Cakes & More Blog

MOVED

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 12:18:00 +0000

WE HAVE MOVED HERE TO

NEW CAKES AND MORE BLOG

ALL POSTS HAVE BEEN TRANSFERRED TO THE NEW BLOG, SO DON'T WORRY ALL THE INFO IS STILL THERE, BUT WITH SOME EXCITING NEW ADDITIONS.

How to Make Straws

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 04:36:00 +0000

by Cakes and More Member Pam at Applegum

	Buy yourself a packet of very expensive cake tools ;)
Colour your fondant the deepest shade you require and roll out fairly thinly - 1/8inch or less. Using a knife and a straight edge cut a rectangle shape with the short side being the length of your straws. Brush the edge with a "JUST damp" paintbrush - doesn't have to be THIS big - it is just one that I had out at the time :)
	Place the straw on top and using your fingers roll the fondant over the straw.
Using a sharp thin-bladed knife trim fondant using straw as a guide.
	Now roll the covered straw back and forth with your fingers on the bench - I use the fondant smoother to eliminate the finger ridges forming. This step is to conceal the seam and give a smooth finish.
Repeat process to make the number of straws that you require. If you want the tones of pink etc. keep adding white fondant to your "leftover fondant" Finished straws can be adhered to cake (I would do a fondant base coat) using royal icing

Suggested Fruit Cake Baking & Storage Information

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 03:37:00 +0000

Most of this info comes from our Cakes and More Moderator Pam at Applegum’s posts in relation to a Storing Fruit Cake Question.

"I have never put a fruitcake in the fridge. That doesn't mean it can't be done
just means that I have never done it.

If space is your ONLY problem - take a good look at how you can re-arrange your space for the time you need. There is usually a way around any space issue. (Secret: I've been known to hide my ironing basket in the boot of my car because I had no where to "hide" it when I had guests coming over)"

FRUITCAKE TIPS:-
For most recipes, a full month of ripening is a necessity. You can always store it longer than a recipe requires, but don't shorten the aging time.

Ideally, take several days to make your cake or cakes. Chop the nuts and fruits, cover with liquor and/or fruit juice, and let the mixture stand, covered, for two or three days. Then make the batter and bake your cakes.

Always bake fruitcakes slowly, at a low temperature--(135 to 165 degrees C). The cakes are dense with fruit that will release liquid during baking. Prepare your pans by greasing and flouring them or by lining them with BAKE paper. When the cake batter is ready, spoon it into the prepared pans, and tap the pans on the work surface to pop any air bubbles.

Place cake pans on center oven rack; pans should not be touching each other. You may wish to cover fruitcakes with aluminum foil for the last half hour of baking.

With such a long baking time and with so many varieties--light and dark--of fruitcake, color alone won't indicate when the cake is done. Test for doneness by poking a skewer or a toothpick near the center of the cake. It should come out clean.

Most problems with cakes going "off" is because they have not been cooked adequately

Cool cakes thoroughly after baking. Use a toothpick or skewer to poke holes in the cake, and sprinkle with brandy or rum if desired. Wrap in liquor-dampened cheesecloth, and store in airtight containers in a cool, dark place. The fridge is fine, but don't transfer cakes to the freezer until the flavors have ripened and mellowed.
Check the cakes once a week. Brush the cakes with more liquor, if necessary, and then rewrap them in the damp cloth.

When wrapped in cloth and foil, a fruitcake may be kept for months or even years. Liquor-based cakes may be stored several months in a cool place. Cakes made without liquor may be kept in the refrigerator for short-term storage or freezer for longer storage.

Fruitcakes freeze very well; however, they must be aged for at least few weeks before freezing, as they do not mellow and ripen while they are frozen.

When ready to serve, cut the cake into thin slices using a sawing motion. To avoid crumbling, use a serrated knife or other sharp knife.

