To use a cake icing machine, place your chilled, centered cake on the turntable and secure the cake board. Apply a loose, consistent icing to crumb coat and fill the cake, using a spatula to smooth and clean the excess icing off the scraper. Repeat for each layer, working from the top down, and fill in any gaps as needed.
Before You Start
Before You Start
- Chill the cake:
A cold cake is more stable, preventing it from shifting or crumbling while the machine spins. - Prepare the turntable:
Securely attach the cake board to the turntable with double-sided foam tape to prevent the cake from flying off the machine. - Adjust the machine:
Adjust the vertical bar to accommodate the cake board and ensure the cake is centered and not touching the arm. - Prepare your icing:
Have a large piping bag filled with loose, smooth buttercream ready.
- Crumb Coat: Apply a thin layer of icing to the cake to trap loose crumbs.
- Apply Icing: Use a spatula to place a large amount of icing on top of the cake and on the sides.
- Smooth the Icing: Start by working from the top of the cake, and then work your way down the sides, smoothing and spreading the icing to achieve a sharp edge.
- Clean the scraper: Scrape excess icing off the machine's scraper before it builds up too much, as this can pull icing off the cake.
- Repeat if necessary: Repeat the process to build up the frosting to your desired thickness.
- Don't overfill the piping bag: Use two piping bags to avoid having to stop and refill.
- Stop the machine: Don't feel like you have to keep the machine spinning continuously; stop it to smooth gaps with a spatula.
- Start slow: Begin at a low speed to get a feel for the machine before increasing the speed.