I love freezing cakes and cupcakes. I actually think they taste better and are more moist when they’re frozen first. If you freeze them the right way, there is no way anyone can tell that they’ve been frozen…as long as you follow these tips.
I like to do things ahead of time. I’m not really a procrastinator and I’m not one of those people who thrive on last minute stress. I like to bake my cakes in advance and I thought why not share with you how I freeze them. I think there are a lot of people who don’t realize that you CAN freeze cakes and cupcakes successfully.
Freezing cakes and cupcakes is such a time saver, especially if you have a cake business as a side job, or if you just like doing things ahead of time.
How to Freeze Cakes & Cupcakes:
I never have freezer burn on my cakes, probably because I go a little overboard on wrapping them, but I thought I’d share with you my tips and tricks.
By the way, you can get to two of my favorite cake recipes by clicking these links:
Favorite Vanilla Bean Cake Recipe
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Freezing Cakes:
When I pull my cakes out of the oven, I set them on racks to cool for 10 minutes. I don’t let them sit in their pans any longer than that.
After ten minutes, I then turn them out of their pans and onto the racks to cool completely. I’ve heard of people actually wrapping their warm cakes and sticking them directly into the freezer, but honestly that makes me a little nervous. Isn’t it moisture that causes freezer burn? I just don’t want steam in there when I wrap them up, so I let them cool almost completely.
I may have mentioned it a time or two, but I have a love-affair with Press-n-Seal Wrap. I can’t seem to work regular saran wrap. Call me weird, but it always just crinkles up on me and sticks to itself. I find TOO clingy. Press-n-seal is just so much easier to use.
I take a large piece of press-n-seal and set it sticky side down on the counter, set my cake layer on it and wrap it up. (Oh, yeah, I also go ahead and cut the domes off the cakes, if there are any. You don’t have to do this right now though. You can certainly do this after you’ve defrosted them.)
I then set a second piece of press-n-seal sticky side up on my counter, set the cake (seam side down) on it and wrap it up.
Next I take a strip of foil and wrap them up. Here’s my method: I press down the ends of the foil, fold them in like a present and then roll up the ends. Wrapping it like that, keeps the foil from denting into the cake, or causing the cake to get misshapen.
After I’ve wrapped it once with foil, I’ll place the cake layer (seam side of the foil face down) and then wrap it up all over again.
I’ll then put a piece of tape on the top and write what kind of cake it is, the size and the date.
Yes I do use a lot of materials, but like I said, I never get freezer burn. It’s possible you only really need one layer of foil, and that’s totally okay if you’re making cakes for home, but when I was selling cakes, I wanted to be dang sure, they were as fresh as I could get them and just went the extra mile.
By the way, you can find the video on the process toward the end of the post!
How to Freeze Cupcakes:
Freezing cupcakes is almost the same procedure. I take my cupcakes out of the oven and let them set in the pan, on the rack for ten minutes.
Then I take my cupcakes out of the pan and set them on the racks to cool almost completely.
I spread out a strip of press-n-seal (sticky side down) and set 6 to 8 cupcakes on it and then wrap it up.
I then set another strip of press-n-seal on the counter (sticky side up) and wrap them up again.
Next, I place one or two of these cupcake packets into a gallon freezer bag. I label the bag with the flavor and date.
Again, it may be a little overkill with the wrapping, but I’d rather be safe than sorry and I’ve never had a cake or cupcake come out of the freezer with freezer burn. Another tip is that I don’t like to keep my cakes frozen over three weeks.
How to Defrost Cakes and Cupcakes:
I think most people would assume you just take the cakes or cupcakes out of the freezer and their packaging to let them defrost, but YOU DON’T WANT TO DO THAT! Ok, I’m sorry I yelled at you, but I had to get your attention.
Here’s what you DO want to do: Take your cakes or cupcakes out of the freezer, but leave them in their packaging to defrost. The reason? Well, defrosting will cause some condensation and if you leave them in their packaging, then the condensation will form on the outside of the packaging and NOT on your cakes or cupcakes.
