3 Leftover Cake Ideas - No Cake Goes to Waste
Ok, so the wedding or birthday celebration is over. You've danced, enjoyed conversations with friends & family, reveled in the momentous occasion, and now, it's time to clean up. We have a few ideas to help assist with one aspect of this process and do we do dare mention, it's also one of our favorites!
Here at designLEE Studio, we've been invited to a lot of events and a common question or reoccurring theme arises...
"What do we do with all this left-over cake?"
Julia Child said it best, "a party without a cake is just a meeting."
When we party, we take our cakes seriously! It's the centerpiece of the room, the climax to every celebration and we can't wait until the guest of honor cuts the first slice! As much as we love cake, we would NEVER let a slice go to waste. So today we celebrate the many ways that extra left-over cake can be put to good use and while eating a slice the next day is good, let's be innovative and have some fun with it.
1. Cake Pops
A cake pop is a form of cake styled as a lollipop. Cake crumbs are mixed with icing or chocolate and formed into small spheres or cubes, then dipped in a coating of icing. The cake pops are then decorated and attached to lollipop sticks.What's nice about cake pops is the variation of design elements that can be added. The possibilities are limitless and range from the flavor of the cake itself to colors, and candy toppings, such as sprinkles and candies. Any variation can be used to make party themes or just cool designs. Cake pops are easy on-the-go delectables that also offer portion-control.
CELEBRATION CAKE POPS RECIPE FROM LEFTOVER CAKE
Makes 8 cake pops
Ingredients
4 cups Leftover Cake
1/3 cup Cream Cheese frosting
8oz Candy Chocolate Melts
½ cup Decorative Topping (Sprinkles, Coconut, Chocolate Shavings, Cookie Crumbles)
8 Cake pop sticks
Directions
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In a small bowl, scrape as much of the frosting off the top and sides of the leftover cakeand set to the side. If your cake uses fondant, scrape off and discard the fondant.
- In a large bowl, crumble the leftover cake.
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As needed, add a small spoonful of reserved frosting and cream cheese frosting to the crumble and mix. The mixture should resemble a fudge brownie. The mixture shouldform tightly, but not wet.
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Using a small ice cream scooper or your hands, form the mix into firm balls.
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Take the candy melts and microwave for 30 seconds at a time until melted. Careful not to overheat in the microwave, remove and stir just as the chips begin melting.
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Dip the tips of the cake sticks into the melted chocolate, then take the sticks and gently press them into the center of the cake balls about halfway through. If the cake balls are falling apart, add another spoonful of frosting and mix to become firmer. Place the cakeballs on a wax paper-lined cookie sheet and freeze for 30-40 minutes.
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Reheat the chocolate melts if needed. Dip the cake pops into the melted chocolate and top with sprinkles or decoration of your choice.
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Chill the cake pops in the refrigerator for another 30-40 minutes or until the chocolate hardens.
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Serve and Enjoy!
2. Cake Shakes
Did she just say cake shake? Yes, a cake shake. We're shaking things up a bit and giving a littlelife to that left-over cake AND ice cream in the fridge. Plus, we adore them both so why notdeconstruct them into a dairy delight! In Chicago, we got our first test of this delight at thepopular diner "Portillo's" who is famous for their chocolate cake shake, but oh how the game haschanged, and cake shakes are now quite Art Deco.
Cake shakes are all about the presentation, so tap into your creative energy. For starters, giveyour shake that special touch and think about the "type" of glass you'd like to serve your shakein, such as; a mason jar or a 1950's milkshake glass.
You can go all out by topping off your cake shake with a chunk of cake or you can go the simpleroute and add a cute colored paper straw. It's all about flavor and creativity.
CELEBRATION CAKE SHAKE
Makes 2 servings
Ingredients
4 cups Vanilla Ice Cream
1 big slice (2 cups) Cake
1/4 cup MilkWhipped cream (as needed)
Directions
- Combine ice cream and cake into a blender and mix. The shake will be slightly thick.
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Add milk to the blender to smooth out the consistency. Depending on the cake andamount of frosting you can add just a splash more milk andblend.
- Pour into glass and top with whipped cream.
For an extra special touch, garnish with an ingredient from the cake! For example, sprinkles for birthday cake, cinnamon for carrot, or chocolate shavings for chocolate cake.
For adults! Add 2oz of Coffee or Cream liqueur in place of milk.
3. Freezing Your Cake
With a beautiful cake attached to so many precious memories, you'll find that freezing your cakeand saving it for a later time allows you have a tasty snapshot of your special moments. Manycakesfreeze so well and taste fresh when frozen and thawed properly that you may have tastedone and wouldn't even know it. If you are a soon-to-be bride, you may want to freeze your toplayer and thaw it out to enjoy it at a later time.
Start Pre-Freezing the cake by placing it in the freezer unwrapped for a few hours. After a few hours, remove the cake from the freezer and wrap the cake tightly in plastic wrap and not foil.Since the frosting is frozen, you won't have to worry about it sticking to the plastic wrap. Be sureto use plastic wrap and not foil, this will keep it from drying out, keeps it fresh longer, andminimizes any odors that can be picked up from the freezer.
Take Extra Precaution!
For slices: Place pre-wrapped slices inside of a freezer storage bag making sure to remove asmuch air as possible.
For the top tier: Place the wrapped cake back in the cake box, then into the freezer.
Whether you want to follow tradition and wait oneyear to slice it up, or maybe you are cravingthat delicious treat a month or two later, be sure to defrost it properly in the refrigerator at least24 hours before enjoying it.
We'd love to hear your thoughts and see some of the fun and creative ways you utilized your leftover cake. Share those thoughts with us below.
