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How to Comb a Cake Video

January 14, 2016 by Sharon Zambito 2 Comments

Hello sugar friends

I have a secret.

I’ve rediscovered an old love.  A love I had forgotten all about.

The cake comb.

Lot’s of folks think it’s too “old fashioned” or “grocery store-ish” to use them on cakes these days. But I disagree.

They can absolutely work with today’s more simplistic styles:

how to comb a cake

 

Or ramped up a bit with trendy flowers on a cake pedestal:

how to comb a cake
There are many comb styles available. From the “traditional” thin lines to fun multi-faceted patterns.

And using a comb cake doesn’t have to look old fashioned. You can see how stylish it looks in the photos above using a crusting buttercream.

But they work just as well on meringue buttercream, ganache and royal icing.

PLUS they kill two birds with one stone: they ice and decorate the sides of the cake at the same time – a real labor and time saver for us.

There are some tricks, however, to using them with success. All combs are not created equal.

How you hold the comb and the consistency of the icing is key.

I teach all of that (and more) in my new video tutorial that was released in my online school last week.

The response to it has been amazing. I’m excited to see how interested folks are in learning this somewhat forgotten technique. I love bringing “old school” techniques into modern decorating trends.

I’ve had folks who missed my New Year’s special ask if I would run it again.

In fairness to those who took advantage of the offer at that time, I can’t run that offer again.

BUT I can offer you a discount on the combing video:

$3 to download a copy and keep forever.

As well as getting a full month of membership to the school and access to the over 300 tutorials on the inside. You can stay at the end of that month or leave; no commitment or risk.

Get your combing video download:

https://www.sugaredproductions.com/o1/

Brush off those old cake combs and let’s bring them into the 21st century together!I’d love to see what you do with them.

Talk soon,
Sharon

PS. Current members get to download the video too, along with all the other goodies and bonuses I give out on a regular basis 🙂

 

 
 

 

 

 

NOLA Photography http://bentzphotography.com/

Free Holiday Tutorial Bundle

December 6, 2015 by Sharon Zambito 2 Comments

Happy Holidays everyone!

I’ve really got the Christmas spirit, and I have a gift for you. Actually, I have two!

Free Holiday Tutorial Bundle

I’ve put together a FREE PDF tutorial bundle for two of the most popular ones in my online school.

The “famous” ruffled Christmas tree cake was a viral hit. You may have seen it floating around the internet. (It’s my most stolen cake photo 🙂

Free Holiday Tutorial Bundle

 

How about this squeezably cute Santa figure? I want to pinch his rosy cheeks! Created by the insanely talented and Cake International Gold Award winner, Rhu Strand, exclusively for our online school.

Free Holiday Tutorial Bundle

Just click on the red button below to request your copy. Please note that sometimes the email that delivers the PDF bounces or gets lost in cyberspace. Just drop me a note at support@sugaredproductions.com if yours doesn’t arrive.

You’ll see an offer for a $1 trial to my online school, and I hope you join me. But know that is totally optional, and the PDF is my gift to you whether you join or not 🙂

The PDF will arrive in your email inbox within 15 minutes, and I’ll also send you some emails over the course of the next week or so that are packed with even more tutorials, valuable cake decorating info, stories and a super special offer. It’s going to be a fun week, so keep an eye on your inbox! (You can opt out anytime you wish.)

Ready to get your holiday gifts?

Send My Free PDF!

Happy Holidays!!

Sharon
SugarEd Productions Online School
 

 
 

 

 

 

NOLA Photography http://bentzphotography.com/

Free Baking Charts

November 7, 2015 by Sharon Zambito 15 Comments

Hi Sugar Friend!

Hope you are having a great week and all your cakes this past weekend were a huge success!

Lately here on the blog we have been discussing cake baking, recipes, icing and baking issues. I thought it might be helpful to consolidate that valuable information (and more) for you. So I’ve created 3 awesome free charts that you can keep and reference forever. I’ve bundled them into one PDF file. Print them out or keep them on your mobile device to have at your fingertips anytime.

 

Here’s what’s included in the free PDF bundle:

 free batter and serving charts

  1) The famous WASC recipe and a chart on how much batter to put into each cake pan size.

 

 free batter and serving charts

2) A handy chart of wedding and party servings for each size cake and shape.

 

 free batter and serving charts

3) An easy to reference guide with tips to troubleshoot common baking problems.