Too much moisture on your cakes can cause air bubbles when you try to ice it. The icing may go on smoothly, but a couple hours later, you’ll look at the cake and there will be a blow out or icing bubble on the side of it. As for cupcakes, if you allow condensation to build on the actual cupcake, it could cause the liners to pull away from the cupcake, or perhaps the icing won’t stick to the cupcake.
Ok, now it’s your turn to try freezing your cakes and cupcakes and tell me what you think! I think you’ll be surprised at how fresh they taste…liked you just baked them actually.
Oh and here’s a quick video I made to show you the whole process!
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Hi Kara,
So glad I found your site!! Yours seem easier to understand and do. I have a question. So if I freeze both cake layers and frosting ahead, defrost them, then decorate; can I put them in the frig for one day all assembled, then place them to go to room temperature that day? Will it condensate in the frig? Help, I have never done this, always wanted to. This cake is for my granddaughters 1st birthday, and want it special. Hope it turns out, or there goes the emergency trip to the store!
I usually defrost everything at room temp. When I decorate, I usually just keep everything room temp, unless there’s something perishable in the filling or icing. (Regular American buttercream is fine to be left out on the counter.)
When I fill my cakes, I usually do a super thin crumb coat on the cake and then cover it loosely with saran wrap or press-n-seal. I leave it out of the fridge and wait a couple hours if I can to let the cake ‘settle’ before adding the final coat of buttercream to the outside. I do this because by letting the cake settle, you’re less likely to get air bubbles (buttercream blowouts) or icing ridges in your final cake.
So…After you decorate the cake, it really doesn’t hurt it to keep it in the fridge. I tend to leave mine, out, but it’s fine to keep it chilled if you’re more comfortable with that. You do run the risk of it getting condensation on it once you set it out though. If you’re using dark buttercream colors, it might be an issue, but if it’s all white buttercream, usually that’s fine. If you keep it in the fridge, just keep it in a cake box and then I usually cover my box with press n seal or regular saran wrap. When you take it out of the fridge, just leave it in the box covered on the counter or table for at least half an hour before you open it up and hopefully then the condensation will stay on the outside of the box and not on the cake. I hope all that made sense!
Hi Kara, I’m a new subscriber and I understand that this was an old post, but still hoping you’ll entertain me. I live in the Caribbean where it’s either always raining or very, very hot. I’ve had two experiences with cake bubbles or blow outs under my fondant (it’s ugly)… But because our room temperature here turns butter into oil, I’m thinking of using an air conditioned room… But what’s the highest temperature you might recommend? Also, why does moisture cause the blow outs tho? I’m sorry… I’ve been trying to get an answer for what causes the blow outs and you’re the first to offer a solution. I’m just trying to grasp the science.
Hi Krystal. I understand the problem with blow outs…they can definitely be a real pain. I’ll tell you what I do to prevent blowouts that seems to really help. I decorate my cakes at room temperature. My room temp is about 72-77 F. I wouldn’t go too much warmer than that or your buttercream will get soft, like you mentioned in your comment. I seem to get the blow outs when I don’t let the cake layers settle. Basically what I do is just add the cake layers and filling and then cover the cake lightly with wrap. I don’t cover it in buttercream or anything else yet. I keep it room temp and let it settle either over night, or a couple hours at least. This lets any air that’s trapped between the layers come out. It just allows the cake and buttercream to settle. Once it’s settled, I then cover it in buttercream, ganache, or whatever I’m decorating with. I don’t refrigerate my cakes, unless there’s some kind of perishable filling. I’ve found when I chill them first and then decorate them, somehow condensation forms between the cake and the icing and that’s when a blow out can occur.
I know that many cake decorators have no problem chilling cakes and decorating them cold etc., but I have always had issues when I do that. If it’s chilled, decorated and then chilled again immediately, you may not have any problems with blowouts until it comes to room temp.
