By: Schona Dhawan '25
In the past few years, vintage cakes have become popular once again. Through social media, people have begun to focus on aesthetics while exploring new activities. Decorating cakes has become particularly popular and can now be seen all over Pinterest, TikTok, and other platforms. After dozens of practice with baking and decorating these cakes, I would love to share my tips and tricks!
Recommended Products
Trader Joe’s Baking Mix (a personal favorite) or your preferred box mix/recipe
Your choice of buttercream/cream cheese frosting
Turntable, spatulas, and scrapers (not required but helpful)
1. Preparing the Cake
Making the cake batter may not be complex, but your setup also matters. This includes preheating your oven and preparing your cake pans. Most cakes will be baked at 350ºF, however, to make flatter cakes and avoid having to cut off round tops, I set my oven to 325ºF. This will take longer to bake, but it ensures you don’t have to level your cakes. Next, having two cake pans comes in handy when splitting up your batter to make two layers. To prevent the cake from sticking to the edges of the pan, I’d advise cutting out parchment paper for the bottom and sides of the cake pan. You can use oil or butter to stick it to the sides.
2. Crumb Coating
If you’ve watched baking videos before, you’ve probably heard of a crumb coat. This is a thin layer of frosting that holds layers together, smooths out uneven bumps or cracks, and traps crumbs so they won’t show in the final coat.
After my cakes are fully baked, which I find out using the toothpick test, I let them cool completely. Then, I coat them with simple syrup to keep them moist, which is completely optional! Personally, I always put my cakes on cake boards for presentation and stability, but I do not use one during the crumb coating process.
Once you are ready to do so, place your first layer on the turntable and spread out your preferred amount of frosting between layers. Sometimes I like to add fillings such as Nutella, ganache, flavored buttercream, strawberries, or other delicious combinations. If you choose to do this, create a border with a piping bag or spatula with your normal frosting so the filling doesn’t leak out or overflow. Next, stack the second layer with the smoothest side facing upwards as evenly as possible. You can patch up certain rough spots or smooth out any crumbs and bumps on the top. In the crumb coating stage, it is not important to make it pretty, but also to make sure spots are filled in and crumbs are trapped. After your crumb coat is sufficient, you can pop your cake in the freezer for 1-3 hours.
https://cakebycourtney.com/tip-tuesday-how-to-fill-your-piping-bag/
3. Decorating
Now that you’ve mastered the crumb coat, you can move on to the best part, decorating! Before you start, make sure you have enough frosting and separate it into different colors. If this is your first time decorating a vintage cake, you should look up a reference photo of simple patterns that you like. Additionally, make sure you prepare your piping bags and leave some leftover frosting for your final coat. Keep in mind this is a lot of frosting, so to be safe, I recommend making two batches, or I like to premake larger batches of frosting. For your piping bags, you can stick the piping tip in by itself or attach a connector piece for smaller or more precise tips. At first, it can be difficult to fill a piping bag, so here’s a quick guide.
Now that you are ready, take your cake out of the freezer and put on a final coat. I like to start by putting all of the frosting on the top and slowly spreading it out to the sides. I use a spatula to distribute it easily and a large scraper to smooth the sides evenly. After you are satisfied with your final coat, pop your cake in the freezer for 10-60 minutes.
When your final coat is frozen, you can pipe on decoration! This is completely up to you, but I always like to start with the top and bottom borders. Depending on how complex I decided to make the cake, I might add decorations on the sides such as edible pearls, sugar flowers, fondant, and more. With my fondant, I like to make fake candles or funny interpretations of people for their birthdays. Finally, I top off my cake with a message and enjoy it with family or friends!
Remember, making cakes is supposed to be fun and not a stressful process. While it can be time-consuming and tiring, the end result is worth it. Plan out your cake beforehand by preparing for upcoming steps and taking breaks between chilling periods. Good luck!
Photos Courtesy of:
@izzythebaker on Instagram; @aprilsbakerslondon on Instagram
Edited by: Katarina Radulovic '24, Natalia Cseh '23, and Ms. Brilliant
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