Need Help Making a Birthday Cake

E.,
After the cake is baked try freezing it. It makes it easier to cut without crumbling as much. Make sure the knife is very sharp as that will help also. I have tried Fondent and it works but you need a lot of it and it drys out fast if you don't keep it moist. Just a few things I have picked up over the years.
Good Luck,
C. b

1 mom found this helpful

Make the cake the day before you are planning to decorate it, let it cool then place it in the freezer. That way when you cut it it won't fall apart, then wait about a half hour to decoreate it, I learned this trick from a friend who worked in the baking industry, this is what the pro's do! Good Luck!

1 mom found this helpful

Freeze the cake first and that will reduce the crumbs. Slice with a long serreted bread knife and that helps too.

Pound cake sticks together better than regular cake. Don't worry about it, though...just give it your best shot! You could always practice just making the cake part of the cake without decoration it to get a better feel for what you are doing. Have fun with it!

How about pre-made ladyfingers that people use for tiramusu
or however one spells that...Layering them on top of a rectangular shape. I'd recomend light frosting like whip topping, it's not so heavy and sweet....
Happy birthday for your son and family....

Let the cake cool completely before you slice it and move it, if it is still warm, it will fall apart!

From my chef ex-husband (and my own experience):

Freeze the cake pieces before you cut them into the pieces and for assembly. It will hold together and you'll get smooth, clean cuts.

ALWAYS frost a cake frozen, you'll get much smoother and even coverage. If you've got a cake that seems prone to shedding crumbs, it's a good idea to brush the frozen cake with a simple syrup (a sugar and water mixture) wash before frosting. It keeps the surface of the cake kind of glued together and also keeps the cake very moist.

Good luck!

M.

I have done "fancy" cakes for most of my children's birthdays; the best advice I can give you is to freeze the cakes before you cut them, and put a layer of frosting on while they are still frozen, after they thaw a little, then use the decorative frosting (colored) for the xylophone. I would also suggest using a bread pan, or two, if you want a higher cake, so you only have to slice it across the top and not have crumbs all around the sides as well. Good luck!

You need to use a dense cake that is good for carving. I have two recipes that are good dense cake recipes or you could just use a pound cake recipe. Both my recipes are doctored cake mix recipes and work great. I have carved several cakes with them successfully. (You can check out my cake blog to see some pictures www.toristastytreats.blogspot.com). Also if there are going to be a lot of layers you will need to make sure you dowel them and give them enough support. Another website that might be helpful to you is www.cakecentral.com. They have forums and cake galleries that are wonderful. Good luck. Feel free to contact me if you have more questions.

E.
I make cakes all the time and the easiest way to cut the cake the way you want it is to bake it let it cool and then stick it in the freezer. It is also a lot easier to frost when it has been in the freezer as well. My daughter just turned one and I made a Giraffe cake for her, but I cut it and placed things where I wanted them and then I put it in the freezer. Either way works great.

After you bake your cake, cool it completely, and then wrap it up in saran wrap and put it in the freezer. You can do this several days in advance if you wish because you can keep cake in the freezer for a couple of weeks. After the cake is frozen and you are ready to assemble or stack your cake, take it out of the freezer and let it sit on the counter until it's slightly thawed (just enough that it's not hard as a rock, but still firm enough to cut through without it falling apart). This will help to prevent huge pieces of cake from breaking off. Good luck!

A few easy tips - 1st do not use a Betty Crocker cake mix - they do tend to be more crumbly. I have best luck with Pillbury. Next make sure you grease & FLOUR the pans well. Make sure the cake is totally cool before trying to cut in fact I actually put mine in the freezer for a few hours to help "firm" it up enough to cut easily - but do not totally freeze it. You can use toothpicks inserted into the cake as guides to help you cut it straight.
Next make a thin icing to coat the cut sides of the cake and let it dry before trying to decorate the rest - this will practically eliminate the crumbs in the icing & decorations. And last HAVE FUN! I always make my kids birthday cakes because they love picking out the design, the flavor and everything - they do not always turn out the way I expected, one year I made a pirate ship - I stayed up till 2 oclock in the morning finishing it , the next morning I got up and it looked like the pirates had been in a war - the cake had totally fallen apart because the icing was too heavy! But we always have fun and we are building memories together -- I'm sure your son will love it no matter how it looks!

