Need tips on baking a layer cake

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GotGarlic

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Hi, all. So. I have never made a layer cake in my life, but I have entered a contest where the top finisher's cake will be entered in the State Fair of Virginia baking competition :) I'm entering the "Chocolate-iced layer cake - white or yellow batter" category and I've decided to make Mexican chocolate frosting and a three-layer yellow cake recipe from Paula Deen (buttah!).

I'd love any tips and tricks for making a beautiful, delicious cake. It needs to be on a non-returnable plate - I'm thinking of getting something from the Dollar Store. Entries are due by 1 p.m. on the day of judging; I was thinking I'd make the cake the day before and refrigerate it, then take it out of the fridge in the morning, make the frosting and ice it, and it should be room temp by judging time. Does this sound reasonable?

Ideas for decorating it would be great. The frosting recipe I'm using calls for candied red serrano peppers and cinnamon sticks. I'm not sure about the cinnamon sticks - kind of expensive for a garnish that will be thrown away. I might have red jalapenos in the garden by August, but don't know for sure.

I'm doing a practice run today to see how it goes.

Thanks :)
 
WalMart carries cardboard cake base blanks for a minimal price.
Use two 1"x2" boards placed on either side of a baked and cool cake layer, to use as a guide to rest a long knife (preferably a bread knife) and trim the domed top of the layer into a flat disk.
 
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Could you maybe do chocolate curls instead of the cinnamon sticks? The Pioneer Woman did a cake for her husband's B-day on a show recently where she melted the chocolate, poured it out on the bottom (upside down) of a sheet cake/jelly roll pan, then used a thin spatula to make the curls. The Food Network channel probably has it on video on their site to get her technique. Looked pretty easy but you might want to practice, you can always remelt the chocolate and try, try again. You could even use Mexican chocolate, which has a slight cinnamon flavor, or just simply add some cinnamon to the melted chocolate. A Latin market will carry the chocolate and may also carry the Badia line of spices, which are significantly cheaper than traditional American brands, and they have packages with 3-4 sticks of cinnamon in them.

I always cover the cardboard cake bases Selkie mentioned with aluminum foil and tape it to the bottom so you don't get a greasy looking spot and/or have just plain white cardboard showing. Smear a bit of frosting on the foil before you place the bottom layer on and it won't slide off.

What kind of finish are you looking for on the icing, smooth, swirled, ?? Regardless, I would crumb coat ice it the evening before and let it sit in fridge uncovered to let it crust so it will hold onto the crumbs. Wilton.com will have a lot of ideas on frosting and explanation about crumb coat icing. http://www.wilton.com/blog/index.php/start-with-a-crumb-coat-for-a-smooth-cake-finish/
 
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I saw an episode of Barefoot Contessa once where Ina was frosting a layer cake - she cut up 4 or 5 pieces of parchment paper and put them around the outside edges of her cake stand.
She put the unfrosted layers on top of the parchment, frosted her cake, then pulled the parchment out from under it.. Nice clean frosting edge and none on her plate.

Good luck GG, it sounds delicious!
 
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Thanks, Selkie and medtran! I found the Pioneer Woman page: How To…Make Chocolate Curls | The Pioneer Woman Cooks | Ree Drummond Now that you mention it, I remember that episode. Great idea. And I just watched a couple of videos on the Wilton site re: torting and crumb coating.

re: the finish, something that's easy and forgiving :LOL: I think a swirl would be easier than trying to make it perfectly smooth, yes?
 
This is all very interesting GG. I only made one layer cake in my life for my 20 year old husband. lol
Don't want to mention how many years ago that was. I sure hope yours turns out better than mine.
 
...re: the finish, something that's easy and forgiving :LOL: I think a swirl would be easier than trying to make it perfectly smooth, yes?


SO is decorating challenged. I saw a tip on Good Eats one time and she loved it. most of her cakes are now done this way.

Frost the cake reasonably smooth. Then take a table knife and touch the tip to the frosting and pull away. You get a small peak with each tap. Continue tapping all over the cake. Here's the only picture I have of that effect.
 

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SO is decorating challenged. I saw a tip on Good Eats one time and she loved it. most of her cakes are now done this way.

Frost the cake reasonably smooth. Then take a table knife and touch the tip to the frosting and pull away. You get a small peak with each tap. Continue tapping all over the cake. Here's the only picture I have of that effect.

Ooh, I like that, Andy! Thanks!
 
