Hello,
We did a trial run of my daughters wedding cake, yesterday. I don't know how to post the photos here but if you go to www.picturetrail.com/carrielayne you can go to album 4 and there they are! I had the cakes previously frozen and let them thaw out very well. I used the "Wilton snowwhite crusting buttercream" which turned out very well I thought, since I don't have a KA!. This cake is a buttercake and I made 3" long bands with royal icing and these were sugared and "glued" all around the outside of the cakes. I don't like how they look so jagged and uneven at the top. Is there some way a person could "score" these while they're still wet, and then if you needed to break a bit off, it would snap off clean? I think maybe I'll just pre-make a bunch of different sizes. and while they're wet give them a clean even cut with my spatula. How far in advance can I make the royal icing bands. Can I make them and store them in the freezer ? How long can they be stored? A question about the cakes: At the time I made these cakes I didn't have a heating core (cone?). They cooked more on the outside edges and less in the middle. We have since purchased a cone, but my question is, when you take it out, doesn't it leave a huge hole in the middle? What can I do about that? This isn't a layer cake so I won't have any filler to put in the hole. Next question: The wedding is on a Saturday. We won't be eating the cake till about 7:30 pm. The only day I can decorate is the Wednesday before. Do I refrigerate these cakes? Will the royal icing bands soften and fall off or dissolve? Whats the worst that can happen? Any answers will really be appreciated. I used to do fancy cakes when my kids were little, but now I'm feeling really pressured about this wedding cake.
Thanks,
Carrie

Well, I can't answer all of your questions, but I will try to answer a couple. Royal icing decorations can be made weeks even months in advance. Let them dry and then just store them in an airtight container until ready to use. No need to freeze or refigerate.

As for the heating core. I don't use them, but you should fill the center of the core with batter as well. Then plug the hole with the center fill. I find it much easier to use an inverted flower nail in the center of my pan. Then you only end up with a tiny hole, which is covered with the icing.

Not sure on your other questions, maybe someone else can answer.

BTW- Your cakes look great!

Don't put the royal icing bands on until the day of the wedding. I've heard so many different stories about royal including not to refrigerate and not to keep on buttercream for very long. Decorating the cake that far in advance is actually fine, you can even freeze it. Just take it out a day or two before to thaw at room temp, then add the royal the day of.
As far as the tops of the bands being clean, I don't know the answer to that one. I think if anything you'ss want to use a very sharp, thin bladed knife instead of your spatula.
Hope this helps, and good luck! Are you going to sugar the fruits?

I was going to put the cake sparkles on, they don't taste at all......how do you sugar the fruit?

I think there's an article on Marthastewart.com but basically you brush egg white on the fruit then dust with fine sanding sugar. It is really pretty and would go nicely with your sparkly bands on the side.

First I would like to say you did a really great job on the cakes! Will you be using the fresh fruit for the real wedding??? It really looks good on the white icing.

I would use the inverted flower nail. I use this all the time with my 3 inch deep pans and it really works well.

I really do not decorate much with royal icing but have read that buttercream icing can break it down. So you would want to wait to put those on the cake. If you are going to be stressed...I think I would come up with a design that you can decorate and then be done with it. You could do swiss dots or edible pearls or even swirls.

If you decorate on wed...I would box your tiers and keep them in the refrigerator until the day of the wedding. Also...if you will be freezing your cakes...I would glaze with the apricot syrup before you freeze. This will help keep your cake very moist.

1 cup apricot preserves
1 cup water
Boil apricots and strain. Add water and bring back to a boil. You will brush it on your cakes while the glaze is still hot. I like to add a little sugar and mexican vanilla to my glaze.

Good luck...and when is the wedding???

Thankyou all so much....I will be using fresh fruit on the cake.....I think I will try the sanding sugar, but I'm concerned about the raw egg white, I wonder what else could be used? I've had the little top cake in the frig since last night with a bit of saran over it, I will take it out sunday and see how the bands are doing. This is really an easy cake to decorate, there isn't anything to it really. The buttercream doesn't have to be perfect on the top, because the fruit goes there. And I can get it really smooth on the sides with a 3" spatula. Just gotta figure out how to get those darn bands even! Arrrgh!
Frustrated Mother of the Bride! (Wedding is August 26th)

You could also use meringue powder mixed with water.

The good thing is you have time o practice. I think it is a very pretty cake and I am sure it will be beautiful.

Wish I could help you more on the bands. The only other thing I can think of would be to make the bands out of fondant and then you could cut even strips. You could still decorate them with sparkles or luster dust. I would also get the brand FondX since it can be placed in the refrigerator without any problems.

Thankyou all so much....I will be using fresh fruit on the cake.....I think I will try the sanding sugar, but I'm concerned about the raw egg white, I wonder what else could be used? I've had the little top cake in the frig since last night with a bit of saran over it, I will take it out sunday and see how the bands are doing. This is really an easy cake to decorate, there isn't anything to it really. The buttercream doesn't have to be perfect on the top, because the fruit goes there. And I can get it really smooth on the sides with a 3" spatula. Just gotta figure out how to get those darn bands even! Arrrgh!
Frustrated Mother of the Bride! (Wedding is August 26th)

Oops Didn't mean to send that twice!

Your cakes are beautiful.

If you cannot get the top edges to match up perfectly, you might consider a boarder to diguise the edge.

I took a class a few weeks ago where we sugared fruit. My instructor told use to use jello. Get a cup hot water and add the entire package of jello, she suggested mixed fruit flavor. Disolve the jello completely. Dip your fruit into the jello. Set the wet fruit on waxed paper for a few minutes, don't wait until it is completley dry, just until it is not soaking wet. Sprinkle the fruit with the sugar.

