Planning your wedding cake

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WEDDING CAKE TIMETABLE
2-3 months before: Make the cakes. When cold, prick at intervals with a fine skewer and spoon some brandy evenly over the surface. Wrap the cakes in greaseproof paper and then in double thickness foil. Store in a cool dry place.

14-20 days before: The baked cakes should have an even top but if not, they can be levelled with a sharp knife. Cover each cake with almond paste and store loosely covered with greaseproof paper in a cool dry place for 4-5 days before applying the first coat of icing.

10-15 days before: Apply the first coat of Royal Icing and leave to dry for 1-2 days.

8-12 days before: Apply the second coat of Royal Icing if necessary and leave to dry for 1-2 days.

7 days before: Complete all further decorating a week before the cake is to be served. Do not assemble a tiered cake until the day.

CHOOSING TIER SIZES 
Choose the sizes of your tiers carefully, avoiding a combination that looks too heavy. Suggested proportions are: 
For a three-tier cake - 30, 23, and 15cm (12, 9 and 6in)
For a two-tiered cake - 30 and 20cm (12 and 8in)
28 and 18cm (11 and 7in)
25 and 15cm (10 and 6in)

Bottom tier
It should be deeper than the upper ones...
25-30cm (10-12in) cakes are generally 7.5cm (3in)deep
18-23cm (7-9in) cakes are 6.5cm (2½in) deep
15cm (6in)diameter cakes are 5cm (2in) deep

NOTE: Don’t attempt to make the larger sizes of cake unless you have an oven to cope with it, as you should allow at least 2.5cm (1in) space between the oven walls and the tin. For a three-tier cake, bake the two smaller cakes together and the largest one separately. You can expect to cut 8-10 portions of cake from each 450g (1lb) cooked weight. For a large reception, it is worth making an extra tier for cutting behind-the-scenes.

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