Filling the freezer for Elul: Temporary cake plates

It's hard to believe, but it is already (Hebrew month of) Elul, which means that there is less than a month before the beginning of the month-long marathon of Jewish Holidays that begins with Rosh Hashanah. Thus, it is time to start filling the freezer in preparation.

I like to make and use disposable cake boards for this. These platters allow the freezer space to be used very efficiently, while protecting the cake from breaking. Depending on the formality of the meal, the frozen cake can either be slipped with its doily onto a regular serving platter before defrosting, or served directly from the foil-covered platter (especially outside, in the sukkah).

I make the platters from whatever scraps and boxes are cluttering up my front hallway, during the weeks leading up to the holiday season. The white board below is a scrap left over from one of our doll house making projects.

The shipping box makes a nice platter, as long as the cardboard is doubled, with a separate piece placed inside the fold in the opposite direction of the box's natural fold. This gives the platter enough strength to hold the cake. (For detailed instructions, see the two-tiered cupcake platter version.)

Bad things will happen if you try to use a single layer of cardboard. (Ask me how I know...)

I get the best results from freezing the cake without a cover for an hour or so, before covering with a plastic bag or plastic wrap. This lets the surface of the cake solidify, without the plastic bag sticking to any frosting or decoration.

When it comes time to defrost, remove the plastic bag as soon as the cake is removed from the freezer, and allow the cake to defrost either under a hard cover, or in open air.