Things that you might need to consider:
ALL advice on things is given only with the knowledge of the information giver - things change over the years and new things are constantly being created and new (sometimes better, easier, more-efficient) ways are found. People may tell you to wrap in paper etc. BUT that advice might have been passed on through the years BEFORE airtight containers were around - airtight containers prevent any odour absorption from other items in your frigde - greasing and flouring tins might have been fine before Bakepaper - and god forbid! what did we do before clingwrap! Anyway, all I am saying is to listen to everything that people have to tell you - try it for yourself - you will find what works for you. Consider the guidelines and you should not have any disasters.

If you are looking for a quick fruitcake recipe (don’t have a lot of time for aging) try this one by Cakes and More member mzsweet "Easy Fruit Cake" also tried and tested by the Cakes and More Admin and received rave reviews.

Shortening (Crisco, Copha, Solite, Cream Cup)

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 03:26:00 +0000

Shortening
A semisolid fat used in food preparation, especially baked goods, so called because it promotes a "short" or crumbly texture (as in shortbread).

The term "shortening" can be used more broadly to apply to any fat that is used for baking and which is solid at room temperature, such as butter, lard, or margarine, but as used in recipes it refers to a hydrogenated vegetable oil that is solid at room temperature.

Uses:
For our purposes it can be used in icing, cakes or other baked goods.

Substitutes:
A popular brand in America is Crisco, this is not the Crisco Oil used in Australia (while the American Crisco does have an oil, the Crisco referred to is solid at room temperature)

UK shortening is available under brand names such as Cookeen, Trex, White Flora, etc.

In Australia one suggested substitute is Copha a Solid fat derived from coconuts used in recipes where it is melted, combined with other ingredients & left to set.

Other options include Solite or Crème cup

We don’t recommend lard as a substitution for any shortening in icing because the discussion here is vegetable shortening and fats not animal, if you want to bake with it then it’s up to you to test it! ;D

Available (this isn’t an exhaustive list but it gives you a starting point):
Crisco - USA Foods in Melbourne
Solite - Cake Decorating Central, Caroline’s, EOI Bakery
Crème Cup - Caroline’s, Goodman Fielder
Fermex - Fermex
Copha can be bought in the supermarket in the butter section.

Additional Info:
Shortening has a higher smoke point than butter and margarine, and it has 100% fat content, compared to about 80% for butter and margarine.

At the beginning of the 1800s, "shortening" was a generic term used to describe fats or oils added to baked goods to "shorten" or break up gluten masses, weakening the gluten structure to produce a more tender result. Thus, shortbread, made with flour which has gluten in it, has a mass of butter added to "shorten" the product and make tender shortbread cookies. Shortening certainly acts like this in pie crusts.

Its role in cake batters, however, is a bit different. Part of the reason for creaming butter with sugar is that the sugar crystals cut into the butter allowing air in and air cells to be created in the butter.

Commercial Shortening is like creamed butter without the sugar, as it already has the air cells in it. It further tenderizes a cake by separating starch in the cake from coagulating protein -- not to mention that the added fat makes the cake taste moister and smoother.

Hydrogenation helps make shortening a solid, flavourless fat product that will keep its form regardless of room temperature, and not puddle or pool like butter or other animal fats do on hot days or in warm rooms. The disadvantage is a health one: the process creates trans-fatty acids and saturated fat which is bad, and destroys the normal polyunsaturate benefits of the vegetable oil that it started from.

Tutorial Listing

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 11:21:00 +0000

Tutorials on the Blog
How to make a Gumpaste/Sugarpaste Gerbera
How to make Straws

Links to Sites with Tutorials
Aine2's Cake Decorating Tutorials and Information
Ateco
Bake Decorate Celebrate
Cake Journal
Culpitt How To's
Easy Birthday Cakes
How to Cakes by Nati
Imaginative Icing Sugar Models
Pastry Wiz Wedding How To's
Polymer Clay Central
Sculpey Clay
Socake's Blog
Woman's Day Silly Cakes

