Cake Decorating

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STARTUP LIBRARY

Cake Decorating WITH JENNY MCCOY

Jenny McCoy

As a pastry chef with more than 10 years of experience in some of the country’s finest kitchens, Jenny McCoy has learned to transform classic techniques into inventive and exceptional desserts, many of which you’ll find in her book, Desserts for Every Season. Jenny’s philosophy on baking is simple: By combining the best ingredients available and a personal creative touch, anyone can expand their repertoire to create expertly refined recipes and original pastries with ease. A truly approachable expert, Jenny’s detailed lessons are both inviting and inspiring.

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STARTUP LIBRARY: Cake Decorating

with Jenny McCoy Tools & Equipment

Buying Guide Tips While there are specialty cake supply stores in many large cities, the cake tools used in this class are readily available at big-box craft stores as well as online and each can be purchased for less than $5-10 (except hand mixer). For beginners, you can choose any brand you prefer, as general use will not vary greatly. If you get very interested in cake decorating, you may want to consider investing in a few more expensive tools, including a heavy-duty turntable and stand mixer. Cake Baking & Construction Before you start the cake construction process, you will need: • Two baked 8-inch (20-cm) cake layers (recipe included) • One batch Swiss meringue buttercream (recipe included) Tools for Baking & Buttercream Making • Mixing bowls and spoons • Liquid and dry measuring cups • Measuring spoons • Sifter • Parchment paper • 8-inch (20-cm) cake pans • Hand mixer (or stand mixer)

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Tools & Equipment Tools for Cake Construction • Serrated bread knife • Large offset spatula • Small offset spatula • Bench scraper • Cardboard cake rounds • Turntable Decorating With Buttercream Before you get started, you will need a cake that has been stacked, filled, and frosted with Swiss meringue buttercream. Additional Materials • Gel colors of choice General Kitchen Tools • Pastry brush • Rubber spatula • Parchment paper Cake Decorating Tools • Small offset spatula • Piping bags (disposable or cloth) • Piping tips (Ateco tips used in class) • Round: 800, 802, 804, 806 • Star: 820, 822, 824, 826 • Petal: 104 • Leaf: 352 • Flower nail Decorating With Fondant Before you get started, you will need a cake that has been stacked, filled and frosted with Swiss meringue buttercream.

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Tools & Equipment Additional Materials • Pre-made fondant • Gel colors of choice • Powdered sugar • Edible marker (as seen in Lesson 13) General Kitchen Tools & Supplies • Large rolling pin • Small paring knife or craft knife • Toothpicks • Disposable vinyl gloves (optional) • Small paintbrush Cake Decorating Tools • Small fondant rolling pin • Two fondant smoothers • Ateco alphabet cutters (optional) • Piping tips or other small circle cutters

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Recipes Vanilla Cake Yield: Makes two 8 x 2-inch (20 x 5-cm) cake layers Ingredients • Nonstick cooking spray • 3¼ cups (360 g) cake flour • 1 tablespoon baking powder • ¾ teaspoon salt • 1 cup (8 ounces or 230 g) unsalted butter, cut into cubes • 1¾ cups (350 g) granulated sugar • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract • 1¼ cups (10 fluid ounces or 300 ml) buttermilk • 5 large eggs Preparation 1. Preheat the oven to 350° F (175° C). Lightly coat two 8 x 2-inch (20 x 5-cm) round cake pans with nonstick cooking spray and line with parchment paper. Lightly coat the parchment paper with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside until ready to use. 2. On a piece of parchment paper or over a bowl, sift the cake flour. Set aside until ready to use. If you would like, you may also sift the baking powder and salt with the flour at this time. 3. Using a hand mixer and a large mixing bowl (or in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment), beat the butter and sugar on medium speed until completely combined, light in color, and no lumps of unmixed butter

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Recipes remain, about 5 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and continue to mix until smooth, about 1 minute. 4. Add the eggs, one at a time, and mix on medium speed until smooth. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and continue to mix until smooth, about 30 seconds. 5. Add the vanilla and mix until smooth, again, about 30 seconds. 6. Reduce the speed of the mixer and add about a third of the dry ingredients, alternating with half of the buttermilk. Repeat with the dry ingredients and buttermilk, adding slowly to the bowl, and mix until they are fully combined. You will end by adding the last third of the dry ingredients. 7. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and continue to mix until smooth, about 30 seconds. 8. Divide the batter evenly between the two prepared cake pans and knock the pans on the table firmly to remove any large air bubbles. Place the pans on the center rack of the oven and bake until they are light golden brown, the sides pull away from the cake pans, and a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 45 to 55 minutes. Carefully rotate the cake pans in the oven after baking about 30 minutes to ensure even cooking. Chocolate Cake Variation Substitute ½ cup (55 grams) of the cake flour for cocoa powder. Proceed with the recipe as directed, sifting the flour and cocoa with the other dry ingredients and adding to the cake batter with the other dry ingredients.

