Cake decorating can be a great hobby and a great way to make a party special. It is not however an easy skill to learn. It takes a lot of practice to get good at it and it will take years before you can do the elaborate designs that you see in the magazines. Beginners are going to want to keep things simple and work on learning the basic skills. There are a few things that will really help you to get the best results when you are first starting out.
Showing posts with label decorating. Show all posts
Showing posts with label decorating. Show all posts
Decorating With Fondant
The use of fondant is a great way to cover cakes and give it a smooth and professional look. Fondant doesn't just have to cover the cake, it can be used as a decoration as well.
The Art Of Decorating A Cake With Rolled Fondant
Sugarcraft is most likely the most misunderstood cake decorating term in existence. Go out and ask people what they think it is and you'll get answers like "It's a type of vehicle" or "It's a Norwegian punk rock band" or "Is that a type of Witchcraft?"
Fresh Ideas and Novelty-Themed Cakes
"Ace of Cakes" and other Food Networks has become part of every homes. Through these shows, viewers are given free recipes and step by step guidelines in cooking and decorating. Cake decorating stuffs and other cooking techniques of world - renowned chefs are made available because of these shows.
Decorating Designer Cookies
When it comes to decorating designer cookies, there are three techniques that used; decorating the cookie with royal icing, color flow, and fondant. Using these three techniques will produce the professional designer cookie look that you are after.
Cake Decorating Ideas And Tips To Help You Make A Fabulicious Creation!
Cake decorating ideas are easy to come by thanks to the Internet. However, too much of a good thing can quickly put you on overload. The best thing to do is simplify and go with easy cake decorating options. Here's a few ideas to consider:
Wedding Cake Decorating Ideas for a Memorable Event
Decorating wedding cakes can be quite challenging. Whether you are planning a casual celebration or an elaborate formal reception, there are creative cake decorating ideas that can save you money and surprise your guests. You can design your cake as a garden growing to new heights, add fancy fondant flowers and red hearts, or create exquisite floral designs with decadent chocolate tiers.
The Art of Making Fondant Icing Recipes
Many households are fond of making their own fondant icing recipe. Formerly, this luscious culinary recipe was only done by cake decorator experts but because of the increasing popularity of fondant recipes these days you can now practice it at home. To master the art of making fondant icing recipe it not difficult to try unless you pay attention to the right procedures, then frequent practice makes it ideal.
Decorating Tips For Wedding Cakes
People who are into the cake decorating business can select various kinds of frosting or covering for the cakes that they are offering. Most often, people like to have the best decorated wedding cakes on this special occasion. One of the most popular covering or frosting is the use of fondant.
Divine Dessert Recipes: The Fondant Fancy
Known to some as a French Fancy, but to us British as Fondant Fancy, the iced sponge cake is a divine dessert that many of us have "fond" memories of. What are they, where do they come from, and can I make them at home - are perhaps the questions at the forefront of your mind right now?
What are they and where do they come from?
Fondant Fancies were originally produced in the UK by the beloved Mr Kipling. They are incredibly sweet, consisting of a single cube of sponge cake, topped with butter cream, and coated in fondant icing, with chocolate or another colour of icing drizzled on top.
Can I make one now?
Sure, the process is quite long but the results are absolutely worth it. Gather together the following ingredients:
For the cakes:
- 175g unsalted butter
- 150g plain caster sugar
- 3 eggs
- 175g plain flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
For the fondant icing:
- 25g unsalted butter
- 100g dark chocolate
- 90g icing sugar
- 100ml boiling water
- 75g mascarpone cheese
- 75g melted white chocolate to decorate the fancies
Preparation:
Preheat the oven to 140C or gas mark 1. Grease up a 9 inch square cake tin.
Using an electric whisk, mix together the butter and sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy. Gradually add the eggs, whisking continuously, and only add each one as soon as the last one has been fully mixed in. Fold in the flour and baking powder lastly.
Throw the mixture into the baking tin and bake in the preheated oven for 25-30 minutes. When done, set aside to cool and cut into 1 inch cubes.