Links to Individual Tutorials

Flowers	Figures	Animals	Christmas
Cymbidium Orchid Frangipani Gerbera Open Rose Oriental Lily Pansy Vanilla Orchid	Face	Elephant Frog Penguin	Christmas Angel Christmas Angel Christmas Angel on a Cloud Santa
Other	Cakes	Wedding
Chocolate Portrait Cupcake Bouquet Edible Pearls	Baby 2 Piece Outfit Cake Cradle Handbag/Purse	Bride & Groom Mice

Links to Video Tutorials
How to make Cheeky Chick (Chickens)
How to Use Letter Cutters (aka Tappits)
How to Marble Fondant
How to make a Monkey Cupcake Topper
How to make a Sweetpea

What's the Difference Betweeing Pure Icing Sugar & Icing Sugar Mixture?

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 03:22:00 +0000

PURE ICING SUGAR & ICING SUGAR MIXTURE:

Pure icing sugar is also made from pulverised granulated sugar but contains no cornflour. (Believed to be not common in the States)

Icing sugar mixture is pulverised granulated sugar crushed together with a small amount (usually 3 to 5%) of cornflour to prevent caking. It is also known as confectioners' sugar or powdered sugar.

USES:
For everyday cooking, icing sugar mixture is considered to do the trick; the main place where pure icing sugar is a MUST is when making royal icing, modelling fondant and the like.

Check the packet but CSR Icing Sugar Mixture is now gluten free.

Storage should be in cool dry areas away from draughts and humidity.

AVAILABLE:
Supermarkets or in bulk from wholesalers.

SUBSTITUTES:
To make your own icing sugar mixture use:
Approx 1 tablespoon of corn flour added to 1 cup of Pure Icing Sugar, if you have a recipe that differs, just do what works for you!

ADDITIONAL INFO:
The name of the sugar may represent a product that differs from country to country. "Pure icing sugar" from Australia means just that, no added ingredients such as starch mixed with it—just sugar ground to a fine powder. This is a preferred powdered sugar for some recipes but can be hard to find elsewhere. Icing sugar from the UK is powdered sugar similar to Australia, but may or may not contain cornstarch. Icing sugar from the US or Canada is powdered sugar with cornstarch in it.

How to make a Gumpaste/Sugarpaste Gerbera

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 04:22:00 +0000

This was tutorial was kindly done by one of our Cakes & More members Effie.

Equipment Modelling paste 20 gauge wire Pliers Sugar Glue Rolling Pin Sharp Knife or fine scissors Paste colours Dusting colours Flower Drying stand Jem Daisy Centre Stamp Chrysanthemum cutter Gerbera Cutter
Step 1: First step is to make the centre. Using the 20 gauge wire hook the wire as per the picture. Then use the daisy stamp to make the centre and insert the wire into the centre. Allow to dry (I usually make the centres 2 – 3 days ahead) and then using the liquid or paste colours, colour the centre in the colour of your choice.
Step 2: Roll out the modelling paste and cut out 2 chrysanthemum petals.
Step 3: Once the petals are cut, using a sharp knife or fine scissors, cut each petal into 3 or 4 as per the photo. Repeat for both chrysanthemums.
Step 4: Using some sugar glue, place one flower on top of the other and spread the petals out to make them look full.
Step 5: Moisten the modelling paste with some sugar glue and attach the dried centre. Using your hands, cup the petals around the centre as you need this layer to attach closely to the centre.
Step 6: Repeat steps 2 – 4. Then attach the petals to the centre and this time, instead of cupping them, let them dry relatively flat as per photo.
Step 7: Roll out more modelling paste and this time using the large gerbera cutter, cut out 2 flowers. Vein, using a veining tool or some corn husk. Place one flower on top of the other and attach using some sugar glue. Spread petals out so that flower looks full.
Step 8: Moisten flower centre with sugar glue and attach centre. Allow to dry in flower stand.
Gerberas can be coloured using petal dusts or you can colour the paste before beginning.

Italian Ballet Slipper Cake Spotlighted

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 23:40:00 +0000

This stunning Ballet Slipper Cake was done by one of our Cakes & More members, Toni, who is our resident Aussie living in Italy.

