Ok. not a real manly question

Mom's birthday is today, so last night i got all the stuff to make a cake for her. I know i could buy one made, but mom is the type that gets all gushy if you make the effort yourself so i figured i would.

first bad thing, we have no round baking pans. So i had to make a ghetto rectangle one.

It's done now and i'm letting it cool. but it's mounded. i thought it would be flat so i could do some fun stuff on it with icing. I've done it before for a friend because I do lots of artwork, well i used to. but I don't remember that one being mounded.

I need to know if I can flop this out and put it upside down on something to frost. I put butter and flour in the pan before cooking and I've checked, it's completely loose and isn't sticking to the sides or the bottom.

Kind of in a hurry. only have 3 more hours.

HALP!

yup, that's basically what the pros do, flip it over and ice the bottom

I've also seen them (on those cake-decorating competitions shows) take a big serrated knife and cut the "mound" part off. Either way would work, I guess.

Or, using a serated knife, cut the top so it's flat.

If you're really wanting to walk on the wild side, you could then cut the rectangle cake into a cool shape. Of course, I can't recommend this, since every time I try it, I end up shredding the cake.

edited to add - ah, looks like willowy beat me to it.

yeah I flipped it upside down. came out ok but the stupid thing, the frosting has little pieces of cake in it. no matter how gentle I am lol.

Oh well, thank God it's the thought that counts

I even wrote "worst cake ever' in icing on the bottom and you can't even read it hahah

Originally Posted by fastnoc

yeah I flipped it upside down. came out ok but the stupid thing, the frosting has little pieces of cake in it. no matter how gentle I am lol.

Oh well, thank God it's the thought that counts

I even wrote "worst cake ever' in icing on the bottom and you can't even read it hahah

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Hahaha, she's going to love it! I would, if someone did that for me!

Originally Posted by Sandtigress

Hahaha, she's going to love it!

I would, if someone did that for me!

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The worse it looked the better my mom always seemed to like it.

That's one lucky Momma! I agree she'll love it!

I usually don't worry about leveling the cake unless I'm doing layers. Then I level the bottom layer so the top layer sits flat. Typically you can still decorate it even if it's not level. As for the crumbs, that's what the crumb coat is for. You put on a liberal ammount of frosting on as a base to stick all the crumbs then you put on another layer that theoretically is crumb free. The trick is to use enough frosting so that the crumbs stay burried under it!

Either way, I'm sure she'll love it. I prefer home made to store bought too. It's less expensive usually... and much more personal!

yeah i don't think i'll be trying this again anytime soon

Oh, there's supposed to be a trick to minamizing the mound but it never works for me. It happens because there is usually more batter in the middle so supposedly, if you move some of the batter away from the center (usually in an X shape) it's supposed to come out more level... but it never works for me.

Seriously, she'll love it. Back when we were first married and poor (ok, we're still poor, lol), the husband made me a homemade birthday cake. He called his mom up in Egypt for the recipe and made it while keeping her on the phone for help. Best birthday cake ever

Awww, how sweet! Wish I was able to help you out earlier. I decorate as a hobby, big time. Another trick with the icing is to not let your spatula (or knife) get in front of your icing, otherwise you're pulling crumbs into the icing.

Awww...what a sweet idea. She'll love it.

Trust me, as someone who used to do cakes professionally, you did MUCH better than a good many I've ever seen.

When frosting a cake, do a "crumb layer" first. That is a very very thin layer of frosting that will seal and trap all the crumbs. Then wash the knife and do the "nice" frosting, followed by the decorating.

Your cake looks nice! She'll love it!

Now, if you REALLY want her to gush---give her a KITTEN along with the cake!

Enjoy the cake!

Cally

It's the thought that matters the most. Well, that and not over mixing a cake batter itself. I made the mistake of letting DH handle that part one time, bleh!

It's wonderful! A very sincere gesture that she'll just love!

For future reference: the thing to do is take a little bit of your frosting and mix it with a bit of milk to thin it, and use that thinner frosting in a very light layer to "set" the crumbs. Let that layer chill into place for a bit (in the refrigerator) before you apply the rest of the frosting as usual, being very careful never to lift the spreader away from the cake -- just continue on off the edge so it doesn't pick up crumbs.

Don't worry about the mound -- it looks better than a sinkhole, which is what I usually end up with!

Looks like you managed it really well... Let us know how the party goes!

That's a fine effort and I'm sure your Mom will be thrilled!

If someone did that for me, I'd be thrilled!!!!

I'm usually the one doing the baking. Everyone here gave you great advice and support, there is nothing for me to add. Except - enjoy!!

That looks yummy. Makes me crave cake...lol
Happy birthday to your mom!