Cakes

[21stamps]

This is a dual purpose thread,

First- It’s that time of year again.. kiddo’s bday, and the cake planning is way behind schedule this year!
I’m sifting they Pinterest and have a few ideas..

Has anyone here made a “ball cake”? Soccer, basketball, baseball? How did it turn out? I’m a little concerned about getting the fondant smooth enough on a sphere.

The second point of the thread- I’d love to see photos of any birthday/occasion cakes!! Post away.

 

[21stamps]

Here’s a few ideas (but I would decorate differently).. the second photo would obviously be the most simple.
I have to incorporate Ronaldo somehow.. at least a CR7... it would have been a lot better if T was as obsessed with him when he was turning 7, not 8

 

[Goofyernmost]

I don't know how to do that, but I would think that you have to throw away a lot of cake to make one. Seems like you would need multiple size layers all considerably larger then what you expect the finish product to be and you trim it into a round shape. Just off the top of my head I would place it in fake tall grass so you don't have to have a completely round (like SSE) cake but to have one that appears to be sitting in tall grass covering most of the bottom. In other words I don't have a clue how that is done, but, I felt that everyone would want my input on how to do something even if I didn't know what I was talking about.

Conclusion: Good luck with that!

EDIT: Wow, that last one is exactly what I was thinking about. I'm a pastry chef apparently. Note to self, add that to my resume if there is any room left.

 

[21stamps]

I don't know how to do that, but I would think that you have to throw away a lot of cake to make one. Seems like you would need multiple size layers all considerably larger then what you expect the finish product to be and you trim it into a round shape. Just off the top of my head I would place it in fake tall grass so you don't have to have a completely round (like SSE) cake but to have one that appears to be sitting in tall grass covering most of the bottom. In other words I don't have a clue how that is done, but, I felt that everyone would want my input on how to do something even if I didn't know what I was talking about.

Conclusion: Good luck with that!

EDIT: Wow, that last one is exactly what I was thinking about. I'm a pastry chef apparently. Note to self, add that to my resume if there is any room left.

Ha yeah I wouldn’t even attempt to shape it myself.. there’s a pan for that!

 

[Goofyernmost]

Ha yeah I wouldn’t even attempt to shape it myself.. there’s a pan for that!

View attachment 277273

How would you ever get that cooked evenly without having the outside burnt to a crisp?

 

[21stamps]

How would you ever get that cooked evenly without having the outside burnt to a crisp?

I’m assuming the pan would prevent that? I’m not quite sure.. I do always cut my cakes into layers after baking, to add frosting in between.. hopefully the ball shape wouldn’t fall apart.

 

[Songbird76]

Ok, well....I can't help with this kind of pan....I don't have one and they are really expensive, so when DS wanted a soccer cake, I cheated. Also, the round cake is not practical when it comes to cutting the cake....they look really cool, but how do you cut it? But, I don't work with fondant as I don't like the texture. I use buttercream, but I know a lot of people prefer the look of fondant. So for what it's worth, here were my soccer cakes:

This first one, I actually did try to use fondant, and it just wasn't what I thought it was going to be and I didn't like the dry, gummy feel in my mouth, so I don't use it if I don't have to.




And just a few randoms:

The sleigh is gingerbread, and I had never made or worked with Royal icing before....not my finest work, but it was a pretty cute decoration anyway.


This was DD's 9th birthday. She wanted a Barbie and the Popstar cake.



This was DD's 4th birthday request. She wanted a heart cake with LOTS of roses and she wanted it in pink. Lots of pink.


Ok, so if you want to bake the ball cake evenly, line the outside of the pans with wet paper towels. You can cover them with tin foil to keep the papertowels on. Make sure you have a few layers of wet papertowels. I guess it keeps the outside cool longer, giving the inner part a chance to cook before the outside is dry/burned. I always just fold a papertowel over 4 times to make a long strip, wet it down, and wrap them around the pan and then set the pan and all on some tin foil, which I fold up around the paper towel strips so they don't fall off. It keeps it from rising in the middle and having dry eges, but with the ball pan, do you cook it in halves or do you pour the batter into one half and use the other as a sort of lid? Because if it's all one, then you kind of DO want it to dome or it won't look like a ball. I've never worked with that kind of pan. You might look for youtube tutorials, or reviews of the pan to see what other people did and how they would do it differently next time.

