Bake the cake:

Cup of Yum
1. Bake the base of the cake. Let the cake cool completely. I prefer to do it the day before I cut the cake and leave it to cool and rest overnight; I find it cuts better that way. When using a 26 cm/10 inches round springform, the finished cake will be slightly smaller, about 22-24 cm/ 8.5-9.5 inches.

Cut the cake:

1. Cut a stripe of cake all around the cake. It should be about as thick as a finger, a not very thick finger. Keep the stripe.
2. Cut the rest of your cake into 2 or 3 even layers to prepare it for being filled. 2 layers are usually enough, but for a taller cake, you can cut 3. Keep the best-looking slice to place on top of the cake.

Fill the cake:

1. Take the bottom cake layer, place it on a cake platter and place a metal ring around it. Next, take the reserved strip and fit it inside the ring. You will have to cut a piece of the strip because the diameter of the cake is now smaller.
2. Prepare the filling and pour half of it into the prepared cake. If you only have 2 cake layers, fill all the filling now.
3. Cover with the middle cake layer and then pour the rest of the filling over it. The filling should fill the cake up to the brim.
4. Place the top cake layer directly on the stripe.

Store the cake overnight:

1. Press gently the top layer of the cake, make sure the ring is stable, and place the cake in the fridge. Leave it until the filling sets, at least 5-6 hours, ideally overnight.
2. Take the cake out of the fridge and proceed the usual way, that is, frost the cake with buttercream and then cover in fondant.
3. See the blog post for an alternative filling method.