I have a wedding cake due in July, and the bride wants buttercream roses all around the bases of each tier. This will be an outdoor reception, in July, in the Raleigh, NC area. The average temperature around here in July is in the 90's. I usually make my buttercream all butter, and I can't see how that will hold up with these temperatures. What about a Crisco mix, or maybe even an all-Crisco? Will that hold up to outdoor summer heat?
TIA!
<Starkie>
Well, PERSONALLY, I think the all Crisco will hold up better than a recipe with butter since it has a lower melting point. I think I would wait until the very last minute to put the roses on and DON'T freeze or refrigerate the roses, let them just "crust" at a cool (a/c room) temp. If you refrig or freeze you run the risk of condensation and that is NEVER pretty!
See? THIS is why I don't DO outdoor weddings in KY anymore! The weather is just.....SCARY! LOL
I'm sure you will be fine and the cake will be lovely! Post a Pic!
Beth in KY
I would vote for RI roses in this case. You can make them ahead of time for one thing and then since they are going to be at the base of the tiers, I would just make sure the servers knew to remove them before they cut the cake! Should present no problem at all.
Beth in KY
i would certainly give her the option of royal icing roses explaining why due to the heat. i just made and delivered a cake in this heat and had it called for roses it would not have made it.even a short ten minute drive. if she wants roses. maybe you can have some refrigerated; transported in a cooler and applied to the one cake they will be cutting at almost the last minute - that is if she's insistant on buttercream roses. if she's ok with royal icing roses then i'd think they'd be ok to be applied at the normal application time.
whatever you do, don't try freezing the roses. Anything that is frozen will melt when removed from the freezer. Air dry..... air dry .... air dry.
I use BC on all of my flowers. They crust pretty solid. I make them a day or 2 ahead of time and let them air dry. After a day, I could pick one up and throw it across the room if I wanted to and they'd still hold up fine. If in doubt on your BC, then go with the RI.
whatever you do, don't try freezing the roses. Anything that is frozen will melt when removed from the freezer. Air dry..... air dry .... air dry.
I use BC on all of my flowers. They crust pretty solid. I make them a day or 2 ahead of time and let them air dry. After a day, I could pick one up and throw it across the room if I wanted to and they'd still hold up fine. If in doubt on your BC, then go with the RI.
Can you tell us what type of buttercream icing you use for your roses that you let air dry? Do you use any butter in your recipe or just shortening? I tried it once and they never really got to the point where I could pick them up. Thanks
I live in the Bahamas and used to do all of my cakes without A/C in my house. It was a challenge, but not impossible. I use the all crisco recipe (2 cups of crisco, 2 lbs of 10X sugar, 2 tsp vanilla, 1 tsp butter flavor) and it works perfectly even in the heat.
I agree with the others on the air dry issue. Don't refrigerate or freeze, the roses will sweat and melt when they get in the heat. If they air dry at room temp (in A/C) then they'll be fine. I would use the all crisco recipe on the entire cake, not just the roses.
Good luck. You'll do fine! 
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