Keeping cake cool during outdoor reception?

RaziaBoros

Hello everyone! We are fortunate enough to have my FI's aunt making our cake for us but we're running into a potential problem: she only does butter cream frosting, and our reception will be held outdoors in August. Does anyone have any tips for how to keep the cake (or moreso the frosting) from melting?

kaesha

We had a buttercream icing too, and had an outdoor reception in Hawaii, so it's totally possible to have the buttercream! Just keep it in the shade, only have it out for an hour - MAX, so you'd cut it at the beginning of the reception and then send it back to be plated by the caterers right away.

bbyckes

We're having an outdoor wedding and also a buttercream cake.  Our ceremony is at 7p, so I'm just hoping and praying everything works out. 

Danielle&Nanne

I have a recipe for high humidity icing if you'd like it.  It tastes quite a lot like buttercream, and I used it to make my brother's cake for his outdoor wedding, which was 84 degrees.

The bridesmaids ate the leftover icing with spoons after the reception, so I think I got their vote on taste.

edit:  The cake was outside for several hours, and the icing didn't fall or slide off, but it was in a tent, so shaded.  

RaziaBoros

Danielle, I would greatly appreciate that recipe! We're definitely planning to keep it shaded and we even have access to fans if necessary, so I'm hoping it won't get too warm. Love the idea of being able to have it out for more than one hour - especially since set-up and cutting is all being done by family, so we'd like to be able to set it up, cut it, and serve it all in the same place.

felkels

My baker said that butter cream should be served at room temp, so coming directly from her fridge, it should be out for a few hours before ready to eat anyway.  I am trusting her on this, as I have had a fear of cakes sliding.  We will have it under a tent though.

RaziaBoros

The problem of the cake sliding shouldn't be an issue for us, because we're using one of those cake stands that makes it look like the tiers are floating, so all the tiers are separate.

cai0311

Use shortening instead of butter in the icing and you won't have any problems.  Well, I take that back.  You will have the problem of every bug in a 30 mile radius finding and sticking to your cake.  Might want to consider fondant for that very reason.

seoulgirl71

Tell your aunt to use shortening only and use hi-ratio shortening.  It hold us much, much better in higher humidity and heat than Crisco.  It's pricey, but worth it.  If she doesn't have a cake shop nearby then she'll have to order it online.  It's the only thing I use with my cakes.