I baked a cake last night and turned it over to cool without leveling the top figuring I'd do that once it has cooled. WRONG! After 30 minutes, went to check on it and it cracked into three pieces!

Can it still be used as a bottom layer? I have to draw a design on top, so I am scared of doing that and having the cake fall apart. Help!

Yup, the dome pushes on the bottom till it cracks right open. As for using for a bottom layer...maybe not such a good idea if there are more than just the one tier. If it's just a two layer cake then you could possibly use icing to join the broken pieces together and then put the whole layer on top. I, personally, would re-bake just to be safe.

Thank you for the response. That's what I was afraid of too...my problem is time. I work during the day, so I have to bake and frost and decorate tonight. The ceremony is at 0830... Lesson learned.