Glossary
Cake turntable
A rotating stand that makes smooth frosting and even piped borders much easier to produce.
A cake turntable is a rotating stand a cake sits on while it is being frosted, smoothed or piped. Spinning the cake instead of walking around it keeps a decorator's hand and tool at one steady angle, which is far easier for producing an even coat or a continuous piped border than moving around a stationary cake.
The turning motion matters most when smoothing sides with a bench scraper, since holding the scraper still against a spinning cake removes ridges in one continuous pass, rather than the overlapping strokes needed on a cake that cannot rotate. The same steady spin helps keep piped borders and rosettes consistent in size and spacing around the whole cake.
Look for a turntable that spins smoothly without wobbling and has enough weight or a non-slip base to stay put on a counter. A locking function is useful for detail work where the cake needs to stay still. A common mistake is using a lightweight turntable on a low-friction counter, which can slide as much as it spins.