You’re in need of a cake, but life gets in the way. Maybe you’re planning on making a cake for a big event or you just had an event and have left over cake or maybe something came up and your event got cancelled or postponed. There are many reasons for needing to freeze a cake, and here is some help on how to do it the right way, so all your efforts don’t go to waste.
How to freeze an unfrosted cake? The best and easiest way to freeze cake is by freezing the unassembled and undecorated layers. First, you want to make sure that the cake has cooled completely from the oven. Once your cake is completely cooled and removed from the pan, you would then need to wrap the individual layers in plastic wrap. You want to wrap the cake snugly, but not so tight that you’re squishing the edges of your cake. I would recommend a minimum of two layers of plastic wrap. You want to make sure that the cake is properly wrapped in plastic wrap.
This is enough protection, but if you’d like to take it a step further you can then put a final layer of aluminum foil and/or place the cake layer in a cardboard box or plastic airtight container or freezer bags. The general idea here is to block out as much air and freezer condensation from the cake as possible. So the more layers that you’ve got between the cake and the freezer, the fresher your cake will stay and the longer it will last in the freezer.
This method works well for loaf cakes, bundt cakes and layer cakes. If you’d like to freeze cupcakes, you can place the cupcakes in a cardboard cake box with a layer of wax paper in between two stacked layers of cupcakes if you’re storing unfrosted cupcakes, or in a single layer if you’re freezing frosted cupcakes. You would then need to wrap the entire box in a layer or more of plastic wrap (the amount of layers is really personal preference, but keep in mind, the more layers, the more protection). Alternatively, you can place the cupcakes into an airtight container and you wouldn’t need to use any plastic wrap at all. I find air tight containers work best for small batches of cupcakes.
How to freeze a cake with icing? Freezing a frosted cake takes a little more thought, and personally not my favourite thing to do. Sometimes life gets in the way though, and you got to do what you got to do. So how do you freeze a frosted cake? First, you need to make sure your frosting is freezer stable. Soft, delicate frostings like meringue based frostings will not freeze well, so if that’s what you’ve got it might be best to scrape the frosting off of the cake or just not freeze it. Sturdier frostings like buttercream or cream cheese frostings will hold up a lot better.
Take the decorated cake and place it on the freezer uncovered until it is totally frozen. This can take an hour or more. You want to be able to touch the cake and not have the icing smear or come off on your finger. Next, you will wrap the frozen cake in two layers of plastic wrap, followed by a layer of aluminum foil. You can then place the wrapped cake into a cardboard cake box if you’d like. This extra step would help protect the cake from being knocked in the freezer as well as adding an additional layer to the cake.
How to freeze a slice of cake? Place your cut slices of cake on to a plate or sheet pan and then place that into the fridge. You can also put this into the freezer to speed up the process. Once the slices are firm enough to handle, you want to wrap each piece individually with plastic wrap. You can then place your wrapped slices into a freezer bag or airtight container. Pro tip: this is a great way to have cake on hand for when you have guests or maybe need a little pick me up.
How to properly defrost a cake? So you’ve frozen your cakes, now you want to eat them. How do you defrost a frozen cake while still maintaining its quality? Luckily defrosting a cake is relatively simple. Take the frozen cake out of the freezer and place it as is into the refrigerator. You want to do this at least eight hours before decorating or serving. For serving a cake though, I always recommend taking it from the fridge and letting it sit at room temperature for 30-60 minutes.
Keep in mind however, that you want to leave all the layers of protection on the cake when you are moving it from the freezer to the fridge. This protects the cake from condensation as it defrosts. You can then unwrap the layers before you move the cake from the fridge to room temperature, that way your frosting (if it’s a frosted cake) won’t peel away with your plastic wrap as it’s removed.
If you’re freezing cake, the next question that you might have is how long can it last before you need to eat it toss it out? The answer might surprise you. According to some experts, once a cake is frozen, wrapped properly and stored correctly, it can keep for nine months to a year and still taste as fresh as the day it was made. I have actually tested this myself. The key to long lasting cake is definitely proper preparation in the wrapping. You want to create many layers of protection between the cake and the cold air of the freezer. It is also good practice to pay attention to what else is stored next to your cake. Freezing or refrigerating your cake next to strong smelling foods can cause the cake itself to absorb those orders. So it would be a bad idea to store you cake next to fish.
Freezing cakes is completely possible and not as terrible as you may have been lead to believe. Just remember, the better your layers of protection, the better the outcome for your frozen cakes.