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Tip: How to Provide Structure for Tiered Cakes

3/5/2015

1 Comment

 
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​Have you ever noticed that some cakes seem to bulge when there are multiple tiers stacked on top of each other?  This may be due to the use of a loose filling like custard or whipped cream, or not allowing the cakes to cool sufficiently before stacking, however, the most likely reason is the lack of any structural support. 

Here is a perfect example of poor structural stability. Please don't let this happen to you!
(Source: CakeWrecks.com)
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​FACT: Cakes of more than one tier
 need dowelling for each supporting tier.


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For smaller cakes (less than 12 inches in diameter), I use bubble tea straws instead of wood or plastic dowels.  This is mainly a preference since it is MUCH easier to cut the straws to size.
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Each cake will have its own board beneath the cake (I prefer the corrugated board or foam core; pressed particle board cake bases are near impossible to make a hole through!).   1) Cut the bubble tea straws to the height of your cake.  (*hint…cutting them all exactly the same height will help to ensure that your subsequent tiers will be level and stable).  2) Place a small amount of royal icing in the center of your base tier.  Equally distribute the 4 (or more) dowels or straws around the middle of the cake.  ​
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At this stage I like to leave half of the straws outside of the cake.  This allows you to place the next tier on top while using the sinking of the straws to slow the cakes descent.
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After placing the cake on top of the straws, the weight of the cake will push the dowels in and allow you enough time to ensure that the cake is centered. 

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Once you have the layers stacked, it is recommended that you insert a central support dowel through both tiers of the cake.   You will need a wooden dowel, a sharpener and a hammer.  Measure the height of your cake with the dowel and cut the dowel to size. 
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Sharpen the cut end of the dowel.
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Place the dowel in the center of the cake and hammer through both tiers of the cake until you feel that the wood has reached the cake drum.

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​Take the extra piece of wood dowel to finish hammering in the center.

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I repeated the addition of bubble tea straws and royal icing before placing on the top tier.


Having the proper support and doweling will improve the overall look of the cake (no buckling or bulging) and also ease in the delivery of the cake so that the tiers do not slide during transport.

…one last tip…your cakes should be refrigerated prior to stacking and transport, this will provide additional security and forgiveness when handling the cake.

-Val Krampac
The Cake Collective

QUESTION
What tips and tricks do you use to prevent bulging cakes? Please write your comments below. 

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The Love of Baking...  (and some tips too :)

2/14/2015

2 Comments

 
I have a similar story to many of the members of The Cake Collective…I started baking as a means to escape the everyday mundane routine and have an opportunity to be creative in a delicious way.  I would take great pride in the positive feedback I would get from my friends and colleagues regarding the baked goods I would share with them.  Every week they would get a taste of something new.  Eventually you start getting requests from your friends to make birthday, celebration, wedding cakes, etc…there comes a point when you need to transition from the hobby baking realm to deciding whether this is something you want to do as a business.  Fortunately it’s an easy transition if you love to bake!  I personally think things taste better when you put love in as an ingredient :)

Just last week I made a special cake for a friend of mine who recently got engaged.  The result was a two tier love inspired Pan di Spagna cake for the newly engaged couple.  Hearts were the theme, not only because they are in love, but some of the décor at the party included some felt hearts handmade by the bride-to-be.  This would be the inspiration for the cake topper.
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A traditional Italian Pan di Spagna layer cake is not typically suitable for supporting multiple tiers, but I made an exception and added some buttercream (instead of chantilly cream) before covering the cake in fondant.  I would also like to note that making the sponge cakes used up A LOT of eggs!
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After baking, layering, filling, icing, carving and covering the cake in fondant…the love of cake design takes over.   Hearts, Hearts and more hearts, with ruffling and edible silver paint to give the fondant appliques more depth.  Here’s where I’ll  share a tip...
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When painting on cakes I used edible petal or luster dusts and add either lemon extract or vodka to make them liquid.  Alcohol is used to facilitate drying of the painted elements.  DO NOT mix with water…this will result in melting the sugar in your fondant and taking forever to dry.  

