Italian Merinque/cream Cheese Xpert Advice Needed!
Decorating By tal Updated 3 Jul 2012 , 12:00pm by tal
CC in need of answer quickly!
Making wedding cake to be delivered on Sat July 14th. Just happens to be my nephew's wedding so I have to attend and my girls are also in the wedding. The day will be absolutely crazy!
The cake is a 4 tiered/white velvet cake/Italian meringue filling/covered in American BC and then covered in Fondx. The top tier is carrot with Italian Meringue Cream cheese filling/covered in Fondx.
Wedding begins at 4 PM. Guests will be arriving at reception by 5 PM. Cake cutting will be approximately 6/630is PM.
My plan, b/c of my busy schedule, was to set up the cake by 12 Noon. BUT can I let this cake sit out for that length of time with this type of filling?
I am contacting the caterer to see if they have a walk in cooler, but really need to think about Plan B if they don't.
Pleaseeeeeeeee someone help with this one soon!
Thanks so much CC - love you all!
Lisa 
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The cake is a 4 tiered/white velvet cake/Italian meringue filling/covered in American BC and then covered in Fondx. The top tier is carrot with Italian Meringue Cream cheese filling/covered in Fondx.
Wedding begins at 4 PM. Guests will be arriving at reception by 5 PM. Cake cutting will be approximately 6/630is PM.
My plan, b/c of my busy schedule, was to set up the cake by 12 Noon.
A meringue of any type is NOT SUITABLE FOR FILLING A TIERED CAKE. Not unless you stabilize it with gelatin. But gelatin will not hold for the time your plan states.
Italian and Swiss and American meringues as such (I'm not talking about meringue buttercream) are suitable for DESSERTS not TIERED CAKES.
Desserts are stored cold and served by wait staff who know how to maintain the correct serving temperature and holding requirements. They include shortcakes, cheesecakes, trifles, Bavarian creams, fruit salads, and many other kinds of perishable goods. They include meringue toppings that must be precooked or baked (including at the last minute before serving baked Alaska).
There are far too many posts on Cake Central from bakers who don't know the difference and who agree to include goods such as sliced bananas in strawberry preserves to fill a cake...which they need to have sitting on a counter for the three days that it will take them to decorate. It's not just the bananas turning brown, it's about the mess that will result from the banana juice diluting the preserves into a runny consistency when it's sitting inside cake layers that may even be stacked...
Please learn what is suitable for the timeline/temperature you are required to satisfy BEFORE you agree to a cake contract. YOU are the professional who should know what happens when you pile 30 pounds of weight onto layers of fluffy meringue between cakes...and YOU are the one who needs to educate your customers about what food can be required to do. YOU are required to provide something that is not only made to the appearance ordered, but which is also food safe and stable enough to look like something edible on the plate.
Please educate me on what I SHOULD substitute in place of the IMBC which is what my bride and groom insisted upon and then I'll educate YOU on etiquette when replying to such posts.
Love your answer. My daughter was married in April and we had 3 flavors, Almond WASC with almond IMBC filling, Orange WASC with grand marnier IMBC filling and chocolate cake with chocolate flavored IMBC. All covered in fondant. The cake was set up at noon, ceremony wasn't till 4:00 and cake cutting was done at 7:00 and set out to serve at 10:00 with tea and coffee. Everybody enjoyed the cake, and we took home leftovers and ate them for the next 3 days. (just my experience of course) 
Thank you for sharing your experience. Our ceremony sounds almost identical time wise. I am feeling much better about it at this point esp in reading so much more regarding spoilage, foodborne illness, using pasturized egg whites, cooking it to the hard ball stage, etc., all of which I do.
My first wedding cake consisted of one layer filled with IMBC and I had so many requests for the recipe afterward (no one became ill) AND the cake stayed for hours without falling apart, messy cutting or weight issues!
This particular ceremony coming up is a little different in that the cake will sit out for a longer period of time which is why I posted.
Thanks again!
I think BakingIrene misunderstood you when you said "Italian Meringue Cream cheese filling". I'm sure you meant cream cheese IMBC, correct?
The issue you can run into with CCIMBC is that it can deflate, get a strange spongy texture, get goopy, or get a strange skin on it if left out too long. I don't offer it in my large tiered cakes because I don't trust it, and the last thing I need is a layer to slightly deflate 1/8" and make the cake fall over, buldge, or just look janky. But I know plenty of bakers that do use it. Just make sure you dam it like you would a curd or jam.
It will be fine left out the length of time you need.
What is the difference between what you posted? IMBC or CCIM? My recipe is simply the hot sugar syrup temp to 245, poured into beaten pasturized egg whites (little sugar added slowly for stability) - beat til cooled - 1.5/2lbs softened butter. Once it comes together, I add the flavoring, such as vanilla and about 8oz cream cheese.....
Could you explain what other recipe or process she may be talking about? Just curious... 
Thank you!
tal, you wrote, "Italian meringue filling". This is one of the three methods referring to meringues, Italian, French, and Swiss. It is not stable as a filling for very long. I left a Swiss meringue out for about an hour and it deflated. But I found it did whip right back up. It was the meringue on top of a lemon meringue pie.
What you must have been referring to was Italian meringue buttercream, which is a completely different product.
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