Hello all. I am new to cake making and I am doing my first official cake on friday for my sons birthday. i wanted to know how far in advance can i bake the cake rounds? Can I bake them this weekend and cover ( will they last for a week without becoming hard or stale) or can I freeze them then take them out the day before the party to ice and put fondant on? or should i just bake the cake a day or two before then put the fondant on the night before. Im just trying to get as much stuff done as possible for the party ahead of time so im not driving my self crazy last minute.

Let me know what the best option would be. Thanks

Hi, I normaly bake my cakes two days a head. For Friday, bake on wednesday morning. when they are cooled down, torte and fill in the night and let them settle overnight. Thursday morning, crumbcoat, cover and decorate. If there are anykind of models/animals going on the cake, you can make them this weekend. So it would save some time for you.

HTH.

I bake my cakes ahead of time. I wrap with saran wrap (well), then foil and freeze. I pull them out the day before to let them defrost. I generally keep them in the saran wrap while they defrost.

When I first started baking, I did the cakes the night before and then decorated the next night, however since I do this on the side (mainly for family and friends) I found that I was exhausted by the end of it. This way is just easier for me.

I would not bake them and let them set for the week. Like bashini stated, she bakes and then curmbcoats the cake and it will hold for a couple days, but I would not go any more than that.

Happy Baking!

I always bake the week before, wrap them up in saran wrap, then into a gallon freezer bag, suck out the air with a straw, and freeze. I think it would be different if I were baking cakes to sell. But I am just a hobby baker, and usually seem to be baking for some event at my house. I can't clean my house more than a day ahead (because my kids are like tornados), but I can bake ahead. I have never had a problem with cake not tasting fresh, and get many compliments on how moist they are. I also will color my fondant and make and color my buttercream on maybe Wednesday for a Saturday party. It really makes the decorating go faster for me to have all that done ahead. And, (this is just extra) I usually try to think of other foods to serve that actually taste better when made or at least prepped a day or two ahead. Soups, salsas, dips, etc. For me there is just no possible way I could bake and decorate, cook the other food I am serving and clean my house if I didn't start early. If you are making anything that needs to dry hard or stand up (a big #1) it is a good idea to make an extra just in case it breaks. Good luck.

thanks for all the tips. when you defrsot the cake do you leave it out to defrost on the counter or let it defrost in the fridge? I dont want the cake to be soggy if I defrost it wrong

I leave my cake wrapped and place on a cooling rack on the counter.