Wedding Fears about the cake.......

[winston26]

Let me preface by saying I admit I am a worrier. I need some reassurance or advice on the cake!

I thought I finally found the best filling for our cake. Real sliced strawberries and fresh cream filling with white cake.
Then I questioned the baker on if it will stand up for numerous hours unrefrigerated, and she said....."um, nooo" AAAGHHH We tried the strawberries with bavarian cream but it''s not the same.

Here''s my dilemma:
(A) Have it delivered later in the day? I''d say the cake would be on display for only 30 minutes before we had to cut it though.
(B) Trust the staff to remember to roll it in the refrigerator for a couple of hours while the entire wedding goes on a boat ride? (Cocktails from 3-4:30, boat ride 4:30-6:00, dinner starts and cake cut immediately at 6:30)

This is for early June. Cake will be indoors in air conditioning but I can''t guarantee it will be super cool in there. Who knows what they keep the room at. Point is it''s not outside in the melting sun.

Question......assuming I have the cake delivered at 2:00 and it is not eaten until 8:00, AND the club FORGETS to refrigerate it a couple of hours in the middle, how bad will that be? Are we talking strange consistency but no harm done? Won''t taste right? OR my biggest fear....food poisoning and all are sick? I''m mostly worried about people getting sick.

I''ve been going round and round with the baker on alternate choices and she''s not really helping. Not sure this filling is worth my worrying yet I can''t find a better alternative!

 

[swimmer]

Hi Winston,
I think it will be fine for the strawberries. I love a strawberry/angelfood/coolwhip cake for summer picnics and that stays fine for all day. But the real cream...if the baker is willing to stand by (metaphorically, not physically) his/her cake, then it should be fine. I mean, its their business and they are licensed and all that, and they want to preserve their reputation. Hence they don''t offer an uncooked pork filling layer. Sorry, just trying to thing of something that goes bad quickly.

Mushy it will probably be. But rancid, no.
Freke, what do you think?

 

[pjean]

Date: 5/16/2008 3:52:36 PM
Author:winston26

(B) Trust the staff to remember to roll it in the refrigerator for a couple of hours while the entire wedding goes on a boat ride?

Can you assign someone to check, last thing before they leave for the boat? A responsible cousin or friend who isn''t in the wedding party but would be delighted to have a job?

And since (like me) you''re a worrier, you can assign someone to make sure the first person remembers.

 

[FrekeChild]

Well, what time frame are we talking about? It would be delivered at____, reception would start at____ and cake cutting would be around____?

Frankly, if it''s just the filling it should be fine for at least a few house because all of the cake and the outside frosting insulating it. What kind of frosting is going to be on the outside?

The problem I''m thinking of is that strawberries start to bleed as soon as they are cut, which is going to create a lot of moisture, which is fine so long as there is cake there to absorb the juice. But if the strawberries are encased in whipped cream, that COULD potentially be dangerous (not food bourne illness wise, but for structure)...

Can you post a pic of a inspiration cake for what the outside will look like?

 

[winston26]

Date: 5/16/2008 4:57:01 PM
Author: FrekeChild
Well, what time frame are we talking about? It would be delivered at____, reception would start at____ and cake cutting would be around____?

Frankly, if it''s just the filling it should be fine for at least a few house because all of the cake and the outside frosting insulating it. What kind of frosting is going to be on the outside?

The problem I''m thinking of is that strawberries start to bleed as soon as they are cut, which is going to create a lot of moisture, which is fine so long as there is cake there to absorb the juice. But if the strawberries are encased in whipped cream, that COULD potentially be dangerous (not food bourne illness wise, but for structure)...

Can you post a pic of a inspiration cake for what the outside will look like?

Cake delivered between 2 and 2:30.
Starts at 3:00 with hors d''oeuvres
4:30-6:00 boat ride
6:30 dinner starts and we cut cake before we eat so the club can take it back and cut it
That means it would sit out between 2pm and 8pm approximately.
Frosting is the typical buttercreme. 3-tier round cakes for 150 ppl

 

[FrekeChild]

Ok, typical buttercream like shortening and powdered sugar or typical buttercream like egg whites, butter and sugar?

I don't think you'll have a problem with it melting if that's what your concerned about. I asked the above question because the first buttercream (American) is like cement. Nothing will melt that stuff except maybe a blow torch. The second (Italian) is perfectly stable but it's butter so it's only a semi-saturated fat, and it does start to melt a little at room temperature (not like an oozing off the cake kind of melting either-just gets really soft).

My verdict-either way you should be fine. The outside buttercream and the layers of cake will insulate the inside from harsh temperatures for quite a while, and even though you said you can't guarantee that the temp in the room will be cool, I'm pretty sure it won't get over 80-and with either buttercream-you shouldn't have anything to worry about. You could probably stick a thermometer into the middle of the cake 4 hours after it arrives to find out it's gone up maybe a degree.

I would honestly wait until right after dinner, if not later, to cut the cake. It's better to have it sit whole than to let them cut it up and have it exposed to temperature and able to dry out...know what I mean?

Overall, don't worry. It'll be fine.