (this layer shouldn't have crumbs)
12) smooth buttercream as best you can (run a long spatula under hot water before running it over cake)
13) put cake back in freezer while you roll out fondant. the buttercream firming up in the freezer will allow the fondant to have sharper corners when applied)
14) roll out the fondant to the desired size (if cake is 8" round with 4" tall sides, roll out fondant to a 16" diameter). i use a powdered sugar & cornstarch mixture to roll out my fondant
15) dust top of fondant 'sheet' lightly with ps/cs and roll up onto rolling pin
16) take cake out of freezer and place on rolling surface. gently unroll over cake.
17) working quickly, use fondant smoothers to smooth the top of the cake first, move to the edge, then down the sides of the cake. one good tip is to smooth the entire top inch of the cake, then move down inch by inch until you reach the bottom of the cake. if you smooth and entire side and move left to right, you will end up with a lot of excess fondant at the end.
1 use a pizza cutter or knife to cut off the excess fondant around the bottom edge.
19) find a picture of the cake you want to make and work hard to replicate the details!
@cake_architect YES thats exactly what I was looking for, the most basic beginning steps lol It probably seems silly but I've gotta start somewhere! Thanks so much!
Ok so I went to flip the cake out of the pan and it broke in half 
What did i do wrong? I used oil and flour to dust the pan with before cooking it and waited 30 mins to try to take the cake out of the pan...
You might have waited too long. I need my cakes to still be a bit warm when I flip them or they stick. Additionally, you might not have had enough non-stick on the pan (believe me, been there, done that, A LOT). I generally flip them about 10-15 minutes after I take them out of the oven.
Easiest thing for me if I don't have a nonstick pan already is to cut a piece of parchment paper to fit on the bottom of the pan, then peel it off the cake when I'm ready to ice (don't forget to take it off! Mmm, papery).
as far as a basic process goes, i'll share mine so maybe it can help. not everyone does it this way lol, but it works for me
1) mix up and bake your cake
2) take cake out of oven and let sit in pan for about 20 min
3) flip cake out of pan and wrap tightly in saran wrap
4) i put the cake in the freezer overnight (i feel it locks in moisture) but not everyone does, so if you choose not to just let the cake rest a few hours until its completely cool. if you freeze, take the cake out before next step.
5) put the cakes on a level surface and put the pan you used to bake it in on top of it with a heavy can in the middle of it. this will weight the cake down and prevent a bulge later. while the cake is leveling for a few hours, make your buttercream and fondant (unless using store bought)
6) after cake has rested, cut off the top hump using a leveler or bread knife
7) if torting, cut cake in half and fill with buttercream or filling
place a dollop of icing on the cake board and secure cake to it upside down (so that the part you leveled in step 6 is resting against the board, this gives you a level top)9) ice the cake in a coat of buttercream (its ok if a little bit of crumbs get in this layer)
10) place cake in freezer for about 10 minutes or until 1st layer of buttercream is firm to the touch
11) take cake out of freezer, and ice another layer of buttercream over the original (this layer shouldn't have crumbs)
12) smooth buttercream as best you can (run a long spatula under hot water before running it over cake)
13) put cake back in freezer while you roll out fondant. the buttercream firming up in the freezer will allow the fondant to have sharper corners when applied)
14) roll out the fondant to the desired size (if cake is 8" round with 4" tall sides, roll out fondant to a 16" diameter). i use a powdered sugar & cornstarch mixture to roll out my fondant
15) dust top of fondant 'sheet' lightly with ps/cs and roll up onto rolling pin
16) take cake out of freezer and place on rolling surface. gently unroll over cake.
17) working quickly, use fondant smoothers to smooth the top of the cake first, move to the edge, then down the sides of the cake. one good tip is to smooth the entire top inch of the cake, then move down inch by inch until you reach the bottom of the cake. if you smooth and entire side and move left to right, you will end up with a lot of excess fondant at the end.
1
use a pizza cutter or knife to cut off the excess fondant around the bottom edge. 19) find a picture of the cake you want to make and work hard to replicate the details!
Wow, lol. This helped me. I was thinking I should put my cake in the fridge after icing to apply second layer of BC so you only confirmed my original thoughts. Thanks!
thank you cake architect. That was a simple to follow process.
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