Recipe(tried): Wedding Cake Tiers == Sarah Stoke

Hello, Sarah. I am a pastry chef, specializing in wedding cakes. Making a tiered wedding cake is NOT difficult, just time consuming.

To tier your cakes, you want to use something strong enough to hold the WEIGHT of your cakes. (the straw method posted -- not a good idea for what you are making). Go to a hobby/craft store, or a hardware store, even better is if a cake decorating store is near you. Look in your yellow pages phone book under "CAKES- DECORATING SUPPLY STORES" - or something similar. The cake supply stores sell heavy plastic rods and wood rods. I prefer using the plastic rods, but have used wooden, as well. If no cake supply store is near you, go to any of the others mentioned. You want to ask them for "dowel rods". They come in various diameters (width), but all the same length, usually 3 feet/36 inches. One of these is all you need, along with a serrated knife or a saw (just make sure the saw is clean!) Get a rod which is about 1/4 inch in diameter. That diameter you can easily cut with a kitchen knife or scissors.

You did not mention the size of your cakes. If you want to repost an answer to that question I can give you more specifics. Not necessary, but, here is some info you can use.

On your bottom cake, which is the largest, that is the cake which is going to be the "foundation" of the weight carrying, so it is very important that the bottow cake has enough rods in to to support the next 2 tiers....and not just those cakes, you also have to take the weight of the cake, any fillings, icing, icing decorations, etc. On the bottom cake, place at MINIMUM, 4 rods, such as in all 4 "corners" or "quadrants" of that cake. Also place 2 more in the center of that cake. On the 4 "corners", make sure you do not put them too close to the edge of the cake because you can break that cake down. Go into the edge of the cake by at least 2 inches. Do the same for the middle layer, using only 4 rods....BUT, you should also have a 5th rod for smack in the middle of that second tier. That rod should go thru that entire second tier AND down thru the FIRST tier! Doing this secures those 2 cakes together so they will not slide off one another. For your third tier, since it is the top, and has no weight of another tier, place one rod, long enough, to go thru all 3 tiers.

Again, not knowing the size of your tiers, what professional wedding cake makers do is to have all 3 tiers ready and decorated, have all your rods in your tiers EXCEPT for the center rod which will pierce thru all 3 tiers. When you get to the place of reception, assemble your cake there. Bring some additional icing with you. I bring along pastry bags already filled with the icing, and bring the tip or tips used for decorating. Stack your cakes at the reception hall/place. using the extra icing you bring, cover the hole on the top, or, if you have a "topper" (the bride and groom statue or whatever), that will cover the hole. If you need to do any touch ups, you will have tthe icing with you and will be ready to make any repairs.

Don't worry about the rods when cutting the cake because the wait staff at the reciption venue KNOW that these cakes have rods and as they cut the cake, they will watch for them. They also know that rods are placed in the area I mentioned to you above. This is why I stated that to you. Now, of course, if you are not in a hall and are having a "home wedding", etc., whomever will be cutting the cake, should be advised about the rods....unless it is you cutting it, as you will already know they are there!

Good luck to you! If you are doing this for someone you know, a family member, dear friends, etc., they will FOREVER remember you, as the one who made their cake!

If you have any more questions, I would be glad to answer them for you! Again good luck -- and ENJOY yourself while doing this!!!

Linda