More Valentine Fun

So do you remember last week when I mentioned that extra cake I baked along with our petits gâteaux?  You dont? Shame on you.  ;) Today, I am going to share with you an incredibly easy technique that is guaranteed to impress your friends and to woo your Valentine.

This fantasy floral design reminds me of the most romantic of flowers, the red rose and is really quite simple to achieve.

We first begin with a 6" heart shaped red velvet cake.  (Thank you again, Sir Duncan Hines.  I bow to your adept culinary prowess.)  

After a quick coating of Vanilla-Almond Buttercream, we are ready to cover our patisserie with fondant!

It is important to note that using a crusting buttercream is very helpful when frosting a cake that is to to be covered in fondant.  The smoother you can make a cake with your buttercream, the smoother your finished fondant covered cake will be!  For this torte, I iced my cake, then let it sit for about 10 minutes to allow time for the buttercream to crust.  A few moments of internet surfing and facebook lurking and it's time to check our buttercream!  

Once my icing had crusted, I was able to smooth out the top and sides of the cake, using a plain white Viva Paper Towel.  This is called the Viva method.  A serial baker would tell you that Viva is the only paper towel that is pattern-free and thick enough and smooth enough to work.  Remember:  No Paper Towel is created equal! Don't have Viva Paper Towels?  No problem!  You can achieve the same result using a piece of parchment paper or a parchment triangle used for piping bags.

Now that we have a beautiful fondant covered cake, we are ready to create our gorgeous fantasy floral design.  (We will go over covering a cake with fondant another time.)  

For now, let's check out the tools we will need to achieve our design:

We will need about 6 ounces of red fondant kneaded with 1/4 tsp of Tylose Powder to make modeling paste.  We will also need some powdered sugar to dust the work surface, some clear plastic vinyl to cover the modeling paste to keep it from drying out, a sharp knife, a straight edge (not shown), a rolling pin, a ball tool, and a thin foam pad.

Now to get started on the fun!  Let's roll our red modeling paste out very thin to about 1/16th inch thick.  Using our knife and our straight edge, we cut our paste into 1/2" thick strips.  Since we are working with only one strip at a time, we will use the clear vinyl to cover the rest of our paste.  

Using our ball tool, we ruffle the edge of one side of our first strip.  To do this, we run the ball tool along the edge of the paste, using a fair amount of pressure.  We need to make sure that we are rubbing along the edge of the paste, as well as making contact with the foam pad at the same time.  This can take a bit of practice at first, but soon you will perfect the technique and will be able to move along with great haste! (LOL great haste for great paste!  Oh the cleverness of me!)

Now that we have our first ruffle completed, we are ready to apply it to our cake!  Before we do this, let's take a moment to talk about glue.  Most crafters are all too familiar with the many forms of adhesives available to aid in the creative process.  Often, it comes down to the right tool for the job.  This is universally the same no matter what form of creative expression you prefer.  The serial baker would always know what the best option is for the given confectionery challenge.  As for me, I can but offer my best opinion as to what form of adhesion will work best for our project.  But, I assure you, many applications will work here.


For this project we will use sugar glue.  Sugar glue is made by mixing a very small amount (1/8th tsp or less) of Tylose powder into a small sealable container with a tablespoon or so of hot water then placing it in the refrigerator to set up for several hours.  It will not dissolve right away, nor will it want to mix with the water, so letting it rest in the chill chest offers it a chance to congeal.  (LOL congeal is such a funny word, isn't it?  It makes me belly jiggle-giggle.)  If you do not have Tylose, you can dissolve a small amount of gumpaste in hot water too!  Or, you could pipe a thin line of buttercream or Royal icing to hold your decorations in place.  If you work quickly, even brushing the surface of your fondant cake with vodka (don't worry, the alcohol evaporates), clear vanilla extract, or plain water should do the trick.  I prefer sugar glue, however, because it gives more time to maneuver our sugar paste decor.  It also dries clear, which makes it much more ideal an adhesive than buttercream or royal icing in this type of application.  (Whew! so many words! Let's get to the good part, shall we?!!!)


