Help! Cake Boards Sliding While Icing Cakes
Decorating By krys121 Updated 1 Feb 2016 , 10:42am by Rohini
I know this sounds like a mundane question, but I could ABSOLUTELY use some help on this from you wonderful ladies. :)
Like many people, I put my cakes on a cake board trimmed to the exact size for frosting. The cake + cake board are also put on a larger board (so my turntable doesn't get frosting all over it and so I can easily transfer it to another layer if it is part of a tiered cake). This means a 6-inch cake would have a 6-inch board underneath and then those together would be put on a larger (8 or 9 inch board). Then, I frost my cake.
I never had problems with this method before. However, the place I purchase my cake boards from stopped selling regular cake boards; now they only sell greaseproof ones. A greaseproof board on top of another greaseproof board makes the two boards slide around so much that I can't get a smooth coat of frosting. (A silly problem that's caused me many wrinkles!) :)
I've always used a little bit of frosting between the boards to help adhere them, but the problem remains. I've heard of people melting chocolate between the boards, but that seems like it would add way too much time and hassle to my process. Does anyone else have any advice? Or does anyone else use a somewhat different process? This is driving me nuts and I just can't figure out how to remedy the problem.
Any advice or help is appreciated immensely!
I use a non-slip mat between my boards, especially if I'm going to be moving the cake back and forth from the fridge a lot and don't have a ton of space. I have little circles (I think they were meant for opening jars), but it's basically this material: http://www.containerstore.com/s/kitchen/kitchen-drawer-organizers/white-bulk-grip-premium-liner/12d?productId=10034460&green=226D67F2-05A5-56D6-BC17-54A4AA127156.
Same here, I cut a square of appropriate size out of a rubber mesh shelf liner, and put that between anything I don't want to slip. I've also been known to use it under cakes in the trunk of my hatchback, to keep them from sliding around in the trunk. Or I also have some circles of a slightly thicker version of the same thing, sold at the dollar store for opening jars.
Sometimes a damp paper towel works, too. We would put one under our cutting boards in culinary school to keep them from slithering around.
I can't understand why you use two boards. The cake should be sitting on a board that's bigger than the cake. That's where the icing goes. (In the space between the edge of the cake and the edge of the board.) You can use the edge of the board to line up the bench scraper or whatever you use to smooth out the icing.
Leah - I use two boards primarily because that was the way I learned. :) But also, it makes it easy to transfer the cake from one place to another when it is on a larger board. I'm always eager to learn "smarter" ways of doing things though. The idea of putting the icing in the space between the edge of the cake and the edge of the board certainly makes sense. But if the icing on the board goes all the way to the edge, how to you move the cake easily? It seems like it would be difficult to move the cake since there's no excess room. With the cake on a larger board, I can just pick up the larger board (without worrying about touching the icing) and put the crumb coated cake in the refrigerator (or move a smaller tier to a larger one). How do you move your cakes with the icing going all the way to the edge?
I love the rubber shelf liner - its super cheap - you can purchase a roll from the Dollar Store or Walmart for nothing and then cut off the size piece you need - I will sometimes put a square of it under the cake board in the box if my box is bigger and I don't want the cake sliding.
So sorry for the empty posts. My intention was to add a post to another thread and when I saw I had by mistake added it to this thread, I deleted the contents. I did not dare to delete my posts, because the last time I tried doing that the entire thread was deleted!!! Apparently, there's a bug that does this. I have sent an email to admin regarding it. So sorry about the confusion :)
By the way I too use a non-slip mat between my cake boards when frosting cakes :)
Cheers!
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