911 Heeeeelllllllppppppppp!!!!!!

Decorating By kamiser Updated 13 May 2010 , 9:24am by rainbow_kisses

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kamiser Posted 12 May 2010 , 1:31am
post #1 of 28

Ok so I'm totally freaking out because I am doing my first wedding cake and I can't seem to figure out how much frosting and filling to make. I am make a french vanilla cake with a white vanilla buttercream and a vanilla mousse filling. It's going to be a 5 tiered cake consisiting of a 6", 8", 10", 12" and 14" (all 3" in depth). Someone help me please!!!! I don't want to buy too many ingredients or too little.... HELP! icon_cry.gif

27 replies
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squeaky121603 Posted 12 May 2010 , 1:39am
post #2 of 28

I hope this comes through for you. It doesn't show measurements for filling though.
http://shinymetalobjects.net/cake/calculator/cake_calculator.cgi

HTH,
Carol

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leah_s Posted 12 May 2010 , 1:42am
post #3 of 28

Your tiers are only 3" tall?

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mandm78 Posted 12 May 2010 , 1:44am
post #4 of 28

how many layers in each cake? I bake 2 cakes for each size and then torte each one in order to have 4 layers per cake. So each one has three fillings. You may want to look in the wilton cake book. It gives approx. amounts for frosting and fillings for each size. I make a little extra cause I hate running out and having to stop and make more. Hope this helps

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Swede-cakes Posted 12 May 2010 , 1:49am
post #5 of 28

Ok, don't panic. icon_smile.gif This is where the math part of caking comes in!

I don't know what kind of pans you have, but I have a Fat Daddios batter capacity chart you can take a look at. I've attached it for you.

Also, Wilton's website might have the same thing if you look up the specific pan sizes. For example, I do know that one Wilton 12"x2"h pan takes about 7.5 cups of batter to become half to 2/3's full, and their 10"x2"h takes about 6 cups of batter.

As far as icing, I know my recipe makes enough for a 10" cake plus trim and border, so I kind of recalculate for other cake sizes. Do you know how much one batch of your buttercream makes?

Hth!

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dguerrant Posted 12 May 2010 , 2:08am
post #6 of 28

I can estimate the cake part, but frosting, I just make it. I never measure anything with the frosting, I can only estimate, Sorry I'm not much help icon_sad.gif
For cakes, I use approximately one box mix for every 10-12 people. I use 10 because I can never remember my 12 times tables. So a cake for 100 would be 9-10 mixes. A few weeks ago I had a five tier cake for 200 people and actually used 21 mixes and used 3 cans of vegetable shortening and 16-18 pounds of 10x sugar.

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mamawrobin Posted 12 May 2010 , 3:51am
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Quote:
Originally Posted by leah_s

Your tiers are only 3" tall?




I am wondering about this as well. Mine are at least 4" tall.

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Texas_Rose Posted 12 May 2010 , 5:35am
post #8 of 28

It's better to have too much stuff than too little...you'll be thanking yourself for getting those extra bags of powdered sugar when you don't have to run to walmart in the middle of the night.

With the mousse filling, do you have room in your fridge for all the tiers?

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sweettreat101 Posted 12 May 2010 , 9:27am
post #9 of 28

My butter cream recipe uses 2 lbs of powdered sugar so I go by the size of the cakes. If I was making this cake I would count on making five batches of frosting. It depends on the decorations you will be adding. Are you adding string work or borders? And my cakes end up being 4.5 inches tall so I don't know about the 3. Do you mean you are using three inch pans and two layers?

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dalis4joe Posted 12 May 2010 , 9:35am
post #10 of 28

I agree with Texas Rose... you can always freeze ur leftover icing... I always make more that the Wilton chart states... just in case... and if I happen to have leftover...I freeze it....

Good Luck...

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rainbow_kisses Posted 12 May 2010 , 10:49am
post #11 of 28

can not help with your filling quantities as I guesstimate too and always just freeze the leftovers. If she is in the UK we only make 3" tall cakes in general.

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Relznik Posted 12 May 2010 , 11:13am
post #12 of 28
Quote:
Originally Posted by scrummymummy

can not help with your filling quantities as I guesstimate too and always just freeze the leftovers. If she is in the UK we only make 3" tall cakes in general.




I was just going to say that!

In the UK, if you get a cake that's 3" tall, that's a GOOD height. MANY aren't even that deep!

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mamawrobin Posted 12 May 2010 , 11:21am
post #13 of 28
Quote:
Originally Posted by Relznik

Quote:
Originally Posted by scrummymummy

can not help with your filling quantities as I guesstimate too and always just freeze the leftovers. If she is in the UK we only make 3" tall cakes in general.



I was just going to say that!

In the UK, if you get a cake that's 3" tall, that's a GOOD height. MANY aren't even that deep!




It's TWO...2 inch layers stacked with icing in the middle to make a 4 to 4 1/2 inch TIER. We're not saying that each LAYER of cake is 4 inches tall.

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Relznik Posted 12 May 2010 , 11:32am
post #14 of 28

Yes, I thought that's what you meant.

The total height of the cake is 4" tall.


In the UK, a good cake maker will bake the cake to 3" tall (or just over, to allow for levelling the top).

I cut mine through twice, so there are two layers of filling.

In vanilla sponge, we tend to have one layer of jam (usually seedless rapsberry jam) and one layer of buttercream (which is not like IMBC or SMBC... it's simply butter and icing sugar - powdered or confectioner's sugar, I think you call it - and some vanilla extract).