The beautiful simple whiteness shows off the stunningly coloured ballet slippers.

The cake is a dummy as it is for a Fashion Trade Fair in Florence.

Toni explains how she made this beautiful creation:

I order the dummy's here from a huge polystyrene factory... I just call up, give measurements for what I need, and I can collect the dummy’s the next day. The tiers are 25cm, 20cm and 10cm.

I first attached the white chocolate fondant to the poly dummy's using a strong glue. The bottom tier was then glued to the plate. Each tier was then glued to on top of each other.

I pre-prepared balls of each colour I would be using by using paste colours with the white chocolate fondant. I then made 5 pairs of each colour. The weather has been in the mid 30's and gumpaste is definitely much better for these molds. But because I needed so many shoes, I didn't have enough gumpaste, which is why I used the fondant.

Due to hot weather, the fondant was very sticky.. so pushing it into mold, was a PITA!!! I almost had to turn the mould inside out to get the fondant into the deep edges. The mold then went into the fridge for about 5 min, this helped stiffen the fondant and allowed them to pop out easily. All the ballet slippers were placed on a baking tray, and dusted with ivory lustre dust, before being stuck to the dummy cakes with a strong glue. This seemed to take forever as I completed one tier at a time.

The final touch was a cream satin ribbon around the top of each tier and the arranged shoes on the top tier. This has been my most commented cake so far!

Here you can see the ballet slipper mould, next to the hand it's not as big as you'd think, still for 40 pairs of shoes, that's a lot of work!

Cakes & More Cupcake Theme Project

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 05:27:00 +0000

We ran a cupcake theme project on the website to give people the opportunity to try some new things out! We ran a couple of specific categories, swirls, animals and embossed fondant. We had loads of entries and some donated prizes. Everyone who entered and followed the entry rules was then entered into a prize draw. So kind of a competition but without the pressure! Our three winners were members Gail, fttk and mzsweet, here's a sample of some of the submittions.

We ended up with some great ideas/inspirations and tutorials out of it!

How to Make Australian Cupcake Animals
How to Make a Monkey Face Cupcake
Different ways to Make a Pig Face Cupcake
Inventive Embossing Tools and Effects
What Effects different Piping Tips can give

I'd just like to say a great big thanks to all who took the time to get in the kitchen and have some fun.

Cake Spotlight - Sewing Basket Cake

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 29 May 2008 11:07:00 +0000

Our second spotlighted cake is by our Cakes & More member "fttk". She's taken the time to give a very detailed explanation of how she completed the cake and all it's amazing elements. Read on.

The cake was a raspberry chocolate mud cake which I covered in brown colour fondant. I do not ganache my cakes so I do two thin layers of fondant to cover my cakes. Once I had completed the second layer, I immediately use the patchwork cutter basketweave embosser to create the basket look. It is a bit fiddly trying to match up the impressions but it doesn’t take too long. Then using the same brown fondant, I used my sugar gun with the large rope attachment, to make the rope that went around the bottom of the cake. It had to be done in two parts and I later hid the joins on the sides with buttons. I then went around the top of the basket and made a rope again and using glue and pins, placed the rope on the top. I only used the pins under the rope to hold it up until it dried overnight. I then removed all the pins, and went ahead and started making patterned fabric and ribbons for the top of the basket.

With the red ribbon, I used my ribbon cutter with a straight edge and then using embossing sticks made a flower pattern on the ribbon. I then used my stitching tool to make the edges look like they were sewn. With the two tone violet and white fabric, I used my ribbon cutter to cut thin strips of rolled out fondant for each colour and then placed them together and using my rolling pin, rolled over them to join the fondant strips together. Some of the fabric was cut using a wavy edge on my ribbon cutter and some pieces I embossed with cutters to form patterns and then again I used my stitching tool to give a sewn effect. Some fabric was made with fondant and some with flower paste. I draped the fabric/ribbons as I went along and tried to create a draping effect over the basket. This was allowed to dry overnight before placing heavier items on top.