Are you going to use a cake pan? IF so just fill the cake pan 3/4 full and don't double up, also if you make sure that it is not hot, or even really warm it would work to put the double layer, just be VERY carefully. Put the cut portion on bottom when you put the top layer on. This will help when icing. Good luck.

Hi,
If you freeze the pieces seperetly after you cut them then they will be easier to assemble and frost! GOOD LUCK!

After it cools, put it in the fridge or freezer for a little while. I usually leave it in there until I finish cleaning up my baking mess and get my frosting made. When you do cut it. Make sure you use a sawing motion. Good Luck. Your family is going to love it.

Hello
One way to do this and save a lot of mess is to bake the cake, cut it, then freeze it. Once it is frozen you can pull the two halves apart and frost them without the crumbs getting in the frosting. Good luck

Hi--I have made quite a few cakes for my kids. What has worked for me to hinder the crumbling is to freeze the cake. Then I put it together however it needs to be, then frost it and decorate it. By the time I am done decorating the cake, it has had time to defrost and is ready to eat. Also, I'm not sure what type of cake pan you are using, but if you put a layer of wax paper in the bottom of the pan, it doesn't stick and pops right out after cooling a bit. Sounds fun--good luck!!

Just freeze the cake after you've cooled it and removed it from the pan. It will be a breeze to cut and won't fall apart. (Cute cake, by the way.)

The best way to work with cakes is to freeze them. Then when you cut and frost the cake there are no crumbs.

I've been decorating cakes for over 25 yrs. now, what specific questions do you have?

freeze it first. Just put it in the freezer for a couple hours (at least 2) then it will cut easily and stay together.

First of all, I'd recommend Betty Crocker cake mixes. They work best at our altitude. Add an additional egg and a small instant pudding mix to the ingredients the mix already calls for. This will create a sturdy but moist cake. I'd also really recommend buying some of the Bake Even strips that are available in the cake decorating aisle at Hobby Lobby or Michael's. You soak them in water and then wrap them around the pan so that the cake rises evenly and you won't have that hump in the middle. The cake will take a little longer to bake using this method but it will be pretty level when it comes out of the oven. Let it cool in the pan, then run a thin spatula around the edges and invert onto a cooling rack. Let cool for about half an hour then wrap in plastic wrap and freeze. This will make for a more moist cake.

Once frozen you can let it thaw slightly, and then carve into the shape you need. Brush off the loose crumbs, lightly coat with thin icing and then stick back in the freezer to firm up. Always use a thin icing for icing your cakes. If the icing is too stiff, it will pull the cake apart. When the icing is firmed up, you can go over it again with another coat of thin icing and then decorate. I'd recommend using fondant for the xylophone details.

Good luck!
L.

Maybe make a white icing, with colored sprinkles (like for sugar cookies), covering each bar in differnt colors (its been awhile since Ive seen one! sorry), or make sugar rectanglar bar cookies then color them, and sit on top? Hope this helps!

I know that you have received a lot of good information, but I just discovered a great way to make sturdy cake. When you make a white cake mix (yes I said it "MIX" For mom's it is the only way!) it usually calls for 2 egg whites. Use 1 to 2 additional egg whites and beat them good before you add the other ingredients. Also melt 1/2 c. white chocolate (per mix) and stir into the batter. It makes a wonderful, moist cake that you can carve without problems.

If you don't want to use white cake, use pound cake, it works great!!

I am a cake decorator and suggest after you bake your cake that you put it in the freezer and let it slightly freeze, then cut it, it won't crumble on you.
Don't let it get solid or it will be harder to cut.

Every cake I bake, I freeze the night before. It keeps the cake from crumbling and the cake remains remarkably moist! I pull the cakes out of the freezer and immediately start trimming and decorating the cake. By the time the party starts it is no longer frozen. Good luck!!!
P.S. I have used any and every cake recipe with this method and it comes out the same each time!

I don't know what the cake looks like, but if you have to cut a cake and frost the cut edge, it's best to freeze the cake first. It keeps the crumbs down and keeps it stiff so it won't break.
I did that for my son's cake and it worked great. But mine was very complicated because I cut three round layers (one chocolate, two white) into three concentric circles and swapped them around(it makes a checkerboard inside). I did it because I own a checkerboard cake pan set, but we're in the middle of moving and it's in a box somewhere. By the way, I don't suggest doing it the way I did, because the pieces fall apart into squares when you cut the cake! You really need to glue cut pieces together with frosting.