 

[Tiggerish]

Calling @HouCuseChickie ...your expertise is required here.

 

[HouCuseChickie]

Thanks for the tag @Tiggerish I have made a soccer ball cake. It's not as clean as I would have liked, but it was my first time ever trying a ball.

I also did a half basketball...

And an RKT Death Star for a Star Wars cake (it's a versatile pan!)...

So, I have a little bit of experience But still...definitely not a pro with this stuff.

Obviously, I had a half sphere pan to make the cake...and it required two rounds of baking to get both sides of the ball (since I'm too cheap to buy 2 LOL). I've found that the sphere cakes take a bit longer to cook through, although, it might go quicker and more efficiently if you're cooking in a convection oven (which I may be trying soon).

As for smoothing the fondant, you want a base layer before you add the black and white pieces to make up the exterior of the ball. When I did mine, I had a white fondant layer underneath, then made a template to cut the pieces, and used my ridged cutting wheel to give the illusion of stitching. It's still not perfectly smooth, but it's not awful either.

This may seem obvious to everyone else but me, but remember that you are making a ball. And what do balls do? They roll. You need to cut about an inch from the bottom of the cake so your cake has a flat surface...otherwise your cake will roll. I speak from experience.

Also, I think my pan is the Fat Daddio sphere pan. It's a decent quality pan but it also has a round bottom, so you have to be super careful with it when putting it in the oven.



I hope this helps, but feel free to ask any questions

 

[Songbird76]

Thanks for the tag @Tiggerish I have made a soccer ball cake. It's not as clean as I would have liked, but it was my first time ever trying a ball.

I also did a half basketball...

And an RKT Death Star for a Star Wars cake (it's a versatile pan!)...

So, I have a little bit of experience But still...definitely not a pro with this stuff.

Obviously, I had a half sphere pan to make the cake...and it required two rounds of baking to get both sides of the ball (since I'm too cheap to buy 2 LOL). I've found that the sphere cakes take a bit longer to cook through, although, it might go quicker and more efficiently if you're cooking in a convection oven (which I may be trying soon).

As for smoothing the fondant, you want a base layer before you add the black and white pieces to make up the exterior of the ball. When I did mine, I had a white fondant layer underneath, then made a template to cut the pieces, and used my ridged cutting wheel to give the illusion of stitching. It's still not perfectly smooth, but it's not awful either.

This may seem obvious to everyone else but me, but remember that you are making a ball. And what do balls do? They roll. You need to cut about an inch from the bottom of the cake so your cake has a flat surface...otherwise your cake will roll. I speak from experience.

Also, I think my pan is the Fat Daddio sphere pan. It's a decent quality pan but it also has a round bottom, so you have to be super careful with it when putting it in the oven.

View attachment 277540

I hope this helps, but feel free to ask any questions

I love the dragon!! Is that formed out of fondant? Also, do you buy the fondant colored or do you dye it? I can't get a true red or black or blue without using a TON of dye.

 

[HouCuseChickie]

I love the dragon!! Is that formed out of fondant? Also, do you buy the fondant colored or do you dye it? I can't get a true red or black or blue without using a TON of dye.

Thanks! The dragon has a rice krispie treat core and is covered in fondant and gumpaste (blend them for greater stability). I hand dyed that fondant (as well as added several kinds of luster dust), but I've also found that it only really works well for smaller quantities. If I want a really rich color to cover a cake or large piece, I'll either buy pre-tinted fondant or airbrush/paint the fondant with food coloring. I've also found that food coloring can really alter the consistency of the fondant when kneading it in, so after winding up with a heap of gray goo one time (was trying to achieve black), I only hand dye dark colors when I need them for accents or toppers.

If I buy colored fondant, I usually just go with Satin Ice. I tried Fondarific once and it got really sticky. I still have yet to try Fondx. If it's a last minute thing, Wilton will do, but I don't like the mouth feel and taste of Wilton.