The thimble, scissors, buttons, pins, needle, pin cushion, cotton reels and tape measure were made several weeks before.

To make the thimble I used grey flower/modelling paste and pushed it into a real thimble dusted with cornflower to get the indented impression. Then I pulled it out and went over the indenting with a toothpick to enhance it. I cut a tiny thin strip and glued it to the edge. Once it had dried I covered it with silver powder mixed with rose spirit. As the silver powder will come off and get onto absolutely everything, once it dried I covered it in leaf glaze to seal it. I used a patchwork cutter for the scissors and again used grey flower/modelling paste and repeated the process I used for the thimble.

The needles were made free hand by using grey modeling paste and making a hole with a blade and the pins were also made free hand with grey modeling paste and coloured fondant for the ends. The grey was covered in silver and glaze. The pin cushion was made by rolling out fondant mixed with gum trag and leaving it very thick and using a heart cutter to make the shape. I then pinched the edges together and used a garret frill cutter to make the frill from modelling paste, then I frilled the edges slightly with a toothpick. I then glued it on and supported it with pins. Once dry, I removed the pins and glued a flower on at the end where the frill joined. I then poked holes in the pin cushion with a pin and glued my handmade pins in place.

The cotton reels were made from ivory fondant mixed with gum trag. I used circle cutters for the top and bottom parts and rolled a fat sausage for the middle part. I glued them together and let them dry. Once dry I used my sugar gun with a variety of fondant colours and made the thread by putting glue on the reel and rolling the thread on.

For the buttons, I used fondant and all sorts of small cutters and piping tips to cut out various shapes in all sorts of colours and made holes in them using a very fine piping tip and a toothpick.

To make the tape measure, I used modelling paste, rolled out thinly and cut into a long strip using the ribbon cutter. I rolled it up and left the end slightly unrolled and made a hole using a piping tip in the end, like the real ones. I then allowed it to dry before painting the end silver using the above method and once dry I painted on the lines and numbers using a paint brush and black gel paste mixed with rose spirit to aid in drying.

Finally, the writing was made with FMM tappits and flower paste.

2008 Royal Easter Show Cakes

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 07 May 2008 11:28:00 +0000

So the Royal Easter Show came and went early this year, a once in a lifetime event as per many mathematicians! I believe visits were down due to the fact that the show didn't co-incide with school holidays this year, but it didn't stop people from entering the competition arena. Several members from the Cakes & More Forum entered the Cake Decorating and came away with some acknowledgement. Congratulations to all who came away with a ribbon but a bigger congratulations to all who took the time and courage to enter!

There were some awe inspiring entries! You can check out the majority of cakes entered here. If you see your cake and would like to provide a more descriptive description, then email me at cakesandmoreforum@hotmail.com.

So the while there is always next year to better the previous win! The next big Cake Competition will be held in August this year at the Stitches and Craft Show at Rosehill Racecourse in Sydney! Called Challenge it is run every two years by the Cake Decorator's Guild of NSW (but you do not have to be a member to enter! Entries have now closed but you don't have to have entered to go along and check out the delights that will be there!

If you love looking at show cakes check out this link here from a member of the British Cake Decorators Guild forum, be warned, you become engrossed and may find yourself sitting for a while! :D

Cake Spotlight - Peter Rabbit Cake

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 11:58:00 +0000

We decided on the Cakes & More Forum, that every couple of months we would spotlight one of the cakes that had been posted in the gallery. We take the two most viewed, and the two most commented on and let the board decide with a vote.

The first cake up is a beautiful Peter Rabbit Cake that just exudes beautifully that Beatrix Potter feel, and transport you back to your childhood!

This beautiful cake is an 8 inch round fruit cake covered in marzipan and then white sugarpaste (equivalent of fondant in Oz). The board is 14 inches and also covered in white sugarpaste.

The cake is based on a Debbie Brown design.

The animal figures are made from modelling paste and hand painted with a mixture of food colour and water.

The backgrounds are hand painted with a mixture of food colour mixed with cooled boiled water used to create the stunning water colour effect.

