I made my first Italian Meringue Icing today. It turned out fine and I like the way it looks on the cake. It was very easy to work with.
I'm wondering, do I need to keep the cake in the refrigerator? (I made it with "All Whites" instead of real egg whites) Also, I am decorating it with Ice Cream Cone Christmas Trees and gumpaste figures. Can I put the decorations on the cake tonight, or do I need to wait until the morning? (I'm not sure if the butter in the icing will cause the gumpaste to become soft?) I made the cake to take to work tomorrow. TIA 
Dodibug is absolutely right ... it's best to refrigerate IMBC, and you do NOT want to refrigerate your gumpaste work! (However, you can store it in a cool place overnight just fine ... i.e. your basement or a spare room with the door closed and a window open... assuming you're not too far south 
)
Note ... after the cake has been in the fridge for about 1/2 hour (long enough to get nice and firm) wrap it well with plastic wrap ... IMBC REALLY absorbs other fridge flavours!
Also, make sure it's out for at least an hour or 2 before serving ... IMBC is meant to be served at room temp ... if it's really cold, all you taste is the butter!
I always keep cakes in the fridge so they're at the peak of freshness. The frosting tastes fine out of the fridge, maybe it's the Grand Mariner? I let the cake warm up a little just so it will be softer when eaten.
Thanks for the advice. I kept the cake in a very cool room last night and it was fine. The cake came out really cute, but unfortunately I forgot to take a picture. Everyone loved the Italian Meringue! I mainly decorate cakes as a hobby, but my boss came to me today and asked if I would make a Birthday cake for one of the VP's for next Thursday. (Italian Meringue Buttercream Icing of Course!). Thanks again for the help.
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