Using a small, clean, paintbrush, we brush a small section of the outside border of our cake with sugar glue.

We carefully postion our first ruffle onto the outer border of the cake, making certain that the ruffle extends past the edge of the cake about an 1/8th of an inch or so.  We will continue to repeat the steps until we have finished our first row of ruffles around the cake.

Here we will continue to the process with another layer, careful to position each layer so that it overlaps the previous layer enough to cover any exposed white areas of the cake.  We must try not to mash the ruffled part of our paste strips down, so that we can still manipulate our petals later on if we need to.  We may also need to trim our strips to accomodate the shape of the cake.  We must do so, carefully with a sharp knife.  Using our cut strip, we will continue placing ruffles around the cake.

Wow, isn't repetition fun? It may seem a bit tedious at first to make these ruffles, but it will help you to perfect this technique.  You will also be pleasantly surprised at how quickly it comes together, since your strips go further with each layer!

See!  I told you it was fast! ;)

Once we get to the center of our cake, we may find it easiest to roll our ruffle strip into a flower shape, carefully manipulating the ruffles to look like petals and gluing into place.  Once we have covered the entire surface of our cake, we can use the handle of our paint brush and gently lift any ruffles that have stuck together to achieve the look we want.  I'm sure a true serial baker could spend countless minutes doing this, but I am all about letting art speak for itself.  In nature, nothing is perfect, so how on earth can you expect a fantasy flower to look perfect? ;)

All that is left to do now is add a border to our cake.  I think I'll put some of my fancy-pants, self-promoting ribbon around the bottom.  Simple, yet elegant.  For your cake, though, you can do whatever makes your heart smile!


Well, we did it.  We made a cake that will be perfect for your paramour!  Pipe a love note on the cake board, and you'll be getting all kinds of love on Valentine's Day!  Oh, and if you do, I want to hear all about it.  (except anything that is NOT G rated.  You don't wanna see me blush!)


Happy Everything and Happy Caking!


Confectionately Yours,


Wendy


P.S. Here are a few links to some of my favorite cake sites:


www.globalsugarart.com
www.cakecentral.com
www.cakesupplies4u.com

La Saint-Valentin petits gâteaux

Here I sit in in the frigid 52 degree winter weather, pondering that chubby cheeked cherub we call Cupid.  That's right, folks, Valentine's Day is just around the corner and is, perhaps, one of the serial baker's most favored excuses to cakety cake cake cake!  Today, we celebrate the confectionery delight the french call petits gâteaux, or to us simple redneck folk, small cake.  Can you think of a more intimate dessert to share with your love than a tiny treat baked only for him or her?  Yeah, me either.  So today, I want to share with you four simple designs for one delectable petits gâteaux...

The first thing we need is, of course cake!  Now, most serial bakers, have tested hundreds of cake recipes to find the one that delights the palate.  It is, of course, the single most important element to any confectionery cake creation.  Of course, as a busy mother of three incredibly amazing and perpetually active minions, I have chosen to use a serial baker secret weapon.  Yup, I yield the culinary floor to master baker, Sir Duncan Hines.

So, I followed the directions given me by Sir Hines and created 4 mini red velvet (and a larger cake for a later project).

The mini heart shaped pans I used were not very well defined, so after chilling my cakes for several minutes, I carved a bit sharper detail into the curves of my heart.  You, of course, can do as you like! :)

Now, that we have four lovely ruby red canvases upon which to work, we should determine which artistic medium we would like to use to create a stunning background for our passionate pastries.  I chose to use King Arthur's Poured Fondant recipe.  (Yes, yes, I know I am mixing French and English today.  Just call me a Renaissance woman. )  

http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/poured-fondant-icing-recipe

 Note the amazing camera work here...I bet you didn't know I employed Mr. McGoo did you?

 If you are like me, and have an affinity for wearing your ingredients, here's a little trick to help you along.  Grab a parchment triangle (if you use them) or some waxed paper to create a funnel for you to pour your powdered sugar into your sifter.  I am usually too impatient to spoon the sugar in, so this allows me to pour from my 8 cup glass batter bowl with ease.

