How Do I Know When To Refridgerate A Filling Or Icing?

Decorating By mnmmommy Updated 24 Jul 2006 , 3:45pm by peg818

mnmmommy Cake Central Cake Decorator Profile
mnmmommy Posted 24 Jul 2006 , 6:36am
post #1 of 6

I'm faily new and just starting to branch out to different flavors of cakes, icings and fillings. Are there some general rules to follow? If you would please tell me if it needs refridgeration and how long it is good for and how long can it stay out...

pudding fillings?

fillings with real fruit? blueberries, strawberries and raspberries

whipped cream fillings? cool whip?

fillings or icings with eggs?

heavy cream? like ganache and others

fillings or icings with butter?

milk used in fillings?

and last cream cheese?

Thanks for all of you help. I love this site and I could not be doing this without it.

5 replies
boonenati Cake Central Cake Decorator Profile
boonenati Posted 24 Jul 2006 , 9:45am
post #2 of 6
Quote:
Originally Posted by mnmmommy

I'm faily new and just starting to branch out to different flavors of cakes, icings and fillings. Are there some general rules to follow? If you would please tell me if it needs refridgeration and how long it is good for and how long can it stay out...

pudding fillings?



sorry can't help with this one, cause i have no idea what's in it.

Quote:
Originally Posted by mnmmommy


fillings with real fruit? blueberries, strawberries and raspberries



Ok when using real fruit such as strawberries, i've found that it's best to fill the cake as close to the time you're going to eat it as possible. I would do it the same day. I use strawberries and fresh cream, and by the next day the strawberries start to weep and discolour. Also they do need to be refrigerated.

Quote:
Originally Posted by mnmmommy


whipped cream fillings? cool whip?



Whipped cream, yes, most certainly, not sure what cool whip is (Im in Australia ; )

Quote:
Originally Posted by mnmmommy


fillings or icings with eggs?



Yup, eggs in the fridge : )

Quote:
Originally Posted by mnmmommy


heavy cream? like ganache and others



I was told that it's safe to keep ganache out of the fridge for up to three days, YIKES, i wouldnt do it, i'd rather be safe than sorry. I suppose the sugar in the chocolate would act as a preservative. Still i refrigerate it, unless it's going to be eaten in the same day.

Quote:
Originally Posted by mnmmommy


fillings or icings with butter?



I've been told that butter is actually safe to be kept out of the fridge if it's not hot for a few days, i leave it out of the fridge when i need to bring it to room tempearature for baking. But i've never left a buttercream made with butter and eggs out of the fridge for long periods of time.

Quote:
Originally Posted by mnmmommy


milk used in fillings?



I would refrigerate, especially custards.

Quote:
Originally Posted by mnmmommy


and last cream cheese?



Yup, refrigerate

Hope this helps you some
Nati : )

springlakecake Cake Central Cake Decorator Profile
springlakecake Posted 24 Jul 2006 , 11:40am
post #3 of 6

I dont refrigerate the ganache. It says on the baking 911 website that
" Because of its high content of sugar and fat. Micro-organisms need water to grow. When the sugar content is so high, the sugar binds the water in such a way taht micro organisms cannot utilize it. Technically its called "water activity control"" Plus squirrellycakes says it doenst need to be refrigerated, so that is good enough for me! As far as the others, I am still learning too. I know it is hard to know what needs to be refrigerated or not. I wish on the recipes it would say whether or not it needed refrigeration. That would make is soooo much easier.

Buttercream with butter and small amounts of cream or milk is also safe to leave out of the fridge for a few days, refrigerate the leftovers.

I know most lemon curd recipes you can leave out as well, it does have egg yolk in it, but maybe because it has been heated I guess. Again squirrelly cakes said it was okay...!

Custards, mousse fillings (like things with heavy cream, dairy, that are not heated) need to be in the fridge. I am not sure about pudding...it seems like those "snack pack" kind are out of the fridge when you buy them...but I think i have read where people refrigerate...I don't know.

mnmmommy Cake Central Cake Decorator Profile
mnmmommy Posted 24 Jul 2006 , 2:35pm
post #4 of 6

Thanks for helping me out. I thought things like that had to be refridgerated.

So what does everyone do that has a cake due on say Saturday that req the fridge? When do you decorate it? What if it is supposed to have fondant on it? It doesn't leave much time to decorate or allow for "accidents"

Thanks

dailey Cake Central Cake Decorator Profile
dailey Posted 24 Jul 2006 , 3:36pm
post #5 of 6

certain ingredients on there *own* need to be refriderated (ex. heavy cream) but when mixed with *other* ingredients, they can safely be left out for a few days. are you familair with the "the cake bible"? excellent book and RBL has several fillings & icings that don't need refrideration.

here are some of my favorite recipes from her book, i used them often... white chocolate cream cheese buttercream (can be left out 24 hours), smbc (2 days), sour cream ganache (3 days), white chocolate ganche (1 day).

i'm not sure what the exact *formula* is for determining whether a filling can be left out or not, i read it about a year ago on another website and didn't write it down. has something to do with the amount of sugar as opposed to the the amount of dairy. maybe someone here will know? lastly, if a dairy product is ultra-pasterized then it has a longer shelf life, cream cheese, for example.

peg818 Cake Central Cake Decorator Profile
peg818 Posted 24 Jul 2006 , 3:45pm
post #6 of 6

remember when something says it can be left out, that doesn't mean that if you leave it in 100 degree weather that its going to be okay. So when in doubt, put it in the fridge. I refridgerate everything i can, and if something is too big to go in the fridge the ac gets turned down real low.

Quote by @%username% on %date%

%body%