To decorate your holiday with a bright cake, you don’t have to go to the store or pastry shop to buy it. You can make it at home if you try hard enough. We will help you with this.
Cream is such a special mass from which you can prepare many different things. Today we will offer you one version of the cream, from which we will prepare excellent decorations in the form of roses.
How much time - 40 minutes.
What is the calorie content - 395 calories.
How to cook:
- Place the whites in a large bowl and add acid, sugar and vanillin;
- Place a pan on the stove that will hold a bowl of egg whites;
- Pour water into it and boil;
- Place the whites in a water bath and beat the cream for fifteen minutes;
- When the whites are already elastic, remove them from the bath and beat for a few more minutes until stable peaks form;
- Next, let the cream cool and add coloring if desired;
- Gently mix the mixture with a spatula and place it in a pastry bag, having previously placed a “star” nozzle in it;
- Decorate the finished, cooled cake with the resulting cream, squeezing out roses. To do this, start from the center and rotate your hand in two circles, sharply tearing the nozzle away from the cream so that you don’t get a tail;
- Decorate the entire cake with these roses and let them harden in the refrigerator.
Tip: if the whites are not whipping well, you can add a little more lemon juice.
Mastic is similar to plasticine, both in consistency and appearance. It is colorful, soft and you can use it to do whatever your heart desires. Baking decorations included.
What is the calorie content - 34 calories.
How to cook:
- Pass the powdered sugar through a sieve into a large bowl;
- Add milk powder and mix well;
- Pour in condensed milk and knead the elastic mass, working with it as with regular dough;
- Add lemon juice, cognac for a pleasant aroma and, if necessary, dyes;
- Knead until the texture and color are uniform;
- The result should be a smooth, matte mass;
- Next, from the resulting mass we will form a toddler as a decoration on the cake. To do this, you need to add flesh-colored dye to the mastic;
- From a piece of mastic, first make an oval in the shape and size of a small chicken egg;
- Using a toothpick, make a hole just below the middle - the baby’s navel;
- Insert a toothpick into this “egg” so that it stands firmly on the cake;
- Take a smaller piece of mastic (but not too much) and roll it into a perfect ball;
- Place it on a toothpick as a head;
- Using another toothpick, make the baby's eyes;
- Stretch a smile (mouth) with the same toothpick and put dots on the corners;
- Make a nose out of a small piece of mastic and flatten it;
- For ears, roll two balls and place them on the sharp end of a pen or pencil (to make indentations), but do not pierce them;
- Now take more mastic (a quarter of the amount for the head), roll it into a sausage and use a toothpick to make stripes at the end (fingers);
- Make the second arm in the same way and attach both arms to the body;
- Brush the surface of the cake with water and glue the little one.
Tip: instead of cognac, you can use another flavoring.
Fruits are the simplest and most affordable decoration for a cake. This decoration, in principle, can be considered ready. After all, fruits and berries need to be washed, dried, and they can immediately go on the cake.
The easiest option is to pour a whole mountain of berries or pieces of fruit directly into the center of the cake. You can lay out a “month” of the same ingredients. Both options will turn out very tasty, bright and appetizing.
But, if you try a little more, you can make something else out of fruits. For example, a hedgehog. To do this, you will need one package of toothpicks, about two dozen light grapes of the same size, two small black grapes, one large and one pear.
The pear needs to be washed, peel half of the pear with a vegetable peeler or knife on the narrow side. Pierce each white grape with a toothpick and insert it into the unpeeled part of the pear. The grapes should be adjacent to the pear, and the toothpicks should stick out like hedgehog spines.
Break two toothpicks in half and string small black grapes onto two of them and stick them into the pear as eyes. Place a large dark grape on another half and stick it in like a nose. But both the eyes and the nose should be made so that the toothpicks are not visible, unlike the back of the hedgehog.
Insert a bamboo stick into the cake and string the hedgehog onto it so as not to pierce it through. The decoration is ready!
In addition to filling the cake with icing, you can also prepare chocolate figures that will decorate your cake just as well.
Option 1
An easy and simple way to decorate a cake with something chocolatey is to buy ready-made decorations. For example, you can buy several packages of Kit Kat (not the bars, but the ones that break) and the same amount of M&M’s candies.
Surround the finished cake with Kit Kat sticks in a circle and tie them with a beautiful ribbon. And pour the sweets inside, filling the entire space to the very top.
Option 2
The second method is a web of glaze. To do this, you need to cover the cake with white or dark chocolate icing and pour a little light or, conversely, dark icing on top.
Next, use a toothpick or bamboo stick to apply any desired design. But this must be done immediately, before any of the glaze has hardened. Therefore, it would be wise not to cool the cake before this, but also not to pour water on the still warm cake. After “decorating” the cake, immediately put it in the refrigerator.
Instead of a web, you can make a spiral of icing and run a toothpick along it. This will create a whole spiral of hearts.
Option 3
For this method, you will need chocolate from the products. Besides this, you only need parchment.