 Allow me to introduce you to one of my most favored kitchen minions, Briana.  She has lived in the Mills Lair for about two years now, and is one of the most cheerful kitchen assistants I have.  I love her shiny red exterior....

 Speaking of shiny red...

Here is our finished fondant.  As you can see, it has cooled down during mixing time and isn't very fluid.  Not to worry, we will add a couple of tablespoons of hot water and pop Briana's shiny bowl into the oven at 200 degrees to let our fondant warm back to a pourable consistency.  (A true serial baker would be very specific here and tell you to bring your fondant to 100 degree internal temperature to achieve the perfect pourable consistency.  Good thing I'm just an amateur.)  What a beautiful shade of Valentine red...

 The absolute best part about a poured fondant, especially this thicker recipe is that there is no need to spread your glaze.  Just pour a very generous amount of glaze over your cakes, carefully covering all sides, and gravity will do the rest of the work for you!  (God bless Sir Isaac Newton!)

Oh my, how beautiful...


So now we have four beautifully glazed red velvet petit gâteaux.  but what do we do with all of that excess glaze? (Hmmm...my mind leans to the macabre with this picture.)

No worries!  We can reheat the glaze for other culinary confections!  Good thing I used parchment paper to keep my sheet pan clean.  What a clever cutie am I!

Now that we have our four shiny red canvases, it is time to boil our creative juices and produce some artistic steam!

Our  first cake will lean more to the traditional side of cake decorating.  Here I will use a cornelli lace pattern to cover the entire cake.  This elegant design is much easier than you would think.  To achieve this look, I will use a white medium consistency royal icing (which will be closer to a thin consistency of buttercream icing) and a Wilton Tip 2 to achieve our design.  Holding my parchment bag at a 90 degree angle to the top of the cake, I will pipe a random pattern across the cake, making sure not to cross over any lines, and to only have one starting place and one stopping place.  (No worries if you stop and pick up again somewhere else.  It isn't like your treat recipient is going to follow the pattern like a maze!)  It is also worth mentioning that you are not required to use royal icing here.  Many at-home-bakers have little use for royal icing.  If this is your situation, feel free to substitute a thin consistency butter cream recipe for the royal icing.  I just happened to have some readily available before beginning my project.

Covering the sides of your cake will not be as easy to achieve with a 90 degree perpendicular angle to the cake, but this is okay, this is a very forgivable technique!

Here is our finished cakelet.  I decided that the stark contrast between the shiny red glaze and the white was a bit much, so after the royal icing set, i dusted the surface with a violet pearl dust to give it a shiny pearlescent shimmer.  Lovely!

Our next cake is also a great old school cake decorating technique, but one not often employed which is a shame, since I think it makes a wicked cool effect...er um, I mean I think it is a lovely technique.

Behold!!! The mighty embroidery technique.  This technique can also be used with buttercream, but we are going to give it a royal treatment.  For this technique you will use your same medium consistency royal icing and tip 2.  You will also need a small dish of water or vodka to dampen your brush.  I like to work with vodka, not because I am a closet bartender, but because vodka is a clear alcohol with little flavor and it evaporates much faster than water.  You could also use clear vanilla extract if you prefer.

Working in small sections, pipe a zigzag line using a 45 degree angle around the edge of your cake.  Using a flat #2 brush, dampen the bristles and wipe away any excess moisture.  turning your brush sideways (so that the flat side of the bristles are perpendicular to the surface) gently pull the brush through your icing, careful to start in the middle of the icing towards the center of your cake.

Continue working in small sections until you have finished your design.

This is downright purty, but I think I will add a bit more detail...

Ahhh! A heart fit for a king...King Arthur perhaps?

Our third cake is for all of you wild at heart folks out there.  Here I will employ a simple piping technique  to give our treat a fun zebra print design.