Choc cake would just have two layers of choc buttercream...

icon_smile.gif

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rainbow_kisses Posted 12 May 2010 , 1:05pm
post #15 of 28

Relznik thats what I do to so my cake ends up approx. 3.5" tall after filling. But many in the UK only do two 1" deep and fill so only get 2.5" at most icon_lol.gif

The way I read the OP is that each of her tiers is going to be 3" in depth not that each layer of cake is going to be 3" icon_confused.gif

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mamawrobin Posted 12 May 2010 , 1:10pm
post #16 of 28
Quote:
Originally Posted by scrummymummy

Relznik thats what I do to so my cake ends up approx. 3.5" tall after filling. But many in the UK only do two 1" deep and fill so only get 2.5" at most icon_lol.gif

The way I read the OP is that each of her tiers is going to be 3" in depth not that each layer of cake is going to be 3" icon_confused.gif




Yes scrummymummy I read it to be the same. I was a little confused as to why each tier would only be 3 inches. Am I right in thinking that is unusual? icon_confused.gif

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Relznik Posted 12 May 2010 , 1:14pm
post #17 of 28
Quote:
Originally Posted by mamawrobin

I was a little confused as to why each tier would only be 3 inches. Am I right in thinking that is unusual? icon_confused.gif




Not in the UK, no! icon_biggrin.gificon_biggrin.gif (as previously posted, in the UK, a 3" deep tier would be a GOOD depth... so many are less than that!)

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Kitagrl Posted 12 May 2010 , 1:22pm
post #18 of 28

Yep sure enough, look up UK wedding cake on Google images and the tiers are all slightly shorter than the average tiers here in the US (although I've seen quite a few bakery cakes in the US that are about 3 or 3 1/2 inches high as well.)

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cheatize Posted 12 May 2010 , 6:10pm
post #19 of 28

Wait...what????

I use two inch pans. I make 2 cakes and torte and fill each one. I end up with 2 cakes, for a total of 4 layers. Am I good to go or do my cakes need to be taller?

So many numbers, and such a little head on my shoulders. LOL

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cas17 Posted 12 May 2010 , 6:21pm
post #20 of 28

i had to make 3 batches of bc that each filled my 5qt KA to fill and frost a 4 tier (6/8/10/12). but my cakes are always 4-4 1/2" tall and they were not iced in fondant, just the bc.

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KHalstead Posted 12 May 2010 , 6:23pm
post #21 of 28
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kitagrl

Yep sure enough, look up UK wedding cake on Google images and the tiers are all slightly shorter than the average tiers here in the US (although I've seen quite a few bakery cakes in the US that are about 3 or 3 1/2 inches high as well.)




They sure are squatty lil' things aren't they?? I never realized this before!

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Relznik Posted 12 May 2010 , 6:38pm
post #22 of 28
Quote:
Originally Posted by KHalstead

They sure are squatty lil' things aren't they?? I never realized this before!




icon_cry.gificon_cry.gificon_cry.gif

http://www.patacake-parties.com/Wedding/Wedding.html

I'm not sure I like to think ofl my wedding cakes "squatty lil' things"

icon_sad.gif

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KHalstead Posted 12 May 2010 , 6:54pm
post #23 of 28

I"m sorry............I just never realized they were that much shorter is all.

I'm guessing it's due to the fact that you guys do a lot of fruit cakes right? They're richer so maybe people can't handle 4-5" of it at once!

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rainbow_kisses Posted 12 May 2010 , 7:43pm
post #24 of 28

cheatize your cakes sound good for a 4" tier.

Relznik your cakes are far from squatty icon_biggrin.gif I personally think a 3" cake is enough especially if you are recommending a 1" x 2" x 3" serving. Plenty big enough. I read a serving guide from America that said a 6" round would only serve 4 people icon_eek.gif I say it can serve 16 and even then my family and friends have left overs thumbs_up.gif It is all down to teh super sized portions we don't get IMHO icon_lol.gif

KHalstead fruit cake is popular here but I find most people only have them at Christmas and Christenings, most of my cakes are flavoured speciallity cakes and fillings that I create myself icon_biggrin.gif I could not ever imagine trying to eat a large wedge of rich fruit brandy coma cake icon_lol.gif

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linstead Posted 12 May 2010 , 7:55pm
post #25 of 28

Relznik - your cakes are beautiful btw I am in US and I make 3" deep cakes all the time - they seem plenty high to me!

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KHalstead Posted 12 May 2010 , 10:28pm
post #26 of 28
Quote:
Originally Posted by scrummymummy

I read a serving guide from America that said a 6" round would only serve 4 people icon_eek.gif I say it can serve 16 and even then my family and friends have left overs thumbs_up.gif It is all down to teh super sized portions we don't get IMHO icon_lol.gif




I totally agree with you on that one!! I have cut a 6" round into 10 slices and they're LARGE slices if you ask me..........I can't even imagine only 4 people eating a 6" round (no wonder other countries think all Americans are nothing but fat pigs lol)

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leily Posted 13 May 2010 , 2:11am
post #27 of 28
Quote:
Originally Posted by scrummymummy

I read a serving guide from America that said a 6" round would only serve 4 people icon_eek.gif I say it can serve 16 and even then my family and friends have left overs thumbs_up.gif It is all down to teh super sized portions we don't get IMHO icon_lol.gif




WOW, i would love to see what someone is charging per serving for the 4 serving 6" cake, bet it's not nearly enough. The standard serving size in the US is 1x2x4 which for a 6" round cake comes out to 14 servings, so really not to far off from your 16. Now granted, in some homes it would only serve one... but that's another story, they're still going to pay me for the 14 servings.

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rainbow_kisses Posted 13 May 2010 , 9:24am
post #28 of 28

I don't think all Americans are fat pigs, Like every country there are some people who love their food,but not everyone. icon_biggrin.gif

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