"THE ICING ON THE CAKE"

The decorations and the presents are great, but the most important part of a birthday for most kids is the cake. I know three who got out the Wilton catalogues two months ahead of their birthdays, and started dreaming about the kind of cake they were going to have. And we've risen to the occasion and met with some challenging requests over the years. For those of you who are a little intimidated at the thought of decorating your own cake, don't be.
With a little bit of talent and imagination, you can create a birthday cake for your child that's sure to make their day a special one. With the many cake decorating tools and accessories available these days, even the busiest of moms (or dads) can pull it off.
Start with a great icing, and the rest is a piece of cake.

BUTTERCREAM ICING
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
1/2 cup margarine
1 tsp. vanilla (clear if you can find it)
4 cups icing sugar
2 tbsp. milk

Cream butter and shortening with electric mixer. Add vanilla.
Gradually add sugar, one cup at a time, beating well on medium speed.
Scrape sides and bottom of bowl often. When all sugar has been mixed in, icing will appear dry.
Add milk and beat at medium speed until light and fluffy.
Keep icing covered with a damp cloth until ready to use. Makes about 3 cups.
*Voice of Experience Talking - A food processor works really well for buttercream icing.
Process the sugar, shortening, and margarine for a few short pulses
to incorporate the fat throughout the sugar. Mix the vanilla in with the milk and gradually add to the sugar mixture.
Process until icing is the consistency that you're looking for.
A word of caution: if you over-process, the shortening will warm up and make your icing shiny and greasy.
The amount of milk that you need depends a lot on the humidity where you are,
so you might find that you need more than the two tablespoons. And you can increase the amount of sugar in this recipe
by up to about 1 1/2 cups without adjusting the shortening/margarine quantites.
*Add 3-4 tablespoons light corn syrup per recipe to thin for icing cake smooth.
Use Buttercream for: smooth icing, borders, writing and most decorations.
Colouring: paste or gel colours are best for true colours; colours deepen after 2-3 hours.
Storage: up to 2 weeks in an airtight container in the refrigerator
(bring to room temperature and re-whip before using).

CHOCOLATE BUTTERCREAM
Add 3/4 cup cocoa or three 1oz. unsweetened chocolate squares, melted,
and an additional 1-2 tablespoons milk to recipe. Mix until well blended.

ROYAL ICING
3 level tablespoons Meringue Powder
4 cups sifted icing sugar
6 tablespoons water
(for stiffer icing, use 1 tablespoon less water)

Beat all ingredients at low speed for 7-10 minutes
(10-12 minutes at high speed for portable mixer) until icing forms peaks. Makes about 3 cups.
*Bowls and utensils must be grease-free
*Cover bowl with damp cloth to prevent crusting.
Consistency: thin to stiff depending on the amount of water used;
dries candy-hard for lasting decorations.
Use for: flower making, figure piping, decorating cookies and gingerbread houses.
Colouring: paste or gel colours for deep, bright colours.
Storage: up to 2 weeks in an airtight, grease-free container at room temperature;
dried decorations last for months.

FLUFFY BOILED ICING
3 tablespoons Meringue Powder
1/2 cup cold water
2 cups granulated sugar
1/4 cup corn syrup
1/2 cup water

Beat meringue powder and cold water until stiff, about 4 minutes.
In large microwave-safe measuring cup, stir sugar, corn syrup and water.
In microwave, bring syrup mixture to a boil (approximately 5 minutes).
Remove when boiling stops. Slowly add syrup to meringue mixture while beating on low.
Beat on high for 4 minutes until stiff and glossy. Makes about 8 cups
*On top of the stove, bring sugar, corn syrup and water to a boil,
cool slightly, and follow directions above.
Consistency: very fluffy, sets quickly.
Use for: icing cakes smooth and fluffy, borders, figure piping, writing.
Storage: use immediately.

CONFECTIONER'S SUGAR GLAZE
1 1/4 cups icing sugar
3 tablespoons milk

Stir milk into sugar. Drizzle on dessert cakes, muffins and cookies.
Makes about 1/2 cup.

