A friend is wanting me to make mini tiered cakes for an upcoming baby shower. I've seen the mini tiered cake pans, but was wondering if it would be just as easy to make a sheet pan and use round cookie cutters to make the tiers.
I'll be covering them in fondant. Anyone done these mini cakes before and can steer me in the right direction?
Thanks!

Email Amy from Cupcake Envy. (The queen of cakelets.) She is very helpful. Good luck.

I purchased one of the "mini tier" pans. It had two tiers to it. I had a lot of trouble getting the cakes not to stick to it. I slathered in with CK pan grease (which always works for me) and still had trouble. I guess there must be a secret out there that I don't know about. If you do find out let us know. And good luck.
Julisa

Thanks, y'all! I think I'm going to try using cookie cutters to cut the tiers out of sheet cake, and then cover each in fondant before stacking. HOPEFULLY this will work. My concern with the pans is that I'll spend all that money on them, only to have them stick.
I'll let you know how it all goes! I LOVE it when someone gives me an excuse to try something I've never done before.

I'm actually making video tutorials for mini tiered cakes today. I'm breaking while they upload and the camera recharges. In these videos, I'm using sheet cake and round cutters. I make them with individual pans as well (not in the video...I am trying to show that they can be done without having to buy specialty pans.

I used the multi-tier cake pan (6 cell, all-in-one). I didn't like making them using it at all. The pan worked great. It was the difficulty icing it with buttercream that I didn't like.

If you're interested, I'll post a link when all are done. College baseball playoffs are on. So, sound editing will be required (dh flips between that and military channel...)

I just wanted to add that these were done with sheet cakes and round cutters... http://cakecentral.com/gallery/1560390

Awesome! Let me know when the videos up. That was another concern of mine with the pan--trying to ice them already stacked like that. I think I'm scarred from my last 4-inch smash cake that was such a pain to ice because it was so small. (I should have frozen it and I didn't!)
Those mini cakes are PRECIOUS!

I have the Chicago multi tiered pan. At first I had trouble with getting the cake out but I've gotten the hang of it and they practically fall out after I level them. I spray the heck out of them with non stick spray. I LOVE it. I have some pics of them in my photos. They are 3 tiered and I have started to cut them at each tier scoop out a bit of the cake and fill it with icing or some other filling and put the piece back on. So it won't be just cake. They are just so cute and the perfect gift. Everyone loves it.

That's a great idea to fill them with icing! I saw your pictures--Adorable! DO you cover them with fondant when they're all stacked together? Or separately?

Cakelynsfinest, what if you cored them from the bottom (possibly while they still in the pan?) and filled them that way? They're perfect for poured fondant...I just wound up frustrated icing them with buttercream.

I love the black/white/purple one!

Thanks! Those polka dots took FOREVER! But I was happy with the outcome. So, I fill them and cover with fondant when it's all stacked together. I think it's a cleaner look this way. Although you did give me an idea to alternate colors. Can't wait to try. I've never tried poured fondant. I don't really have a problem icing them and covering with fondant. I've though about coring from the bottom. I've filled cupcakes this way. I just thought it'll look cleaner if you scoop and fill with each tier when you cut into it. If you core it and fill from the bottom wouldn't it be just a glob (I'm sure there's a better word for it!) of icing in the middle.

No more of a glob than separating each level and filling. Maybe I'm thinking of it a different way?

Yeah, glob is the wrong word. When I did it with cupcakes, I took out a piece of the bottom, "gutted" it out a bit, filled it and put the bottom piece back on to seal it. I initially thought of doing it this way with the mini cakes but then had the idea of filling each tier and kind of stuck with.

How big would one of these mini cakes be? One per person type thing? Such a cute idea. I can imagine they take a long time to decorate all those little ones. For a smaller gathering i'd love to give them a shot.

I always say they feed 2 per cake.

First set, filling and crumbcoating, has been edited and uploaded. It is in 3 parts. There is a lot of blah blah going on in these (won't in the next ones though...they'll either be without sound or with music background due to the bb playoffs and military channel playing in the background.) No knockin' my voice...there is a mute button if it gets too annoying.
The measurements of these are 4", 3", 2". I apply these same techniques to all the minis I make, regardless of size or height of the 'tiers'.

Part 1

just click on the next ones from there if you care to continue viewing.

I found a video tutorial...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3TH579T6tyU&feature=player_embedded#at=283

Part one of the squares is up.