By Michelle Anderson
Cake Decorating Expert
Here are some handy tips for cake decorating that can save you time or help you avoid a less than successful cake project:
- When making cake pops in special cake pop molds, never ever try to remove them from the mold until they are completely cool. Take them out of the oven and place the mold on a wire rack, and walk away. If you try to lift the upper part of the cake pop mold, you will end up ripping the cake pop in half. Then you would have to do them the old fashioned method with cake crumbles and icing.
- When you fill your cake pop molds, scoop the batter in all the way to the top of the bottom part of the mold. Standard advice for cupcakes is to fill three quarters or two thirds up the sides but with cake pops filling all the way ensures nice round pops.
- When placing the sticks in your cake pop, pipe a little icing, candy or chocolate coating or edible glue into the hole before putting in the stick for good. Let the sticking agent dry completely. This will ensure the cake pop does not slide off into the coating when you dip it in.
- If you are creating lovely gum paste flowers from scratch, including applying color in the form of luster dust, it is best to set your colors with a little steam. Steam will infuse the gum paste with the color permanently and create a more vibrant look. A gentle steam is best for this technique, so boil some water and reduce the heat to a simmer. Wave the flowers through the steam and then set them aside to dry. The steam will create a shiny look until go away when the flower dries again. Don’t be surprised if your colors look a little darker after the steam bath.
- If you want perfectly flat, even cake layers rather than those that are domed, wrap your cake pans with wet strips of fabric pinned together with safety pins. The water will keep the pans cooler and the fabric will be completely dry when the cakes are baked. This prevents the cake batter on the side to bake too fast which pushes the unbaked batter into the center and up as it bakes. You can also invest in baking strips. These innovative strips can be expensive but your finished cakes will turn out better. You can find baking strips in most specialty cooking stores and online.
- If you are covering whole cakes with fondant, smooth it out before applying the sheet of fondant to the cake. This will remove any air bubbles before and it is easier to get a lovely finish on a hard flat surface rather than the round softer sides of a cake. You will of course smooth the fondant once it is on the cake, but why not create a covering that needs less perfecting after it is applied to the cake.
- If you are working with fondant, sometimes marks and smudges appear on the snowy surface of the cake. If you can’t hide the spot with another design element or carefully placed flower, use vodka to buff it off. Wet a paper towel with vodka and wipe away the marks. The alcohol will evaporate completely leaving nothing behind but a pristine cake.
- If you need to create perfectly straight edges on your cake with color, such as a band along the bottom or stripes, stick on painters tape in the exact spot you need to be uncolored. After the color is applied, and allowed to dry, simply peel off the tape and admire your lines.
source: about.com