CREAM CHEESE ICING
1/2 cup butter
8 oz. package cream cheese, softened
4 cups icing sugar
1 tablespoon milk

Cream butter and cream cheese until smooth.
Add sugar and milk. Beat on high speed until smooth.
Thin to ice cake smooth; use full strength for piping borders. Makes 2 3/4 cups.
*Do not use light cream cheese or butter substitute (margarine will produce a softer icing).
*Refrigerate cake after frosting.

ROLLED FONDANT
1 tablespoon unflavored gelatin
1/4 cup cold water
1/2 cup glucose
1 tablespoon glycerin
2 tablespoons solid vegetable shortening
8 cups icing sugar
2-3 drops liquid food colour and flavouring

Combine gelatin and cold water; let stand until thick.
Place gelatin mixture in top of double boiler and heat until dissolved.
Add glucose and glycerin, mix well. Stir in shortening and just before completely melted,
remove from heat, add flavouring and colour. Mixture should cool until lukewarm.
Next, place 4 cups of icing sugar in bowl and make a well.
Pour the lukewarm gelatin mixture into the well and stir with a wooden spoon,
mixing in sugar and adding more, a little at a time, until stickiness disappears.
Knead in remaining sugar. Knead until the fondant is smooth, pliable and does not stick to your hands.
If fondant is too soft, add more sugar; if too stiff, add water (a drop at a time).
Makes enough to cover a 10 x 4 inch high cake.
Consistency: Dough-like consistency, rolled out and applied to cake.
Use for: Covers cakes with a perfectly smooth, satiny surface.
Application: To determine the diameter you need to roll fondant for covering your cake,
measure opposite sides and top of cake across center; roll out fondant to that size, 1/4 inch thick.
For example, an 8-inch, 2-layer cake, with two sides each 4 inches, equals 16 inches diameter.
Prepare cake by covering with buttercream icing.
Before rolling out fondant, knead until it is a workable consistency.
Lightly dust smooth work surface and rolling pin with icing sugar to prevent sticking.
Roll out fondant, sized to your cake, with a rolling pin, lifting and moving as you roll.
Add more icing sugar if necessary. Gently lift fondant over rolling pin,
or lift with the support of both hands, taking care not to tear it.
Position on cake. Shape fondant to sides of cake (don't use your hands if they're warm).
Use a straight edge to mark fondant at the base of the cake and trim off using a sharp knife or pizza cutter.
Smooth and shape fondant on cake; beginning in the middle of the cake top,
move outward and down the sides to smooth and shape fondant to cake and remove air bubbles.
If an air bubble appears, pop it with a pin and smooth area again.
*Prior to applying fondant, cake must be covered in apricot glaze and/or buttercream icing to seal in freshness and moisture.
*The less height on your cake, the easier it will be to cover with rolled fondant.
Individual sized desserts, such as petits fours, are the easiest of all to cover.
*When rolling fondant, it is extremely important to remember to lift and move it several times.
You must keep fondant from sticking to your rolling surface or it will tear when you try to lift it up.
Storage: Excess can be stored 2 months in an airtight container. Do not refrigerate or freeze.

QUICK-POUR FONDANT
6 cups icing sugar, sifted
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons white corn syrup
1 teaspoon almond extract

Combine water and corn syrup. Add to sugar in a saucepan and stir over low heat
until well-mixed and heated to 92 degrees F, thin enough to be poured,
but thick enough so it won't run off the cake. Stir in flavouring and colour if desired.
To cover cake, ice smoothly with buttercream and let icing crust, or cover with apricot glaze.
Place cake on cooling rack with a cookie sheet beneath. Pour fondant over iced cake,
flowing from center and moving out in a circular motion.
Touch up sides with a spatula.
*Use for: Covers cakes with perfectly smooth, shiny iced surface;
coats baked goods and seals in freshness; pours and dries to semi-hard, smooth surface
*Storage: Use immediately; excess may be refrigerated, reheated and poured again.

CHOCOLATE POURED FONDANT
Follow recipe above, but increase amount of water by 1 ounce.
After fondant is heated, stir in 3 ounces of melted, unsweetened chocolate, then add flavouring.