GG, now you're in my world! I have several tips to offer - some may seem overly fussy, but take what you want and leave the rest.

* Use straight-sided pans. Pans that nest into one another are not straight-sided, and will create an uneven side to your finished cake, which you'll have to fill in with frosting. It can be done. but it's never perfect, and it show up when you cut the cake.

* 3 layers is always more impressive looking than 2. Don't increase the batter, just divide it into 3 pans instead of 2.

* Make the layers all the same size. Weigh your empty mixing bowl. Once the batter is made, weigh the full bowl. Subtract the 2 numbers and divide by the number of layers. Set each pan on the scale and pour in that much batter. Even layers look stunning when you cut into it.

* Insulate the sides of the pan with magic strips or strips of wet towels. By wrapping the pan in insulation, you prevent the sides from setting before the entire cake has risen. This will ensure a level top. Cutting a dome off with a knife after baking never works nicely, and you won't get 3 even layers. Insulate!

* Use 2 different sizes of cake cardboards (available at Michael's, Walmart, kitchen shops, etc). One should be the size of the cake itself. Use this on to work on while you are building, filling & frosting. No need for the wax paper strip trick, which sometimes creates its own mess. When you're done, set the finished cake/cardboard on one that is 2 inches larger. This one can be decorated or covered for appearance. Secure it! Now pipe your final row of frosting around the bottom edge.

* When you fill the layers, weigh or measure the filling so that they look even when you cut it.

* It's much easier to make pretty swirls on top of a cake than it is to make the sides look nice. Use that to your advantage. Roll nuts, coconut, candies, chips, cake crumbs, anything appropriate, on the sides of the cake as your primary 'decoration'. Then concentrate on pretty swirls on top. Just make sure the frosting is THICK on top so you can make nice deep swirls.

* The only tip work you should need is a nice border with a star tip around the bottom to hide the first cardboard after you put them together.
 
We used to make chocolate curls using a vegetable peeler and a bar of chocolate. They come out thinner than what Pioneer Woman's did but they looked fine on our cakes.
 
Regarding the cinnamon sticks... I would not put any inedible things on a competition cake. You may be penalised for this but... You could try "making" cinnamon sticks from large white chocolate curls that have been dredged in cinnamon. Note this is just an idea - I've never actually tried this - but it could be a fabulous addition to a cake and a pretty on top.
 
GG, now you're in my world! I have several tips to offer - some may seem overly fussy, but take what you want and leave the rest.

* Insulate the sides of the pan with magic strips or strips of wet towels. By wrapping the pan in insulation, you prevent the sides from setting before the entire cake has risen. This will ensure a level top. Cutting a dome off with a knife after baking never works nicely, and you won't get 3 even layers. Insulate!

Never thought about insulation. Instead of putting wet towels could I
put the cake pan into a bigger pan with water to bake?
 
I have always found frosting a frozen trimmed off dome to be the best way to frost a layer cake.
Once cool and the dome trimmed off, freeze layers until ready to frost.
No crumbs no mess.

Also, an offset frosting knife is a requirement, not a suggestion. Do you have a rotating cake table? To frost and decorate on? Not sure what its called.
Good luck on the competition.
 
Thanks. I have an offset spatula that was part of the knife/tool kit I got when I went to culinary school. I also borrowed a set of cake decorating items from a friend that includes pastry bags, several tips and a couple of smaller spatulas. She's a chef; she also suggested I could make some inexpensive frosting with Crisco to practice with. I don't have a lazy Susan for rotating the cake, but I can pick one up at the dollar store. I do have a cake stand on a pedestal for practicing with.

Before I saw the post from Silversage, DH bought nesting cake pans. I'm on my way out to exchange them for straight-sided pans and to get some Crisco.
 
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Regarding the cinnamon sticks... I would not put any inedible things on a competition cake. You may be penalised for this but... You could try "making" cinnamon sticks from large white chocolate curls that have been dredged in cinnamon. Note this is just an idea - I've never actually tried this - but it could be a fabulous addition to a cake and a pretty on top.

That's a possibility. My chef friend suggested Red Hot candies.
 
We used to make chocolate curls using a vegetable peeler and a bar of chocolate. They come out thinner than what Pioneer Woman's did but they looked fine on our cakes.

That sounds much easier, not to mention that my freezers are pretty full! Maybe a little nest of sorts with chocolate curls and Red Hot candies.
 
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