Buttercream Frosting - cake techniques

My mom has decorated cakes for us kids since my very first birthday....she is amazing!!  It was always so much fun to help her (aka eat the frosting when she wasn't looking) that I took a class with Linda about 3 years ago to learn the craft myself!!  I haven't done many cakes since then - BUT I decided to make my rents wedding cake (same as when they got married!) for their 40th anniversary.  This is how I spent my Thursday night :)

Yields 3 cups (makes enough to frost two 8 inch cakes

Ingredients:

1 cup solid white veggie shortening

1 teaspoon Wilton flavor (vanilla, almond, or butter) - I usually use almond

2 tablespoons milk or water

1 lb pure can confectioners' sugar (about 4 cups)

1 tablespoon Wilton Meringue powder

salt

Cream shortening and Meringue powder together first.  Then add flavoring and water - and mix again.  Add dry ingredients and mix on medium speed until all ingredients have been thoroughly mixed together.  Blend an additional minute or so, until creamy.

Decorating Techniques

1. Leveling: You have to get your cake "ready" to be frosted....after the cake is completely cool - you have to level your cake.  Remove the crown from the cake center so your cake will set level.  If you baked two cakes - level both.  I used this crafty "cake leveler" but you could just use a bread knife too.  The fun thing about the cake leveler is you can adjust for any size cake - it's sweet!!  I got mine at Michael's in the cake decorating section.

2. Filling : If you made two cakes - you need to put filling in between them.  This will help hold the cake layers together - and adds flavor!!  I just used my frosting and put a thin layer on one of the cakes - then plopped the other one right on top!

3. Icing: Now that you have your cakes together - it's time to ice them.  Basically this is the step that drives my Type A self crazy - I can never get my frosting "smooth" enough, but basically use a spatula and do the best you can!

4. Decorating bags: fun part time!!  First things first - go with disposable decorating bags.  Then you can just throw the bag away when you are done!!  Pick out what tip you want - and put on top of the coupler base. (I got my tips, bags, and couplers from Michael's).  Then a fun technique I learned in class was to put your decorating bags into the bottom of a plastic cup. This way you then just put the frosting right into the bag - and you stay clean and your bag is easy to fold back up! 

Here is what your bag will look like when you are done:

5. Color Mixing: My parents colors were a light blue and white - so I decided to do the flowers the light blue.  I bought icing colors again at Michael's - and they will last forever!!  I always use a toothpick to get the color and then mix it up with the spatula.  I literally used a tiny dot of color to get this color.

6. Flowers and Figures: I used tip #21 to make what the book calls "The Shell".  This is standard and super easy border for cakes.  Basically you hold the bag at a 6:00 position so that you can pull the bag toward you.  The tip should be slightly above the surface.  Now squeeze hard, letting the icing fan out as it forces the tip up.  Relax your pressure as you lower the tip until it touches the surface.  Then pull tip away - without lifting it off the surface - to pull the shell to a point.  Then just do that around the cake!

I then decided to do "Drop Flowers" (that's what I used the blue frosting for).  You use Tip # 2D and 3 for the dot in the center.  This is super easy - basically just hold the bag straight up with the tip touching the surface.  Turn hand holding the bag, keeping flat of knuckle at 9:00.  As you squeeze out the icing, slowly turn your hand to 12:00.  Stop squeezing and lift tip away.  Make a dot in the center of the flower with the #3. 

Then because I could get my cake to be smooth - I decided to make little dots around the cake.  I used tip #3 for that also.

SOOOOO here is the final product!!!