First you will have to melt the chocolate, and while it is melting in the oven, microwave or on the stove, prepare a strip of parchment and place it on a flat surface (like a cutting board) that can be placed in the refrigerator. Ideally, a marble board that won’t even need to be moved in the cold.
So, then make a small envelope from another piece of parchment and pour chocolate into it. Pour the chocolate from this envelope onto a prepared sheet of paper in the form in which you want the decoration to appear. It could be a heart, a butterfly, a congratulations text, and so on. You need to use a thin ribbon so that the decoration does not float.
Tip: To make your decorations as delicious as possible, use real, high-quality chocolate.
Children most often like bright and beautiful cake decorations and often this is mastic. But, to be honest, among the decorations there may be something healthier than sugar mass. For example, you can decorate a children's cake with curd cream. It's not only healthier, it's also delicious!
How much time - 15 minutes.
What is the calorie content - 327 calories.
How to cook:
- Remove the butter from the refrigerator or freezer first so that it becomes soft and easier to work with;
- Cut it into cubes and place in a bowl;
- Add cottage cheese and vanilla extract to it;
- Using a mixer or whisk, beat the ingredients until fluffy, light, airy;
- Add powder with a spoon in several stages;
- Stir and beat everything again with a mixer or whisk until smooth;
- Beat the mixture for three minutes.
For the first and second options, the cream must be divided into two parts. In the first case, add white dye to one part and black dye to the second. In the second case, add black and red. Next, place both creams in different bags with the desired attachments and take out the prepared, cooled cake. Start decorating the cake by squeezing small but sharp peaks all over the cake.
To help yourself, you can first use the same colored cream to draw a picture of the back of a ladybug or a soccer ball. Next, apply the cream, then put it in the refrigerator for at least two hours.
Tip: to make the cream as homogeneous as possible, it is better to first beat the cottage cheese separately with an immersion blender or pass through a sieve.
Other simple and interesting ways to decorate
Those decorations that we wrote about above are not all that can be used to decorate a cake for the holiday. In addition to this entire list, there are still a sea of options.
- For example, you can use regular sprinkled sugar. To do this, you need to line the cake with cream and sprinkle with sprinkles so that there is no empty space. Imagine how bright the cake will be;
- You can make a cake in the shape of a honeycomb. To do this, you need to make a soft (!) cream and place it in washed and dried bubble wrap (which everyone loves to burst), and then remove it. Do this on all sides of the cake. In this form, cool the cake in the refrigerator, and later enjoy the creation;
- It has also become popular to do it a la “drops”. To do this, cover the cake with peaks of cream and smooth them with a spoon in one direction. It turns out very beautiful and original, especially if you make a transition from one color to another - you get an amber.
We have offered you more than ten options for cake decorations. Which one should I make? Now the decision is yours. Depending on what holiday you are preparing for, you can choose your decor and practice. If not the first time, then the second time everything will definitely work out. It will be bright and tasty! Good luck!
If you can bake delicious cakes, then you should know how to properly decorate a homemade cake so that it can sparkle with bright colors. Cakes are served not only on birthdays today! It turns out that such sweet products can become the main dish of any feast. Therefore, in this article we decorate the cake with our own hands. At the same time, we will use the most original ideas.
What to use to decorate the cake
Before offering you interesting ideas, it is worth mentioning that today it is customary to decorate cakes with a variety of decorations. However, making such jewelry may require patience and skill on your part. You may also need certain available tools. It could be:
- pastry syringe with various attachments,
- parchment paper,
- various blades,
- thin and sharp knife,
- device for working with mastic.
But if you work hard, you will get a result of excellent quality. As a result, you may end up with a delicious and very beautifully decorated dish that will allow your guests to admire and enjoy its wonderful taste. In this article, we will tell you how to make various ingredients for decorating a cake.
How to make mastic?
Mastic is used quite often to decorate cakes. You can prepare mastic using any of the modern methods. But we will describe the simplest method of preparing mastic. So, you should prepare milk mastic. It will require:
- powdered milk or cream,
- condensed milk,
- powder,
- dyes as desired.
From marshmallows you should prepare:
- chewing marshmallows,
- food coloring,
- water and citric acid (lemon juice),
- butter,
- starch and powdered sugar.
How to cook?
Milk mastic should be prepared as follows:
- In a deep bowl, mix all the ingredients. First, the dry ones are mixed, after which condensed milk is poured into them.
- The result will be a thick and elastic dough that will not stick to your hands.
- If dyes are added to the mastic, then only food dyes should be used. They should be added one drop at a time.
Marshmallow mastic should be made as follows:
- After that, pour in a little water and add a pinch of citric acid or lemon juice. You can also add milk.
- Now add food coloring to the liquid mixture.
- White marshmallows should be melted in a microwave oven or steamed.
- At the end, add 50 grams of butter to the mixture.
- Make a sugar mixture: mix starch with powder 3:1.
- Add this mixture in parts to the marshmallow mixture. The resulting dough should be elastic and elastic.
- Now knead the dough for about 10 minutes on a flat surface, which should be sprinkled with powder.
