Francie Snodgrass of Virginia has been decorating cakes for 25 years, beginning with her second child's second birthday cake. As a youngster, Francie never had a birthday cake so as an adult she decided to make sure her kids had those special cakes. These days she owns two shops where she sells cake decorating supplies, teaches classes, and creates many custom cakes.
Prepare Your Cake:
Be sure your board is sturdy enough to support your cake. If not, your cake could crack. Cover your board neatly with wax or other greaseproof paper suitable for contact with food. Level your cake layers using a knife or leveling tool and place the first layer cut side down on the board.
Prepare Your Icing-The Basic Rules:
1. Any icing will work, but it must be SMOOTH (not full of air pockets), LIGHT (fluffy without having large air pockets), and have a THIN CONSISTENCY for icing the cake. Use medium or still consistency icing for decorating.
2. Beat the icing using the mixer's 'paddle' rather than the wire whisk, at the lowest speed your mixer can handle, for at least ten minutes. Be careful not to overheat your mixer's motor
3. Always make and use more icing than you think you'll need. In a K-5 Kitchen Aid mixer, a four pound recipe mixes best. Smaller batches will mix in more air.
4. When possible, weigh rather than measure ingredients. This will assure that each batch of icing is the same.
5. Use water instead of milk for the main liquid. That way you can reuse your icing.
You can frost almost ANYTHING with almost ANYTHING as long as you keep the above rules in mind. If it looks, feels and acts like frosting, it will frost something.
The following recipes are the ones I use most often for working on cakes. By all means, work with what you like, just try to make it SMOOTH, LIGHT, and THIN!
White "Butter" Cream Icing
1lb. (2 cups) solid shortening (or 1-3/4 cups shortening + 1/2 cup butter)2 lb. confectionery (powdered) sugar
2 tsp. clear vanilla
2 tsp. butter flavoring
2 tsp. almond extract or other flavor
1/3 cup water (less 2-3 Tbs. for stiff)
Place ingredients in mixing bowl in the order indicated. Mix for two minutes, then scrape the bowl to remove shortening or butter from the sides and bottom of the bowl. Continue mixing at low speed for approximately ten minutes. When the icing is ready, it will take on a satiny shine.
Buttercream Icing1/2 lb. (1 cup) solid shortening
1/2 lb. (1 cup) butter or margarine (not spreads or soft margarine)
2 lb. Confectionery (powdered) sugar
2 tsp. clear vanilla
2 tsp. almond flavoring (optional, or use another flavor)
1/3 cup less 2 Tbs. water
Mix as for White 'Butter' Cream above. Note that butter will yield a whiter icing than margarine.
NOTE: In hot and/or humid weather, it helps to add 2 tablespoons or meringue powder to both of the above recipes. Each recipe yields enough to frost a two layer 9x13" cake.
Icing The Rectangular Cake
Mark points midway up the sides of a 9x13' rectangular cake. Slice in half using a long knife as shown. Remove top of cake and set aside.Using a decorating bag with or without a large round tip, pipe a thick icing 'dam' around the top edge of the bottom layer. The dam will prevent filling from squeezing out and will help level the cake. Spread the filling of you choice (packaged chocolate mousse, chocolate pudding, fruit, etc.) inside of the dam with a spoon, knife, or spatula.
Gently place the top layer, cut side down, onto the filled bottom layer. Place a small amount of icing in a separate container for the crumb layer. The crumb layer will prevent the bulk of the icing from being contaminated with crumbs.
Using the separated crumb layer icing, rock the spatula back and forth to cover the cake with a thin, even coat of icing. Turn the spatula perpendicular to the iced surface of the cake before putting it away. Avoid touching the cake with the spatula. This method will seal the cake and any loose crumbs, while minimizing the amount of crumbs picked up by the spatula. Start with the sides, and then move on to the top. Allow the crumb coat to dry for at least 20 minutes (but up to three days if you wish) before proceeding.
Moving back to the main bowl, and using a clean spatula, place a generous amount of icing on the side of the cake, near, but not on a corner. Always move the spatula from icing to icing, never allowing the spatula to actually touch the cake.
Keeping the spatula flat, pull the large 'glob' of icing along the side of the cake, away from the first corner. As the icing layer thins, get some more. The important thing is to keep the icing ahead of the spatula. Don't worry about making it perfectly smooth yet; just get the icing on the cake.
When you reach a corner, place a large amount of icing on each side of the corner, the two 'globes' butting up directly on the corner itself. Next, pull the icing away in each direction to create a sharp edge. Remember, always use more icing than you think you'll need. If you use too little icing, you can get crumbs or the cake can show through. The icing should come up above the top of the cake on the sides.
Spread icing on the top of the cake using the flat portion of the spatula. Work the icing to the edges of the cake. Use the spatula to create a sharp edge with the icing that was sticking up from the cake's sides.
NOTE: Be careful not to scrape into the well of your mixing bowl where unmixed ingredients may lie.
Smoothing The Icing
There are many ways to smooth icing, but nothing beats learning to handle a spatula. Hold the spatula at an angle to the cake, using the edge to even out the cake's surfaces. Dragging the edge of a ruler across the whole top surface also works well, as shown. If necessary, finish the look using any of the following methods:
Hot Water Method: Dip a spatula of knife frequently in hot water. The heat and moisture will melt the buttercream into a smooth surface.
Paper Towel Method: Gently apply a paper towel (check the texture first) to slightly crusted icing.
Smooth Paper Method: Gently rub any smooth paper onto slightly crusted icing.
Non-Woven Interfacing Method: Gently apply interfacing to surface of crusted icing.
NOTE: 'Crusting' will usually occur in 15-20 minutes depending on the temperature and humidity. To judge if the icing has crusted, remember that if it sticks to your finger, it will stick to your smoothing paper, so it has not crusted yet.
Round Cakes
Round cakes are easier to frost because you don't have to worry about corners. The technique is similar to that for rectangular cakes, but because of the shape and size of the cake, the icing 'dam' works more as a leveling tool than as a sealant.
If you are filling with your icing, you can use a slightly different technique from that shown above. Generously fill the layer. Don't worry about going over the sides. Pipe a 'dam' around the circumference of the cake. Place the top layer on the bottom layer.
Move two rulers around the cake, positioning them at perpendicular angles, to measure and adjust the cake so that it is the same height everywhere. One ruler rests across the top of the cake, the other will measure the height.
Simply press the top layer into the bottom in any spots that are too tall, allowing the icing from the 'dam' to squeeze out the sides.
Once the cake is even, place a large amount of icing on the side of the cake, and push the 'blob' around the side of the cake without letting your spatula touch the cake. Always apply icing to icing.
Finish as described above for rectangular cakes.
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