AHappy Monday (lol).

So, over the weekend I volunteered a baby shower cake to my coworker. I made her what she wanted. It was a vanilla butter cake filled with strawberry filling and banana custard, and frosted with whipped cream. The decorations were up to me, so I tried something modern and girly but it wasn't too loud (at least I hope not). Everything was made from scratch except for the fondant (white satin ice and wilton chocolate fondant). I figured that since they were just some pieces, no need slaving over the homemade stuff.

This was my first attempt at any kind of babysitting cake, and I've never done decorations like this, so all in all, I was satisfied as I know I'm capable of more than I was months back. The cake came out alright design-wise, but I know it could've been better. There's always room for improvement. Some of the fondant pieces cracked. I didn't want to put them on when the fondant was soft because I figured they would slide. Could anyone advise me as to how I could've made this a better cake?

I know that "fondant and whipped cream" is a no-no by the way. The fondant was doing just fine until I got to the park. That's where the baby shower was. I stayed home and kept the cake refrigerated for as long as possible. The weather was hotter than predicted and the shade was of no use, so the fondant started slipping but I think a whipped cream cake in the August outdoors was risky in itself (?). I would've recommended buttercream but she's not a fan.

Also, what could I have done with the cake board? I've seen other cakes with fondant covered boards but that didn't seen applicable here.

I'm still a home baker, running as many test runs as possible before turning in my cottage operation paperwork in the comings weeks (or months). Thanks for your advice!

[IMG]http://www.cakecentral.com/content/type/61/id/3277384/width/200/height/400[/IMG]

[IMG]http://www.cakecentral.com/content/type/61/id/3277385/width/200/height/400[/IMG]

[IMG]http://www.cakecentral.com/content/type/61/id/3277386/width/200/height/400[/IMG]

ACute cake! You could use fancifoil from Wilton to cover the board until you are comfortable with fondant. You can order cake drums that are white, black, gold and silver from Oasis Supply.com and even Wilton has decorated boards but are a bit pricey in my opinion.

Whipped cream and hot outdoor party aren't compatible, unless you could keep the cake in a cooler.

I'm not sure fondant would stay on the side of a whipped cream cake, regardless.

You can't let large fondant pieces dry and then try to put them on a curved side of a cake. You can let them dry for a little while so they hold their shape, but not so much that they crack when you put them on.

AThe cake is cute. Smooth and nice color scheme.

For the board, I like to use cake drums. I buy them from Global Sugar Art. They add a professional look without any added work (like covering the board with fondant). Plus on larger size cakes, they are required to hold up to the weight of the cake.

Sometimes what a customer wants just isn't doable in the cake world. Every once in a while I get a bride that asks if her wedding cake can be made from whipped icing. Nope. That icing requires constant refrigeration and is limiting for designs. The only options are buttercream or fondant. And all my fondant covered cakes are iced with white chocolate ganache.

As the baker you have to educate people what is and is not possible for their order.

Using b'cream under fondant is fine.  Most people won't even notice it's there :)  though I are a b'cream decorator so to me that's the way to go.  You say the client doesn't like b'cream but maybe it's the recipe that's the problem.  Have you tried different ones?  Have you tried increasing the amount of flavoring?  Sometimes that's all that is needed :)

Like others have pointed out you need to cover the base board or buy drums. 

............Sometimes what a customer wants just isn't doable in the cake world...As the baker you have to educate people what is and is not possible for their order..............

AWow. I don't even think I've heard of cake drums before. :/ Learning something new every day. Thanks for that suggestion as I'll definitely look into it.

I knew whipped cream in California August would be a bad idea. I did let my coworker know, but it was what she wanted. She's never tried my buttercream before, so as of now, my recipe isn't the issue lol. She wanted something light and fluffy so she ordered whipped cream. I did let her know beforehand what may happen and she was fine with it.

Thanks so much for the education advice. I'm still new to this aspect of baking (customer service), so I felt compelled to give her what she wanted even with disaster looming. I don't know how to tell people "no, I can't do this for you". I'll learn how.

A

This sounded good before hand, but once I saw the fondant pieces in the morning, I asked myself a million times "what was I thinking?" That was only my second time working with fondant. Lesson learned for sure. Thanks. :)

Im only a beginner too.

One thing I have learnt which helped was not to be afraid of the fondant. Its not the fragile little creature you think it to be..Once I got my head around this, it has become easier.

(Not perfect, but easier.... lol)