 

You’ll get all 3 full size info-graphics in PDF form. The images are way too big to post here on the blog and still be able to read them clearly, so below is just a small snapshot of what they look like. You will of course get the full size (free) PDF that you can zoom into as close as you like. (Me, I have to zoom in reeeeeeal close 🙂

 

free baking charts

 

Just click the button below and fill out the form, telling me which email address to send the PDF to. (I promise that I do not sell, share or in any other way abuse your email address. I guard it with my life, as I do my own.)

Please note: Sometimes the email that contains the PDF gets bounced back or goes to spam/junk and you may not receive it. Please know we do send out every request immediately, but if you do not get it within 15 minutes, please email support@sugaredproductions.com and I will personally zip one back to you. I really want you to have it; these are such helpful and convenient graphics to have on hand.

Send My Free PDF

Grab yours now. I hope you find it helpful, and let me know if you have any questions in the comments section below. I’m happy to help.

(Be sure to check your emails daily this coming week (after you get the PDF). I have more free info and some fun stuff coming your way.)

Sweet regards,
Sharon Zambito

PS. I’m running a very rare FREE TRIAL to my online school this week.

Free trial to SugarEd Online School

You can have access to the whole website and over 300 tutorials for a full week. I have tons more information about baking cakes as well as cake decorating in the school.

You can stay and pay at the end of the week, or cancel anytime and never be charged. It’s a rare opportunity to have a look at all the great things inside the school. See why we were named a finalist in the Cake Masters Awards for Best Learning Experience.

Join our thousands of happy members…. and me! (I give full personal support to all members.) Hope to see you on the inside!

CLICK HERE FOR FREE TRIAL

Free trial to SugarEd Online School

 

Video: Making American Buttercream

October 28, 2015 by Sharon Zambito 93 Comments

Making American Buttercream Free Video

Hi Friend!

Today I have a free video from the online school for you! Here, I’m showing you how to make my signature buttercream recipe. This buttercream has become known the world over over the last decade. You may have heard of it referred to as “Sugar Shack’s Buttercream” from back in the day when that was my cake business name and online handle.

This icing is so forgiving, elastic and easy to work with. It gives you an incredible amount of “work time” before it loses it’s mind and can’t be worked anymore. (Other recipes literally give you a couple minutes before they freak out.)

Ingredients:

  • 5 1/2 generous cups Sweetex shortening or other brand of hi-ratio shortening.
    • You may substitute some or all shortening with butter but it will make a softer icing and the liquid amount needed will be less.
    • Hi ratio shortening makes a much better icing overall. If you can’t get hi ratio, then be sure the one you use does have at least 3 grams of trans fats per serving. Crisco or other zero trans fats shortenings don’t work in this recipe.
  • 5 pounds powdered cane sugar, unsifted
  • 4 Tbsp. Wedding Bouquet flavoring (or substitute your flavoring of choice in the appropriate amount and adjust the creamer amount to compensate and maintain correct total liquid amount)
  • 12 – 14 Tbsp. hot coffee creamer liquid which is made from mixing a 1:1 ratio of plain powdered coffee creamer with near boiling water. (* You may need to adjust the amount of liquid from batch to batch. Powdered sugar and shortening batches vary and can affect the amount needed.)

 

This video will give you all sorts of tips and tricks for making it, as well as my secret to getting a PERFECTLY smooth batch of buttercream with no air bubbles! This recipe is so versatile, you can use it underneath fondant and you can even use an impression mat on it. This is a crusting buttercream, so you can also use the Viva paper towel method to get that perfectly smooth, faux fondant finish. There are more videos on all of these techniques in the school, and I hope to see you there! (see below for a free trial offer.)

About butter: I make this with all shortening in the video, but you can substitute up to half with butter. You will have to decrease your liquids in that case, because butter has more water content than shortening. The icing will be more heat and humidity stable the higher the ratio of shortening to butter it has.

