From a Christmas dinner to a house-warming party, delicious servings of baked goods are always a cherry on the top of celebrations. But when all is said and done, you want to ensure the leftovers are preserved properly. When it comes to cakes, it is always a safe bet to put them in a refrigerator.
If you want to make sure how long can a cake last in the fridge, you are in the right place. Simply put, the period of these confectionaries remaining fresh in a fridge depends on the type of cake you’re storing. In general, these foods remain consumable for around 2-4 days after you have baked them. On the other hand, store-bought cakes can last up to a week or two in a refrigerator.
Just make sure you use plastic wrap and tin foil to cover and seal them carefully. This way, these oven-made delicacies can retain their taste and texture in the cold atmosphere.
Why Should You Keep A Cake In Fridge To Last Longer?
Bakers agree that just-baked cakes taste best, so it is better to eat these desserts within 24 hours of them being made. However, it is natural that sometimes you will have leftovers on the dinner table. In that case, you have the option to keep them fresh so you can repurpose them as a tasty bit of snack the next day!
So keeping them in a refrigerator is necessary; otherwise, they can lose their moisture, and their texture can turn drier. Moreover, a number of cakes contain wet ingredients, such as icings of custard, cream fillings or syrups made of fruits. These elements can play a role in spoiling the cake effectively faster if not preserved correctly. This rule also applies to confectionary items, which use fresh fruits or fresh dairy products such as cream cheese or mascarpone.
A fridge is also able to retain a cake’s shape and structure during summertime. Excessive hot weather can cause the frosting to melt and slide. As a result, these products can lose their airy and spongy exterior. Moreover, this also puts aesthetic beauty of the cake on the line as stylistic decorations can get smeared and smudged.
How Long Can Different Types Of Cakes Last In The Fridge?
As briefly touched on before, based on the ingredients used, fondant cover or the frosting, the lasting period of a cake varies. For example, when you are dealing with a plain and unfrosted cake, it can sustain its quality at room temperature itself. However, to prolong this product’s shelf-life, you can consider putting it in a fridge. This way, plain cakes can last up to a week. Before you keep them in these chilly surroundings, make sure to put these items in an air-tight container. Otherwise, they can dry out faster as they do not have any filling or frosting.
You can also store ganache cakes and products covered in buttercream frosting in a fridge. These items can last around 5 to 7 days. Or, if you have a cake with cream cheese frosting and filling, you must keep it in a colder environment. As cream cheese is perishable, putting it at the proper temperature is essential for its product lifespan. In a fridge, they can remain fresh for 5-6 days.
Additionally, when it comes to cakes with fresh fruit filling and topping, they can last for around 4 days in a fridge. The same is also applicable for baked goods with any kind of whipping cream on them.
Store-bought cakes, alternatively, can last up to two weeks when kept in a cold environment. These products generally contain preservatives to keep bakery items fresh and mould-free for a long period of time. A number of trusted bakeries nowadays use primarily natural preservatives to ensure no negative effect on your health.
Should You Refrigerate A Cake Before Frosting?
If you are baking a cake at home, you might consider keeping it in the fridge for a while before frosting it. Frostings often contain elements like butter, which can easily melt coming in contact with something warm. So, it is cumbersome to frost a cake coming right out of the oven.
Moreover, even with confectionary items with a lukewarm temperature, spreading frosting across can become hazardous. As freshly baked cakes are soft in structure, using stiff frosting on their surface can easily lead to them crumbling.
So, try to let the cake cool in the pan for around 20 minutes after taking it out of the oven. It is best not to flip it out of the pan when warm, as it might break this way. After these twenty minutes or so, you can take it out of this pan and put it on a cooling rack. When the cake does not feel warm anymore, you can wrap it up to put it in the refrigerator.
Depending on the size of your cake, you can leave it in there for a few hours so that it becomes easier to frost. Or, if you are not in a hurry, consider keeping it in the fridge overnight. As a completely chilled cake has improved structural integrity, you will be able to frost and decorate it without breaking a sweat!
Remember to use room-temperature frosting on your chilled cake. Pushing soft frosting across a more put-together refrigerated baked good can be, to intend a pun, a cakewalk.
How To Tell If A Cake Has Gone Stale?
You absolutely should not consume a cake over a week old if it has not been kept in a refrigerator. Although, these products can get stale even when kept in a cold atmosphere, especially if they contain products like fruits, curds or custard.
To ensure that the leftover cake is not detrimental to your overall wellbeing, check whether its quality has been compromised. A stale confectionary can produce an off-putting smell, indicating that it is better to toss it out. It would help if you also looked out for the product feeling slimy and mushy when you touch it. This is a huge red flag, a sure sign of spoilage.
You must also check for mould to make sure your cakes are not rotten. Scraping away the mouldy parts to eat the rest can be a risky endeavour. Research on food safety has shown that moulds can also be present in a product when you can’t see them. Naturally, consuming it can adversely affect your health.
So, if you are not sure if a cake is mould free, cut through it to check thoroughly. Moulds can also grow in-between the icing and the cake’s surface. Therefore, be certain to look properly so that you can avoid a food poisoning risk.
How To Repurpose Leftover Cakes?
If you are feeling experimental when showing off your baking and culinary skills, why not try out some out-of-the-box recipes with the leftovers? There are a number of unique and mouth-watering items you can make with these products!
You can, for example, use the chocolate cake pieces to stir up a storm in a tall glass with delicious cake shakes. This dessert’s resulting flavour and texture are guaranteed to be a delight for everyone.
Cake bread pudding is another great idea to try out while hitting the kitchen. You can use a leftover pound or fruit cake to make this item. The added milk, sugar and eggs make it even yummier!
As no one can go wrong with ice-creams, you can also shake things up a bit by making ice-cream cone cupcakes or a vanilla ice-cream cake. Feel free to try your hands out to make cake brownies, french toasts or trifles too. Now that you have a comprehensive idea regarding how long can a cake last in the fridge, you can utilise this time to create new and exciting delicacies.