Whiel you're waiting for that, boil a pan half full of water and leave to simmer. Suspend a heatproof mixing bowl on the pan (not allowing the base to touch the water), and add the dark chocolate, butter and icing sugar. Stir until nicely smooth. Gradually add the boiling water (you may not need the whole 100ml) until the mixture is runny enough to fall down the sides of the cakes.
Back to the inch square cakes, begin by placing a small lump of mascarpone on the top. Spoon over the icing and set aside for at least 30 minutes to allow the icing to cool and harden.
Finally, drizzle the melted white chocolate on top for effect and allow to cool again.
Simply divine! Find more of my divine dessert recipes here or at the great dessert recipes [http://dessertrecipes.org/] archive.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=James_A_Bruce
Fondant vs Gum Paste
Fondant and gum paste can sometimes be used interchangeably to create some designs, but there are times when one should be used over the other. Fondant, not gum paste, is used to cover cakes. There are a variety of different recipes, but most rolled fondant consists of powdered sugar, unflavored gelatin, water, glycerine, and liquid glucose. Once the cake is covered in fondant, the cake should not be placed in the refrigerator, as it will become sticky.
The fondant will help to keep the cake fresh, but if you fill the cake with a filling that requires refrigeration, fondant is not a suitable way to finish the cake. Fondant looks very pretty and really is versatile, but the taste leaves much to be desired. It is very sweet and chewy. In fact, many people peel the fondant off when eating the cake. Marshmallow fondant has a much better taste. Even though it's made with marshmallows, it tastes more like cotton candy. The chocolate version tastes like tootsie rolls. It's less expensive to make marshmallow fondant at home than to buy pre-made fondant. Both fondant and gum paste can be colored in any shade using paste food colorings. You can use luster dusts to add color to anything you make. There are methods for applying it both wet and dry to achieve different effects.
You can purchase all kinds of cutters and tools that will give you endless creativity. Fondant can be cut with fondant or cookie cutters to create all type of shapes. It can be folded over skewers to create a drape on a cake. It can be colored with food coloring or sprayed with a cake decorating airbrush. It can be pressed into molds to create all kinds of intricate, decorative appliqués for the cake.
Besides covering a cake in fondant, fondant can be used to cover the cake board and make some decorations that don't require too much flexibility, such as bows. Gum paste is softer and more pliable. It is easier to mold into all kinds of shapes. Gum paste is usually used to make figurines, many having tiny little details. While you can try doing this with fondant, it doesn't quite shape as smoothly and it's a bit more difficult to work with. While gum paste is considered edible, it will dry very hard. You can save gum paste figures and flowers as keepsakes and they will last a very long time.
Gum paste is similar in ingredients to fondant but contains gum tagananth, which gives it its characteristic gummy texture. You can make gum paste at home or purchase it in most craft stores. When you make it, you wrap it in plastic wrap and store it in an airtight container. It will last up to two weeks.
When you begin working with either one, you will roll them out on a clean work surface dusted with cornflower. Dust your rolling pin with cornflower as well. Different projects will require different thicknesses. For creating designs to add apply to a fondant finished cake, you can purchase a small rolling pin that comes with rings. The rings help you roll out the gum paste to different thicknesses so you don't have to guess. There are so many fun things to do with gum paste and fondant. With a little practice, you can create a masterpiece.
Theresa Happe is a baker, cake decorator, and author of http://www.cake-decorating-corner.com, a website featuring cake photos with detailed instructions for all occasions, and cake and icing recipes and http://www.cakeswebake.com, a social network just for cake decorators.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Theresa_Happe
Why You Should Use Fondant Icing On Your Cake
If you attend a wedding and see a fantastic display of a cake with a smooth flowing drape design or realistic looking flowers and butterflies, you probably are looking at a cake covered with fondant.
But, what is fondant?
Basically, it is a mixture of sugar, corn syrup and gelatin. The result is a mixture that resembles dough that can be rolled and molded over a cake. Homemade versions use a blend of sugar, water and cream of tartar, or a combination of marshmallows, powdered sugar and water. Store bought versions use a lot more sugar in their recipe, and have added preservatives.
