To serve this cake?

[runlift]

I got a bit keen, well had some spare time and made two sponge birthday cakes. I've sandwiched them together with buttercream and apricot jam and covered entirely with buttercream icing, then tin foil and a tea towel to protect from the air. I need to decorate them, which I have time to do on Friday.

However the party is on sun. I made the cake yesterday afternoon. Is it too long?! Should I keep it in the fridge? Or remake? It's for 7 year olds.

Freeze it op it should be ok

Freeze freeze freeze!
What is crumb coating?

Unless you buttercream and then cover in fondant it will be stale. Youd be better off not coating in butter cream yet and wrapping the cake tightly in many layers of cling film and then freezing and defrosting to cover and decorate... cakes that are frozen often have a better texture as more moist. Lots of professional cake bakers freeze their cakes for texture reasons alone.

Crumb coating is where you do a thin layer of buttercream to seal the cake and stop the crumbs spoiling your fondant or royal icing.

I’m a very keen baker and pride myself on my cakes.

Plain sponge cake (uncut and stored in tin/airtight) will be ‘fine’ for 5-7 days - certainly won’t make anybody ill! It’ll be at its best’ for 2-3 days.

Refrigerating sponge isn’t great, it doesn’t do anything for the consistency and you’ll lose the ‘melt in the mouth’ effect. I only refrigerate for a couple of hours to ‘set’ the decor!

Freezing sponge is much the same - not great. Buttercream can be fridged (will harden) and still taste great but freezing it doesn’t work well! In a tin/airtight buttercream is ‘good’ for 3 days. You can eat it after but it’s not great!

Ganache is better stored in the fridge but fine to be put out (buffet/party) for a day (wouldn’t leave out longer though).

In short- if I were you I’d re make it but then again I love baking so it’s not a chore. If you cover it in butter cream I’d store in the fridge until Sunday (the sponge will already be past it’s best so just go with it).

On a side note (just an opinion) but Apricot Jam in a children’s cake is an unusual choice.

Xx

Thank you @thenewaveragebear1983

Eat it!

Today, I mean.

Then make another one.

I have never been able to leave a cake uneaten for several days. It calls out to me.

I absolutely cannot understand people who love baking! What's that about? Why do people like it more than cooking?

I would make another on Saturday - cake isn’t very forgiving. Treat yourself to cake and cuppa now though !

I wouldn’t want to eat it. Two days max.

It's not going to be great and depending on how good your storage is you've a chance of knocking the kids sick. Personally I'd remake them.

I would have frozen the cake. No cake lasts 4 days in this house so I have no idea if it will be stale by then.

Should have frozen the sponges I decorated. I’d say Sunday is probably too long- the buttercream will taste a bit fousty by then even in airtight container. You can freeze it with the buttercream but again it won’t have the best taste or texture.

Undecorated

Will 7 year olds notice? Won't they just shovel it down anyway?

It doesn't sound as though you have an airtight container? If I were you I'd make it again closer the time.

I also agree with PP that apricot jam wouldn't be my first choice for a kids' cake.

I'd freeze it if you've got space. It would need to be in a large tub so it doesn't get knocked, I'd think. I honestly don't think many 7yos pay much attention to what the cake tastes like, or even necessarily bother to eat it. From my experience of birthday cakes (decades back now, thank god) it was all about the decoration and the candles. People seemed genuinely taken by surprise that my cakes tasted good, and based on what I sampled from other kids' parties, I can't say I'm surprised.

I was a professional cake baker for a period and tried lots of methods of freezing, making in advance etc. Here's my advice for basic sponge cake and simple buttercream:

• Make no more than 2 days in advance if you aren't freezing
• Do not put in the fridge if you can avoid it (dries it out)
• Make sponge layers and freeze separately (well wrapped in cling film and then foil), good for about a month, need a couple of hours to defrost. If you are trimming/cutting in half etc do this after it's out of the freezer (also easier)
• You can also put sponge layers overnight in fridge (well wrapped), again do any trimming or cutting after it's been chilled
• Buttercream can be made about 4 days in advance and kept in the fridge, or made about a month in advance and left in freezer
• Always always assemble as the last step, cakes that are completely made and decorated, then put in the freezer do not work.

I'd be pretty annoyed if someone gave my child very old cake to be honest. What's the point in risking the kids getting sick with this nonsense. Just bake a little sponge and ice is the day before. Or make the parents aware of how old the cake is, as see if anyone wants to risk it.

Your child would not get sick from old cake, holidays, cop yourself on!

How could a child get sick from eating old cake? There's no raw egg or cream to go off.

Oh my word, the drama! A child won't get 'sick' from eating a five day old cake so unclench.
I'm curious as to how quickly people get through cakes, does everybody eat the whole cake within two days of baking?! It never hangs around in the tin for a few days? It very often takes us nearly a week at a big slice each a day to get through the whole thing. Granted the last slices aren't always the best so experience taught me to serve extra big slices to get it gone quicker!

Yes, totally fine to freeze it.

Everything @walkintheparc said.

Don't freeze now assembled, don't refrigerate, eat nor & re-make, sure it won't take long.

Fresh home-baking is fabulous. Stale, days-old cake, not so much

@HeadintheiClouds .... 5 day old cake will be stale. Made with eggs (what was their use by date ?) and butter in the icing left out which could turn if temp is too warm. Does not sound sensible to be feeding to other people's kids. Stand by what I said, thank you very much for your comment.