How important is is that it be stiff icing. I used to be a real stickler when I was making the wilton icing (blech!) about having thin, med, or stiff at the correct times. I've relaxed that now unless I'm making buttercream flowers. I'm just filling with choc. buttercream, will a dam of the icing with which I'm frosting work or is this the reason that some of my cakes have a domed effect after icing?

Thanks!

You just need to ensure that the dam is stiff enough so that the filling does not leak out. If you are using a chocolate buttercream filling and then icing the cake in the same chocolate buttercream, the consistency of the dam is not as important IMO since if some filling leaks you can use it to ice the rest of the cake. However if you are filling with choco buttercream and icing in white you need your white buttercream dam to hold up so that no filling leaks and the buttercreams don't mix and ruin your final effect.

I don't use an extremely stiff buttercream dam and it usually works for me.

Good luck

I would think the stiffness of the dam need only be enough to make the dam not "run". I've used med and soft with no problems. And, I agree, the color of the dam should be as light as your final coat of icing so it doesn't show.

The problem with doming is more likely that the cake wasn't completely dome-free (level) to begin with. I would think the more likely thing to happen with a dam, is to have the center appear sunken, rather than domed.

BE sure to let the dam sit for about 10 minutes to set and crust before adding your filling and putting the top layer one. I use my regular frosting for my dam, but letting it sit and crust a bit is the key.

The other thing about the dam is that to have it just inside the edge of the cake..leaving a small ring around it...when you have the filling in and the cake is placed on top...the weight can squish it out...after it has settled a bit, I find the icing dam has spread a little and it is at the edge of the cake where it is supposed to be.
I am sure I have also read that in one of the Wilton books or on their site.
Good luck!

I have always used a medium consistency for my frosting dams and haven't had any problems yet. I have filled with buttercream, pudding, preserves and cool-whip.

HTH,
Chelle