The beauty of painting on a cake with edible dusts and alcohol is that you can practically erase everything you painted with little to no evidence that you made a mistake.  If you have a slip of the brush while painting on your cake, take some straight vodka or lemon extract, dip a cotton swab into it and wipe & lift away the misplaced paint.  Simple as that!
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1. Here I'm painting on the cake.
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2. Oops! See the small grey line above the ribbon.
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3. Dip a cotton swab in alcohol.
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4. Gently dab and lift away the oops.
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5. Notice that the grey line has lifted! You can see it on the tip of the swab.
​Always use a clear spot on your swab for any additional passes you may need to do.

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PS Congratulations to Lidia and Marco!


​When did you realize your love for baking?


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Welcome to The Cake Collective Incu"Baker"!

2/10/2015

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The Cake Collective (TCC) is a licensed studio and professional commercial kitchen for bake artists in Mississauga, Ontario. Members share space, equipment, tools, and expenses while benefiting from each other’s knowledge and experience.  

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​I’m Val Krampac, one of the co-founders (along with my sister Maria and our Business Director, Csaba) of The Cake Collective and this is our new TCC Incu"Baker" blog where we hope to share some of the trials, tribulations and successes of small baking business entrepreneurs.

If you are among the over 100 people who have visited our facility since we opened in March 2014, then you know what we are all about…for those of you that haven’t visited yet..WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR!!!?  


TCC IS A ONE-STOP SHOP
The Cake Collective is a one-stop shop for the budding Bake Artist.  Most members that have made the transition from “hobby-baker” to full-fledged baking businesses, started from home and thought that there would be no way that they would be able to acquire the capital involved to set up their own bake shop.  Upon finding The Cake Collective, either through on-line advertising, searches or simply word-of-mouth, our members have come to realize that TCC comes equipped with all the basics …and MORE! 

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HOME TO ALMOST 40 MEMBERS
In less than a year since opening, The Cake Collective has acquired nearly 40 individual small businesses to join its membership! (Check out The Cake Collective Artists Page to see what are members are baking up!)  The beauty of starting this shared baking facility, is that it’s more than just cake!  We have members that make Kale Chips (Healthy Crunch Company http://healthycrunch.com/ ), Seasoned Flax Seed (Flaxy http://flaxy.ca/ ) and even gourmet popcorn (Sweetpop Gourmet http://www.sweetpopgourmet.com/ )!   

The space allows for collaborating and of course taste-testing!  The preliminary vision of what The Cake Collective would be has been quickly surpassed by the reward of seeing small businesses grow and prosper.  I’m definitely not saying that there is a guarantee for success; however, you will have much more of a fighting chance when you can learn from and share experiences with your peers who are also testing out the artisanal baking market.
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What does a baking incubator mean to you? We welcome suggestions (write comments below) on how to improve our operations to make The Cake Collective experience a holistic business adventure! 


Follow our story via Facebook, Instagram, and Our website! 

IN MY NEXT BLOG
In my next blog, I will look at “The Love of Baking”…an inside story of making an engagement party cake…just in time for Valentine’s Day!
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    Val Krampac is a co-founder of The Cake Collective

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The Cake Collective is a health inspected commercial kitchen rental space in Mississauga near Toronto. The members of our rental kitchen share equipment, ingredients, storage, and tools within a 4,500 sqft space. We focus on sweet, savoury, and baking (very limited meat).


Eliminate the fixed costs, rent, equipment and utilities of running your own commercial kitchen. Our affordable commercial kitchen rental rates by the hour allow you to focus on your business without any risk.

Our commercial kitchen rental space in Mississauga is conveniently close to Etobicoke, Milton, Brampton, Oakville and all other parts of Toronto and the GTA.
  

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