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Recipes Doctored Box Cake Mix Yield: Makes two 8-inch (20-cm) layers Ingredients • 1 box yellow or white cake mix (do not use mixes with pudding added to them) • 4 large (120 gram) egg whites • ½ cup (120 grams) water • 1⁄3 cup (80 grams) vegetable oil • 1 small package (28 grams) of instant vanilla pudding mix • 1 cup (240 grams) sour cream • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional) Preparation 1. Follow the mixing and baking directions as listed on the box, adding the pudding mix in with the cake mix and the remaining ingredients in with the wet ingredients. Chocolate Doctored Box Cake Variation Substitute the instant vanilla pudding mix with chocolate pudding mix and follow the recipe as directed. Swiss Meringue Buttercream Makes 6 cups (1.5 kg) Ingredients • 8 large egg whites • 2½ cups (560 g) granulated sugar • ¼ teaspoon salt • 6 sticks (675 g) unsalted butter, softened

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Recipes Preparation 1. Combine the egg whites, sugar, and salt in a large heat-proof bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer), and set over a double boiler with simmering water. Be sure the level of the simmering water is below the bottom of the bowl. 2. Whisking constantly by hand, heat the mixture until hot to the touch, approximately 160° F (71° C). Carefully remove the bowl from the double boiler and using a hand mixer (or transfer the bowl to the stand mixer fitted with the whip attachment), whip the mixture on medium speed until very thick, glossy, and cooled to room temperature, about 10 minutes. As the mixture thickens, slowly increase the mixer to its highest speed. 3. Reduce the speed of the mixer to low and add the softened butter, If your butter is not very soft, you’ll want to add it one stick at a time. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, increase the speed of the mixer to high, and whip until the mixture is thickened and completely smooth, about 10 minutes. Chocolate Swiss Meringue Buttercream With the mixer set on low speed, slowly pour 11 ounces (320 g) chopped dark chocolate, melted and cooled to room temperature, into the buttercream as soon as the frosting is smooth. Continue to mix on high speed until the frosting is smooth.

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Guide to Piping Tips Piping tips are plastic or metal tubes that you attach into a piping bag to shape or texture your buttercream frosting as it is pushed through the tip. They may also be called pastry tips, piping nozzles, or even decorating tips. They come in a variety of shapes and sizes and are often referred to by their shape as well as a number. While numbers may differ among manufacturers, some piping tips, including small round and star tips, often share the same numbers. For example, a No. 6 round tip is a piping tip with a small opening about 5⁄32 inch wide. Some of the most common shapes include: Round These tips vary from very small (less than 1⁄16 inch) to up to large (nearly a ½ inch wide). They produce a rope of smooth icing when piped. Smaller tips can be used for outlining details, writing messages, and creating strings, lace, vines, and small dots. Larger tips can be used to create kisses, dots, balls, and bead borders. Very large tips can be used to create swirls of icing on top of cupcakes. Star Star tips come “open” or “closed.” Open star tips (left) have tapered opening with a sharp, clean zigzag pattern resembling teeth at the end. Closed tips bend those teeth in slightly to make the opening a bit smaller and the star more pronounced. Like round tips, star tips can be used to create star kisses and bead borders, but they also can be used to pipe shells, shell borders and rosettes. Very

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Guide to Piping Tips large star tips can be used to create large rosettes or icing swirls on cupcakes. They are not recommended for writing or making straight lines. Petal Petal tips come in a variety of shapes and sizes and are used to create a single petal. Combined, these petals will make flowers, including roses, carnations, dahlias, and pansies. Rose petal tips are teardrop shaped and may include a slight curve. The larger the teardrop, the larger petal and rose. Leaf Tips V-shaped notch in this tip creates a leaf shape with a pointy end. Great for adding between roses or other flowers, or on their own if creating a vine. You can pipe leaves plain, ruffled, or standing up between decorations. Specialty Tips Including Basketweave, Grass & Ruffle Tips These come in a near endless assortment and can be used to create patterned lines or designs. Basketweave tips have a smooth side for making wide icing stripes and a serrated side for creating ribbed stripes. Grass tips have multiple openings and can be used to create lots of thin strands of icing, perfect for recreating grass or hair. Ruffle tips create a long ruffled line of icing.

