Decorations, decorations

So last weekend my friend and I went to a cup cake decorating class. Cup cake decorating class you say? Well, it was all about learning how to decorate and make your next batch of cupcakes stand out! So get rid of that boring white frosting and try something different, whether it is for your friend’s birthday party or your next big function.

This blog entry is not designed to show you how to make all your icings but instead to show you just how easy it is to get that desired effect you’ve always wanted.

Firstly you need to start with your cup cake. We had a batch of six to practice on.

The second step is to cut the top of your cup cake. Why do this you ask? Well quite simply when you cut the top of your cupcake to create a flat layer this makes putting on your fondant much easier!  It doesn’t need to be completely flat but you should reduce the size of the dome shape.

The next step is to brush the cupcake with syrup. To make the syrup you can heat 500g jam with 1.5litres of water and 1 teaspoon of alcohol (for example Cointreau).

You then need to brush the top of the cup cake with a generous helping of chocolate ganache.  We used white chocolate ganache. To make this boil 300ml cream over the stove. Chop 900g white chocolate and pour the cream over the chocolate. Let it sit for 2-3 minutes. Then whisk until smooth.  You could also make a dark chocolate ganache by substituting the 900g white chocolate with 600g dark chocolate.

The next step is to roll out the fondant. You can buy the fondants from most cake shops.  The fondant should be the thickness of a 20cm coin and can be rolled out by using a little corn flour so it does not stick to the table.  When you cut the shape of the fondant ensure it is slightly larger than the cupcake itself so it can fold down on the sides. Also when placing the fondant on the cupcake ensure it is the rolled down side that goes on first.  This allows the presentation side to be on top. 

Using a plastic sheet (a small square works well) glide over all sides of the fondant.  This ensures it is smooth and attached to the cupcake perfectly.  It will help to even out any imperfections you may have.  This plastic sheet can be bought in any stationery shop.

The final step is to add any further decorations.  We simply made some stencils from the fondant and brushed this in a mixture of gold powder and water. You can also pipe any additional decorations you may want, to create additional texture.