On a note! The mastic should be used as follows. The mastic should be thinly rolled into a circle. It covers the top of the sweet product. Various products can also be cut from it. Such as flowers, leaves and openwork patterns. Remember, mastic tends to dry instantly. It's worth working with it very quickly. To create a decoration, pinch off a piece from the total mass, and wrap the main part in cellophane.
How to decorate a cake with marzipan?
Marzipan is a delicious nut paste that has long been used to decorate sweet cakes. This paste will consist of almond flour and sugar paste. As a result, the mass will be elastic and will keep its shape perfectly. This paste makes beautiful shapes and an ideal cake coating.
To prepare the pasta you need to take the following ingredients:
- 200 grams of sugar,
- 1/4 glass of water,
- 1 cup roasted almonds.
How to cook?
- Pure almonds should be dried in the oven. It should take on a golden hue. It is grated on a small grater.
- Sugar is mixed with water and a thick syrup is boiled.
- When the syrup thickens well, add almond crumbs. Mix everything well and cook for another 3 minutes.
- Grease the bowl with a piece of butter. After which marzipan is added to it.
- Cool the mixture and pass through a meat grinder. After this, it can be used to decorate the cake.
On a note! Marzipan may turn out liquid. Therefore, in this case, you can add powdered sugar to it in order to give it the desired consistency. If the paste is too thick, sprinkle it with boiled water and roll it out. The cake that you decorated in this way is put in the refrigerator for 8-10 hours.
How to decorate a cake with icing?
Icing is an ice pattern. This pattern looks great on a cake. This decoration looks like an ice pattern on glass. And this decoration tastes like crispy ice. Icing is mainly used to decorate wedding cakes.
To make such a decoration you must prepare:
- A teaspoon of glycerin.
- Egg white - 3 pieces.
- About 600 grams of powdered sugar, maybe less. It all depends on the size of the eggs.
- Lemon juice in the amount of 15 grams.
How to cook?
Icing is usually prepared from chilled ingredients.
- So, separate the whites. The dishes in which you place them should be degreased and wiped dry.
- The whites should be beaten for a couple of minutes at low speed.
- Then add: lemon juice, powder and glycerin.
- Whisk the mixture until it turns whitish.
- Cover the mass with film and leave it in a cool place for an hour. At this time, all the air bubbles in it will burst.
On a note! When working with icing, a pastry syringe is used. In this case, it is worth using the narrowest nozzle. After the product is decorated, it is placed in the cold to harden.
Decorate the cake with waffles.
In this article, we are listing the best ideas to help you decorate your DIY birthday cake.
Waffles are also a great option for decorating a sweet cake. Moreover, they are very convenient to use at work. They do not crack or break. Quite often the following are made from wafers: figures of berries, flowers and three-dimensional letters and numbers. Photographs and pictures of waffles, which are edible, are also in demand.
How to decorate a cake with waffle pictures?
- It is worth saying that the process of decorating a cake with waffle pictures has its own characteristics, which are worth talking about in more detail.
- The wafer blank is placed only on the flat surface of the cake.
- You can use mastic as a base. Also suitable: thick butter cream, chocolate icing.
- The waffle picture should be placed on a non-hardened surface. However, you should do this if you use chocolate glaze.
It should be formatted as follows:
- The back side of the workpiece should be greased with light jam or liquid honey. Thick sugar syrup will also work. The ingredient is spread onto the wafer with a thin brush using a wide silicone brush.
- Place the workpiece on the surface of the cake. In this case, you need to smooth it with a napkin. This movement will release excess air.
- The edges of the waffle picture are hidden by a side of whipped cream or buttercream.
- If the cake is decorated with waffle figures, then only the back side of the figure, and specifically its central part, needs to be greased with syrup.
Decorate the cake with chocolate.
If you don’t know how to decorate a cake with your own hands without mastic, then you need to pay attention to chocolate. Decorating a cake with chocolate is a great option. And all because this ingredient can be combined with any dough and creams.
How to make chocolate?
Making chocolate chips is not difficult. For example, you can grate a tile and sprinkle the shavings on the sides and surface of the cake. You can also use a vegetable peeler. This knife will allow you to cut long and thin strips.
In order to decorate the cake with chocolate curls, you need to slightly warm up the bar first. After this, you can cut the strips with a sharp knife or vegetable cutter.
You will need skill to make openwork patterns. In this case, different patterns are drawn on the parchment. Then you need to draw patterns with melted chocolate. The work should be done quickly, but at the same time carefully. The patterns should harden on the paper in the cold.
To make leaves from chocolate, you need to take any leaves from plants and dry them. Of course, before sending the leaves for drying, they must be thoroughly washed, after which you can apply melted chocolate to the inside of them. The leaves should be placed in a cool place. After they harden, you need to carefully remove the dried leaves from the chocolate leaves. Then the glaze is applied using a silicone brush.
Decorate the cake with icing.