It truly doesn't get any easier than this for decorating 101.  Here I employ a Tip 5, using a thin consistency chocolate buttercream to pipe some random zebra stripes onto my tiny torte.  It is important to note that you should use a consistent pressure when piping your stripes.  Be careful not to drag your tip across the surface of the cake ( a 45 degree angle is also recommended here).  Always release the pressure before your pull away from the cake with your piping bag.  This will allow you to avoid pulling the icing off of your cake as you pull away.  You can also use your damp paint brush to tap down any points you may have on your cake.  A serial baker would tell you that it is more important to use proper technique than to cheat with a paint brush, but it's a good thing that I'm a rebel....

(Don't you love how I lazily clipped the end of my piping bag instead of properly loading a smaller amount of buttercream and twisting the bag closed accordingly?)  Seriously, my laziness knows no bounds...



Okay, now on to cake #4...This one is probably my favorite.  Here we will use a very simple fondant decoration to make this cake uber awesome!

Having had access to many different brands of commercial fondant both here and in the UK, I have found that I really love working with Satin Ice Brand fondant.   Many home bakers like to make marshmallow fondant to use for their cake projects.  For this project, you can use whatever fondant that you like.  You could also use gumpaste if you prefer.  For this cakery adventure, we will use a small ball of white fondant mixed with a about 1/4 tsp. of Tylose Powder.  Kneeding in the Tylose will allow the sugarpaste (fondant) to have more elasticity, make it sturdier, and allow it to try faster.  Kneed, kneed, kneed!!!

 Once you have kneeded in the Tylose, you will want to roll your paste into a sausage shape and roll it out. It is a good idea to sprinkle a bit of powdered sugar or corn starch onto the surface before rolling, to keep your fondant from sticking to your work surface.

Once you have rolled out a long thin strip, use a sharp knife or pizza wheel to cut out a banner shape.  Make sure your banner is long enough to drape across the cake with about 2-3 inches to spare.

Now for the fun part!  Using a food color pen.  (I use Americolor brand) decorate your fondant banner as you please.  I was going for  the mom tattoo look, so I decorated my banner accordingly.

Note the small ball of fondant resting under the lid to my sugar shaker.  Fondant, modeling paste (what we call fondant that has been mixed with Tylose), and gumpaste are all allergic to air and will dry out very quickly, so it always a good idea to wrap your paste in plastic wrap or placed in an airtight container when not in use.

Ooooh!  What a cool cake.  If only I could be so cool.  I finished this cake off with the same bag of chocolate buttercream and tip 5 by adding a small teardrop shape to the top left corner and adding a small teardrop shaped border around the base of my cake.  (We'll save border techniques for another day.)

Well, look at that,  four  La Saint-Valentin petits gâteaux to make any serial baker proud.  These will definitely make the minions salivate tonight....

Happy Every Day & Happy Caking!

Confectionately yours,

Wendy

P.S.  Here are a couple of great sites to explore for Tylose and Fondant options

http://www.globalsugarart.com/

http://www.cakesupplies4u.com/

Serial baking defined...

To be a serial baker, one must posses a very unique skill set. How many folks do you know that can strike a fine balance between the scientific precision necessary to create culinary confections and the artistry required to propel said confections to a level of creative genius? To call oneself a baker is but part of the equation, albeit a most important one. How often have you heard people say, "the cake was beautiful, but it did not taste very good." I am sure you can recall many a dessert that made your tastes buds sing, but that looked most unappealing. The serial baker is one who has obsessively searched for the solutions to said problems, all while continuing to hone his or her culinary skills.

Having loosely defined the term serial baker, I feel I must interject this disclaimer: While I strive to attain the ultimate honor of being called a true serial baker, I am but merely a student in search of that sacred culinary balance. And, since perfection as defined in any situation is purely subjective, I feel that it is likely not a goal that I will imminently attain within this lifetime. Still, with a love for all things sweet and delectable, and more importantly, a love for making folks smile, I will thrust myself into the perpetual adventure that is serial baking...perhaps you will join me along the way. ;)

Confectionately Yours,

Wendy