The cake was made by one of our English Cakes & More members, Flirtygirty, who made the cake for her Godson as his Christening gift.

We would like to thank Flirtygirty for sharing this beautiful gift with us!

Kelli's Milk Chocolate Mud Cake

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 00:21:00 +0000

Here's a yummy recipe from one of our Cakes & More members Kelli.

It looks both yummy inside and completely decorated!

Milk Chocolate Mud Cake

Est prep time: 20 minutes
Est cooking time: 1 hour
Oven temp: 160C
Serves: 20 cm round tin

Ingredients:

200g margarine
200g milk chocolate
1-½ cups sugar
¾ cups hot water
1 teaspoon of coffee
1 cup Plain flour
¾ cup Self Raising flour
½ cup cocoa
2 eggs (room temp)
150ml sour cream, dollop cream or yoghurt

Instructions:

Pre heat oven to 160C.
Place 1st 5 ingredients into a saucepan and stir over a low heat until sugar has dissolved or do it in the microwave.
Leave to cool to room temp.
In a separate bowl whisk eggs and sour cream until smooth.
Line and grease base and sides of cake tin.
When cool fold in sifted flours, cocoa and egg mix.
Pour into prepared tin and cook for about 1 hour, if it is cooking too fast try it at 150C.
Cool in tin completely before turning out.

*Note: You can add up to 2 tablespoons of coffee if you wish. I like to use Nestle milk chocolate buds for this recipe.

Thanks Kelli, it looks delish!

Have you tried this recipe? Let us know how it turned out for you.

Food Safety Training

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 03:23:00 +0000

Whether you do cakes for fun, family, friends, as a hobby, a small business, or a larger business, this is the one thing you should ensure you do, for the safety of your friends, family, customers and yourself.

You can check out your local council, community college, TAFE, or even check online as you can even do the training online or through correspondence.

CFT Food Safety Training
Infocus Management
Gold Coast City Council
Hospitality Training Australia
Training Course Professionals (TCP)
Restaurant & Catering NSW
StartNextWeek.com (offers a list of courses throughout NSW, VIC and QLD)
South Australian Government (offers a list of courses throughout SA)

Registering your Kitchen as a Home based Business

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 03:13:00 +0000

Having your Home Kitchen registered is something that requires some patience and determination.

There are some people on the Cakes and More Forum that have had their kitchen registered, the experience for each has been different and due to this there is no definitive list of who to contact and what to do. However I make an attempt at providing the following information to get you started.

The first thing you will need to do is contact your local council, you may have to be persistent, the first person you speak to may brush you off or tell you no. Bide your time for a bit and then try again. One of our members in Melbourne was told no when they first started but when she called her council again a year later, she dealt with someone different who was very helpful and provided her with the info she required and now she is registered.

Some of the things you might need to get/do are:

thermometer
sanitiser & sanitising wipes for the thermometer
coving on the bottom edges of cabinets
paper towel dispenser
hand washing liquid dispenser
hands free tap
a separate cupboard for storing my cake ingredients
separate storage for cake equipment utensils etc
separate hand washing sink
possibly a separate fridge or a separate shelf in the fridge exclusively for cake stuff
keep records of deliveries, fridge temperature, cleaning schedule etc.

Food safety training whether you do cakes for fun, family, friends, as a hobby, a small business, or a larger business, this is the one thing you should ensure you do, for the safety of your friends, family, customers and yourself.

Each council has their own requirements, so the best thing is to speak to them and see what it is they need/want/require. If you do hit a hurdle, implementing any of the above is good food safety practice anyway.

If you rent you are likely to require written approval from your landlord in running a home business.

Here are a variety of links from different states, to help get you started, some of them may have different information which is why it is important to contact your council. If your council seems low on information, you may be able to take some of the information below with you or it may help you to ask specific questions that may get you the information you require.

Food standards.gov
Food authority NSW
Wollongong NSW
AMACC
Salisbury SA
Charles Sturt

Helpful information provided by Cakes & More member Nati.

