No celebration in life is complete without cakes and cookies. Fancy cake and cookie decorations might have made your heads turn at restaurants and street confectioners. If those delicious sights challenge your creativity, follow this beginner guide by Icingink’s edible design artists for ultimate cake and cookie decorations.
Everything starts with the right shape
No matter what recipe you try to make the cake batter, the shape of the cake matters and complements to the overall cake decoration. Therefore, the selection of cake or cookie pan or tray is important. Make sure it’s non-sticky. Straight edge pans are good to go for shaping the cake. For cookies, you may find a tray or pans with multiple shapes.
Right setting of your cake or cookie is important
Turn on the oven and let its environment come to the right temperature. Keep the stand or rack on which you will place the cake or cookies at the center. Insert a toothpick in the batter before place it in the oven. Bake until the cakes or cookies are lightly golden on top and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Thirty to thirty-five minutes is sufficient. The duration also depends on season. Transfer to racks and let cool 10 minutes, then run a knife around the edge of the pans and turn the cakes out onto the racks to cool completely.
Use parchment paper to ensure smooth bottom and borders
Using parchment papers at the bottom of your cake pans helps in a perfect release every time. It saves your cakes or cookies from getting stuck to the surface and retains the smooth their smooth shape. Parchment paper isn't the same as wax paper. Pre-cut parchment sheets also come in the market in various shapes and designs to make your job easier.
Use a sharp knife or blade to release the edible
Use a knife to help release your cakes from their pans. Run the knife or blade around the edge. Assuming you put parchment paper in the bottom of the pan the cake should slip right out when you flip it over. You may also use the knife to create precise or smooth lines.
Use cake boards or drums for a stable design
It’s important to keep your cake or cookies on a stable hard surface where you can start with the next-step of decoration. For large or multi-tiered cakes, use a cake drum. It’s nothing different but staking three to four cake boards to obtain a height, which is enough to hold the cake. Use an appropriate spatula to transfer your cake or cookie from oven to cooling racks.
Use the right cake turntable for perfect decoration
Decorating a cake becomes much easier using a turntable. Spin the cake rather than clumsily turning it or walking around it to get to all sides. Turntables, sometimes also called cake stand, come with a platform of a specific diameter that rotates to help you get the perfect round shape for your cake.
Create personalized cake topper
Using frosting sheets or icing sheets, you can easily create stunning professional-looking cake toppers. If you have an edible printer, you can print it with an image of choice. Some edible suppliers might offer you pre-designed as well as pre-cut sheets to make your job easier. For further precision in the cake topper decoration, you may use edible pens or markers.
