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When Can I Put The Dowel Rods Into The Cake?

by Jaqi Jazz
(Gloucester, UK)

I'm creating my own cake with three tiers of iced fruit cake and I was just wondering when would be the best time to insert the dowel rods into the two lower tiers. I want to make it as easy as possible to put the cake together on the morning of the wedding so I want to have as much done as possible beforehand. I’m not really sure I want to be sawing dowel rods in my wedding dress.
Also what is the best way to attach ribbon to the base of the tiers - glue or pins?

Any advice would be appreciated, thanks!

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Answer:

I don’t blame you, I would not want to saw dowel rods in my wedding dress either. I don’t think it would cause any harm to insert the dowel rods the day before the wedding.

You could always cut the dowels days in advance and have them ready to insert when you go to assemble the cake. They only take a few moments to insert so as long as they’re cut in advance, they shouldn’t give you any trouble on the wedding day when you assemble the cake.

 


For attaching the ribbon to your tiers, you can use a little sugar paste mixed with cooled boiled water to create 'sugar glue' to hold the ribbon in place. However, make sure that you line your ribbon with some masking tape or greaseproof paper so that the oil from the icing doesn’t stain your ribbon.

Alternatively you can buy non-toxic glue sticks from cake decorating shops, which do not leave a mark on the ribbon.

Nicola



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When Can I Put The Dowel Rods Into The Cake?

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May 03, 2010
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starstarstarstarstar 		When to dowel the stacked cake
by: Anonymous

Sorry, I forgot to mention that although you dowel the cakes when the icing is still soft, you do NOT stack them until the icing has hardened off a bit. Stack them about two days or more before you want to transport them to allow them to "settle".

You can glue two cake boards (the thick silver cake board drums) together before you put them into the stacking box.

Stacked wedding cakes ordered from Waitrose or Jane Asher - arrive stacked in this way (via courier van)so why not do it yourself like that but save money? Hope this helps.
May 01, 2010
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starstarstarstarstar 		Icing dowelling and transporting your fruit wedding cake
by: Anonymous

I too was concerned about this and asked all over the place about it. I have discovered you should put the dowel rods in more or less as soon as you have iced it whilst the icing is still SOFT. If you do it later when the icing has hardened a bit it could well crack.

I have also learned that you can marzipan and ice the cake a couple of weeks in advance, it does no harm, does not deteriorate, in fact it further preserves the cake by keeping an airtight seal on it. It needs to be kept then in a cardboard cake box so the air can circulate but the dust is kept off it.

If you brush the marzipan with a little brandy it will preserve it better too before putting the icing onto it.

I have a stacking box which will take up to four tiers stacked (not with pillars of course) and if you assemble the whole cake and stack it in the box (which costs about £16 by the way but I think its worth it) you can then transport it intact to the venue and get them to help.

The only thing you have to do is make sure that the bottom of the cake is on, say two boards rather than one, or a piece of wood (only temporarily) to take the weight when you move it about.

I think these tips take all the stress out of the icing, dowelling and transporting of the cake. Oh, and I bought a really cheap spirit level to make sure each tier is level - if its not then plug the bottom with marzipan when you are at that stage to get it all level before the final sugarpaste (fondant, roll out) icing goes on.

Good luck! And Congratulations for a long happy and healthy life together! :)

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