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Guide to Piping Tips Tip Conversion Chart In this class, Jenny uses round and star tips from the Ateco 800 series. They are about 2” tall and offer more stability than a small 1” tip, which makes them perfect for beginners. They are readily available online and may be available at cake specialty stores as well as big-box craft stores. If you cannot find them at a local retailer, you can usually find the smaller 1” piping tip. Below is a conversion guide between the Ateco 800 series and 1” tips

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Large 2" Ateco brand pastry tip numbers used in class

Smaller 1" piping tip number equivalent

Size of opening

No. 800 round

No. 6 (most brands)

⁵⁄ 32" (4 mm)

No. 802 round

No. 8 (most brands)

¼" (6.5 mm)

No. 804 round

No. 10 (most brands)

No. 806 round

No. 12 (Ateco)

½" (12.5 mm)

No. 820 open star

No. 16 (most brands)

⁵⁄ 32" (4 mm)

No. 822 open star

No. 19 (most brands)

¼" (6.5 mm)

No. 824 open star

No. 21 (most brands)

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No. 826 open star

n/a; try the Wilton 1M 2" tip

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⁄8" (9.5 mm)

⁄8" (9.5 mm)

½" (12.5 mm)

How To Slice and Serve Tips on Slicing & Serving Layer Cakes Determining Portion Size When serving an 8-inch (20-cm) layer cake or smaller, simply cut it into wedges, anywhere between 6-12 slices per cake, depending on how many servings you desire. For larger round cakes, a different technique is used to prevent the wedges from being very long and too large. Marking Cake Slices Mark your cake before you cut—determine precisely how many servings you would like to yield from your cake and gently score a line in the frosting on the top of your cake with a knife before you begin cutting. Looking to serve a lot of people? Check out this handy cutting guide from Pam’s Tiers of Joy: http://www. pamstiersofjoy.net/how_to_cut_your_celebration_cake. Cutting the Cake • Always use a large chef’s knife to cut layer cakes. • Dip the entire blade of the knife into a tall container, such as a pitcher, filled with very hot water. This will warm the blade and allow you to cut cleanly through your layers of buttercream and cake. • Dry the water from the blade with a clean kitchen towel or paper towel. • Cut into the cake, placing the tip of the knife blade into the cake first, and cutting downward through all the layers. • Be sure to dip the knife back into the hot water and wipe the blade clean between every cut – to ensure clean cuts for each slice of cake.

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How To Transport Cakes

Tips on Transporting Cakes Here are some easy-to-follow tips on how to transport your decorated layer cakes: • Layer cakes should be set on one cardboard round the size of the cake’s diameter—this is the cardboard round you used to assemble your cake in Lesson 4. • Place your layer cake on another cardboard round—1 to 2 inches larger in diameter than your cake. Using a small piece of tape, roll the tape sticky side out and attach the two layers of cardboard together. This larger cake board will allow you to more easily pick up and move your cake around. • Storing your cakes in bakery boxes makes transportation a lot less stressful. It will protect your cake from dust, lint, accidentally being knocked into, etc.

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How To Transport Cakes • Place the cakes in boxes that are sized to the cardboard base of your cake. This will prevent the cake from shifting within the box. If the box is too big, roll pieces of masking tape sticky side out and attach to the inside bottom of the box. Position the cake on top of the tape. The tape will hold the cake in place within the box. • Do not tuck in the bakery box flaps inside the box, as they can damage your cake. Keep them on the outside of the box and tape them to close the box. • For boxes which must hold taller decorations, prop up top and sides and secure with masking tape. • Large toppers, candles, and decorations should be packed separately from your cake. You can attach any larger decorations to your cake on site. • For multi-tiered cakes, transport each tier separately and stack on site. • Be sure to have with you the equipment and icings you will need to finish any decorating needed after assembly at the final destination—I always pack a small bag of buttercream (colored if necessary), a large and small offset spatula, a few toothpicks, and a pair of scissor and tweezers. These will help in case you have to make an unexpected repair to your cake. • Place your cake boxes on the floor of your car, on a very flat surface. Do not put them on a slanted car seat, and only place them in the trunk of your car if the weather is cool and they are on a surface that will prevent the cakes from sliding. • If the weather is warm, be sure to transport the cakes in an airconditioned vehicle (the trunk is not air-conditioned). I prefer to place the cakes on floor of the front passenger side of the car, with direct access to the car’s air-conditioning vents in hot weather.

