HOW TO CUT A TALL CAKE

 

I don't know about you but I think a tall cake brings something special to any occasion. Somehow it stands more elegant, outstanding among other decorations causing all the guests to marvel at the beautifully created piece while secretly wishing they could take a bite.

Although we all love the looks of a tall cake the truth is it can be a bit intimidating to cut it if you are not exactly sure of what you are doing.

So, in order to help you, I have put together a quick guide to my favourite technique so you can cut your cake with confidence and no stress.

STEP 1 : REMOVE INEDIBLE PIECES.

It should be the goal of a good cake designer to make the cake as edible as possible but at times structures are needed in order to hold a particular shape or material so you must be careful not to eat those. Ideally, you should receive guidance as to where these structures are.

Note that the unicorn cake in the example has an edible horn, edible flowers and edible ears (all made with sugar paste), however, they all have a toothpick or a skewer internally to hold the structure, therefore, need to be removed before cutting the cake. 

You can place some of the decorations on the sliced cake after if you wish.

STEP 2 : USE A CUTTING BOARD.

Using a solid wood or plastic cutting board (the idea is that the board is firm and won't bend).

Hold the board parallel to the cake and push it right next to the side of the cake. Using a good long knife (I like to use the bread knife) slice the cake tilting it onto the cutting board.

Catch the slice with your cutting board as it falls over.

STEP 3 : CUT THE LARGE SLICE INTO RECTANGULAR SERVINGS.

 

Use your knife to make skinny 2" (5.1 cm) strips of cake from the larger slice, each with frosting on at least one side. Serve the individual strips on a plate to each of your guests.

Once the cake on the board is gone simply repeat the process to get more slices. 

Please note that at the very end the cake will be too thin to stand up. At this stage, it's just easier to tip all of the cake left onto the board to avoid it falling over.

Rectangular slices will sit better on a plate and will ensure your cake will serve the specified amount of guests it was made for since cake servings are calculated as a 2" slice/person.

Well, that's all there is to it.

Thanks for reading this post and I hope it will help you in the future. It may take a little practice but I promise you in no time you will be so confident cutting your tall cakes you won't even remember a time you couldn't do it.

If you’d like to get in touch, you can contact me via email or follow me on Instagram or  Facebook. You can also visit Happy Cake's website to find out more about what I do.

Have a happy day!!

Aline Larkin