Wrapping And Chilling Your Cakes
Once your cakes are cool enough to handle, wrap them in two layers of plastic wrap and place into the freezer to chill for two hours or you can place them into the fridge to chill overnight. This is what I like to do so that I am not rushed to decorate. Do not freeze your cakes solid if you plan on using them the same day or it will just take a really long time to defrost them.
If you do freeze your cakes, place them on the counter still wrapped until they are defrosted.
Chilling your cakes is super important so that you can trim them and handle them without them breaking. The chilling causes the butter inside the cake to get nice and hard but will get soft again when the cake comes to room temperature.
Is Buttercream Better Than Frosting
As a result, they serve distinct objectives. Buttercream is more flavorful and has a better texture. According to Bake Decorate Celebrate, this kind of frosting often contains butter, milk or cream, powdered sugar, and an extract flavour. The frosting is silky smooth and creamy, and it does not dry up quickly.
Cut The Top For A Flat Surface
To ensure that your finished dessert has exactly equal and angled edges, there is one step that must be completed long before you frost your dessert: leveling the surface of your dessert.Take a look at the cake rounds youve made.If the tops are curved and have a small hump or mound, it is extremely required to chop the tops off the bottoms.Despite the fact that I failed shop class in middle school, I understand that it is far easier to construct a building from a flat surface than it is from a rounded one.With all of those beautiful perfect angles, your end product will appear cleaner, neater, and more professionally created from a visual sense.
To create this flawless pastry plateau, gently cut off the rounded section of the top with a serrated knife or cake leveler, ensuring that the surface is as flat as possible.Slowly cut around the entire circle especially if you are using a serrated knife to ensure that you are cutting an equal line throughout.Following a gentle brushing away of any crumbs, your layers are ready for embellishment!
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Best For Professionals : The Wilton School Of Cake Decorating And Confectionery Arts
- The Wilton School of Cake Decorating and Confectionery Arts, based in Illinois, is a brick-and-mortar school that has been educating students how to decorate cakes and other desserts since 1929.
- The Wilton Method is a term that has been used to refer to a specific set of methods that were established at the school and have since been embraced by generations of decorators throughout the world.
- For individuals who are unable to participate in lessons at the real institution, Wilton provides a range of online tutorials and videos to supplement their education.
- On the Wilton Schools blog, you may find an archive of free how-to cake decorating videos and articles, as well as information on baking and cake decorating methods and recipes.
Tips and tricks for working with fondant are available on the blog, as are nine beginner piping techniques, instructions for assembly and icing of cakes, 10 easy buttercream cake decorating techniques, and kid-friendly recipes and projects, among other things.To obtain advice on a regular basis, you may join up for the newsletter, which will give you free tips and technique videos right to your email each weekday morning.The Wilton Schools website now sells bakeware, utensils, and accessories, as well as ingredients, as well as display and storage materials.
Best For Sculpted Cakes: Ashlee Marie Cake Decorating Classes
Ashlee Marie
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Tutorials teach you to make cakes that look like virtually anything
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Free videos air live on YouTube and Facebook
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Signing up for the newsletter gives you access to exclusive recipes
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Some of the classes have a fee
Self-taught food blogger Ashlee Marie has made a name for herself as a baker and cake decorator with millions of video views online and multiple appearances on the Food Network. Her website provides a variety of recipes both sweet and savory, but cakes are the star of her content. Separated into categories that include party cakes, holiday cakes, carved cakes , smash cakes, and wedding cakes, this is the ultimate resource for decorating a show-stopping dessert for your next party or special event.
Whether you want to make a cake that looks like Elsa or Anna from “Frozen” for your childs next birthday or an elegant Naked Cake with Candied and Sugared Berries, you will more than likely find an ideal dessert to make.
If you’ve ever watched the Food Networks “Buddy vs. Duff” or “Cake Boss” and thought, how do they do that? Ashlees tutorials walk you step-by-step through the entire process, including personalized tips and suggestions, detailed written instructions and, often, extensive videos to supplement the text.
Free videos air live on Ashlees YouTube channel and Facebook page and then are added to the blog for permanent viewing.
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How Do You Decorate A Cake For Beginners
6 Cake Decorating Tips for Beginning Home Bakers 1 Freeze Your Cakes. First things first, since making and decorating a cake can be quite a bit of work, its not a bad idea to split the job into stages. 2 Use a Cake Turntable. 3 Level Your Cakes. 4 Apply a Crumb Coat. 5 Applying the Frosting. 6 Practice Piping.
Six Things I Learned In My First Six Months Of Cake Decorating
Six months ago I decided to try out a new hobby: cake decorating.
