Another Bad Suggestion From Bridal Mag...
Decorating By Tellis12 Updated 22 Jun 2010 , 10:41am by southernswthrt
I was reading some of the wedding forums and came across a post in which the brides were talking about freezing cakes. Most of us will say that freezing, especially if its only for a few days, doesn't affect the cake at all. One bride posted that she'd been told by a wedding magazine that if you want to make sure your cakes aren't frozen, decide your flavors the week of your wedding so they can''t freeze them! Hello! we don't freeze because we're lazy and don't feel like baking your cake the day of your wedding! We freeze because of time constraints and if we have so much baking to do that if we have to bake your cake on Monday because its so big, then freezing it will keep it fresh, so that it tastes good, for YOU!
Whew, thanks for letting me get that off my chest.
Seriously?
Too bad that wedding planner's name wasn't in there - then there would be an "opportunity to educate"! Obviously the wedding planner is clueless into what goes into making a wedding cake!
Well - I guess we could all be like Duff and never freeze. But of course his cakes start at what, 1000.00. At that price one of two things can happen, hire help to do lots of cakes and they won't have to be frozen or only do 1 a week, again they don't have to be frozen. But - wait brides already don't want to pay the reasonable and customary prices, so that probably won't work.
I don't generally freeze myself (nothing wrong with it, it's just not part of my process), but this is RIDICULOUS. Besides that, I generally don't allow any changes to the contract less than two weeks out from the event unless they want to pay a nice fee to make the changes.
I don't generally freeze myself (nothing wrong with it, it's just not part of my process), but this is RIDICULOUS. Besides that, I generally don't allow any changes to the contract less than two weeks out from the event unless they want to pay a nice fee to make the changes.
I thought it was really ridiculous. Apparently the mag had gone around to all the local bakeries and had reviewed them. But I, too, have a no change clause in my contract.
Also, on a side note, I'd not mind being able to charge like Duff! And then I really wouldn't have to freeze! 
Well actually I try to freeze all of my cakes and tell my clients that I do. I was taught by a lady who had made wedding cakes for years to freeze ahead, wrap carefully and let thaw while wrapped and you will have a very moist cake. This is what I try to do and have never had a complaint about the cake being dry.....
Well actually I try to freeze all of my cakes and tell my clients that I do. I was taught by a lady who had made wedding cakes for years to freeze ahead, wrap carefully and let thaw while wrapped and you will have a very moist cake. This is what I try to do and have never had a complaint about the cake being dry.....
Bluehue.
i freeze every cake i make.... it wouldnt matter if they told me a week before or not, i bake and freeze usually on tuesday or wednesday.... some of the advice people give in regards to weddings is just crazy!
i freeze every cake i make.... it wouldnt matter if they told me a week before or not, i bake and freeze usually on tuesday or wednesday.... some of the advice people give in regards to weddings is just crazy!
Me too, C&D! If she told me the week of, I'd rush to bake it just so I could freeze, even if just overnight. Short term freezing makes cake better.
Maybe we need to email the guy that does the show Good Eats. I think the cakes are moister also by freezing for a few days. Maybe there's a "scientific explanation".
Maybe we need to email the guy that does the show Good Eats. I think the cakes are moister also by freezing for a few days. Maybe there's a "scientific explanation".
great idea
I think they are referring to grocery stores who purchase frozen cakes or people who freeze cakes for an extended period of time. You could call it "flash freezing" to make it sound less offensive to people. You just have to be creative in talking to customers sometimes. They just don't get what goes into this the way we do. And whoever wrote that article was either biased or didn't ask the right questions of the bakeries she interviewed. That is just inconsiderate to wait until the last minute with your flavor choices. No changes on my contracts the last two weeks prior or its a hefty fee for the inconvenience. Common courtesy people!
I think that indeed many people don't realize that the freezing is done in "naked" cake form as a part of the baking/pre-decorating part of the cake making. They think their cake is being completely decorated and stacked and finished in presentation form on Monday then shoved uncovered into the back of a freezer until the wedding on Saturday.
People have no clue on how much work goes into baking/decorating a cake.
What magazine was this?
i freeze every cake i make.... it wouldnt matter if they told me a week before or not, i bake and freeze usually on tuesday or wednesday.... some of the advice people give in regards to weddings is just crazy!
Me too, C&D! If she told me the week of, I'd rush to bake it just so I could freeze, even if just overnight. Short term freezing makes cake better.
AGREED!!!!
I think they are referring to grocery stores who purchase frozen cakes or people who freeze cakes for an extended period of time. You could call it "flash freezing" to make it sound less offensive to people. You just have to be creative in talking to customers sometimes. They just don't get what goes into this the way we do. And whoever wrote that article was either biased or didn't ask the right questions of the bakeries she interviewed. That is just inconsiderate to wait until the last minute with your flavor choices. No changes on my contracts the last two weeks prior or its a hefty fee for the inconvenience. Common courtesy people!
