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How to Build a 3D Tux Cake
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Step 2: Level the cakes
When the cake has cooled completely, you want to level it. If you have a cake leveler, you can use that. Me, I was taught to go at it freehand. This is much easier if you have a cake turntable. A professional model can cost you anywhere from $40 to over $100, but the one I used cost me only $8. Now, the cake doesn't need to be perfectly flat, but it does need to be perfectly level (the same height all the way around). Figure out what the lowest side of the cake is, and grab your serrated knife. Cut into that side, just below the surface. Go about an inch in. Now, holding your knife steady, turn the cake. Don't move your knife at all. If it's properly sharpened, it will cut. You only want to go about an inch in on the first pass. Right now we're cutting a guide. If you managed to keep your knife steady and level, then the cut marks will touch when you go all the way around. Once you have your guide cut, it's a lot easier to cut through the rest of the cake. Keep your knife level, but you can start sawing a little as you rotate the cake. Once the knife makes it all the way through the cake, go ahead and lift off the scraps. In a professional bakery, you might have cut a little higher, which might leave you with a bumpy top. This isn't so bad, because you're going to be covering it with buttercream later anyway. But we'll get to that.
Once you have the cake levelled, go ahead and flip it back over onto a cake round (you may want to buy extras), wrap it up in plastic wrap, and toss it in the freezer. Now, I'm going to teach you something called "superwrap" by a bakery that I used to work for. Lay out a sheet of plastic wrap on the table. Then lay out another one, same length, right next to it, so that it overlaps by an inch or two. Put your cake in the middle of the plastic wrap, then fold the sides up over it. This way your cake is completely covered, but any stray ends of plastic wrap wont snag on the bottom of the freezer.
Wait, the freezer? Didn't I just say that refrigeration temperatures cause baked goods to go stale faster? Yes, and I'm still saying that. But strangely enough, freezing temperatures not only slow the staling process, they also slow the growth of mold and other "stuff", and freezing will actually keep your cake fresher longer than leaving it on the counter. If you're like me and only have one oven, it may take a few days to bake enough cake. Use the freezer to your advantage.
