Hi all

Every video I see of making cakes perfectly smooth is always a shortening frosting. For many reasons, I only use butter buttercreams recipes. I make SMBC and also american buttercream, with butter, powdered sugar and cream. 

Is it possible to get a cake perfectly smooth with the SMBC recipes?? If so, any videos or suggestions? I have been able to get them pretty smooth, but it takes a huge amount of effort and there are always some flaws. If it is just a matter of more practice, I'm fine with that, but I don't want to be chasing unicorns here. 

Thanks!
Nancy

oh my yes !

1. slap on the icing-- set a dough scraper like this into the surface of the icing while twirling the turntable --

http://brickovenbaker.com/oven-and-baking-tools/working-with-dough/dough-scraper-stainless-steel-blade-wood-handle

2. ice it get it cold in the fridge -- work out stray booboos with the warmth of your fingertips

i'm sure someone will pipe up with a tutorial

Oh yes! Jessica Harris uses it all the time. Her first craftsy class (Clean and Simple Cake Design) will show you. But she also has some free videos. Her technique is the one Jeff Arnett at Cake Central developed originally. You need a fridge nearby. 

http://jessicaharriscakedesign.com/2011/06/video-tutorial-upside-down-frosting-technique/

http://www.cakecentral.com/tutorial/20154/upside-down-icing-technique-for-perfectly-smooth-icing

http://www.craftsy.com/class/clean-and-simple-cake-design/209?ext=cakedesign&utm_source=Instructor-Jessica%20Harris&utm_medium=Link&utm_campaign=Affiliate

If you buy her class, go through her blog. She has a huge discount.

Ah, I will go check her out - thanks much, cake folks!!!

Nancy

You absolutely can, I teach a wicked good workshop about it, but we've been chatting about that already. ;)

Can't attach any images, weird. Anyway, the workshop generally covers a tiered cake from start to finish, with emphasis on perfectly smooth buttercream and flawless fondant finishes. And...no fancy equipment needed.

the most important thing about icing cakes is that you put on more icing than you need everywhere -- especially the corners on square cakes and the top edge on round cakes -- take an open coupler and pipe up each corner or around the top if it's lacking so there's enough icing there to remove/reveal the smooth surface underneath --

I know!!! I'm looking at dates right now!!

Nancy

I'm going to play this week, just really putting on a lot of frosting, and seeing it it's better. 

fingers crossed for you ♥ go nancy go nancy go nancy --

thought of something else -- first the background story --  i was helping out a lady who was recovering from nerve surgery on her hands because she never learned to hold the piping bag correctly eventually she sold --

but she/they baked with some ancient pans 100 years old and looked like they had played a part in every war since -- well the layers were SO ridiculously wonky after i filled the tier i had to trim the sides-- then when i iced it surprise surprise it was so easy -- i did not have to diddle with brown spots of cake peaking through where the spatula riding by had exposed the unevenness -- where you have to go back and build the icing up and resmooth and plump up and resmooth and build the icing out enough to cover over the booboos underneath --

i could get the nicest even layer of icing so easily -- eventually i started doing this for all my cakes -- even just a close shave down the sides made a big difference -- some pastry chefs like to remove all the brown edges of a cake before icing -- some want them on there for the dexterity they provide -- you can go half & half and still get enhance your learning curve for the easier smoother icing job --

these cakes once served have a a beautiful even handed professional appearance -- without the big thick uneven globs of icing popping in and out of the landscape --

you got this

Thanks k8!! I think I forgot to do this the other day!! :)

so i just got back from the store -- was looking at the people magazine that has all these wedding photos -- and lo and behold there was a cake that had on purpose some of the icing scraped off revealing the brown edged cake underneath on purpose  omg-- so never mind everything i said hahahaha

but i'm pretty sure that's what i saw it was on page 97 if anyone has that magazine -- it could have been some type of coloration but it totally looks like a fractured scrapey icing job to me but done purposefully i guess...sometimes beauty is in the eye of the artist :)

dang i can ice a cake like that no problem-o who needs to practice now heheheheheh

Pretty sure that's the "new" trend, of barely icing the cake, or the "naked cake", if you want to give it a name. I've seen some well done ones, and some that just look like someone gave up halfway thru. I wonder...how exactly did that trend catch on. :D

I wish the trend of casual, "rustic" frosting would really catch on - I can do that now!! LOL!!! The perfect cakes, they are beyond my skill level at this point!

i got to do one for my daughter's wedding -- so awesome -- so easy --

you know some people mist or spray water on their buttercream to smooth it out too -- some people use a hot knife, dipped in hot water and wiped off...10,000 ways

i was just looking for something else on you tube and there are dozens of how to smooth a cake videos

you got this

Thanks, k8! I'll check them out when I get home!