That's really not a great idea. People don't like to be lied to. Flash freezing refers to the process in various industries whereby objects are quickly frozen by subjecting them to cryogenic temperatures like liquid nitrogen. So introducing the term flash freezing in the wrong way would only cause more confusion down the line and possible the gain of a bad reputation. I think educating the public on the method of freezing to arrest the cake from aging and getting closer to it's expiration date would be more helpful to them. Lots of people do this with bread and milk. Some people hate it. If they don't like the freezing then maybe they aren't the customer for you, but I wouldn't miss lead them. Tell them how and why you freeze and be honest about it.
I don't know the magazine. I think it must have been a local bridal magazine, since they were interviewing all the local bakeries. I agree that baking, wrapping tightly, and freezing does tend to make the cake extremely moist but people don't understand that. I think that most people have the dry, grocery store cake in mind when they hear "freezing." And I think most of us will agree that those are no good!
If a bride asks me if I freeze my cakes, I tell the truth. I say yes and explain why and how I feel it makes a good product. But I don't advertise it on my website. I think that would turn people away if they don't understand.
Ok once you bake the cake, cool, tightly wrap it and freeze...Do you let it thaw completely before you decorate it? (I have never frozen a cake.) And is it true that you are not to put a fondant covered cake in the freezer or fridge?
I just want to add that "flash freezing" is also an old-fashioned culinary term where food (ex. fresh blueberries) is laid out individually in one layer in the freezer and frozen. It is usually then collected and stored together. So it would be appropriate to use this phrase with regard to cake.
I think they are referring to grocery stores who purchase frozen cakes or people who freeze cakes for an extended period of time. You could call it "flash freezing" to make it sound less offensive to people. You just have to be creative in talking to customers sometimes. They just don't get what goes into this the way we do. And whoever wrote that article was either biased or didn't ask the right questions of the bakeries she interviewed. That is just inconsiderate to wait until the last minute with your flavor choices. No changes on my contracts the last two weeks prior or its a hefty fee for the inconvenience. Common courtesy people!
That's really not a great idea. People don't like to be lied to. Flash freezing refers to the process in various industries whereby objects are quickly frozen by subjecting them to cryogenic temperatures like liquid nitrogen. So introducing the term flash freezing in the wrong way would only cause more confusion down the line and possible the gain of a bad reputation. I think educating the public on the method of freezing to arrest the cake from aging and getting closer to it's expiration date would be more helpful to them. Lots of people do this with bread and milk. Some people hate it. If they don't like the freezing then maybe they aren't the customer for you, but I wouldn't miss lead them. Tell them how and why you freeze and be honest about it.
I actually don't freeze my cakes. I tried it a couple times, and really didn't notice a difference in moisture, so I've never really seen the benefit in it personally, but I know some people swear by it. I'm just suggesting that if the customer has an issue with the word freezing, maybe someone should get creative so it sounds like there is a difference between freezing (which most people associate with being in the freezer for an extended period of time) and what cakers do, which is merely a technique for the betterment of the final product and not actual storage of the cake. I guess I'm jsut saying that if there is negativity around the word, come up with a word that better describles our process.
Yes knowing your product and process and how to describe it to it's fullest and how to sell it is beneficial. Just don't using words cause they sound nice, when it may not be exactly what is practiced. A better way to phrase things could certainly help, but if you get to "creative" you'll just wind up sounding like a used car salesman.
I had a lady a couple years ago order a cake from my grocery store. She said she had some of our cake at a funeral she went to the week prior and liked it so much she had two pieces. "And I don't even like cake! It was so moist!" she raved. So she's asking a bunch of questions about how long the cake will be fresh for and asked when will it be baked. I said, "Oh we don't bake our cakes here. They get shipped in already baked and frozen. She pauses and blinks.
"But freezing cakes dries them out. . ." I wish I could have hit some magical rewind button and replay her telling me how moist and delicious our frozen cakes were. I just kinda frowned and said, "no, our cakes are very moist."
She ended up ordering anyways.
How about if we hold out on all the details of the wedding from the planner and see how well it turns out
In response to any kind of comment such as "well, my wedding planner said ...... ", the standard classic reply should be, "And how many 6 tier wedding cakes has SHE actually engineered, compared to the 30 years that *I'VE* been doing it? Between the two of us, who do you think knows more about the actual process of making your wedding cake?"
I used the term "engineered" intentionally. It gets the idea across that this process is more than "just slap some cakes together".
If they want to take their planner's advice on how to make a cake, then I guess they have decided their planner is going to make the cake.
I wonder if they wait until the last week to tell their caterer how much food to make...to make sure they aren't using frozen chicken or something...wanna make sure they go out to the barn and kill those chickens FRESH!
Another great line I've used frequently (dang! I really should write this stuff down!)
Them: Do you use frozen or canned vegetables? (or fresh or frozen chicken)?
Me: When none of us grow our own corn or kill our own chicken so what are you looking for?
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