You know that aweful traditon of freezing the top tier of your wedding cake and then eating it on your one year anniversary? Who on earth thought of that! Seriously, a horrible idea. I hate to admit it but we actually followed tradtion, as directed by family of course. My husband was fine but I got incredibly sick. It was so aweful, the memory scarred me. If your a bride to be, I highly recommend the new trend going back to the same baker and having them make you a small cake in the same flavor. No matter what your favorite aunt says, nobody wants year old cake.
So of course when I began making cakes freezing them wasn't even in the cards, no way. But as I began to get really involved I found that my system of baking the cake, icing, and decorating all in one day was just not working. I wanted to keep it as fresh as possible...but I was always on a time crunch and by the end of the day my kitchen looked like a small bomb had went off and Lord knows where the children were (just kidding) . I came across several forums online where bakers chatted about freezing cakes, and some even claimed it made the cake more fresh. So I gave it a try, and it has completely changed the way I bake...seriously. Now I can bake cake the week before and freeze & make the icing and fondant the day before, which leaves me down to just assembling and decorating the day before it's needed. So much easier, and I have noticed no side effects to the cake. So much different then freezing an iced cake for a year ;). When people find out I freeze cakes they are always shocked and want to know more, today I'm finally getting around to that.
Of course you can also freeze cupcakes and cake pops. Which comes in SO handy! I often bake cupcakes in set of 24 but only need 12 so I pop the extras in the freezer. Which comes in great when I need last minute treats or if guests come over and I need a quick dinner dessert. You can also freeze them in singles incase you'd just like them for when your really craving something sweet.
To freeze cupcakes:
Step 1: After you have baked the cupcakes let them cool a bit, once they are just a little warm they can be wrapped. Lay large pieces of seran wrap in an X then place 12 cupcakes in the center. Fold in one side then the other creating a nice seal.
Step 2: Lay out a long piece of foil and place cupcakes in center. Wrap foil around and fold sides in.
Step 3: Slip into a gallon ziplock.
Step 4: Lable with date and flavor.
For cakes you can do the same thing. The only step I add is once I've wrapped the cakes in seran wrap I slip a cake board underneath before wrapping in foil. This helps keeps the bottom flat and makes it easy to transport without breakin the cake. It also helps with stacking the cakes. When I am freezing a cake with lots of layers I stick the first layer in for about and hour, then the second layer and so on going from largest to smallest Generally by the time the second cake comes out of the oven the first one is semi frozen. If you stack many cakes right away after baking they begin to squish. You'll want each cake to freeze a bit before stacking.
I freeze cake pops in a mini cupcake pan. It's the perfect way to keep the cake pops on their own, not sticking to others, in good shape. Just wrap in seran wrap and then foil. Don't forget to label with the date and description.
When your ready to use the cake/cupcake/cake pops remove from freezer and let set on the counter for a few hours until slightly soft. As you let it sit the condensation will gather up on the seran wrap. Then you can just pull it right off, otherwise once defrosted all the water would be in the cake.
Don't forget to label and date! Even if you think your just going to use it in a few days, plans change! I bake and freez my cakes one week before using, and I like to use them up within 2 weeks if not. But I have kept them in their for a month with no problem...any longer then that I can't say for sure.