Frosting can also be used to decorate a cake very beautifully for any occasion. Currently, there are many types of glaze. For example, there is a type of glaze that requires hardening in the cold. Another type of glaze can be used immediately. Now we will tell you what you need to make chocolate glaze:
- Milk - 1.5 tablespoons.
- Cocoa - 2 teaspoons.
- Sugar - 1.5 tablespoons.
- Butter - 40 grams.
How to cook?
- Place sugar and cocoa in a bowl, then chop the butter and add it there. We also fill everything with milk.
- Melt the mixture and boil for about 7 minutes. You need to stir until the mass becomes thick.
- Cover the cake with this mixture using a wide knife and immediately refrigerate.
Other options for decorating a cake at home
In addition to all the methods described above, there are other methods that are used in decorating cakes. And if you're interested in knowing how to decorate a DIY birthday cake? Then take a look at some more interesting ideas.
So, you can use cream to decorate the cake. It's very easy to prepare. And it should be applied to the cake using a pastry chef’s syringe.
Cream is also a good option for decorating a cake. Meringue is also often used to decorate cakes.
How to decorate a cake with fruits?
Regular or exotic fruits and berries are often used in cake decoration. Their popularity is obvious. They have unique flavors and vibrant colors. To make fruit jelly you will need:
- apple juice - 600 milliliters,
- packaging of gelatin powder,
- powdered sugar - 1 cup,
- fresh berries and fruits.
How to cook?
- The gelatin package is filled with a glass of juice. The mass is left until it swells.
- Clean fruits are cut into slices or circles.
- The gelatin, which has already swollen, is melted in a water bath. Then pour in the remaining juice and add powdered sugar.
- The finished mass is filtered. After that, berries and fruits are placed in jelly and placed in the cold.
- Once the jelly has cooled slightly, transfer it to the cake. Cover the edges with whipped cream.
How to decorate a cake with candies?
If you are preparing a cake for a child’s birthday, then remember that all children pay attention to the design of such a product. To impress your kids, you can always make a beautiful cake yourself. In this case, choose candies as decoration.
How to decorate?
- You can decorate absolutely any cake with candies. They can be laid on a viscous or thick surface.
- To decorate the side of the cake, choose wafer rolls or long bars. They are lined up and tied with a beautiful satin ribbon.
- The top of the cake can be decorated with dragees of different colors.
- Use round candies to line the sides of the cake. You can also put 3 of these candies in the center.
- Use small toffees to decorate the cake too. They can be used to lay out a pattern on the creamy surface of the cake or on white icing.
- Jelly beans are placed scattered on the cake.
Finally
Marmalade is also used to decorate cakes. This option is also cute. Besides, many people like him.
How to quickly decorate a cake: 6 simple optionsThe more beautiful the cake, the more it arouses the appetite and admiration of others. That's why today we bring you quick, easy and effective ways to decorate a cake at home.
Option 1, how to quickly decorate a cake: stencil
One of the easiest ways to decorate a cake or pie is to sprinkle it with powdered sugar or cocoa through a stencil.
Anything can serve as a stencil, from a special ready-made stencil, napkins with carved holes to a wide variety of items!
The decorating process is very simple: place the stencil on the surface of the cake, sprinkle with powder or cocoa using a sieve and carefully remove the stencil.
All this looks especially impressive if you use a contrasting background before using the stencil. For example, make the background white using powdered sugar, and sprinkle cocoa on top through a stencil, or vice versa.
Option 2: Make the glaze
You can quickly and beautifully decorate a cake by filling it with icing on top. You can also sprinkle colorful sprinkles on top.
2.1. Milk icing for quick and easy cake decoration
- Butter 50 gr.
- Powdered sugar 3 tbsp.
- Milk 1 tbsp.
Ingredients.
Melt the butter over low heat, then cool slightly.
While stirring, add powdered sugar, then milk.
The result should be a homogeneous white thick mass.
Coat the tops of Easter cakes or buns with the finished glaze. Let the glaze harden.
2.2. Chocolate icing for decorating the cake
- Cocoa powder 1 tbsp.
- Powdered sugar 3 tbsp.
- Butter 30 g
- Milk 2 tbsp.
We respect the proportions. The main thing is to stir constantly so that the chocolate glaze does not become crusty.
Mix milk with sugar and cocoa, bring to a boil, remove from heat. Cool slightly and add oil, mix well. The oil makes the glaze shiny. Chocolate glaze is ready!
Option 3: buttercream will help you decorate the cake quickly and easily!
Beat 100 gr. softened butter with a mixer until fluffy. Then carefully add 5 tbsp. l. condensed milk (can be boiled), whisking continuously. The cream should be smooth and fluffy.
To color the resulting cream, special dyes, juice of cherries, beets, carrots, spinach, cocoa or coffee (instant) are used.
You can “draw” original borders, ruffles, flower arrangements, etc. on the surface of the cake using a pastry bag or a syringe with various attachments. Alternatively, a cornet (a sheet of thick paper rolled into a cone with the lower end cut off) is quite suitable for this purpose. Having filled the homemade confectionery envelope with cream and holding it with your hand, you need to slightly squeeze it, squeezing out the required amount of confectionery mass.