As far as the science behind the blowouts…I really don’t know exactly. It’s like a combination of the condensation (moisture) that’s on the chilled cake, not allowing the buttercream to really adhere and/or it could be air trapped in the cake the comes out because it wasn’t allowed to fully settle before adding the outside buttercream or fondant.
My answer was pretty long, but I hope it’s at least a little helpful!
Please how do I retain the colour of my red velvet cake, each time I freeze it and take it out for use, the colour dims.
Hmmm that’s interesting. I’m not exactly sure I have an answer for you. I’d just make sure to cover it really well in addition to covering it with foil. Let it defrost while still in the wrappings and see if that helps.
Hi there!
Am I able to bake and frost cupcakes and then freeze them? I have a function and I will be out of town up until the morning of the event. I was hoping to make the cupcakes a week ahead of time and freeze them. Any thoughts? How would I successfully wrap frosted cupcakes to prevent freezer burn?
I don’t normally freeze them with the icing on, but I know it can be done. The only thing I would worry about though is condensation that might cause the icing to slide off the cupcakes when they defrost, but I don’t know if that would actually happen. What you could try is once they’re baked and iced, pop them in the freezer for just a little bit, like maybe 10 minutes or so and let them get pretty firm. Then pull them out and wrap them up in plastic wrap and add them to a ziplock bag, then pop back into the freezer. The only thing is that normally when you take cake out of the freezer to defrost, you’d leave the wrappings on while it defrosts so that the condensation is on the outside of the wrappings and not the cake itself. However with the cupcakes already being iced, if you don’t take the plastic wrap off them before they defrost then the icing could get messed up, but then you’d be dealing with condensation on them that may or may not cause issues. You could freeze the cupcakes and the buttercream separately and then ice them once they all defrost, or you could get a plastic container that has a cover and freeze them in that. That may work better because then you could leave the lid on them while they defrost. I know this answer was a bit long, but I’m just thinking out loud. 😉 I hope this helps!
Hi! I’m hoping you’ll still be able/willing to respond even though this is post is a few years old.
I followed your instructions and froze a batch of cupcakes and then thawed them on my counter at room temp in their wrap, but my cupcakes, while moist and wonderful inside, are sooo incredibly sticky outside! I’m at a loss for what to do. Please help D:
Hi Madison. Yes cupcakes tend to do that quite often after they’ve been frozen, or even just chilled. (Well that’s my experience anyway.) At least you know your cupcakes are moist, right? Sometimes I just lay a paper towel over them and press down gently. That can soak up a bit of that moisture and it seems to help. You could just let them sit out for a bit after you’ve used the paper towel trick and let the tops dry out some, but I don’t like to do that because generally cupcakes dry out really quickly and I don’t want the whole cupcake to be dry. The second thing is after using the paper towel, I just don’t worry about the tops being moist or sticky. They’ll have icing on them and generally that will cover up anything, so it should be fine. Let me know if you have anymore questions!
Hi Kara. I love this post of yours. I have to bake my sister-in-laws wedding cake for April (my first wedding cake.nervous…) Can I use wax paper to cover my cakes before freezing them?
Hi I’m so glad the post was helpful! I have never tried using wax paper. I’m not sure if it would seal it as well as the plastic wrap and foil though, so I can’t promise anything. I wouldn’t test it on her cake though. I mean if you have time to test it on a smaller cake beforehand, you could, but I know it’s safe to use the plastic wrap and foil though. Hope this helps.
I love this very helpful site of yours, but I don’t know how to do the step of pasting! anyway I am on your site and I love it and learned so much! Thanks, Carol
Hi Carol, I’m glad you’re finding it helpful! Glad to have you here! 🙂
Have you froze a cake with fruit in it? I’m planning on making a blueberry lemon cake. I would love to make further in advance than a few day. my concern with freezing would be what would the frozen blueberries to the sponge during defrosting.
thanks for the tips!
Christina, I don’t remember if I’ve ever frozen a blueberry cake before. I know I’ve frozen blueberry pancakes and they were totally fine when defrosted. I’ve frozen banana cake and strawberry cake and they were also fine. I’m thinking it should probably be fine though.