NOTES: There are many many many American buttercream recipes out there, but this one has really great properties: super easy to smooth, allows for super sharp edges and corners, crazy long work-ability time, elastic and easily patched/repaired, less prone to cracking and blowouts, non greasy and creamy mouth-feel. BUT in order to get these amazing results the recipe needs to be followed exactly as presented:

  • Hi ratio shortening is crucial, as it creates a much higher quality icing and provides the wonderful properties of this particular icing. Some folks have trouble getting hi ratio, so the 2nd choice would be a store brand that has at least 3 grams of trans fat per serving. That icing will not be as good as with hi ratio, but better than……. Crisco and other zero trans fats shortenings; they will not work and result in a curdled soupy mess.
    •  The best brand of hi ratio is Sweetex, followed by Alpine, but other brands can work as well. You can’t buy hi ratio in a grocery. It’s a commercial grade shortening with extra emulsifiers that can be found at bakery and restaurant supply houses, cake decorating stores and online. Buying it in small portions from cake supply stores will be more expensive than grocery shortening, but the difference it makes is well worth it. However, if you purchase the 50 pound block, portion it out airtight and freeze, it is often more economical than store brands. Yay for saving money!
  • The reconstituted coffee creamer powder is another critical ingredient to the awesome properties of this icing. I don’t use ready flavored liquid creamers as they have added sugar and other ingredients.
  • Be sure your powdered sugar is 100% cane, not beet sugar and is 10x. I don’t know what it is about beets; I love beets, but boy oh boy they do not play well in the sugar.
  • I use a wonderful emulsion flavoring called Wedding Bouquet, which is absolutely divine. I could drink it with a straw…. but I digress. You can use whatever flavorings you like, but adjust the total liquid amount as needed to compensate for the amount of flavorings you use.
  • The all shortening version is cool room temp stable for weeks, and fridge and deep freeze safe for months, a year, maybe longer. Till Armageddon basically. Butter versions are good at room temp for at least a week, fridge and deep freeze safe for months, even a year.
  • Meringue buttercreams (like Swiss Meringue) are another type of icing used in caking. Those are made with cooked egg whites, granulated sugar and all butter. They perform and taste differently. I use both kinds, depending upon the situation. Try them both! (I’ve got tutorials on this kind in the online school as well.)

You can change ingredients in my recipe with limited success, like using milk or cream, other shortenings or sugars, but please be aware that then renders it a different recipe, and it will not perform or look or taste as good as my original recipe 🙂

Amounts for 4.5 quart mixer bowl: 

2.25  lbs Hi ratio shortening
4.5lbs. Confectioners sugar
3/4 Tbs. flavoring
15 Tbs. coffee creamer
15 Tbls. Warm water.

Amounts for 6 quart mixer bowl:

3 lbs sweetex or other hi ratio shortening
6.5 lbs powdered sugar (use a 4 cup measuring cup, 4 cups = 1 lb)
9 tbsp wedding bouquet or flavorings of choice (adjust total liquid as needed)
11 tbsp hot coffee mate liquid

Amounts for 8 quart mixer:

60.5 ounces of Sweetex, hi ratio shortening
1 1/3 cups of hot water and 1 1/3 cups powdered coffee creamer mixed as shown in video
4 Tbsp vanilla extract
3 Tbsp butter flavoring
8 lbs powdered sugar

 

Disclaimer: this icing ain’t healthy; it ain’t organic; it’s loaded with trans fats, preservatives….and sugar! (And I get a lot of flack about it… party poopers 😛 )   I’m not claiming that it’s good for you. I’m claiming that it works and tastes great. All bad things in moderation is my motto. (Or heavy moderation in my case 🙂 ) It is dessert after all!

If you’ve used my recipe, I’d love to hear your experiences in the comments below. If you haven’t tried it, I encourage you to, because it may just change your caking life. Seriously, I am not just being dramatic. Once I changed to this recipe I was able to get cakes this smooth and sharp:

_

And that leads me to the free trial offer. You can join my online school for two free full weeks and have access to over 300 video and photo tutorials on a huge variety of topics for all skill levels. Also a ton of recipes, articles, photo gallery, forums, private Facebook group, and me! (I give personal support to all members.)

I have a full buttercream course that will lead you through making all the different kinds, to applying and smoothing (get your cake to look like mine above 🙂 , troubleshooting, stacking and more. And I am there with you every step of the way answering questions and providing support.

Try 2 weeks for free. You can stay and pay or leave after that time; cancel anytime with no obligation. No upfront payment.

JOIN HERE

I hope to see inside the school. Happy Caking!

Sharon
SugarEd Productions Online School

Halloween Tutorial Round Up

October 21, 2015 by Sharon Z Leave a Comment

Hi guys! Today we have a few tutorials from our online school to share with you.

I hope these give you some inspiration for your Halloween projects !!