Cake Decorating Classes - Finding them!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 23:26:00 +0000

So I mentioned that a good place to look for a Cake Decorating Class is your local community college. In NSW there is a good range of places across the state the list below includes Colleges that offer Cake Decorating Classes and some also run Chocolate Appreciation/Workshops.

They mostly run over an 8 week period on average over a 2 hour period. The classes start in February 2008, and most Colleges run a four term year so if you miss out start checking the websites out again in March for details of the next term. Unless it's a specified as a beginners class or the like, each term is usually encapsulated meaning you don't need to have done any previous terms.

When going to the sites, either type, Cake, Cake Decorating or Chocolate into the search boxes or look under Food which is mostly where the Cake Decorating Classes reside. The prices usually range from around the $120 to $160 or so mark for the 8 weeks. If you are a complete first timer there may be some additional supplies that are recommended you pick up.

Macquarie Community College

Eastern Suburbs Community College
St George & Sutherland Community College
Norwest Community College
Macarthur Community College
Bankstown Community College

Nepean Community College
Central Coast Community College
Hornsby Kuringai Community College
Manly Warringah Community College
Central West Community College
Parramatta College
Hunter Community College
Tuggerah Lakes Kincumber Community College

Another popular place in Sydney is Planet Cake.

Here is a current list of classes, many of which are full. However keep checking back regularly as they have announced that Cake Decorator and Author Debbie Brown will be giving some classes at Planet Cake in the middle of 2008, they have yet to announce the dates, but I imagine they will go like hotcakes.

Other states don't use the term Community College in the same capacity as NSW (I've since discovered).

Here is a list of Cake Decorating Classes in Victoria:

Make it and Bake it
Floral Sugar Art
Choice Cake Decorating
Holmesglen Short Courses
Susie Q
Marg & Maree's Baking and Breadmaking
Centre for Adult Education (CAE)
Greensborough Cake Decorating Centre

It's been much more difficult to find classes in other states, if you run them, know of them, have done one, please let me know, or provide information or contact details so we can get the information out there for others!

Now What.....?

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 02:02:00 +0000

So now you’ve got the ingredients, you’ve got a cake baking in the oven, or cooling on a rack… NOW WHAT? How do you decorate it this scrumptious delight?

There are a variety of ways to improve your skills whether you are a beginner or a seasoned professional.

You can teach yourself through books and trial and error, you can take community college classes, you can take specialist cake decorating classes, you can even go to TAFE!

Books, magazines, websites all provide endless inspiration, instructions and help. The web can provide a further endless array of tutorials and how-to’s, in written or even video form. These can be particularly helpful if you want to learn but there are no classes in your area.

Some fantastic tutorial sites include:

Aine2 - Extra Icing on the Cake - she has some amazing tutorials, some free on video and picture format and some to buy, they are worth it!
Nati's How to's - some step by step items, some step by step cakes, even some recipes.
Culpitt's How to's - quite a few step by step tutorials you can print out.
Cakes & More Forum - a searchable tutorial area with a variety of links, still growing.
Cake Central - printable step by step tutorials, still growing.

For classes you can check out links such as:

Courses.com.au - a great list of many classes throughout all States.
Planet Cake - their classes are expensive but considered top notch!
Macquarie Community College
Parramatta College - be sure to check out your own local community colleges.
TAFE (search for Cake Decorating to see options). I’ve listed TAFE NSW, so feel free to check out TAFE in your own state.
There is also this online Cake Decorating Class that could possibly be interesting, please feel free to comment if you have done it!
Of Course you can always check with the Cake Decorators’ Guild or the or contact the Cake Decorators’ Association in your state.

Some suggested books for a variety of levels include:

You can also find their books at:

How you decide to further your skills is a very personal choice, but practicing at any time or any level never goes astray! You can purchase cake dummies to practice on and most of the time you can keep or re-use them. You can purchase No name fruit cake for $3 from Woolworths or Coles, this makes a solid cheap base to work on. If you practice with marzipan and/or fondant these will act as a seal which in most cases keeps the cake fresh for a while.