APRICOT GLAZE
Ideal for preparing a cake for fondant or for crumb-coating cakes before icing.
Heat 1 cup of apricot preserves to boiling and strain. Brush on cake while still hot.
Let dry. Glaze will dry to a hard finish in 15 minutes or less.

Recipes from the Wilton Yearbook
The Wilton Web Site

TIPS FOR SUCCESSFUL BIRTHDAY CAKES

1. Prepare your cake pan by generously greasing the inside with solid vegetable shortening. For best results, do not use butter, margarine or liquid vegetable oil. Be sure to cover every part, including all of the indentations. Sprinkle with a few tablespoons of flour, and shake pan to completely cover all of the grease. Tap pan upside down to shake out excess flour.
2. After baking, cool on cake rack for 10 minutes. Loosen cake around the edge with a knife, place rack over cake, and turn rack and cake over together. Carefully lift off cake pan. (*Voice of Experience Talking - If the cake feels like it's going to stick in spots, let it sit with cake pan on top for a minute or two. The steam from the warm cake will usually loosen the cake enough to allow you to remove the pan without breaking the cake). Do not begin icing until cake is completely cool.
3. To level a layer cake, use a long serrated knife. Moving the knife in a back and forth sawing motion, slowly rotate the cake while you remove the crown, keeping the knife level as you cut.
4. To fill a layer cake, pipe a ring of icing around the edge of the bottom layer to keep your preserves or pudding from seeping out.
5. After leveling your top layer, place it cut side down so that the top of your cake is perfectly flat.
6. To keep crumbs out of your icing, glide your spatula on the icing, never allowing it to touch the cake. Place a large amount of thin consistency icing on the center of the cake top. Spread across the top, pushing towards the edges. Smooth the top using the edge of the spatula, sweep the edge of the spatula from the rim of the cake to the center and then lift if off and remove excess icing. Cover the sides with icing, and smooth by holding the spatula upright with the edge against the side, and without lifting the spatula from the cake's surface. Continue until the entire cake surface is covered. For easier smoothing, dip the spatula in hot water, wipe dry, and glide across cake surface.
7. Allow iced cake to dry for 15 minutes before decorating.
8. If you need to transport your cake, be sure that it's on a sturdy base. Place the cake inside a box that's sized to the base so that it won't shift around. If the box is too big, try some double-sided tape or masking tape loops on the bottom to keep the cake from sliding. Place the box on the floor of the car, on a piece of foam or non-skid mat, not on the seat. Take along extra icing for repairs.
9. Keep cake out of direct sunlight, and in a cool place.
10. Avoid using tin foil or plastic wrap on your fresh cake. Inside a covered clean box is best.
11. Cakes with a buttercream icing can be frozen for several weeks before your party. (*Voice of Experience Talking - A cookie sheet works well for freezing your cake. Try freezing it uncovered until the icing is solid, and then cover (it's ok to use plastic or tin foil on the frozen cake). Be sure to take the cover off when cake is removed from the freezer for thawing. Condensation may build up inside the cover and cause the icing to bleed).
11. If you're adding royal icing decorations to a cake that will be frozen, leave the decorations off until the cake has been thawed out so as not to distort the colours.
12. Paste or gel colours are best - standard food colours may change the consistency of your icing.
13. For dark brown or black, start with chocolate icing to avoid an aftertaste.
14. Start by adding a little colour at a time, remembering that the colour deepens after an hour or so in buttercream icing, and royal icing requires more colouring to achieve dark colours.
15. Use a toothpick to add your colour, but always use a clean toothpick each time so as not to transfer icing into your jar of colour.
16. Be sure to mix enough of each colour at one time. It's difficult to make another batch exactly the same.
17. Finally, the back of a cookie sheet is a great place to practise your cake-decorating techniques. Just wipe it off and start over.

There you go - everything you need to get started. Try it.
You'll see that it isn't so difficult, and have the satisfaction of creating it yourself.
Your kids will be impressed, and you'll save a little money.
It's a piece of cake.

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