UGH! What's going on under my fondant???
To practice working with fondant, I have been making 6" cakes, icing with American buttercream, then covering with fondant. The last cake I covered looked great at first, then developed sizable air bubbles in less than 24 hours. I finally cut the cake a day later to see what was going on. What I thought were air bubbles was actually the buttercream pulling away from the cake! We've had an incredibly warm summer here, but our AC has been on at all times. I can definitely see that the frosting has been "seeping," and the cake circles (uncovered, as I was just practicing) are completely oily-looking now. I made a 50/50 (high-ratio shortening/unsalted butter) buttercream, which was the subject of my first discussion posted here!. I tweaked a doctored cake mix recipe, and am now wondering if there was too much moisture in the cake. Also, my fondant (Fondarific, pre-colored) looked to be about 1/8" thick; could that have been part of the problem.
I would so appreciate hearing from all you experienced decorators out there. It seems the more I try to get my recipes and techniques nailed down, the more confused I get! But, I refuse to give up!!! Thanks in advance.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by June Kowalczyk on
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You know Katy, because I use to get migraines ALL the time, this is one of the reasons I baked ahead & froze. One less step when your not 100%. And you are also right Katy, the science is, cakes do become more moist when frozen. My Mom did the same Katy....the jam thing, on the fruitcake with marzipan. It was a treat cause my Dad disliked marzipan, so we mostly had our fruit cake plain. Most Canucks & Yankees wouldn't like the jam, they have grown accustomed to BC.
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Permalink Reply by Katy Nott on
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Canuck? Canadian? I also use jam on sponge cakes (kids in the family don't like 'creamy' stuff much and I have to use something to make the fondant stick. Works well. xx
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You have never heard the expression..... Canucks!!
Hee Hee
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Permalink Reply by Lydia Beier on
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LOL! Katy, yes, Canuck is slang for Canadian. And I am proud to be called a "Canuck" for two reasons - one because I love my country and two because it is the name of our NHL Hockey Team out here - the Vancouver Canucks!
I have never tried jam in place of buttercream - would it work on cakes that are not fruitcake? June, I tend to agree with you that it wouldn't go over as well here in North America.
I too freeze my cakes ahead. Partly because they seem moister and partly because like you, June, I am hampered by pain - sometimes migraines but mostly by my arthritis in my hands. I do as much ahead as possible because I can pace myself.
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Permalink Reply by Michelle Johnson on
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When I hear Canuck I think hockey! Of course my son plays could be why
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It's a great word - Canuck, I like it. Both my Mum's brother and my Dad's sister lived most of their lives in Canada and I had never heard it before, so you learn something every day.
Laurie, yes jam would work on any kind of cake. But it CANNOT have any bits in it, or you will have lump city when you put your fondant on. I tend to use a 'no bits' jam of some sort, warm it slightly, sieve if necessary, and then spread it over thinly with a spatula so it's nice and smooth. If you are using jam or conserve or fruit as your filling, I find the jam coating compliments the filling better. However, if my filling were just buttercream, then I would use a buttercream coating.
The main reason I make my cakes in advance is fear lol! I just know that if I left it till the last knockings, then something would go wrong and I'd panic about making another. Plus I like to really take my time with the decoration as I'm always thinking of something else that I want to add or change.
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Over the last 2 weeks Laurie my arthritis has really been acting up. Very painful. Especially my left hand. The last couple days I have finally been able to make a fist. My left wedding ring finger... well I finally capitulated and went to have my rings re-sized cause I couldn't get them over my knuckle. Haven't felt much like decorating, hands & too much heat related weather!!!
Laurie Beier said:LOL! Katy, yes, Canuck is slang for Canadian. And I am proud to be called a "Canuck" for two reasons - one because I love my country and two because it is the name of our NHL Hockey Team out here - the Vancouver Canucks!
I have never tried jam in place of buttercream - would it work on cakes that are not fruitcake? June, I tend to agree with you that it wouldn't go over as well here in North America.
I too freeze my cakes ahead. Partly because they seem moister and partly because like you, June, I am hampered by pain - sometimes migraines but mostly by my arthritis in my hands. I do as much ahead as possible because I can pace myself.
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June, I am so sorry to hear that and know exactly how you feel. I am having problems with both hands and needed 14 dozen cupcakes decorated for last Friday. They were super simple, but I just couldn't do it and they were for a group of kids, 4 years to grade 5. I let my teen helpers do the work and while I wouldn't enter them in a contest, they were awesomely done and the girls had so much fun rolling fondant, cutting, icing, etc. I will post pictures. I am glad I don't have any clients before September. I purposely took the summer off.
June Kowalczyk said:Over the last 2 weeks Laurie my arthritis has really been acting up. Very painful. Especially my left hand. The last couple days I have finally been able to make a fist. My left wedding ring finger... well I finally capitulated and went to have my rings re-sized cause I couldn't get them over my knuckle. Haven't felt much like decorating, hands & too much heat related weather!!!
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That's why I am not in business. Don't have to worry if I am up to decorating.
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I don't really do it as a full time business. Mostly it is word of mouth and people I know. This way I can pick and choose what I do. I have a lot of fun that way.
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Oh
That is like me. Kinda been slow. Summer time. Most decorators are crazy busy with weddings this time of year. Our cake club doesn't meet until Sept because of that & family holidays. I would be happy Laurie with 1 or 2 cakes a mnth. In USA they have a great organization called, I think, Make a child smile?? Something like that. Make a b-day cake for free for a deserving child. I have been searching, but so far, haven't found anything like that in my immediate area. Would love to be involved in something like this. Paying it forward.......with cake. :0)
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Permalink Reply by Scott S. Smith on
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Hi Cheryl, First when working with butter cream you need to keep your cake refrigerated. If the cake and icing are at room temperature it will be soft and easy to cover, but the weight of the fondant will cause the cake to compress on itself. By refrigerating the iced cake 45-60 minutes it will firm allowing you to cover it and return it to the fridge. Once the cake warms to room temperature it will start to fail especially on warm and humid days. I find by doing this the cake has about 3-4 hours of display time for our clients before it needs to be cut.
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