Learning to decorate cakes is something that has always interested me. It seemed like a fun creative outlet, and yummy tooIm a sucker for anything sweet. Plus, baking is my jam. Ive shared before that I dont love to cook, but I could bake cookies all day, every day.
Last year for my birthday my husband got me the Wilton Ultimate Cake Decorating Tools Set. While ecstatic to receive it, I was so intimidated by it and all its fancy tools that it sat unopened on my kitchen counter for months. I had no idea what to do with it or where to start. I couldnt decorate a cake. What was I thinking telling Huz it was something I always wanted to learn?
Then in October I went to a friends daughters birthday party. One of the guests had made a unicorn cake for the birthday girl and it was so cool. After inquiring where she learned the trade I thought, ok, if she can do it without any special training, so can I.
I spent the next few weeks devouring Youtube, watching nearly every video that exists on beginning cake decorating. And after that, I went to my favorite blogs to learn more, including my friend, Robyns blog, Robyn Loves Cake. Robyns a pro who owns her own bakery and makes the most amazing cakes ever.
And here are six things I learned in my first six months of cake decorating:
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Sweet Girl On A Swing
- This adorable young girl on a swing cake never fails to put a smile on your face!
- A cute young girl on a swing is featured on this free cake video lesson, which also includes instructions on how to make the buttercream tree and decorations .
- This cake design for childrens birthdays is fantastic!
- When it comes to birthday or baby shower cakes, you may customize the design to match the birthday boys or girls hair color and other characteristics, or you can substitute a cute teddy bear on the swing for the child.
Enjoy!
Go Forth And Make Beautiful Desserts For Birthdays Special Occasions Or Anytime
Your confidence in your ability to decorate your desserts should have increased dramatically after reading our guide and following our 10-step lesson for basic decorating.Youre completely prepared!It is always beneficial to be as prepared as possible when embarking on a baking adventure.Prepare your equipment and supplies, create a well-organized game plan, and be prepared to switch to Plan B in the event of a disaster.If all else fails, you can always use my frosting-free method to adorn your cake.
Lets hope for the best!It may take a few tries to get the motions right the first time.Be patient as you go through the process.
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How To Become A Professional Cake Decorator
- The Indeed Editorial Team contributed to this article.
- The date is June 24, 2021.
- If you have excellent fine motor skills as well as artistic qualities, becoming a professional cake decorator may be the ideal career choice for you.
- With this occupation, you transform tasty cakes into stunning works of art that people can both admire and consume.
Due to the fact that cake decorating may be fairly sophisticated, education and training are required for this vocation.In this essay, we will go over all that this profession comprises as well as provide information on how to become a professional cake designer.Related: How to Write a Resume for a Cake Decorator
What Qualifications Do You Need For Cake Decorating
There is no one definitive answer to this question, as the qualifications required for cake decorating will vary depending on what type of cake decorating you want to do. However, in general, most cake decorators will need to have some level of training and experience in baking and cake decoration.
If you want to become a professional cake decorator, then you will likely need to have completed a formal training course in cake decoration. These courses can be found at culinary schools or baking academies, and will teach you the basics of cake decoration, including how to create different types of icing, how to pipe and decorate cakes, and how to make sugar flowers.
If you are not interested in becoming a professional cake decorator, but still want to learn how to decorate cakes, then you may be able to find a cake decorating workshop or class in your area. These classes will usually teach you how to create basic designs and decorations, such as piped borders and roses, and will give you the opportunity to practice your skills.
In addition to formal training, it is also important to have a lot of practice in cake decoration. This can be done by baking and decorating cakes for family and friends, or by taking on cake decorating commissions. By doing this, you will not only improve your skills, but you will also develop your own style and be able to create cakes that are uniquely yours.
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The Right Tools Are A Must
Your cake is never going to look professional and pretty if you dont use the proper tools. Ive learned that short cuts always fail when it comes to baking and decorating a cake. The right pans matter, using a baking strip matters, a cake turn table, offset spatula, icing bags, and icing tips are all must-haves in order to decorate a cake. Skimping on essentials will not allow you to create the cake of your dreams.
Making Easy Buttercream Frosting
Now is a good time to make your buttercream. I know a lot of beginners think they want to use whipped cream because it is light and creamy but for making a cake, you will get nothing but headaches. I prefer to make my easy buttercream frosting because you can just throw everything into the mixer, whip it up until its white and its done! Its super light and not too sweet.
The easy buttercream frosting is also great for frosting the cake and getting a smooth finish and is firm enough to pipe with.