 

[21stamps]

Ok, well....I can't help with this kind of pan....I don't have one and they are really expensive, so when DS wanted a soccer cake, I cheated. Also, the round cake is not practical when it comes to cutting the cake....they look really cool, but how do you cut it? But, I don't work with fondant as I don't like the texture. I use buttercream, but I know a lot of people prefer the look of fondant. So for what it's worth, here were my soccer cakes:

This first one, I actually did try to use fondant, and it just wasn't what I thought it was going to be and I didn't like the dry, gummy feel in my mouth, so I don't use it if I don't have to.

View attachment 277515
View attachment 277516View attachment 277522

And just a few randoms:

The sleigh is gingerbread, and I had never made or worked with Royal icing before....not my finest work, but it was a pretty cute decoration anyway.
View attachment 277524

This was DD's 9th birthday. She wanted a Barbie and the Popstar cake.
View attachment 277529


This was DD's 4th birthday request. She wanted a heart cake with LOTS of roses and she wanted it in pink. Lots of pink.
View attachment 277527

Ok, so if you want to bake the ball cake evenly, line the outside of the pans with wet paper towels. You can cover them with tin foil to keep the papertowels on. Make sure you have a few layers of wet papertowels. I guess it keeps the outside cool longer, giving the inner part a chance to cook before the outside is dry/burned. I always just fold a papertowel over 4 times to make a long strip, wet it down, and wrap them around the pan and then set the pan and all on some tin foil, which I fold up around the paper towel strips so they don't fall off. It keeps it from rising in the middle and having dry eges, but with the ball pan, do you cook it in halves or do you pour the batter into one half and use the other as a sort of lid? Because if it's all one, then you kind of DO want it to dome or it won't look like a ball. I've never worked with that kind of pan. You might look for youtube tutorials, or reviews of the pan to see what other people did and how they would do it differently next time.

Thank you!! Your cakes are beautiful!

 

[21stamps]

Thanks for the tag @Tiggerish I have made a soccer ball cake. It's not as clean as I would have liked, but it was my first time ever trying a ball.

I also did a half basketball...

And an RKT Death Star for a Star Wars cake (it's a versatile pan!)...

So, I have a little bit of experience But still...definitely not a pro with this stuff.

Obviously, I had a half sphere pan to make the cake...and it required two rounds of baking to get both sides of the ball (since I'm too cheap to buy 2 LOL). I've found that the sphere cakes take a bit longer to cook through, although, it might go quicker and more efficiently if you're cooking in a convection oven (which I may be trying soon).

As for smoothing the fondant, you want a base layer before you add the black and white pieces to make up the exterior of the ball. When I did mine, I had a white fondant layer underneath, then made a template to cut the pieces, and used my ridged cutting wheel to give the illusion of stitching. It's still not perfectly smooth, but it's not awful either.

This may seem obvious to everyone else but me, but remember that you are making a ball. And what do balls do? They roll. You need to cut about an inch from the bottom of the cake so your cake has a flat surface...otherwise your cake will roll. I speak from experience.

Also, I think my pan is the Fat Daddio sphere pan. It's a decent quality pan but it also has a round bottom, so you have to be super careful with it when putting it in the oven.

View attachment 277540

I hope this helps, but feel free to ask any questions

Thank you!!! I’m also too cheap to buy 2 pans.
I do have 2 ovens, one of which is a convection oven.. maybe I should only use that one and just do one at time?

Your soccer ball came out wonderfully!! All of the cakes did.. I chickened out on making a Star Wars, specifying a BB8 cake 2 years ago, ended up ordering a SW themed sheet cake instead.

I’ll post some of my trial and error cakes shortly..

My big question about the sphere cake is-
Can I cut it in layers to apply frosting?
I make my own fondant, but I always do multiple layers of a good homemade frosting so people can eat the cake without the fondant.. except for my kiddo who eats the entire slice.
I feel like the sphere may be a lot of cake with little frosting if not layered, but I’m worried about messing up the shape.

Great tip about making the bottom flat!! I’ll most likely set it on another cake in order to add the Ronaldo stuff/Real Madrid crest that I would need.. do you think it will be possible without collapsing?

 

[HouCuseChickie]

Thank you!!! I’m also too cheap to buy 2 pans.
I do have 2 ovens, one of which is a convection oven.. maybe I should only use that one and just do one at time?

Your soccer ball came out wonderfully!! All of the cakes did.. I chickened out on making a Star Wars, specifying a BB8 cake 2 years ago, ended up ordering a SW themed sheet cake instead.