Take any opportunity, any excuse you can to make a cake, somebody had a new baby, get to practicing and give them the cake as a gift, a family member having a birthday, show how well you know them by decorating the cake in a personalised fashion and giving it to them as their gift. Christening’s, Graduations, Christmas, Easter, all great times to get to practicing and if people aren’t buying make your effort your gift.

Remember to always take a picture of your finished product so that you can build yourself your own portfolio. Even if it is only a hobby photos will allow you to look back and see how much you have improved, sometimes you don’t see the improvements until the comparisons are staring you in the face!

Have you taken an amazing class and want to rave about it, or found the most helpful book in the world and want to share it with everyone, please feel free to comment and tell us your experience with your personal learning journey.

Where to Start...?

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 26 Nov 2007 22:51:00 +0000

So … the first question begs where to start? Well with cake of course! There will always be an ongoing debate on bake from scratch versus bake from box or pre-bought. I do not dare to venture into this debate, all I have to say on the matter, is do what makes you and the people eating your cake happy!

For some, cake decorating is about everything from cracking the first egg, to attaching the last piece of decoration. For others it’s about creating an edible masterpiece that no one believes is edible and for other's it is something that falls on the scale inbetween.

No matter how you decide you want to bake and decorate you still need ingredients. If you are a registered business and have an ABN number and (possibly) some storage, you can wade into the wonderful world of the wholesaler. The bonus to this is that in the long run your ingredients will work out cheaper which equals more profit in your pocket! However, if you are just starting out, a hobbyist, or someone who just wants to do decorate for fun or you want to make your kids birthday cakes then the question becomes: Where do you find cake decorating ingredients?

Stock standard items such as eggs, flour, butter and sugar of course can be bought from the trusty old supermarket. Woolworths and Coles also have some other standard baking items such as fondant, marzipan, colours, flavours and if you are so inclined cake mixes. Lately they appear to have started stocking some small specialist items, cake flour, icing flowers for decoration and so on.

For the serious hobbyist, one can start looking further a field, Bakery Sugarcraft in Sydney, Cake Deco in Melbourne, Complete Cake Decorating Supplies in SA, to name a few. If you live near these places you can visit them otherwise you can order online from all of them. (If you have an ABN number you may get better pricing too, but you don’t have to have an ABN to buy from them.)

The smaller specialist places should not be discounted either. Earl Craft ‘n’ Cake specialise in cutters, their prices are reasonable and they don’t inflate postage. Blossom Sugar Art is great for a specialist brand of moulds known as First Impression Moulds. Then of course there are places like Choc Art and Inspired By Chocolate, which are of course all things chocolate websites, ...mmm chocolate... while chocolate moulds help make great chocolate cake decorations you can sometimes use them for fondant as well.

Finally, places like Spotlight, $2 shops, and of course EBAY are also a wealth of cake decorating items. Unused playdoh toys, scrapbooking impression mats and stamps, are all items that may help you create something very unique. Remember though it is recommended that any tools you use for cake decorating you only use for cake decorating. Once you sequestered the kids playdoh toys, that's it, they are yours for life, the kids will have to go out and get their own! :D

Some of the sites of mentioned sell on EBAY as well as online, it’s always worth doing a price comparison before purchase and remember to factor in postage, this can sometimes turn a bargain into an overpriced item, so remember to include it in the total cost.

All the places I’ve mentioned are here in Australia, there are plenty of sites in the US and UK including the EBAY versions there are times it may even be worth comparing the prices to suppliers here. Generally though you will find that by the time you convert and add postage it costs less to get it in Australia. While the range of items in Australia isn’t as large as the ranges in other countries, many suppliers will be happy to order items in for you, so don't be afraid to ask, the worse that can happen is they say no.

Check out the Suppliers links for even more places, they are categorised so you know which ones are in Australia and which are not.

Is there a supplier you use that you think is great? Then be sure to let me know why you think they are great, if they are a general or specialty store, online and/or shop based and provide the link(s) so I can add it in.