Step by step photo guide to decorating novelty cakes

Saturday 22 December 2012

Baking Xmas gift guide

Uh oh.... there's only a few days to go until Christmas. I felt it festive to build a small bakers gift guide.... for whether you're trying to figure out what to buy for your baking enthusiast friend, or come up with ideas for your own wish list (which you can then post to your friends/dearest ones/people that buy you stuff). For those of you who don't bake or are new to baking...I even added pictures!!! :)

1. Anyone that's ever had to stand in their kitchen and cut out 20 separate letters by hand will understand the importance of alphabet cutters..... in all shapes and sizes! You can pick these up in all sorts of craft shops, they don't even have to be for fondant, Play-doh cutters work just as well!

2. When I first started baking I was constantly frustrated that I was having to douse my kitchen benches with icing sugar just to make sure the fondant didn't stick. Nobody ever told me about fondant mats... I learnt the hard way and discovered them for myself, months down the line.

3. Pretty storage tins can be expensive and, as a result, we bakers tend not to splash our cash on these and buy more practical things instead. They're a delight to receive (well, in my opinion anyways!)

4. Grocery store food colourings just don't work as well when it comes to hardcore baking and decorating. These gel pots are super cheap and you can pick them up in cake supply stores or on Amazon and Ebay! They last ages as well!

5. 'Hello Cupcake' book is a brilliant book for starters wanting to get creative with cupcakes. They have 2 follow up books for those that love it! However, I did find that a lot of the decorating involved using US?Canadian candies that I found tricky to source in the UK (and had to substitute).

6. Maybe it's just me, but anything sent out into the world by king of cakes, Duff Goldman has GOT to be awesome!! The 'Ace of Cakes' TV show cake  mastermind launched his own range recently.... I love his cupcake tattoos... a we bitty pricey for what they are, but a cupcake fan's delight!

7. Got a bit of moolah to be splashing out on you cake loving loved one... you can't go wrong with the funky designs of the Kenwood stand mixers. I'd die if someone gave me one of these bad boys! (hint hint)

8. Cake turn tables are not essential for me (I can spin a board around by myself), but it would make a great little gift because, as with the cake tins, its perhaps not something that new bakers would buy themselves at first! It's a treat.

9. Wooden rolling pins are cheap as chips... so I tend to find new bakers buying these to cut costs. HOWEVER, these wooden pins tend to leave a grainy imprint on fondants. A marble/plastic pin will resolve that and make us feel really happy that you just paid so much money on a big lump of stone for us! :)
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Tuesday 11 December 2012

Mini modelling tutorials

Being away from home shouldn't stop me baking right? urm... riiiight. Have you tried working with fondant in 40 degree heat? (that's if you can find it in the first place). So, with that in mind, I'm going to treat you guys to a couple of cute, quick AND easy fondant tutorials to keep you busy.... I've even thrown Santa in for good measure :)

Being so near Christmas, it would have been rude not to post this brilliant Santa step-by-step tutorial from www.clayus.com. So they're using modelling clay? fondant will work just the same!

Because everyone loved Pooh bear! Even if you didn't like that whiny little Piglet thing! Cute little tutorial from More-ish cupcakes: http://www.facebook.com/#!/MoreishCupcakes?fref=tsake

I love the idea of this cake topper because it shows you how to include a photograph holder... cupcakes with your photo anyone? Easy tutorial from http://glinki.net/

Those clever people at ClayUs.com impressed me so much that I'm giving them two mentions today! I've never really got the 'SpongeBob' trend, but even way into their late 20's...most of my friends (especially the males) do!!!

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Monday 3 December 2012

City Sights cake

 

So for this cake I'm gonna try a new step-by-step format, so please feed back your thoughts on the layout peeps!!!
The hard bit of this cake wasn't the cake itself, but the painting. You need an arty hand (or someone that has one).
 
YOU WILL NEED
1 Round cake
Ready to roll fondant
Black powdered food colouring
Vodka!!!
Red and Green gel colouring
 
 
 Step 1: Roll out your white fondant ( I do this on a white plastic mat so that it doesn't stick to my bench). Once rolled, I smooth it out with a fondant smoother.
 
Step 2: Cover your cake with your rolled fondant.
 
Step 3: Trim your fondant and smooth it out once again with the smoother.
 
Step 4: Mix your black powdered food colouring with a teeny tiny bit of vodka to make your edible paint. This is a bit of a trial and error occasion. If you add too much vodka your powder will be too watery, make your fondant soggy and have a watered down colour. If you don't add enough water, your paint will be too thick and dry to use.... basically, you're looking for a happy medium. Take my advice and do a little trial on a scrap of fondant first. Leave these to dry (or your paint will run down the fondant once it's sitting vertically). Once dry, cut an outline near the image and attach to the sides of your cake with fondant glue (or water if you don't have any).
 
Step 5: Use a thin paint brush to paint on your design. I used google images to give me ideas/inspiration for the city in the brief (in this case, Rome). 
 
Step 6: Make some red fondant with your red gel colouring and roll out and cut into medium sized circles.
 
Step 7: Use fondant tools to thin out/pattern the edges of the circles. These are going to be used to make petals for the flowers of your cake.
 
Step 8: Arrange your petals into a flower (I wanted to make my flowers look a little wilted, like they'd fallen... but for a great full rose tutorial try this youtube clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5ng82WxvlM)

 

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