I’ll post some of my trial and error cakes shortly..

My big question about the sphere cake is-
Can I cut it in layers to apply frosting?
I make my own fondant, but I always do multiple layers of a good homemade frosting so people can eat the cake without the fondant.. except for my kiddo who eats the entire slice.
I feel like the sphere may be a lot of cake with little frosting if not layered, but I’m worried about messing up the shape.

Great tip about making the bottom flat!! I’ll most likely set it on another cake in order to add the Ronaldo stuff/Real Madrid crest that I would need.. do you think it will be possible without collapsing?

Thanks

I do make my own fondant if there's time. I've actually transformed a good handful of fondant haters Still, there are a lot of times where there's just no time, so I'm thankful for premade options. I think you should be fine with the shape as long as you a. use a crusting buttercream or b. coat it with ganache before you apply your fondant. Both of these should help you achieve a nice smooth surface as well as filling in any gaps around the seam between the two cakes. Most frosting recipes can be morphed into a crusting version if it's normally more creamy.

I take a slightly different approach to filling a dome or sphere cake. Trying to think of the best way to describe it since it is easier to illustrate than verbally describe. I cut a circle in the bottom of the cake...usually about an inch and a half to two inches in from the edge...probably going in (gently) about an inch or so in depth. I then use a spoon and gently try and carve this chunk out of the bottom of the cake, making sure not to go through the exterior surface of the domed portion. I take the cake I've carved off and I use a long serrated knife or cake leveler to cut off the area you got out with the spoon. Ultimately, you could be left with a flat piece of cake that matches your original circle cut with the knife that should fit in like a puzzle piece/plug/stopper. I then fill in the cavity left behind with filling and plug it up with the circle of cake I cut off. I do add a little bit of frosting between the two cakes so they are bound together a bit better and not just stacked cakes.

Collapsing is a serious concern. My pan creates a cake that's about 8" in diameter. When I made that soccer ball, it was originally supposed to be a topper piece for two other cakes. I added dowels and a center support rod, but everything underneath of it crumbled from the weight. It's why I made it from rice krispie treats when I did the Death Star...although my main support cake for that soccer ball was really just too small of a cake to ever make it work. It probably would have been fine had I just placed it on a more stable/larger square or round...along with a handful of wooden dowels to add support.

I'm still learning the ins and outs with our convection oven. We moved into a new house last summer and that's what came with the home. It's supposed to heat evenly, but it's like relearning everything with baking times and temps because it cooks more efficiently. I would go with the same oven for both of your cakes because you never know if it will turn out differently when cooked in a different oven with a different heating set up.

And now I'm feeling guilty for not making a cake for my hubby this weekend

 

[TheJonesys]

I haven’t made a cake in a long time, but it was Mums 80th Birthday last week, so I made this for her

 

[MinnieM123]

I haven’t made a cake in a long time, but it was Mums 80th Birthday last week, so I made this for herView attachment 277614

Really pretty. Subtle, less is more approach, and very appropriate for an 80-year-old woman's birthday cake.

 

[HouCuseChickie]

I haven’t made a cake in a long time, but it was Mums 80th Birthday last week, so I made this for herView attachment 277614

Very pretty cake!

 

[21stamps]

I haven’t made a cake in a long time, but it was Mums 80th Birthday last week, so I made this for herView attachment 277614

Beautiful!

 

[Princess Leia]

I need to buy a ball pan. Could and should have when I saw one the other day, but moving into a new place has required a lot of other shopping and that’s something I don’t need (for now).
Past cakes that I’ve made:

This last one is one of two times I’ve made and used fondant. It’s just not a method I enjoy.

 

[21stamps]

I need to buy a ball pan. Could and should have when I saw one the other day, but moving into a new place has required a lot of other shopping and that’s something I don’t need (for now).
Past cakes that I’ve made:
View attachment 278532View attachment 278533View attachment 278534View attachment 278535View attachment 278536View attachment 278537View attachment 278538View attachment 278539View attachment 278540View attachment 278541
This last one is one of two times I’ve made and used fondant. It’s just not a method I enjoy.

These are so wonderful!!!!!

Where were you last year when I needed a BB8 cake???!!!

Your fondant looks really good for not using it often! Can’t even tell, seriously.