You can also make something like a pastry bag from an ordinary thick plastic bag or “file” by simply cutting off a small corner and tying the free end of the bag.
Option 4: whipped cream
Not all housewives can boast of the ability to whip cream for a cake correctly, but by following simple rules you can learn how to do it. First, you need to choose cream of the desired fat content, at least 30%. Before whipping, the cream is pre-cooled in the refrigerator for two to three hours. If you do not cool the cream before whipping, then during the whipping process it may separate and become unsuitable for decorating baked goods. The container in which you plan to beat and the whisk should also be pre-cooled; for this purpose, they can also be placed in the refrigerator shortly before whipping. When choosing a container, you need to take into account that during the whipping process the volume of cream will increase; transferring it to another container after the mixer starts working is not recommended; it is better to select a large bowl in advance. You can whip cream to decorate the cake with a good hand whisk, but this will require a lot of effort on the part of the housewife. You need to start whipping at low speed, gradually increasing it; the whipping process needs to be stopped in time, otherwise the cream may lose its airiness. The average beating time is 6 - 8 minutes.
If desired, you can add sugar or powdered sugar to them, which will dissolve faster in the total mass. Additionally, you can use vanilla sugar to add flavor. If you can't whip the cream into foam, you can try adding lemon juice.
To decorate cakes with cream, you will need a pastry bag (syringe) with different types of attachments, with which you can spread the cream on the surface of the cake in openwork patterns, create inscriptions with thin lines, draw flowers, stars and other small shapes.
Option 5: chocolate will help you decorate your cake quickly and easily!
The easiest and fastest way to decorate a cake is with chocolate chips. To do this, you just need to grate the chocolate on a coarse or fine grater.
But there is also a more interesting and unusual way to get chips: put the chocolate bar in a warm place for a while, and then cut thin chips from the bar with a knife. They will immediately begin to curl up. Place these curls on a plate and place them in the refrigerator. Sprinkle them randomly over the cake once they are completely set. 
Option 6: fruits, berries!
How to quickly decorate a cake at home? Try the fruity version!
Canned, fresh fruits and berries are a great idea for quick decoration at home. In any season of the year you can find a suitable option: in winter - kiwi, citrus fruits, apples, bananas, in summer - strawberries, cherries, raspberries, apricots. At any time of the year you can use exotic fruits - mango, pineapple.
You can easily decorate a cake with berries and cream - an option for novice housewives!
- Cover the finished round cake with cream: on top - in an even layer, on the sides, use a pastry bag with a toothed nozzle, forming grooved vertical stripes on the sides.
- Divide the surface of the cake into 8 parts and mark them with the tip of a knife, drawing stripes on the cream.
- Take about 150 grams of raspberries or blackberries (or others that will contrast in color).
- On each “slice” of the cake, carefully place the berries in one layer and separate the parts from each other with a thin strip of cream.
Fruits gelled on the surface of the cake are a very impressive and bright decoration. It will take a little more time, but only for the jelly to harden.
To ensure that the layer is dense and does not spread, it is advisable to decorate the cake several hours in advance and keep it refrigerated until serving.
- Cut the fruit into thin slices and place them on the surface of the cake coated with thick cream.
- Arrange the slices in even rows, and place fruit flowers made using the carving technique in the center.
- Prepare the jelly. To do this, you can use store-bought (dilute it with water as indicated on the package) or prepare jelly from regular gelatin based on water or juice. Choose a fill shade to match the colors of the fruit or use a colorless one.
- Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
There is no doubt that a delicious homemade cake is much better than a store-bought one. A home product should also look beautiful, but this task is not always as simple as it seems at first glance. There are quite a few simple and not so simple ways to decorate a cake beautifully.
Probably the most popular method today is decorating with mastic (it comes in many types). This “material” is good because it is quite easy to use and gives the dessert a beautiful look. You can also create different figures from mastic - petals, flowers, cartoon characters, etc. - that is, everything you can dream up.
Cooks also often use “classic” methods for decorating a cake - they make special ganaches, icings, buy or whip cream with powdered sugar themselves, and make butter creams. When working with these materials, it is convenient to use special culinary spatulas (or a wide knife), syringes with different attachments and cornets.
There are also quite complex ways to decorate a cake, for example, covering it with velor or a glossy surface. A beautiful glossy surface, for example, is created on mousse cakes. I must say that it will be quite difficult for a beginner to master such a complex, newfangled cake decorating technique at home.
Don’t forget about other fairly easy and proven ways to decorate baked goods. Probably each of us has seen or tasted cakes beautifully decorated with special confectionery balls, chocolates, marmalade, and, of course, fruit.
Let's take a closer look at the process of making the most popular baking decorations at home.
How to decorate a cake with mastic: a simple recipe with photos
The easiest way to make fondant at home is to use store-bought marshmallows. There is nothing complicated about this, and now you will see for yourself.
So, we need:
- 300 g marshmallow candies.