Store your easy buttercream at room temperature with plastic wrap covering the top until you need it. If you leave it out overnight make sure you whip it a little bit before you use it to make it smooth again.
Store leftover buttercream in the fridge or freeze it for up to 6 months in a ziplock bag.
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How To Crumbcoat Your Cake
You may or may not have heard about a crumbcoat but for the sake of learning, Im going to explain it. I told you I wasnt going to skip anything!
A crumbcoat is a thin layer of your buttercream all over the cake to seal in the crumbs. This is an important step so that you dont get any of those crumbs in your final layer of buttercream frosting.
Place a big dollop of buttercream on the top of your cake and use your small offset spatula to spread the buttercream into a thin layer all over your cake. You dont have to be neat and tidy, just a thin coat will do. You can see there are a lot of crumbs and chunks of strawberry in this layer of buttercream, thats totally ok.
Once your cake is fully covered, you can place it into the fridge or the freezer to firm up. Once the buttercream is firm to the touch you can put on your final coat of buttercream without the crumbs getting into it.
What Is A Cake Decorator Called
A cake decorator is someone who designs and creates cakes for special occasions, such as birthdays, weddings, and anniversaries. They may use fondant, icing, and other ingredients to add color, shape, and texture to their cakes. Some cake decorators also create cake toppers, which are decorations that sit on top of the cake.
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Assembling Sponges For The Perfect Canvas
What happens after you pull your sponges from the oven? If you try to frost a warm cake, youll be faced with melting frosting, crumbling cake, and a big goopy mess. So the cooling stage is critical! But when do you tip the layers out of the tins, and how long should you let them cool? Should you put them in the freezer before assembly and decoration? These are all concepts you can exploreand practice!in a cake decorating class like Escoffiers.
Next, theres the leveling. Most cake sponges will round slightly as they rise. But if you try to stack them with rounded tops, youll get a wobbly, unsteady cake. In cake decorating classes, you may learn techniques for leveling your sponges so theyll lay flat on top of each other.
You may also discover some tricks that the experts use for extra stability. A sturdy sponge is great, but if youre stacking five tiers high, youll probably need a little extra help! Dowels and platforms can spread out the weight and prevent your cake from collapsing on itself.
Escoffier Austin pastry arts student Jacey M. and teams wedding cake final project
Best Free : My Cake School
- My Cake School, which was founded by a former cake baker and designer, is a free online platform that offers weekly cake decorating classes and recipes.
- The site includes tutorials on everything from the fundamentals to more advanced methods such as dealing with fondant, gum paste, buttercream, and other materials, among other things.
- Recipes are organized into categories such as Cakes and Cupcakes, Fillings, Frostings and Glazes, Fondant/Gumpaste, and Miscellaneous, and you may search for individual recipes as well as browse across categories.
- With 40 pages of baking and decorating instructions published in blog style and/or video, the Free Tutorial area is easy to navigate and filter through using the drop-down menu on the left side of the page.
Lemon Sour Cream Cake, Chocolate Nutella Cake, Champagne and Strawberries Cake, Marbled Buttercream Cake, and many more are among the recipes included in this collection.Various holiday-themed cakes, such as a colorful Easter Basket Cake or a Halloween Monster Pretzel Monster Cake, may be found on the market as well.For roughly $30 per year, you can become a member of the site and have access to all of the video archives as well as the forums, where you may ask specific questions regarding cake design.Another area contains useful information regarding kitchen equipment and products that may be used to assist you in baking and decorating.
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Cake Decorating Tip #2 Cake Goop
I am embarrassed to tell you how long I used the old vegetable shortening and dusted flour technique for prepping my cake pans. It was the only thing I could do that was fairly easy and dependable. The issue? Super messy. I always had flour remnants all over the trash can, the sink, the floor .
I WISH I could remember who told me about cake goop because it changed my world.
No more pan spray, no more shortening and flour, no more parchment paper. Just brush it in the pan and bake it up. Cakes will slide out of that pan so easy peezy, youll kick yourself for not making up a batch of cake goop sooner.
The ingredients are simple, mix up equal parts vegetable shortening vegetable oil and flour. Mix well until combined and then store in a container. You can keep it on the countertop or the fridge but it wont spoil. I use a pastry brush to brush it on the pans evenly. Dont worry, you dont need a lot. Just a nice even coating will do you.
Career Path And Progression
- You might be able to start your own business after gaining some expertise.
- Also consider working in quality control at a bakery or teaching cake design in adult education centers or colleges.
- Following the development of a solid reputation, you may be able to transition into the design and production of cakes for high-profile weddings and special occasions, where pay can be significantly higher.
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