Here are all of my tips for how to serve a cake: tall cakes, tier cakes, shaped cakes, and more!
Cakes should be at room temperature when you serve them. They're easier to cut into when the cake, filling and frosting aren't cold and hard. Also, both cake and buttercream taste best when they’re not cold. Ideally, take cakes out of the fridge two to four hours before you cut into them.
When you finish making a cake you can serve it straight away at room temperature. However, it will be the most crumbly this way, since the filling and frosting haven’t set in the fridge. Your knife will drag through the slice and leave crumbs in the filling. It will still taste delicious though, which is the most important thing!
For the neatest slices, use a warm knife to cut the cake. Hold a knife under warm running water or fill a glass with warm water and dip your knife into it. Then dry the knife on a towel or paper towel. Do this in between each cut. The warm metal will slice cleanly through the cake, filling and frosting.
I saw this tip on Instagram, on Baked by Dan’s account. He shows that cutting sideways will prevent crumbs dragging through your filling. It's a bit awkward but look at the neat slice this makes, with no crumbs in the filling:
For tall cakes, avoid traditional wedge-style slices that make very large portions. Instead, use this cutting board technique. It’s less tricky than cutting wedges, where the middle part tends to get left behind as you lift each slice out.
Slice all the way across the cake, an inch or two from the edge. Tip the slice over onto a cutting board and then cut it in half and in half again. This makes four long, thin portions.
This is my preferred method because everyone can choose how much frosting they want on their slice. Frosting lovers can choose the edge pieces and people with less of a sweet tooth can choose a middle piece. With this method, even the final slices are easy to cut, compared to wedges where the final few tend to topple over!
If you don’t finish a cake you can save the leftovers. Press cling film against the cut sides, pushing it flat against the cake. Use pressure along the cut edge of the frosting to attach it. This will stop the cake from drying out. Now you can refrigerate the cake for a week and enjoy the leftovers!
To save leftover slices of cake, first put them in the freezer for 5 minutes to set the frosting. Then wrap them in cling film or saran wrap. The plastic won’t mess up the frosting because the frosting has already set in the freezer. Now freeze the wrapped slices until you have a craving for something sweet. It's also a great option when you need a last minute dessert for an unexpected guest! After freezing, take the slice out and leave it on the counter for about 4 hours to come to room temperature before eating.
Tier cakes, double barrel cakes and shaped cakes may have an internal support structure. This just means there are support straws or dowels holding up a cake board in the middle of the cake for stability. In case you're wondering how to serve a cake with supports, it's easier than you think! Slice the top tier while it’s still on top on the cake. You'll feel your knife hit the cake board at the bottom of this cake. When you’ve cut all of the top cake into slices, lift up the board below. You'll see the bottom half of the cake underneath. Cut the bottom part of the cake as normal!
This is how to serve most sculpted or carved cakes, like this Bulbasaur Pokemon cake. They look intimidating but they’re just as simple to serve as a regular round cake!
If you forget to pack a knife, like on this camping trip, two forks work to cut slices. They’re not the neatest but in situations like this, no one will care!
I hope this has been useful! You can also watch a video of this tutorial on 8 tips for how to serve a cake:
Save this tutorial to Pinterest for later with one of these pins: