I was wondering if anyone could tell me what they do when they get huge orders for a wedding? This is my first and I want to make a schedule so i can make sure that I get everything figured out.. The wedding is on July 14th (next month).. I have 100 cupcakes to make and a 3 tiered cake...

I am wondering how long before hand should I bake everything? And how do I keep it the freshest? I normally will bake my cakes the day before and wrap them a few times in plastic wrap and leave them sitting on the counter until I am ready to decorate the next day. but this is such a BIG order that I need a little help... Thank you! =)

This is what I do starting on Tues. Bake cakes, wrap in plastic then foil and freeze. Make Fondant if your going to use it. Make Icing about 15 to 20 lbs. Decorate boards. Friday ice cakes and refrigerate until set then loosely wrap. Make batter for cupcakes and refrigerate. Saturday bake cupcakes and ice will probably take about 3 hours. Decorate Cakes. I make a schedule on Monday and make sure I have all my supplies and ingredients.

Hi This is what I usually do when I have big orders:

1) I have a calendar planner with large sections for each day. I sit & plan out everything that needs to be done in the days prior to the event. Everything from bringing ingredients out of the fridge to come to room temp to making fondant accents, flower, etc. Always allow for extra time for mishaps & such.

2) I get my gallon ziplocs out....label all of the bags & pre-measure all of my dry ingredients. It really does save time, plus it's not as big a mess on your counters & in your sink on the day your baking.

3) I've read that some CC'ers bake their cupcakes ahead of time & freeze...I don't have the freezer space for that many cupcakes but if you do, this would probably help

4) You can always bake your cakes early & freeze. I usually do this a week before, but I don't bake my cupcakes until the day before the event. I make all of my frosting a couple days ahead & refridgerate (just make sure you bring it to room temp & re-whip before you use it).

5) Anything you can do ahead of time...DO IT! Plan, plan, plan!

HTH

You can search on this site about freezing the cakes (there are a lot of posts about it...this is where I learned it!), but it locks in the moisture and the cake comes out of the freezer really moist! The freezing makes your cake dense (but not too dense) but incredibly moist...but freezing won't mess up the marbling or anything like that. I've heard of some that brush simple syrup on their cakes, but I don't.

If I'm filling & icing my cakes in late afternoon or night, I take my cakes out of the freezer & put them on the counter to thaw out...if doing it earlier in the day, then I take them out before I go to bed at night. I live in a humid climate, so I can't decorate frozed or chilled...maybe check with another CC'er in your area?

HTH

I don't use simple syrup and I ice my cakes frozen no crumb coat needed. I use a hot knife to smooth.

I like to have all orders finished the night before they are due incase of a mishap. Then there is plenty of time to fix the problem.

I was making cupcakes for a party I was attending (not a paid order) and decided to bake the cupcakes that day. I only needed a couple dozen, so I knew it wouldn't take me long. For some unknown reason, the power decided to go out that day. The day was sunny with no wind - what knocked the power out, no clue. Anyway, had the order been for a customer I would have been panicing big time.

You just never know what will happen. Better to be safe than sorry and have the order finished with plenty of time on your side.