(You can join us for only $1 HERE to access all of these and over 300 more.)

–

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Broomelda the Jack O’ Lantern Witch is a perfect center piece cake for Halloween! This 4 hour video covers a ton of techniques that will be useful across many cakes styles:

Broomelda video tutorial for $1

The 4 hour video course includes:

  • creating pumpkin shape from cake
  • covering pumpkin in fondant
  • fondant underlay method
  • airbrushing pumpkin
  • creating hat (from cake) and brim
  • structural support
  • using edible lace product to create striped bow and tulle sash on hat
  • creating and painting brooch
  • creating facial features
  • flashing eyes
  • creating broom
  • embossed fondant presentation board

Video sneak peek here:

LEARN MORE ABOUT BROOMELDA HERE

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glowing skull cake tutorial

This skull cake is so spooky, and the electric lights in the eyes add an amazing touch.

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halloween  figure tutorial

Next is this adorable fondant cat wizard and his book of spells.
The perfect balance of spooky and cute.

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wizard figure tutorial

How cute is this wizard and his apprentice?
All modeled from fondant.

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witchy cupcake toppers

These witch cupcakes are easy to make, add candy spiders for an extra spooky touch.

 

I hope that these tutorials get you inspired and ready for Halloween!!

Thanks to our school contributors Naomi Hubert, Rhu Strand, and Brittany Rumohr
for their wonderfully deatiled tutorials!

Remember you can join our online school for only$1 for a full month.

DETAILS HERE

Until next time; happy caking!

Sharon
Sugared Productions Online School

visit our online school

 

 

 

 

You don’t have to be like “them” to be great!

October 12, 2015 by Sharon Z 12 Comments

SugarEd Productions Blog

You log in to Pinterest to gather ideas for a client, or to find some inspiration for your next event. As you scroll, you start to admire all the amazing cakes you see. You oohh and ahh at the amazing cake paintings, the perfect cookies, and those incredibly innovative cake pops! Then it begins….cake envy.

Cake envy goes a little something like this: you start to compare photos, you start to compare colors, you start to compare styles. Before long you begin to give into the idea that you need to be “better”. What you contribute to the world is NOT cutting the mustard! We have all been here; today I am asking you to stop!

You Don't Have To Be Like Them To Be Great!

Please do not misunderstand me, as cake decorators we are all artists. We should never stop trying to get better, to grow, to improve. But YOUR style is necessary. The community needs your contribution! We have all heard the sayings about snowflakes: no two are alike. The same goes for artistic styles. To try and imitate or duplicate what someone else is doing, is robbing yourself and the world of all the beautiful work you have to offer! Do what moves you. Embrace your style, it’s yours and it’s beautiful.

The next time you feel cake envy kicking in, pull up this article. Remind yourself you have just as much to offer the community as anybody else. We are ALL needed! We are ALL valuable. We are ALL good!

 

Until next time; happy caking!

Sharon
Sugared Productions Online School

visit our online school

 

 

 

 

Sugar Flowers, Flowers, and More Flowers!

September 24, 2015 by Sharon Z 4 Comments

Hi Sugar friends!

Today I want to share some of our tutorials that are floral inspired. Flowers are perfect for adding that special touch to your cakes! Get inspiration from these projects and add your own special touch!

fantasy rose sugar flower video tutorial

My easy fantasy rose, with bling in the middle for an extra effect!

I did these flowers in preparation for my appearance on TLC’s Ultimate Cake Off a few years back. (Any of you remember that hot mess ? LOL)

 

 

magnolia sugar flower video tutorial

The Southern magnolia is a classic! A good beginner flower to learn.

Will add a touch of elegance to any cake: wedding, anniversary, birthday and more.

 

 

poppy sugar flower video tutorial

Red is such a bold color! These poppies are sure to make people look twice!

 

 

wafer paper ranunculus tutorial

wafer paper ranunculus tutorial

Wafer Paper has so many possibilities!

You would be surprised how easy it is to learn to make these gorgeous Ranunculus flowers.

 

 

apple blossom sugar flower tutorial

These apple blossoms are so realistic!

This would be perfect for those cakes that need a soft, feminine addition!

 

 

isomalt sugar garden video tutorial
How about an isomalt garden?

 

isomalt sugar garden video tutorial

Sidney Galpern of Simi Cakes used both blown and pulled sugar to create these gorgeous flowers in the video tutorial she filmed for our online school.