Any fruit with a solid skin, like grapes, apples, or pears, can be done several days in advance. Fruit without a solid skin, like strawberries, will begin to weep their juice after a day, so it is best to do them as close to the day as possible. When choosing the fruit, you really want it to be firm, in many cases not quite ripe.

Hope this helps a bit.

in order to get the pieces all the same size, could you measure the lenght you will need then draw sraight lines on a sheet of paper, put a sheet of wax paper over that and then pipe over the line you have drawn? I don't know how well that would work, but it might help. Then as someone else said you could pipe a border along the top edge to give it a more completed look as well as framing in the fruit on the top. As far the jello goes if you didn't want the jello flavor on your fruit I think you could use unflavored jelatin packets to do the same thing.

Thankyou all for your wonderful advice! I told my daughter that after we did two trial runs with the cake...bought the stand....bought the pans, that we could have had a pro do it!!! We are also doing our own flowers, so I have a real time constraint problem. I guess I could put the bands on Thursday morning, I have the little cake in the frig as we speak and they are still really hard, but tomorrow will be the test. When I did the bands, I did have lines premeasured and drawn , it just seemed like I couldn't start and stop them without getting kind of bulged on the end. But I think some rainy day I will make up a batch, pipe them a little over the lines and then cut them, I think I will make a few different sizes like 2 3/4 3" 3 1/4, that should cover all my bases! Thanks again, you've all been wonderful!

I don't know where you live. I live in Texas and in a humid climate or especially in the summer, refridgerating a cake frosted or unfrosted is not a good idea. I have made 100's of cakes but, when I made my daughters wedding cake that was the only time(and I don't know why) I put the layers in the frig. After I frosted and decorated them I went to bed.
Early the day of the wedding we were to set-up the cake at the hotel. Well, on 2 of the cakes the frosting slid off. Not having too much time to work I had to repair them at the hotel. It worked out just fine thanks to my husband's help. But, you want to make sure you aren't going to have trouble the day of the best day in your daughters life. You still have to function as the mother of the bride. I've been there!
Good luck!!!

I also live in very humid Houston, Texas. I ALWAYS refrigerate my wedding cakes since I use butter in my frosting. I have not had issues with the icing falling off the cake. I find that the refrigeration is especially good for delivering a stacked cake...it kind helps it settle together...if that makes sense.

Since you are using a stand...it will be much easier to transport your cakes in the boxes. If you will be decorating your cakes on Wed...I would keep them in the refrigerator until the wedding.

After I had a problem with icing sliding off my cakes. I talked to several cake experts in Chicago and New York City. They ALL said that refridgerating your cakes for long periods of time to get too cold can cause a problem. When you remove the cakes from the frig, humiditiy will form btween the cake and the frosting causing the icing to slide as it warms to room temperature. Anyone that hasn't had a problem with this was really lucky!! I think I would raher not take a chance!

I think you did a fantastic job! I didn't even realize those bands were royal icing. Could you get the same effect with mmf (I ask as I'm not sure!) Was just thinking that MMF might be easier to work with but not sure it would look as good.

Good idea you were given on maybe draping the fruit over the sides if needed to hide the edges of the bands.

If you don't mind changing the look slightly at the bottom of the layers, I have an idea for you . . .

You can make the bands slightly shorter than you need, line them up at the top edge of the cake so that part looks perfect, then put your bottom border on to cover the fact that they don't go all the way to the cake board at the bottom.

I like the look now with the border just between the bands, but it might be easier to get the "perfect" top if the bottom is designed to hide the lower ends of the bands.

Maybe I do not have issues since I do not keep my refrigerator too cold. I usually only refrigerate overnight anyway.

Since you're working on a trial run, try squaring up the royal icing bands with a microplane. You should be able to get one in just about any high-end cooking store. Or maybe even in the hardware store, as that's where they were first used. You might break one or two, but if it works, it would give you a super clean edge.

That is a great idea about making the bands shorter and then piping a border all around the bottom, yesssss! I think thats what I'll do. I'm sorry I don't know what MMF is. We live in Southern Alberta, its pretty darn dry here, but today we went over to the neighbors to help them make sausage and I took the bigger cake, put it in a tupperware container and I couldn't beleive after a couple of hours how moist it had become, I have the little one in the frig already, its just loosely covered with plastic wrap....not airtight. So tomorrow, I will take it out of the frig at about 11:00 and see what it does. Thanks again, everyone!

Hi there...beautiful cake!!!

MMF is Marshmallow fondant....there is a how-to here in the recipe section for that...but you can buy store bought fondant (not Wilton...it tastes horrible) if you don't feel like making it.

You roll it out and cut strips of it to the size you want....a pizza cutter and a ruler should do the trick...slightly dampen the pieces and add the glitter and let them dry....if you're in a dry area, it shouldn't take more than a day or 2 before you can use them.

If you still wanted to use royal icing, use your printer, or a ruler to print out a sheet of identical strips of the size you need and slip it under a sheet of parchment paper and pipe the royal right on there...

I just want to tell you that I don't think you need the little rosettes in between the strips on the bottom. It's just my opinion, but the cake is very lovely as it is with out them. Less is more sometimes.....but, again, it is a lovely cake, with or without them....


have fun and congrats for your DD!

I just wanted to add that the photos of your frosty grounds is AMAZING!!!

Thanks for the kind comments! It is really pretty when we get the hoarfrost....I love it.