- 400 g (or more) powdered sugar
- 2 tbsp. l. lemon juice
It is better to use store-bought powder in the recipe, since it is very finely ground (unless you have a really high-quality grinder). This guarantees the absence of grains, smoothness and elasticity of the “dough” for mastic.
Let's get started. Pour the candies into a deep bowl and add lemon juice. Then place the bowl in the microwave (at full power) for 20 seconds. The mass should become soft. It needs to be mixed with a spatula until smooth, and then put back in the microwave for the same time.
Add powdered sugar to the bowl with melted sweets and begin to knead the “dough”. Then transfer the mixture onto a board and stir in the powder if necessary. The result should be a smooth and plastic mass that does not stick to your hands and does not tear.
Afterwards, wrap the finished “dough” in film and leave it in the cold for an hour. Then the finished mastic can be rolled out with a rolling pin on a board and formed into individual figures or a whole cake cover.
Mastic can also be prepared using gelatin. The ingredients are:
- about 500 g of powder
- 6 tsp. water
- 1 tbsp. l. liquid glucose
- vanilla bag
- 1 tbsp. l. vegetable oil (refined, odorless)
- lemon juice - optional
In a bowl, soak the gelatin in cold water, and then melt it in a water bath (when it swells) until completely dissolved. Add glucose, vegetable oil and vanillin. Mix everything with a spoon.
Place 2/3 of all the powder in a bowl and make a hole with your finger (this is often how simple unleavened dough is prepared), pour the gelatin liquid into it.
We mix everything with our hands like a regular dough, gradually adding powder (you need to watch how much the dough itself takes). If the mastic crumbles, add half a teaspoon. lemon juice and mix again. The finished mass should not stick.
Place the dough in film and let it “rest” in the cold for about 2 hours. Decorating your cake with this mastic will not be difficult at all - it is very plastic and easy to work with.
If you don’t want to bother with candy, powder or gelatin, or you simply don’t have time to prepare homemade mastic, then don’t despair. In many confectionery stores or supermarkets you can easily purchase ready-made mastic for every taste and color. This will significantly save you effort and time. Especially if guests are already on your doorstep.
Making your own ganache for decorating baked goods
A shiny and sweet dark or white icing always looks great on a delicious homemade cake. In addition, ganache is very easy to prepare. Even a culinary novice can cope with this task.
To prepare we need:
- white chocolate bar – 100 g
- cream – 33-35 g
- butter – 30 g
Melt the chocolate in a water bath and add cream to it. When the mixture has cooled, add oil to it. You can do it even simpler - break a chocolate bar into squares, pour in cream and heat in the microwave to the desired consistency. But this must be done several times (3-5 times) for several seconds (10-15 seconds) so that the mixture does not overheat and has the desired consistency.
Stir the cooling mass, add oil and stir again. The oil must be of high quality, otherwise the ganache may not turn out. Butter also gives the ganache shine and the desired thickness. Pour the prepared liquid into a bag.
It can be stored in the refrigerator and simply “thawed” to room temperature before use. You can safely cover the top and sides of the cake with white ganache. It will turn out very tasty and beautiful if you decorate the cake with coconut shavings and sweets on top.
Icing
Decorating baked goods with icing (or, as it is also called, royal icing) allows you to create the finest elements and designs. Cakes, gingerbreads, cupcakes decorated in this way instantly attract the eye and will not leave any sweet tooth indifferent.
Properly prepared icing should be completely white and harden well. You can also work with this type of decor in different ways. If you already have a cake covered with fondant or chocolate ganache, then icing will give it an even more presentable look. By placing the icing in a pastry bag, you can draw a variety of swirls and patterns on the surface of the cake. Don't worry if it doesn't turn out as planned the first time. With a little practice, decorating your cake will be nothing but fun.
In addition, you can create different figures from this white glaze. To do this, you will need paper, a pencil and a transparent, blank file (the usual one that we use to store papers or documents). On paper you need to draw the pattern you want (flowers, leaves, butterflies) and place it in a file. Then, with a pastry bag in a small hole, you need to follow the contours. Then the file with the applied ornament should harden (dry) well. Then the icing will easily “come off” from it and you can carefully transfer it to your baked goods.
The royal icing recipe is quite simple. We will need:
- one protein
- 150-170 g powdered sugar
- 4 drops citric acid
- food coloring (if desired)
In a deep bowl, stir the egg white (but don’t beat it, just stir it). Add citric acid and powder to it. Add the powder gradually. That's all, actually. We check readiness: the icing should not flow very strongly (intermittently) from the fork.
The glaze that drips down should hold its shape noticeably. Then the icing is ready. We place it in a bag and draw the desired patterns on the file. We are waiting for the drawings to dry (at room temperature). We put them in baking and enjoy our work.
We decorate baked goods with sweets, marmalade, fruits
There are many more ways to beautifully decorate a homemade cake. You can use different candies (for example, chocolate truffles), M&M's, marmalade, seasonal fruits.
In addition, you can combine decoration methods. For example, you make chocolate ganache on a cake, and decorate it beautifully with chocolate candies on top and sprinkle with coconut flakes or cocoa powder.
