Professional Pastry! How do you get the top icing of the cake so smooth?!
how is it done?
thank you!
Answers: ??? i love to bake and decorate cakes.. i plan on going to school to do it professionally, but i have a few cakes to make for upcoming birthdays, and i can never seem to get the top of the cake completely smooth like in the stores..
how is it done?
thank you!
I took cake decorating classes years back and this is what we were taught to do (and it worked fine!):
Try to get the icing as smooth as you can with a spatula then (no need to wait for it to crust) spray a fine mist of water over the surface using a plant mister or an atomizer. Then smooth again. The water allows your spatula to glide over the icing and you will be able to get it super smooth!
Wipe the spatula clean after every swipe. If the icing starts to pull, drag, or stick to the spatula, you need to spray some more water. I hope this helps.
Whatever you are using to spread the icing, keep a cup of water there -- everytime you put more icing on, dip the knife or whatever you are using in the water first, scoop up the icing -- it works.
on martha stewart, they used fondant for wedding cakes, but that's too much trouble
Check out Alton Brown's advice (readable is the first link, watch the other two vids)
http://www.goodeatsfanpage.com/Season6/I...
http://youtube.com/watch?v=pugRSCjMe0s
http://youtube.com/watch?v=iqvL4zhVbE8&f...
I have seen my sister do it!!!!
She uses this weird looking spatula thing. It has no handle through. It's a little bigger looking than a credit card, and the side that you scrape/smooth with is slightly sharp.
She starts in the middle of the cake, and in a spirally motion, scrapes and smooths the icing from the center out.
A good way to do it is with a wet, hot, straight, frosting spatula. I used to do this for a living and I used to get a glass of hot water (you can put it into the microwave) and dip the spatula in it ever so often when it starts sticking again. It works great. Good luck.
On the Food Network they always use a flexible metal spatula and start with a "crumb coat". Basically, they take a small amount of icing and cover the whole cake. That way, it gets all of the crumbs mixed in before you spread the "big" amount of frosting on it. Then the crumbs don't mix in with the icing and make it ugly. Alton Brown also took a lazy Susan, put a cake plate on it, and used that to turn the cake.
use an icing smoother its simple and works great. you can get them just about anywhere http://www.kitchenkrafts.com/product.asp...
Three things will really help you do this better
A cake turntable .Get an inexpensive one at Michael's
What's called an offset icing spatula
Use at least a 7" spatula
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=h...
And after you've established your crumb coat either seriously chill or freeze your cake before you put on the finish coat
Put the top layer on, upside-down:) then brush off all the crumbs, and put a thin layer of icing on the sides & top and let it set for a few minutes (this will seal the crumbs in, so they won't show through)... Ice the sides going up & down, with a frosting spatula.... then the top ...then around the edge of the top and that should make a crisp edge. If it's a thick frosting (not whipped), you can keep dipping your fingers into water, too, and gently smooth over the entire surface....
I'm a cake decorating instructor, and here is what I teach:
First of all, make sure you are using an icing that will crust (or dry at the surface) slightly. Here is the recipe we use in classes, making a thin consistency icing used for icing the cake.
Class Buttercream
1 cup white all-vegetable shortening
4 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon clear flavoring (vanilla, butter, almond or a combination of any or all of these)
1 lb. (4 cups) powdered sugar
1 tablespoon Meringue Powder (optional)
Put shortening in bowl of stand mixer and cream. (Or cream using a handheld mixer in a large bowl.) While shortening is creaming, add water and flavoring, mixing until the liquids have been incorporated into the shortening. When measuring powdered sugar, spoon sugar into measuring cup and level it off with a straight edge; do not pack, or your frosting will end up too thick. Add powdered sugar and Meringue Powder (which stabilizes your decorations so they don't droop, and helps with the crusting process) and blend at low to medium speed until creamy.
Ice the cake with this frosting, using a large spatula to smooth the frosting. Do not let the spatula touch the cake and keep it moving in the same direction; this will help prevent the crumbs from lifting up into the frosting. Once the cake is covered, let it sit for 5-10 minutes. After this, the surface of the icing should have crusted and be dry to the touch; if you touch your finger to it lightly, the frosting will not come off.
Now use either 1) wax paper 2) parchment paper or 3) a Viva brand paper towel (my favorite) to smooth the cake. Place the paper or towel on the top of the cake and use your hand in a back and forth motion to smooth it, realigning the paper/towel as needed to get the entire surface. Do the same with the sides of the cake.
Viva paper towels are recommended because they have no pattern or texture to them; other towels do and will imprint that pattern or texture onto the cake.
I have tried other methods of smoothing cakes, and this is what I think works best.
Happy Decorating!
~ Maria