Wilton Flowers and Cake Design Class #1

Tonight was my first class in Flowers and Cake Design!  We learned all about gumpaste, fondant, and how to mix them together to form flowers.  The 'button flower' is a complete pain to mold, but very cute when finished.  It would be perfect for a picnic basket cake.  The pansy is a much more laid back flower to make, even though it looks more complex.  Here are some examples (I was not as careful as I should have been in transporting these home, so I apologize for the 'mushed' look):

button flowers and pansies

purple button flower

pansy

In the spirit of good news, I have my first real cake order for this weekend. WOO!  I will be making a Barbie cake.  Wish me luck and watch for a post with the finished cake on Saturday!

Happy Baking!

Wilton Class #3 - Flowers!

Last night was my third Wilton decorating class, and we learned a few different kinds of flowers as well as how to properly ice a cupcake.  I used my basic vanilla butter cake recipe; while preparing the batter, a certain little boy distracted me and I put a tablespoon of baking power in the batter instead of teaspoon, SO these cupcakes were extra fluffy =) It's good to know that a little extra baking power doesn't effect the taste! My favorite flowers are the drop flowers, but the shaggy mums are really fun to make.  I think the most useful thing I learned is the proper 'swirl' for the top of the cupcake - so pretty! Here are a few pictures!

Pom Pom Flower and Shaggy Mum

The petal flower my teacher showed me

Drop Flowers

Shaggy Mum and Pom Pom Flower

All the cupcakes sittin' pretty on the cake stand.  They made it home in one piece!

Next week we make our final cake with writing!  We also learn the Ribbon Rose, which is my favorite (in pictures, anyway).  Next up in the baking order is a special surprise for a very special someone - watch for the blog tomorrow or Thursday.  Happy Baking!