Also, such candies will look beautiful as a decoration on a cake covered with white fondant. Chocolate truffles can be replaced with the popular multi-colored M&M's candies, for example, if the cake is baked in honor of a child's birthday.
It’s always a good idea to decorate baked goods and cakes with seasonal fruits. Strawberries look beautiful and impressive when placed on ordinary whipped cream. But here we must take into account that strawberries are a perishable product, so such baked goods must be eaten immediately and decorated immediately before use.
Even simple whipped cream can give the cake a festive look. And for this you need some special devices. You won’t surprise anyone with fancy roses, but using an ordinary tablespoon or dessert spoon you can easily make “embossing” and decorate the cake in this way. See the photo below for an example of such a light decorative technique.
No matter how festive the table is filled with dishes, all guests are looking forward to the final chord - dessert. Beautiful cakes are a delicious end to any celebration. Those with a sweet tooth know that a homemade cake, made with your own hands at home, is always better and healthier than a store-bought one. Every housewife wants to amaze those present with her masterpiece, to put on the table not just a delicious, but also a beautiful cake. Decorating cakes with cream is a fun activity. There are many ways to decorate a cake at home. For example, decorate it with cream, chocolate, mastic, fondant, whipped cream, jelly, beautifully place berries and fruits on it, use meringue to decorate the cake. A cake decorating master class offers ways to diversify cake decorating at home.
It is important to take into account that the taste of the ingredients for decoration is in harmony with the taste of the baked goods:
- puff pastry and honey cake are good with boiled or raw condensed milk and nuts;
- shortbread harmonizes well with butter, protein cream, jam;
- Butter creams, butter creams, and chocolate icing are suitable for sponge cakes;
- for cottage cheese baking, take berries and fruits, whipped cream.
With a little desire and diligence, you will be able to prepare beautiful cakes and be able to quickly and easily create a confectionery masterpiece.
Using, for example, buttercream to decorate a cake is a classic. Since childhood, we remember butter roses, lilac branches, green leaves on baked goods from the store. Inscriptions, flowers with leaves, openwork patterns - cream decor will never become outdated. The creamy mass should be quite thick. The best option is butter plus condensed milk. This cake decorating cream holds its shape well. You can add syrup, instant coffee (to color and enhance the aroma), cocoa (provides the taste and color of chocolate), sour cream and whipped cream to obtain a more delicate consistency, and various additives to improve the aroma (vanilla, cinnamon, zest). Protein cream is also perfect for decorating a cake.
To decorate the delicacy with your own hands, you will need pastry bags made of thick film and nozzles made of food-grade metal or plastic, or a pastry syringe with curly tips. Instead of a bag, you can simply take a thick plastic bag. If you plan to make the dessert bright, divide the cream into parts and color with food coloring, cool. Place it in a pastry bag or syringe and select a nozzle. You can use cake decorating cream to create a delicate border, graceful roses, and all sorts of small figures or patterns. Protein custard is often used to decorate the cake. The cream recipe involves whipping hot syrup and whipped cream, the cream is strong and does not settle.
Decorate with fruits and berries
Juicy berries, aromatic fruits - it's so appetizing. Decorating a cake with fruit is a great way to decorate baked goods. Pieces of fruit can be placed between the cake layers, added to the cream, placed on the surface of the dessert and covered with a layer of jelly. The same method is used to decorate the cake with berries. If you are faced with the question of how to decorate a cake with fruits, keep in mind that not all of them are suitable for decoration; too juicy ones will spoil the appearance. Most often, mangoes, citrus fruits, apples and pears, apricots and peaches, kiwis and pineapples are used to decorate baked goods. And, of course, colorful cake decoration with strawberries is used most often.
You will get a successful dessert with fruit at home if you fill the surface with jelly. The fruit pieces will hold together better and will take very little time to cook. Place the product in a springform pan, arrange thinly sliced berries and fruits, and pour in the jelly. You don’t have to think about how to make jelly, just buy ready-made jelly in the store, cook according to the instructions, slightly reducing the amount of water. Place the dessert in the refrigerator for several hours until it cools thoroughly.
Mastic
Many housewives are sure that decorating a cake with fondant is a very labor-intensive task. Not to say that it is easy, but once you understand how to decorate a cake with fondant at home, cake decorating will not be a problem for you. There are different types of mastic, it can be painted in different colors, it is soft and flexible and you can create a real masterpiece from it. To make mastic, you will need gelatin, water, powdered sugar, lemon juice and food coloring. Mix powdered sugar with dissolved gelatin, add a little lemon juice and knead. Separate the mastic and paint it in the desired colors. First, you need to cover the finished cake with a layer of mastic. Roll out into a thin layer, place on the surface, gently press and trim off excess edges.
Cut out small details (flowers, leaves, patterns) and attach them. You can make three-dimensional figures; mold them from mastic, like from plasticine. If you need to glue individual parts together, use protein. This preparation should be made a couple of days in advance so that it has time to dry. Mastic makes everything extremely bright and elegant.