Wow! What great instructions and comments!!!
I have a buttercake request. 3tiers, choc and vanilla. I am nervous about stacking buttercake, but with dowel and cardboard cakeboards between the layers I am hopeful (hevens help me if it doesn’t!!)
My concern is around if I freeze and then bring back to room temp that the cake will be too crumbly and soft as I add the buttercream icing. Have you had this problem?
Hi Donna, If you cover your cake layers really well with plastic wrap and foil before freezing then defrost the cake in the wrapping, the texture of the cake shouldn’t change. Freezing it and defrosting it shouldn’t make it more crumbly…at least it hasn’t for me. I normally cover my buttercream cakes at room temperature, but some people like to chill their cakes before frosting. Just do what works for you.
As far as stacking goes, just make sure you’ve got a cake board under each tier and use dowels that are all cut the same size. Check that your tiers are level with a mini level. That’s important because if they aren’t sitting level, the cake could topple over. I have another post on the site that may help explain all that. You can find it here: https://iscreamforbuttercream.com/anatomy-of-a-decorated-cake/
I hope everything goes well!
Hi, Kara. I’d like to freeze some cupcakes for my son’s birthday party. I’m planning on filling them with chocolate ganache. Do you think I could fill them with the ganache and then freeze them, or should I freeze them unfilled? I’d like to do ask many steps ahead of time, so I’m not in a rush the day of the party. Thanks!
Hey Stephanie, This probably isn’t what you want to hear, but I would probably just freeze them plain and then add the ganache filling once they’re thawed out. I’m SOOOO with you about doing things ahead of time. That’s definitely me, but I think it would just be a better consistency if you filled them once defrosted. Ganache can get weird on you if it gets moisture in it. You could add the ganache the day before the party though…I think that would be just fine. Hope this helps!
Hey there! Have you ever tried filling and crumb coating your cakes and then freezing them? Is that recommended? Also, if not, could you fill/coat before they thaw? Thanks for the advice 🙂
Hi Martina, I know there are people who do that and have no problem with it at all. I’m not one of those people though. 😉 The condensation that forms on cakes when they’re thawing out, can wreak havoc later on when you’re trying to ice and decorate them. I just try to freeze each layer and then let them thaw completely in their wrappings, then add the filling and decorate. I don’t fill or ice them when they’re frozen or even cold. There are people who do that and that seems to work for them, but I always have problems later on with icing bulges and blowouts if I ice a cold cake. I have an entire post about that if you’d like to check it out here: https://iscreamforbuttercream.com/should-i-refrigerate-my-cake-before-decorating/
I will say that each person is different and we each have our own way of doing things. One way isn’t right and one way isn’t wrong…it’s just what works best for you.
Hi Kara, first of all thank you for this post. i wanted to ask in your experience does this method work with all kinds of cakes? say Angel food cake, chiffon and sponge cakes?
I’m planning to make one of those cakes and freezing it, it will be transported to a location that an hour and a half away, and then frozen again. will freezing thawing and freezing a cake again change its consistency. thank you in advance for your time.
Hi Carmen, thanks for your question. I don’t make a lot of Angel Food and chiffon type cakes, so I’m not sure if that would make a difference, or not. My guess is that they would probably be okay as long as they’re wrapped really well. I don’t know that thawing them and then refreezing them is a good idea though. That’s generally when you get texture problems…when you refreeze things. If you could keep it mostly frozen during the transport, that would probably be better. Maybe add it to an ice chest or something?
thank you so much for your quick response.
You’re welcome and I hope everything works out!
Thank you for all the helpful tips. I’m going to be baking a grand manier cake that calls for a grand manier simple sugar soak, do you recommend doing this before freezing or apply after thawing. Thank you cake guru!
‘Cake guru’…I love it! 😉 Ok, now to your question…I would probably do this after freezing and then fully thawing. I would be concerned about what it would do to the texture of the cake when frozen and then thawed. I think the safest and best bet is to do it afterwards…that’s what I would do. I hope it all goes well! 🙂
I use your method for freezing cakes and cupcakes, works great. Will pumpkin spice freeze well? Also for about 2-3 weeks left frozen? Thanks.