Many agree that homemade fondant taste much better than the ready-made store types. However, this icing can be difficult to make, so most bakers and bakeries use the ready-made versions of this frosting.
Taste can vary from brand to brand. You may find that the cheaper brands are not as tasty as the more expensive brands. It is advisable to test taste small amounts of several brands before spending a lot of money of any one brand. When using a bakery, you probably should get an agreement in writing as to which brand of fondant to use on your cake. Without a signed agreement, the bakery will probably opt to use the cheapest and less tasty brand available.
For a better tasting icing, you should avoid deep colored fondant, since the extra food coloring can give the icing a nasty taste. But this icing can come in any shade of color that you want.
A lot of people prefer the taste of butter-cream icing, and it is less expensive than fondant. Fondant also is thicker with a chewy texture that many people don't like.
So, why use fondant on your wedding cake?
Many brides like the dazzling display of a fondant covered cake. A skilled artist can make almost any three-dimensional design shape with this cake covering that will amaze your guest. If you want beautiful butterflies resting on colorful flowers, this is not a problem. If you want sweeping, smooth drapes adorning your cake, this also is not a problem. If you want colorful birds, sea shells or an image of your favorite pet adorning your cake, fondant is the covering that you want to use.
It also holds attached decorations better than butter-cream frosting.
It is less likely to melt outdoors during the hot summer months.
It can be molded into patterns that is difficult with butter-cream.
It gives you that smooth, polished look that makes your cake the center of conversation.
It gives your cake that extra look of class and extravagance.
Butter-cream icing obviously gives you that smooth, sweet butter and cream texture, and is less expensive than fondant. However, fondant can give your cake that dazzling appearance of extravagant design. You can amaze your guest with smooth flowing drapes, colorful flowers graced with brilliant butterflies adorning your wedding cake. And if you are having an outdoors party during the warmer months, fondant is probably the better choice.
Visit WeddingCakesGalore.com/ for pictures and ideas of wedding cakes.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Charles_Pennison
How to Decorate With Fondant
To begin with fondant is a creamy white sugar, a thick mass used in different forms for the purpose of confectionary and cake decorating.
To get the right consistency and flow for your cake kneading and rolling fondant form an important part of cake decorating. Therefore you need to have all the right tools in place.
Some of the important sugarcraft or fondant tools
Rolling pin
A very important tool for any fondant cake maker is the fondant or regular rolling pin :
Other tools:
A number of household gadgets come handy when working with fondant. Many of which include
Bamboo skewers or spaghetti sticks:
A fairly sharp non serrated knife works well for cutting fondant icing.
Paintbrushes are necessary to dampen the fondant.
Moulds
When it comes to 2D or 3D designing you have to handcraft it. But for various other designing mainly the pressed kind moulds work well.
You need to simply press the fondant icing into the mould to shape decorations for your fondant cake. Specialty cutters can form ribbons of different length and width. In short it is a professional look with limited skill and effort.
Procedure for working with fondant
Most important you need to have a clean, smooth surface which is a pre requisite for rolling.
Next add a little corn flour to the surface to ensure that the fondant does not stick it. But always remember only at the surface never on the top of the fondant.
The ideal thickness of fondant to cover a cake is about 3mm. Excessive thickness makes the cover too sweet, thereby overpowering the delicious cake sponge and filling inside.
A very important to note - kneading icing is not like kneading dough. You need to mix the ingredients with a very light hand to bind them together. If you end up pummelling, then the fondant will stick to the board and become unmanageable.
If your hands are hot this will tend to make your icing sticky and then you will be tempted to use more of corn flour that will dry your icing. So cool your hands under cold water pat them dry. In this way you keep your fingers light on corn flour.
Lastly once you done with the icing on the cake never refrigerate it.Or else the fondant will sweat in the fridge. Once your cake is covered it is perfectly fine to store in a cool place (approx. 20 degrees).
Visit for ideas and classes on cake decoration http://www.degree32studio.com/
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Shveta_Kumar
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