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Glossary Appliqué: Using cutout pieces of thinly rolled fondant to create designs on the surface of a frosted or fondant-covered cake. Bakery box: Cardboard box used to store and transport cakes. Buttercream icing: The most versatile and popular type of frosting. It is smooth and creamy, made with a butter or shortening, sugar, and sometimes egg whites. It is used for covering cakes, and piped decorations such as flowers, borders, and writing. • American Buttercream: A whipped frosting made from confectioner’s sugar and butter or shortening. • Swiss meringue buttercream: A whipped frosting made from egg whites and sugar cooked over a double boiler. The mixture is then whipped until cooled, light and fluffy. Butter or shortening is added and the mixture is whipped to create a thick frosting consistency. (Sometimes abbreviated at SMBC by cake decorators and bakers.) Cake board: A corrugated cardboard disk that is sized to provide bases for standard circular cakes. They can be waxed, unwaxed, patterned, or with ruffles already applied. May also be called a cake round or a cake circle. Also come in other shapes, including square and oval. Cake dummy: Polystyrene form cut into the shape of a cake tier. Dummies can be used for practice decorating, fake tiers to increase the height and size of a cake, inedible cake displays, or in some decorating competitions. They are often covered in icing or fondant and decorated to look like real cake tiers. Also called Styrofoam dummies.

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Glossary Cake flour: A finely milled, low-protein flour used for cakes (8-9 percent protein as compared to all-purpose flour, which is 10-13 percent protein). This makes cakes more tender with a lighter, fluffier crumb. Confectioner’s sugar: Sugar that has been processed into a powder that is 10x more fine than granulated sugar. Often contains cornstarch to keep the powder from clumping. It is used to make icings, gum paste, fondant, or sprinkled on top of baked goods. Also known as icing sugar, powdered sugar or sometimes simply 10x. Craft knife: A sharp knife with a small folding or retractable razorlike blade on a stick pen shaped handle that is suited for small detailed cutting work. It is mostly used for crafts. Also called a utility knife. Creaming: A mixing method that begins with the blending of butter and sugar, followed by eggs and dry ingredients and is often used when making cakes, cookies, and similar items. Crumb coat: To coat a cake in a very thin layer of frosting, in order to trap loose crumbs. This technique is primarily used before flat-masking a cake with an additional layer of frosting. Decorating bag: The bag that holds a decorating tip and frosting for piped designs. Bags can be made of plastic, polyester, canvas, or parchment paper. Also called a piping bag or pastry bag.

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Glossary Decorating tips: Often referred to as pastry or piping tips, these specially-shaped, open-end tips are used to form icing decorations. The size and shape of the opening on a decorating tip determines the type of decorations the tip will produce. Sometimes called decorating tubes or nozzles. • Round tip: Circular opening at the end of a piping tip. Can be very small for detailed work and writing, or very large for swirling frosting on top of cupcakes. • Star tip: Can come open or closed, creating ridges on the frosting as it passes through the tip. Can be used to create scrolls, borders, kisses, and rosettes. • Leaf Tip: Includes a V-shaped notch, which creates a leaf shape when piped. • Rose Tip: Curved tear-drop shaped tip used for creating flower petals. De-pan: To remove a cake from its baking pan. Dry measuring cups: A set of measuring cups that usually range in size from ¼ cup to 1 cup and are used to measure the volume of dry cooking and baking ingredients such as flour and sugar. Not to be confused with liquid measuring cups which come as a pitcher with a handle, usually made of clear plastic or glass, and used to measure the volume of liquid. Double boiler: A set of two pans, or a bowl set over a pan, that stack on top of each other. A double boiler is used for any cooking process that requires gentle indirect heat. Water is heated in the lower saucepan and the contents of the top pan or bowl are heated. Also known as a double saucepan. Edible marker: A marker used for cake decoration on rolled fondant or royal icing that is made with edible ink.