Chocolate decorations
Everyone loves chocolate and chocolate candies, so decorating a cake with chocolate is always relevant. You can get very beautiful cakes by filling them with glaze, or you can create a real masterpiece. Bitter, milk and white chocolate are used. Before you make chocolate decorations for the cake, you need to warm it up. It is most convenient to do this in a microwave oven, in a water bath or in an oven at a temperature of 50-100 degrees. The mixture must be stirred frequently and steam and water must not be allowed to enter.
If you have a question about how to decorate baked goods, and time is short, fill it with chocolate glaze. You can make it from cocoa powder, butter, sugar, milk or sour cream. Decorating with this icing is cheaper than using chocolate, the main thing is that the cocoa is of high quality.
But the ideal option is to use real chocolate (70% or more cocoa beans), heavy cream and powdered sugar. The glaze will have an excellent taste and will provide a shiny, uniform surface.
You can sprinkle the dessert with chocolate chips. The chocolate must first be kept at a temperature of about 30 degrees, this will make it more plastic. On the wide side of the tile you need to trim it with a vegetable cutter with a sharp knife into wide shavings. The shavings are rolled into rolls, they can be used to decorate the top layer, sprinkle lightly with powdered sugar on top and decorate cakes at home.
Berries on a cake framed with chocolate leaves always attract attention.
Before decorating the cake, try making the leaves yourself:
- Collect living leaves that are strong, not too small, and have many veins.
- Use a brush to cover the back side of the sheet with melted chocolate; the veins on it stand out better.
- Bring to the cold with chocolate on top. Once hardened, carefully remove the chocolate bar.
Using a cornet (pastry bag) you can make chocolate patterns for decorating cakes. It needs to be melted in a water bath, poured into a cornet and written congratulations on the surface, draw patterns.
To decorate the cake with cream, you can choose decorative bows. Chocolate bows look beautiful. Pour long strips onto a parchment sheet from the cornet while the chocolate is still soft, fold in half and pinch the edges with a clothespin. Remove the parchment from the frozen chocolate and lay the bow parts in layers, each time reducing the number of folds. Place a bow and secure it with hot chocolate.
You can cast chocolate figures, such as butterflies. For this you need a pastry syringe and parchment. Place parchment on the stencil and fold it in the center to give the figure volume. Apply chocolate along the outline, wait until the chocolate hardens, and remove the parchment. The butterfly is ready. The figurine is very fragile, handle it with care. In the same way, you can make an openwork border for the side of the cake. On the parchment, mark a strip of the required size and draw patterns on it. After hardening, carefully remove the parchment and glue the border to the side surface. These blanks are suitable for children's cakes.
Thematic
It is impossible to imagine a birthday without sweets. For a child's birthday, mom will bake a delicious dessert and ensure that the child's cake is decorated at the highest level. Effectiveness and brightness are very important for children's products. Prepare a sponge cake decorated with M&M´s and Kit-Kat candies - a DIY cake. Bake a sponge cake according to your proven recipe, coat it with your favorite cream. Glue tick-tock sticks to the side surface; you can tie them with a bright, elegant ribbon. Pour a large pack of M&M´s on top and refrigerate everything. For girls, decorations made of bows, beads, and flowers made of mastic would be appropriate. Boys prefer sports or car-themed jewelry with computer game characters.
Of course, you need to think about how to decorate a birthday cake for an adult. Here it is worth taking into account the birthday person’s hobbies and profession. For an anniversary, you can bake a confectionery product in the form of a number - the age of the birthday person, or write a congratulation with cream directly on the surface. For an avid football fan, you can bake birthday cakes in the shape of a soccer ball on a field with goals and flags of your favorite teams. With the help of mastic, you can play up any hobby of the birthday boy or professional features. There is complete scope for your imagination.
One of the most important events in life is a wedding. Beautiful wedding cakes are not just a treat, they are a symbol of love and fidelity of young spouses. Most often it is made soft, in soft pastel colors, and decorated with flowers. Nowadays, baking made from a wide variety of geometric shapes, most often multi-tiered, is in fashion. A popular dessert is in the form of one or two hearts connected with cream.
Among wedding baked goods, multi-tiered products are the leader; they look very solemn. You can use the following cake decorations:
- Mastic is very popular. It can be painted in any color, sculpted into figures of the bride and groom, bows, flowers, rings.
- Icing is widely used. From snow-white sugar icing you can create the most delicate lace and congratulatory inscriptions.
- It's hard to imagine a cake without flowers, leaves and patterns. The most delicate roses are created from snow-white buttercream.
- Place thinly sliced berries and fruits on the cream-covered baking surface; it is advisable to cover them with a layer of jelly.
- You can sprinkle the delicacy with candied rose petals.
Creating a beautiful culinary masterpiece is not just for professionals. The homemade cake, into which the hostess put her soul and lovingly decorated, will certainly be remembered by all guests. At the same time, the simplest available products are suitable for decoration - ready-made chocolate, simple butter or protein cream, seasonal fruits, frozen berries and even homemade preparations.