 

isomalt sugar garden video tutorial

And a sweet little birdie too! ( And the leaves, and dragonfly, and sculpture on top……)

 

 

fantasy Bermuda Bling sugar flower video tutorial

My custom Bermuda Bling fantasy flower is super easy to make.

 

fantasy Bermuda Bling sugar flower video tutorial

Simple gumpaste cut outs with pearl and dragees turn boring cutters into extraordinary flowers.

 

 

gumpaste peony video tutorials

Who doesn’t just love all the varieties peonies come in?

 

 

gumpaste peony video tutorials

Gorgeous open ruffled peony.

 

oriental gumpaste peony video tutorialOriental style open ruffles peony.

 

gumpaste peony video tutorialTraditional closed  full size peony. Just gorgeous!

 

 

watercolor buttercream and chocolate blossoms video tutorialGorgeous water color buttercream and chocolate blossoms.

watercolor buttercream and chocolate blossoms video tutorialThese flowers are made of solid chocolate, not modeling chocolate 🙂

 

What a beautiful array of edible flowers, yes?

I hope you get some inspiration from these, some of my favorite sugar flowers! I want to see your floral creations, so link me in the comments!

** Our school contributors did an amazing job putting together tutorials for our online school. Thanks to Lisa Bugeja, Kara Andretta, Naomi Hubert and Sidney Galpern.

Until next time, Happy Caking!

Sharon
Sugared Productions Online School

 

 
 

 

 

 

NOLA Photography http://bentzphotography.com/

Free Woodland Cake Tutorial

September 10, 2015 by Sharon Zambito Leave a Comment

Grab Your Free PDF!

 Yep, it’s totally free!

 

Free tutorial

Download It Here

 

Please enjoy it!
Sharon
www.sugaredproductions.com

 

 
 

 

 

 

NOLA Photography http://bentzphotography.com/

Hey Batta Batta Batta Swing!

September 5, 2015 by Sharon Z Leave a Comment

Hi sweet friends!

Since we are in the throws of summer, today let’s talk about America’s favorite past time: baseball….but in all sugar! Here’s some sweet baseball projects that will hopefully inspire you to create your own.

How about a 3D baseball glove all made of cake! So realistic it will knock the (baseball) socks off your guests! With just some easy carving and simple airbrushing, it’s a home run.

 

 

 

Final_top

Next we have a baseball cap cake so real looking it’s sure to fool people! Tip: Add your hometown colors and make it a game day treat

 

                             

                                  Hat078

                                 

 

 

Finally, this array of baseball themed sugar cookies is sure to be a crowd pleaser! Sweet butter cookies decorated with royal icing details, even down to the tiny stitching!

Try these next time you need a baseball themed treat and you’ll  hit a grand slam!

** Our school contributors did an amazing job putting together tutorials on these. Thanks to Charity Fent Cake Design, LilaLoa Cookies and Sandy Thompson.

Until next time, happy caking!

Sharon

www.sugaredproductions.com

3D Standing Letter… in Cake!

September 5, 2015 by Sharon Zambito 1 Comment

Hello everyone!

I’m bringing back an older post from the archives due to it’s high popularity. A  fun project I made for my son’s graduation last year. See how I made it:

I was very pressed for time in getting it done, as well as preparing for the big party we threw for him, so this is not a high quality professional photo tutorial by any means.

It is more of an explanation of how I created the cake with a few craptastic photos that I took added in. This in no way represents the quality of tutorials I deliver in my online cake decorating school, LOL.

JWATER

 

The method that I used would not apply to every letter of the alphabet, but hopefully you will be able to take away some techniques from this tutorial that you can apply to other cakes. So here we go!

 

 (click to enlarge:)

Jason cake FINAL

 

The diagram above basically shows how the cake was constructed. The very bottom portion was Styrofoam cut from a 2 inch thick sheet cake dummy. Because the bottom of the letter has those cut angles on each side, I wanted to be sure that the base was strong enough to support the weight of the tall side of the J. I put a piece of regular cake cardboard on top of the Styrofoam for food safety reasons. Then I built the cake above that. This cake was about 17 inches tall, and after it was ganached and covered in modeling chocolate it was about 3 inches deep, (front to back). So it was basically a very tall and skinny cake. (caps and I would say it served 15 – 20).