The best thing to do to avoid the crumbs before decorating is to place it in the freezer or fridge for a bit an let it cool really well.

My mom makes cakes professionally and she has passed on a few of her tricks of the trade to me. After the cake is completely cool, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and stick it in your freezer. Once it is frozen, it will be easier to cut and decorate. I hope this helps!!

Definately freeze the cake before cutting and decoatinng it. use a cake that is moist it makes it easier and freezes better than drier cakes. Put back into the freezer before icing it as well to keep the crumbs attached to the cake. Once frozen it usully ices well with any frosting, if can try Fonduant go for it. Much easier than trying to spread icing with kids running underfoot.
Have fun :-)

THis is just something quick you can do. When you make up the cake mix, add 1/4 to a 1/2 cup more flour to the mix. IT won't affect the taste, but it will make it much sturdier. This tip is from a professional cake decorator. Good luck!

When you're cutting and layering cake, muber one tip is they MUST be completely and totally cooled. I would even back the cakes the night before and work them them the next day. Also, when frosting between layers or on cut cake surfaces, overload on the frosting. You ALWAYS want to start with too much and move it around and remove it as you go. If you have too little frosting it will tear the cake apart. You can find other great tips from from Wilton Cake Decorating... google them. Good luck! Cakes are so fun!

I just had my daughters 1st birthday and the cake turned out wonderful! I did not make it from scratch. I used the cake mix called fun fetti. It has pudding in the mix so it is much more moist than others. The more moist it is the easier it will be to cut and not crumble. You may want to try that. Good Luck! Let me know how it turns out!

J.

Make sure that you cool the cake completely before you put the layer on top. You can even put it in the freezer. I always arrange the cake the way I want it and then put it back in the freezer for several hours before I frost it. If you don't freeze it, it tends to be crumbly during frosting. The cake still tastes great! I hope this helps, good luck!

Hi freeze the cake before you cut it and make sure it is frozen hard when you frost it and the crumbs will stay stuck on the cake. dip your knife in water while you frost it it will keep the frosting sliding on smooth. L.

In order to cut the top layer easily, you may try freezing it first. It will be nice and firm, then you can place it where you need it, give it a thin crumb coat with thinned down icing, then decorate. It shouldn't harm the icing as it thaws, either. How fun!

I think freezing the cake first would help with the crumbs. It is definitely easier to frost a frozen cake. The crumbs don't drag into the frosting that way. Just decorate the frozen cake as you would one cooled from the oven.

Does it have to be two layers?? You might consider making the cake as one long rectangle with just one layer, then you won't have to deal with the crumbling cake issue.

I have done my daughters 2 birthday cakes in the layered style. The first one was blocks. Just make sure that the cake is COMPLETELY cooled before doing anything with it. I went through 3 cakes befor I learned this lesson. To adhere the layers, a layer of frosting works really well, then I do what is called a crumb layer of frosting and put the cake in the fridge (usually over night) to let the layer harden. This works wonders when it comes to doing the regular frosting. I have a really great recipe for butter cream frosting that works really well for decorating because you can tint it any color you want and it hardens in the fridge really well for the crumb layer. If you are interested in it, please let me know. I would be happy to dig it out. It is a super easy recipe that takes just a few minutes to whip up!
Good luck with your cake! And make sure to give yourself PLENTY of time to create it.

hey, I make all my kids cakes for their birthdays and love it. One thing I do is freeze the cake. After the cake comes out of the oven and I take it out of the pan; I let it cool for a moment. Then I cut it how I want it and immediatly put it in the freezer. Do not cover it, this will make your cake soggy. You can leave a cake in the freezer for up to 6 months and it will taste exactly the same! Anyway this helps it from crumbling when working with it and makes frosting so much easier. Frost it before it unthaws and then cake will not crumble. It only takes a few hours for the cake to unthaw. Good luck on your cake!

Hi E.

I always froze the cakes. Once frozen, I would ice them before they would thaw and then put the pan lid on and stick them in the fridge for defrosting.

hello,
my best suggestion to you is, make the bottom layer with rice crispies.... then stack the cake on the next level. Wedding cakes are made this way all the time, it tastes great too.
my mother in law makes these stacked cakes all the time. You can also frost the rice crispys just like a cake.... an never have crumbs in the frosting-- yeah. Hope this helps.
T. from Moab , mother of 2, and 2 step kids . owner of Lily Pad learning center child care.