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Glossary Elephant skin: The term used for rolled fondant that has a dried out and has a fine wrinkled appearance on its surface. Filler flowers: Small flowers or buds used to fill space gaps between larger flowers to give cake flower sprays or bouquets a fuller look. Filling: Frosting, puddings, creams or preserves that are spread between layers of cake to hold them together. Flat mask/flat frost: To cover a cake with frosting with a perfectly straight top and sides. It is an essential frosting technique used before covering a cake with rolled fondant. Flower nail: A small round, flat surface on a stem, similar to a nail and usually made of metal. It is finger-held and can be rotated to make piped icing flowers. Fondant/rolled fondant: A sweet, elastic icing made of sugar, glucose, and sometimes gelatin that is rolled out with a rolling pin and draped over a cake. It has a smooth, porcelain finish and provides a firm base for sugar flowers, decorative details, and architectural designs. It can also be used to make flowers, leaves or other appliqué and cut out decorations for cake designs. Fondant rolling pin: A hard plastic rolling pin used for creating a smooth and professional-quality finish on rolled fondant. Can be large, up to 18” or very small, 9” for rolling out small pieces of fondant. Fondant smoothers: An essential tool made of hard plastic with a flat surface and handle that is used for shaping and smoothing rolled fondant.

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Glossary Fondant spackle: A pliable thin paste made from water and fondant that is used to patch small holes and tears in rolled fondant. Frost: To cover a cake with icing. Gel paste coloring: A gel-based food coloring used to give frostings or fondant deeper, more vivid colors than liquid or water-based food colorings. It is very concentrated and thick, and should be used in very small quantities. Gum paste: A sugar paste dough made from a combination of rolled fondant and a gum stiffening agent that dries hard. It is used for handmade, lifelike flowers and other three-dimensional decorations that will last for years if stored in dry and cool environments in airtight containers. Marble: To partly mix food coloring into cake batter, frosting, or fondant to create a decorative swirled pattern of colors. Metal bench scraper: A flat, rectangular piece of metal with a handle on the top often used to cut pieces of pastry, bread, fondant and other doughs. It is also used frequently by cake decorators to smooth frosting on the sides of layer cake. Offset spatula: A metal utensil, with a long flat tip and a bend just at the handle, used to spread frosting smoothly and evenly on to cakes. Parchment paper: A heat-resistant paper often used in baking that is available in sheets or in rolls.

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Glossary Petal/leaf veiner: A sculpting tool, often made of silicon, that is used to press fondant or gumpaste flower petals and leaves to give them a natural veining surface texture. Also called petal or leaf presses. Piped designs: Decorations created with frosting that is pressed through a pastry bag fitted with a piping tip. Also called piping. • Bead borders: A continuous decoration of small dots or beads used around the top, side or base of a cake. Also called pearl borders. • Kisses: A drop of icing created with a round piping tip, that resembles a Hershey’s kiss. • Swiss dots: A piping technique that forms tiny dots in random patterns that resemble a fine dotted Swiss fabric. Piping gel: A transparent gel that can be tinted any color for decorating, writing, or pattern transfer. Often found pre-colored and in tubes at the grocery store and used for writing. It is not to be confused with gel paste food coloring. Practice board: A hard surface that can be used flat or upright for practicing piped decorations. Spoon-and-level measuring: To spoon the flour into a dry measuring cup and then use a flat tool, such as a spatula, to level it off. This technique is used to accurately measure flour by volume versus by weight on a scale. Scratch cake: A cake made using no prepared ingredients. Stacked cake: A multi-tiered cake, with each tier placed directly on one another in graduating order from large to small. Dowels or large straws are often placed inside the cake to support the cake placed on top of it.

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Glossary Swiss meringue: A whipped frosting made from egg whites and sugar cooked over a double boiler. The mixture is then whipped until cooled, light and fluffy. It can be used on its own as a frosting or butter or shortening can be added to the meringue to create Swiss Meringue Buttercream. Sugar flower: A three-dimensional, botanically realistic flower made from fondant, gum paste, or other sugar dough. Tier: The term used to describe a layer cake, when used in a stack of cakes arranged in graduating sizes. Toppers: A cake decoration that is placed on the top of a cake, often a hand-modeled figurine made of fondant or gumpaste and traditionally a representation of a couple in formal wedding attire. Modern designed toppers can be made into any decoration the cake designer chooses, ranging from people to animals to fantasy characters. Torting: Splitting a single cake layer in half horizontally to form two layers. Turntable: A revolving cake stand used in the decorating process for ease, especially when covering a cake in frosting. Some turntables can be tilted to decorate the sides of the cake. Can also substitute a level Lazy Susan or even a microwave plate and rollers.

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