I baked 2 inch high dense chocolate cakes in two pans: a 9 x 13 and a 12 x 18. I overfilled the pans so the cakes would bake over the top, so that when I leveled the cakes they would be as close to 2 inches tall as possible. I then cut pieces from those sheet cakes as I built the cake.

I used ¼ inch foam core to support the “tiers” of the cake. I did not want to go any higher than 6 inches of cake without internal support. I used bubble tea straws for support as indicated in the diagram above.

NOTE: I built the cake while it was actually lying flat on its back on a big board. Then I ganached it, partially covered it in modeling chocolate. And not until then did I stand it up, secure to the base board and finish it. You will see more of this process in the photos that follow.

 

IMG_4272

I made a paper template in the actual size I wanted the finished cake to be. (photo above). I then used this as a guide to to make the foamcore ganache templates, and also used this as a guide to build the cake.

 

 

IMG_4275

The photo above shows the section of Styrofoam cut out for the bottom of the cake. IMPORTANT: the size of this Styrofoam base is about a1/4 -1/2 inch smaller all the way around than the paper template itself.

The reason for that is that there has to be enough room around the cake, once built, to apply a thick layer of ganache. If you cut this Styrofoam piece exactly the same size as the template, and build the rest of the cake to the exact measurements of your paper template, you will have no room for ganache later when you use the cardboard templates.

 

 

IMG_4277

Above you see two templates made from one quarter inch foam core. These were my ganache boards. These were covered in press and seal plastic wrap, and used as the guide for the bench scraper to ganache the cake after it was built.

 

This next portion I am going to explain, I do not have process photos of:

I built the cake lying flat on the bottom foamcore template. I had the entire thing lying on the larger foamcore board (that you see in the photo below). Once the cake was all “stacked” and built, I then put a layer of ganache on the entire top surface of the cake. While the ganache was still very soft, I put the top foamcore template (covered in press and seal) on it and pressed firmly down. I used a level while pressing down on the top template to get it as level as possible. I then left it alone for a while so the ganache would firm up. Then I took a larger foamcore board and put it on top of the entire cake and flipped the entire project over. I removed the previously bottom, but now on top, foamcore template. Repeated the process of applying a layer of ganache, putting the (press and seal covered) template board back on, pressing firmly and getting it level. I left that to set up until firm.

 

 

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Then I ganached the sides of the cake and used the edges of the two templates on the top and bottom of the cake to guide my bench scraper, to give me the sharp outline of the letter. (We have instructional videos in our online school on making spreadable ganache, as well as using two template boards like this to create a perfect shell.)

I put a very thick layer of ganache on all sides of the cake, because I wanted it to be super stable once I stood it up. I wasn’t sure how the cake was going to react to standing up straight, so I went really heavy with the coating of ganache. (You can see here why it is important that the Styrofoam base and the entire cake once built, was smaller than the actual template boards. It left space for ganache to be applied around the outer perimeter of the cake.)

Remember that the top and bottom templates are covered in press and seal plastic wrap. The smooth sides of the plastic wrapped templates are against the ganache. Once the whole cake was covered in ganache, (as you  see in the photo above), I left it overnight to totally set up. The next day, the templates popped right off and I repaired any divots in the surface of the ganache with some fresh ganache and let that set up totally before starting to cover the cake.

Next came the covering of the cake. I decided to use modeling chocolate so that I would have more workability time and be able to blend seams and such better than if I had used fondant. In retrospect, I’m not sure I would do that again. The modeling chocolate showed a lot of blemishes and was rather “delicate”. I wonder if I could have gotten a cleaner looking surface using fondant with tylose. (I realize that these photos do not show the imperfections in the surface of the cake, but there were many.)

 

 

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Back to the covering of the cake: I first covered the sides of the letter. I rolled out strips of modeling chocolate and wrapped them around the sides of the cake. I did not cover the whole perimeter of the cake in one strip of modeling chocolate. I did it in sections and placed the seams in the inside corners of the letter as indicated in the photo above. Next, I covered the top surface with modeling chocolate, trimmed it, and blended the seems joining the side strips to the top piece with my finger.

Note: notice in the photo above that I did not cover the Styrofoam at the base of the cake. I did not want to stand the cake up onto modeling chocolate, because the weight of the cake would have caused it to squoosh out the bottom and not given a clean look.

