Wedding Cake 911

Decorating By KMianecki Updated 10 Sep 2011 , 12:47am by jenng1482

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KMianecki Posted 9 Sep 2011 , 3:50pm
post #1 of 9

Hi all,

I'm making my first EVER wedding cake today. So far so good, only the top layer of my bottom tier (14") started cracking before I could put it on the bottom layer. It cracked into relatively large pieces, so I was able to "puzzle Piece" it back together, place it on the bottom layer and buttercream them. This is a fondant cake. Am I going to be okay? Will the buttercream and fondant hold everything together????

Thank you!!

8 replies
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Texas_Rose Posted 9 Sep 2011 , 4:38pm
post #2 of 9

I would rebake that layer if possible. The cracks could really affect stability when it's stacked.

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BakedAlaska Posted 9 Sep 2011 , 4:56pm
post #3 of 9

Personally, if it pieced together well, I wouldn't rebake. The upper tiers will be supported by dowels, not the actual puzzle cake. And once it's covered with fondant, along with the solid bottom layer, the dowels should hold firm.

In the future, you might consider using a sideless cookie sheet or cake board dusted with cornstarch or powdered sugar to transfer large cake layers onto tiers. It works well for stacking 12"+ layers.... I ran into this solution to the breaking problem recently myself.

Good luck with your first wedding cake!

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grandmomof1 Posted 9 Sep 2011 , 5:15pm
post #4 of 9

If it cracked and you have time to rebake, I would. This is your first wedding cake. You don't want to take any chances. The bottom layer is also your foundation. It needs to be stable. When you start putting supports in the cake, they may not be as strong. This is a time to show off your work. Why chance it? (Just my opinion)

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KMianecki Posted 9 Sep 2011 , 5:33pm
post #5 of 9

oh my! Now I'm torn! Thank you all so much for your feedback and suggestions. I just love this forum!

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SugarMoonCakeCo Posted 9 Sep 2011 , 5:39pm
post #6 of 9

i'm likely too late for this reply... but here it goes anyway!

if you have 3 or 4 layers in your tiers, put the cracked layer between 2 good layers (not as the top layer). with buttercream filling in between, this will help stabilize it and the other non-cracked tiers will support the dowels just fine.

i've done it a million times... all good!

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jenng1482 Posted 9 Sep 2011 , 6:22pm
post #7 of 9

I HIGHLY recommend this lifer from Pampered Chef! It is a retired item and no longer available new. It is very certainly in my top 5 cheerished cake tools

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_nkw=pampered+chef+lifter&_sacat=20635&_odkw=pampered+chef&_osacat=20635&_trksid=p3286.c0.m270.l1313

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cowie Posted 10 Sep 2011 , 12:18am
post #8 of 9

Which lifter, there are a few?

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jenng1482 Posted 10 Sep 2011 , 12:47am
post #9 of 9
Quote:
Originally Posted by cowie

Which lifter, there are a few?




The 2 half rounds

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