I have a cake to do, french vanilla with a raspberry filling. Believe it or not, this is the first request I've had for any kind of fruit filling. The cake is for Sunday. I have to make it Friday night because I won't be able to on Saturday.

So I did a practice one to see what happens if a fruit filled cake sits for a day and a half before serving it. Well it got kinda mushy on the inside, the raspberry soaked into the cake.

Is this to be expected with fruit fillings? Is there a trick to keep the fruit from soaking into the cake?

Thanks for all your help!!!! I would be lost without all the great people on this site!!!

Hi Newbie!
I haven't had an order for a fruit filled cake yet, but my Wilton instructor was just talking about this at class. She had an order and she put a thin layer of bc down, the her bc dam around the cake, then the filling. I hope this helps.

i do fruit all the time, just did one yesterday for raspberry!

if you use fresh fruit, you are in for a good mess unless you eat it immediately!
heres what i do:

one 12 oz bag of frozen berries
1/4 cup sugar
1-2 tb cornstarch (2 will make it thick like jam)
2 tb chambord (sweet raspberry liquor-preserves it to make it shelf stable for a day or two)
lemon juice to taste ( i like it tart)

thaw the berries or slowly heat them to thaw. puree them in a blender. return to the stove and slowly cook them by adding in sugar . dilute the cornstarch in just enough COLD water to disolve it. stir that in to the mixture. stir constantly, and let it come to near simmer point or till it has thickened into a jam like consistency. cool. mix in the chambord (if you want to- $10 for a pint size bottle) it will not change the flavor.


once your filling is cooled and ready , you can fill your cake. dont forget to add a dam of icing to keep it in the cake - from squishing out. with the 2 tb of cornstarch, it stays put. it doesnt even seep into the cake so you dont need to ice underneath it.. YUM!

i also remove the seeds after it is pureed , before cooking or adding ingredients, by pushing it through a strainer or sieve with a spoon. time consuming but worth it.

Wow! Melysa that sounds great. I will definately give that recipe at try.....just not this weekend! I'm not charging enough for this cake as it is, so they are getting raspberry preserves from a jar!

Soccermom, I thought about the thin layer of BC too, but I wasn't sure if that was just going to make things messier!

Thanks for the posts.

This is my 1st cake for a complete stranger thru the party planner, so I don't want to mess it up!

you can also mix your jam with some butter cream for a filling. I do that all the time with my swiss meringue buttercream when I do a filling..and add a little liquor to make it even yummier!

These all sound great. Thanks for the information.

I already asked if I could mix the raspberry in with the buttercream, figuring that would solve my problem, but no, they want Raspberry only!

I find that if I put a layer of buttercream under the fruit, it gets really slippery. Be careful!

I always do a thin layer of bc down first and then the raspberry filling. I have done several and no problem after even 3 days in the fridge!

Thanks for this info, I was wondering about the fruit seeping into the cake.

if its too expensive, you can definately skip the chambord, i just used it to add a preservative, but i've done it so many times without it. the regular recipe is less than 3 dollars for a batch. not much more than preserves, and much more tasty

does anyone know if you could use a can of strawberry pie filling or would that be too sweet. I won't have time to make a filling and I need something quick. Any ideas?

I found a really good solution for this on another cake decorating site. Sorry I can't remember the name of the site to give credit. But, it's easy and really tastes good, slightly tart, but good flavor.

You take a jar of Pollaner's all fruit in a pan over low heat. When it's liquid, add a package of the same flavor jello, stir until it dissolves. The jello also gives it a really pretty red color.

Also, along the lines of the thin layer of BC, you could also put on a layer of Pastry Pride on to sandwich the fresh raspberry. I do this all the time when using raspberry or strawberry jam. Too bad they don't want raspberry mousse the recipe on here is AMAZING! I just used it in a cake I made for our church Christmas party tonight. It was incredible paired with yellow cake and white chocolate BC.

DBrooke, I was just wondering if it gets a jello-ish texture. Firm?? Also, so you have to refrigerate it?

It's hard to describe the texture. It doesn't look or taste "jello-y" at all. But it's solid enough that it doesn't seep into the cake or run when you cut the cake. I've made it 3 times with raspberry and everyone loved it. I didn't refrigerate the cake, and it stayed just perfect. It is amazingly simple. Hope this helps.

LOL...I'm new to all this so was thrilled to finally be able to contribute!!!!

Deb

Do they make raspberry jello? I guess I need to pay more attention in the jello isle.