Then it was time to stand the cake up. I slid the cake a bit so that the bottom edge of the Styrofoam was even with the bottom of the rectangular cardboard you see in the picture above. Then I put my hand under that cardboard and used that to stand the cake straight up onto the wood grain fondant covered baseboard. I put some melted white chocolate on the cake board where the bottom of the J would be standing on it.

 

 

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Here is the back of the letter, right after the cake was stood up onto the board. Two wooden dowels were then driven through the cake and down into the baseboard as indicated above. I decided not to put a long wooden dowel down the tall side of the J because I was not traveling with this cake. If I were going to have to bring it to another venue, I would recommend doweling that side too. That being said, the cake was pretty stable once it was all assembled. I think the ginormous amount of ganache surrounding the cake made it very stable.

To cover the back of the cake: I rolled out modeling chocolate onto a piece of foam core, popped that into the freezer for about 10 min., then cut out the letter shape using my paper template. I popped that back into the freezer for another 7 min. or so to get it super firm. I used shortening, applied liberally, (as you can see in the photo above), as the glue to hold the back panel on. The back panel was very firm from being in the freezer, so I just stood it up and attached it to the back of the cake, being careful not to put too much pressure onto the precariously standing cake. I then used my fingers to smooth the seam where the back panel and the side strips of modeling chocolate met.

 

 

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Here is a photo of the cake after it is standing up and doweled into the baseboard. The holes on the top of the cake created from the wooden dowels were plugged with little pieces of modeling chocolate and blended in as well as possible. (However, they were visible.)

NOTE: I wanted the front of the cake to have some dimension and have that “collegiate font” look. So I actually created another panel with red modeling chocolate in the shape of the J, but made it a bit smaller then the front of the cake. I applied that to the front of the cake, then I outlined that with black fondant using the semicircle disc of my clay gun.

NOTE: the woodgrain fondant board was made by putting fondant onto a cake drum. I scored it to create planks, used a wood grain impression mat, and painted it with airbrush color diluted with vodka. Once that was dry, I dusted it with brown petal dusts to give it more dimension. Glued a 5/8 inch black ribbon around the side of the board. (We have video tutorials on woodgrain boards as well in our online school. Shameless plug #2, LOL)

 

 

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This photo shows the (broken) tassel laying on the board after we cut the cake. The tassel was made using a clay gun. I built it on an 18 gauge wire in the shape of an upside down L. That allowed me to insert the wire into the front of the cake, to give the illusion that the tassel was actually dangling in front of the cake. ( The wire was coated in white chocolate before being inserted into the cake.)

The bulldog was simply an edible image applied to a piece of fondant, and allowed to dry to create a plaque.

 

Now to cutting and serving:

 

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The first piece was cut where indicated.

 

 

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Then cut horizontally right along the top of the ¼ foamcore board that was holding up the top portion of the cake.

 

 

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Continued to serve the top portion.

 

 

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Then after the top foam core support board was removed, I just cut across to create pieces from the tall side of the cake. You can see the wooden dowel sticking out on the shorter side. All the cake has been served on that shorter side and right under that little bit of brown is the Styrofoam.

 

 

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(I call this an action shot. I was moving so fast, the camera couldn’t keep up with me!) Terribly blurry picture, but you can see me removing a bubble tea straw as I came across it while serving.

 

 

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Cake to ganache ratio is ridiculous. I did have emergency syringes of insulin on standby.

 

 

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And in case that wasn’t enough sugar, I served it with whipped cream and caramel sauce 🙂 I had 911 on speed dial.

 

 

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If you look close enough, you can see the patch on the top of the modeling chocolate where the other wooden dowel was inserted. They were  visible and it did bug me LOL. The way to avoid that would have been to stand up the cake and dowel it to the baseboard before any modeling chocolate was applied. But I did not want to cover the entire cake with modeling chocolate in the standing position, so I chose the lesser of two evils. (But the patches still bugged me, LOL)

_____________________________________________________________

And so that is it! I hope that this gave you enough information to help you to try to create your own tall, skinny standing cake.

 

Check out my online cake decorating school!

 $5 for 30 days of full membership. Use coupon code OFF50 

 

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www.sugaredproductions.com

Happy Caking!

Sharon
 

 
 

 

 

 

NOLA Photography http://bentzphotography.com/
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Sharon Zambito

Sharon Zambito

An RN turned SAHM turned cake maniac. Owner of SugarEd Productions Online School. Join me for some caking, baking, and all around sweet fun :)

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