Good Crumb Coat Or Shave Sides?

Baking By lizzyf Updated 26 Jun 2017 , 8:08pm by kakeladi

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lizzyf Posted 19 Jun 2017 , 2:18pm
post #1 of 12

I'm making my friends wedding cake this weekend (first time ever making a fondant wedding cake). The last fondant cake I made you could see the ripples of the cake layers. So I'm wondering, do I just need to make the crumb coat under the fondant thicker? Or is it best practice to shave the sides? 

Also, I'm a little nervous about torting the 14" bottom layer for fear of breaking it. If the rest of the tiers are torted to 3 - 1" layers, would it look horrible if I just left the bottom one as 2 - 2" layers? (It's a 5 tier cake)

11 replies
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Miss.Reynolds Posted 19 Jun 2017 , 2:56pm
post #2 of 12

Hi! @lizzyf. I would really recommend using chocolate ganache on your cakes before you cover them in fondant. You dont have to do a crumb-coat and it gives you a solid layer so that you should not have ripples in your cake afterwards if you ice it properly. There are sooo many videos on how to ganache a cake, and yes it is a tiny bit pricier than original buttercream but it is definitely worth a bride smiling! 

As for the 14" inch cake, It would look more professional and clean if you were to make the same height as the others. Have you tried letting your cakes cool completely down before removing them from the pan? Or even try putting them in the freezer as a "flash freeze" so that when you go to torte the 14" it is less likely to break. I learned all these the hard way lol. 


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kakeladi Posted 19 Jun 2017 , 8:34pm
post #3 of 12

All tiers should be made the same way (re:torting).  Yes, cool your cake well but don't freeze hard to torte it.   Use a cake board to slide/work under the cut 1" layer in order to remove it to apply the filling, then return that onto the filling. That way you are not handling a large, thin layer :)

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lizzyf Posted 20 Jun 2017 , 1:35am
post #4 of 12

Ok, thanks to both of you for your advice! I'll torte the bottom tier as well. 

With re: to the ganache, it's a great idea, but I've already made all the buttercream and chocolate ganache wouldn't go all that well with the flavors. But I'll keep it in mind for next time ;)

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640Cake Posted 20 Jun 2017 , 4:10pm
post #5 of 12

I have more than just a crumb coat on before placing the fondant on....my cake is nice and smooth - no visible cake layers - before putting the fondant on.  I also place it in the fridge to firm up as well.  Perhaps you do need a thicker coat?  I do not trim my sides - but that's just me...

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AnnieCahill Posted 20 Jun 2017 , 5:31pm
post #6 of 12

I don't trim the sides either. I use a full layer of buttercream and refrigerate until it's solid then cover with fondant. Ganache will definitely work too if they like that instead of buttercream.

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Freckles0829 Posted 20 Jun 2017 , 6:30pm
post #7 of 12

I crumb coat my cakes and chill them for about 20 minutes until the buttercream is set.  Then I put another layer of buttercream on the cakes and make sure it is as smooth as possible, and again put in the fridge to chill.  Once chilled for the second time, that is when I cover my cakes with fondant.

The trick is to make sure that your buttercream covering your cake is super smooth.  Any lump or ripple or what have you will show through your fondant.  Also, I learned this after my first cake, that chilling the cake to allow it to firm up helps SO much.  To me, it seems that when everything is at room temperature and you put fondant on the cake, the weight of the fondant just squishes everything down and out, thus causing you to see ripples of the cake layers.

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lizzyf Posted 20 Jun 2017 , 8:01pm
post #8 of 12

Thank you so much! I will try chilling it first and make sure I have a thick enough layer before covering :)

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lizzyf Posted 26 Jun 2017 , 2:09pm
post #9 of 12

Thanks again for your help!

It wasn't perfect, but I think it turned out ok for a newbie ;)

Good Crumb Coat Or Shave Sides?

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Coffeelover77 Posted 26 Jun 2017 , 5:46pm
post #10 of 12

It is lovely @LizzieF ‍ !

nice work :)

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SandraSmiley Posted 26 Jun 2017 , 7:37pm
post #11 of 12

It is very pretty, @LizzieF ‍ !  I know your friend was thrilled.

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kakeladi Posted 26 Jun 2017 , 8:08pm
post #12 of 12

Wow, you created a masterpiece:)  Yes, I see a flaw or two - that probably only another decorator would notice - but it is a great cake.

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