Fondant Cake Class, Week 4

The Finale Cake is here!

Fondant Cake Class, Week 2

There was nothing to post about week 1 of my Fondant and Gum-paste class. Mainly because we just went over the basics and tools and didn't do any hands on work.

This week we were instructed to bring a cake already covered with fondant to class. Here's a picture of my 'blank slate' cake.

The color is actually not from food coloring, but from the Kool-Aid I used to flavor the butter cream icing and the fondant.We never had Kool-Aid growing up, so when I went to the store to buy some for this project I was amazed at all the flavor possibilities! I bought 'fruit punch' as a generic fruity flavor, but I will definitely have to try pink lemonade and wild cherry in the future. Mmmmm....tastes like a starburst candy!

Then during class we learned several different techniques including:

Draping

Embossing and Imprinting

We didn't really learn the flowers, put I needed something to tie it all together.

We also learned the about rolling the little balls and roping.

I think it kinda looks like a homage to superman with the red, blue and yellow...that wasn't on purpose, I just used the colors that I had and didn't think it through!

We also started the bases for carnations, put I don't have a picture.

Next week is all about 3-D flowers...can't wait!

Cake Class Week 4

Last night was the final class in the Cake Decorating 1 series. I think overall I learned more that I expected and hopefully have some skills I can use in the future...as long as I can remember them ;)

The final class was focused mainly on the rose, but we also learned sweet peas and leaves. I didn't get the chance to put any sweet peas on my final cake, so no pictures of those.

I think with some more practice my roses will start looks a little more professional, but all in all I am pleased with the results of one night of "rose teaching"!



Oh, and my homemade strawberry cake was a sweet success....Roy and I had to taste it before sending the rest off to his work...I don't think they'll mind, do you?

Now on to the next class.....Fondant and Gum Paste! This one I am really excited about! Check back next Tuesday for the update on my first class.

Cake Class Week 3

This week in cake class we learned shell borders, figure piping, and 2 different kinds of drop flowers. Oh...and scary clowns which I couldn't find the plastic heads for so (no pictures of those are posted....thank goodness!)

We were instructed to bring either an 8" cake, mini cakes, or cupcakes to decorate since we were doing so many different 'looks'. I decided to bring cupcakes as they are one of my favorite treats!

I made devil's food cupcakes from scratch and filled them with a dark chocolate mousse. The icing is the class butter cream we are required to use.....and although it is growing on me, these cupcakes would have been much tastier with either ganache or chocolate butter cream. Next time!

Here are the cupcakes all ready to go to class.......

And here they are all dressed up!

Little Duckie.

Type 1 of drop flowers.

Shell border.

Teddy bear.

Kinda funky hearts.

Type 2 drop flowers.

Cake Class Week 2

I have been taking a Wilton cake class with a friend this month and last night was class #2. First chance to actually get out our tools and get our hands dirty...or icing covered, in this case.

The first class was all about making butter cream, filling bags, and baking and icing a cake to perfection. Lots of good info.....and a lot of stuff we already knew.

I made a marble cake with raspberry jam filling do decorate for this weeks class. It was fun executing the tricks the instructor showed us on how to get a perfectly smooth cake with little effort. Here is the blank slate I brought to class.

We learned piping stars, lines and writing words. Very beginner stuff, but it is nice to be formally shown the right way to do these techniques. We then were able to use these tips to decorate our cake however we chose, I used a piping gel transfer method to put this swirl pattern I drew out on parchment onto the cake. It was super easy, just time consuming. I was so sure my hand and arm were going to be sore today after all those stars!

Hopefully the crew at Roy's work enjoys my creation...I decided it was best for my diet to keep the cake out of our house!

Happy Valentine's Day!

For Valentine's Day this year I thought I would experiment with an idea in a cake book of mine, and also on Bakerella; A heart shaped cake made into a candy box with either candies, or in this case cake balls on top.

I made all the cake balls (chocolate, of course) and decorated them to match the theme.

Notice the 'I Love U' in the middle.

The sides of the box didn't quite come out how I wanted it too look, but the overall result was not too bad for a first attempt. The cake balls are delicious, we haven't tried the cake yet- but it is chocolate with raspberry butter cream. I did also try a recipe for the fondant (Thanks to my cousin Rachel) and was surprised at how easy it really was to make from scratch.

And lastly I wanted to put this picture up, I took this a while back and thought it was appropriate for today. Happy Valentine's Day!

Football Truffles

I'm not a big football fan, but I do like having reasons to bake little things, and the Superbowl was just the occasion to try this recipe.Yummy...sorta football shaped oreo truffles!
Here's a link to the recipe and how-to by Bakerella. Hers are way more football like and about as perfect as you can get....but mine were still very tasty!

Merry Christmas!

Happy Holidays to all! Here are some pictures of the sweet treats I have been working on this week in preparation, with a red velvet cake to come! Yum! I can't wait to spend the next few days relaxing with my family and enjoying their company while we indulge in food and gifts. May you all have a holiday just as sweet.