- 1). Cook and cool the cake according to your recipe. The critical first step in frosting a cake is cooling the cake to at least room temperature. You may also refrigerate a cake after it has reached room temperature. Warm cakes will melt frosting and are prone to breaking apart on contact.
- 2). Prepare the frosting according to your recipe. Keep it sealed airtight until you are ready to use it. Do not refrigerate it. If it is cold, it will be too thick and will spread unevenly.
- 3). Assemble the cake in layers or a sheet.
- 4). Apply two coats of frosting to the cake. Crumbs invariably mix into the frosting when you apply it to the cake. The first layer is thinner and intended to trap the crumbs and even the surface. The second layer is the frosting that will be visible on the final product. It is thicker than the first, with few to no crumbs, and a smooth appearance.
- 5). Scoop some frosting with the offset spatula. Place it on the top of the cake. Though you could use a large knife to frost the cake, an offset spatula allows you more freedom of movement in your frosting strokes because the handle is higher than the blade. Using an offset spatula will help you significantly, especially if your cake has a broad surface.
- 6). Spread the frosting with the spatula. Create a thin, even layer over the surface of the cake. It is OK if crumbs get mixed into the frosting. This layer is only the crumb layer. Smooth the frosting to the edge of the cake.
- 7). Create an even surface with the frosting. A cake is slightly taller in the center than at its edges. Make the top as flat as you can with the frosting. You may well end up with more frosting around the edge of the cake than in the middle, but that does not matter. All that matters is that it appears even. Keep the layer relatively thin, though, since you will apply more frosting later.
- 8). Scoop frosting onto the surface of the cake to create the second layer. Spread it in the same manner you spread the previous layer. You should see few crumbs if any.
- 9). Apply more frosting to the areas which are not as tall as the majority of the cake to raise the surface to an even, smooth plateau.
- 10
Refrigerate the cake once you have finished frosting the surface.
previous post