Hi Rebecca, I’m glad it’s been working for you! So do you mean pumpkin spice cake? If so, then yes it should be just fine. I’ve frozen pumpkin bread tons of times (which is super close to pumpkin cake) and it’s always been fine. And freezing cake for 2-3 weeks should be fine as well. I do that all the time. 🙂
Hi Kara,
What are your thoughts on freezing cupcakes that were baked with an oreo cookie at the bottom of the liners? I have a busy schedule and love freezing a few days ahead but am afraid of the cookie becoming soggy.
Thank you!
Hmmm yeah I tend to agree with you. I haven’t frozen those types of cupcakes, but I’d be afraid it would get soggy as well.
hi Kara
i was wondering how long cakes last unfrosted in the freezer?
thank you
Linda
I like to freeze mine no longer than about three weeks for maximum freshness. They’re good for longer than that, but I just feel like they’re best before about three weeks or at the most four.
Hi I realize this was posted a while ago but I might as well ask. I’m looking to freeze two cakes for just a few days do you think I could just use plastic wrap if I can’t find the press-n-seal at my supermarket? Have you ever tried it with plastic wrap or heard of someone who did and the cake come out just as well?
Yes you can use regular plastic wrap. I’ve used it myself and it works just fine. I just like the press-n-seal because it sticks to itself and I get get a better seal. But you can wrap it real well with the regular plastic wrap and it should be fine.
Hi Kara,
I was wondering how long it typically takes for the cakes to defrost at room temperature. I’m making my daughter’s first birthday cake and want to make sure I have everything timed properly. Thanks!
It really depends on how big the layers are. Smaller ones will defrost much quicker. I don’t have an exact time, but I’d give yourself a couple hours just to be safe. I normally just set them out on the counter the night before I need them, or in the morning if I’ll be using them that afternoon. Hope this helps!
Hi! I used this method for freezing cupcakes for my daughters party this weekend, and I was wondering how long should I allow them to thaw for?
It really depends on how large the cake layers are. I’d usually just set them out on the counter and go off to work and when I came back, they would be defrosted, or just set them out before you go to bed and they’ll be defrosted in the morning. It really only takes about a few hours at room temp. for regular sized 8″ round cake layers. You want to leave them in their wrappings though while they’re defrosting.
Will this work with gluten free cakes and cupcakes too? Making 75 cupcakes for my daughter’s wedding, who is celiac, so we are making the desserts ourselves. Would love to make the cupcakes the week before and freeze them because we will have a lot to do the last few days before the wedding. If we frost them the day before the wedding, do we have to cover them after? Will they stay fresh till the next evening? Thanks so much!
Jamie, I think freezing gluten free cakes and cupcakes would be fine. I haven’t personally tried it, but I did a quick search online and it looks like it should be just fine. I can’t think of any reason why it shouldn’t work. So if you frost them the day before, that should be fine too. I used to do that a lot. You do want to cover them well though, because cupcakes will dry out super fast. I don’t normally keep mine in the fridge, because that seems to dry them out quicker, but if you have perishable icing on them, you’ll have to chill them. I like to put my cupcakes in large plastic containers with lids, or you can get large cake boxes with cupcake inserts. I have a whole post on how I keep cupcakes from drying out. You can see that here: https://iscreamforbuttercream.com/keep-cupcakes-from-drying-out/ I hope this helps and I hope everything goes well!
Hi,
I do leave my cakes to cool completely before icing them. But i cover them with a plastic and cloth on top. When i open the cake before icing it has a soft top like raw batter? How come is that?
I bake my cakes in a gas stove and like most recipes on 350.
Are you covering the cake with plastic when it’s still warm? That could be the issue with the sticky top. I let mine cool completely before covering with plastic wrap. It also may be because you just have moist cakes, which is a good thing. Sometimes a sticky top just happens though. 😉