I wanted to get some opinions on what other folks do in terms of steps in their cakes and times between. After you have baked your layers and let them cool, do you do a full crumb coat or just between layers? How long do you wait before adding fondant? How long maximum would you crumb coat before adding fondant and would you refrigerate or freeze? I've read what seems to be a lot of different orders and ways of doing things and am trying to figure out if I should change mine. My pattern is make my fondant the first day. The next day start my figures/flowers, whatever doodads can be done ahead. Third day make my cake, cool it, crumb coat. I don't usually freeze or refrigerate, so maybe I should change that. Last day (which is usually the night before) I put on the fondant and finish decorations for the cake to be used the next day. I'm making cakes in the evening after work, so I have to kind of pace myself out this way.
Well, I do a crumb coat, wait a minimum of one hour to 24 hours, I'll do a regular icing coating and smooth. Then add fondant at the same time.
Since alot of people won't eat the fondant, I always have a full coating of bc under it.
I don't usually freeze or refrigerate unless I am baking several days ahead. I usually plan my cakes to bake two days ahead, cool crumb coat, then do icing and or icing and fondant the day before cake is due.
I too do my cakes on nights and weekends.
Hope this helps.
Dee aka aztomcat
For a Saturday cake, I bake on Wednesday (wrap and leave on counter), fill on Thursday (wrap and refrigerate), and decorate on Friday (fridge overnight). Any sugar work or whatever is squeezed in wherever I can, I always intend to do it on Tuesday but it usually ends up more like Thursday and then going into the dehydrator to speed things up.
If you're using a crusting buttercream, then it is best to put your fondant on before it crusts so your fondant can adhere to the cake. The buttercream acts as the glue. Maybe this is why your fondant is sliding. I only freeze cakes with no torting and no icing.
Thanks, tomcat. I have a little trouble with my fondant wanting to slide around when I try to do the full BC. Do you keep it a bit on the thin side?
vick,
actually its not super thin, but is not as thick as when bc is the only icing.
One of the reasons I brought up this discussion is I've notice on the Challenge programs on Food network, that it seems the cake competitors are usually pulling cakes out of the fridge that have been frosted between the layers, but not crumbcoated. I do know they skip around a bit in what they show us on the program.
In my experience, I bake, let cool, add filling, crumb coat and add BC (sometimes I don't even crumb coat) then I refrigerate for about 30 min to an hour (sometimes longer) so it is nice, cold and sturdy, my BC has formed a crust when I cover it, never had a problem. I also like to cover my cakes cold as that way they will hold up the shape better. HTH.
sorry to highjack the post but aztomcat...i love your avatar! i know the feeling for sure!
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