Cake

The purpose behind cake decorating is to turn an ordinary cake into a spectacular piece of food art. Decorating a cake can be as complex or as simple as you wish. Even a simple decoration can be highly effective, so you don't need to be afraid that you don't possess the skills needed to be good at decorating – much of it is about applying your creativity along with a little know-how on effective decorating.

Steps

1
Visit a cake decorating supplier. It's worth spending time to wander around a cake decorating store to see what's available and what tickles your fancy. If there are items that you'd love to learn how to work with, consider talking with the store assistant to find out more and make a decision about what to try at home.

2
Check out some cake decorations. You could head to a bakery, or just go on google images. The internet can definitely give you ideas and inspiration.

3
Choose the right type of cake to decorate. Decorating a cake requires additional effort; hence, it makes sense for the reason to decorate it to be a good one. It wouldn't be worth trying to decorate cakes that are to be eaten warm from the oven, such as a cake topped in syrup or sauce. The point of such cakes is that they're already as good as they need to be. And some cakes are fine without decoration or with decoration, such as fruit cakes, and it is really the occasion that helps you to decide whether or not to decorate. Cakes that are suitable for decorating include:

• Cupcakes
• Christmas cakes
• Wedding cakes
• Children's party cakes
• Special age birthday party cakes
• A doll cake (known in the cake decorating world as a "Dolly Varden" cake)
• Farewell cakes
• Novelty "geek" cakes, often based on a computer, electronic, science fiction, etc., theme; often very fiddly work!
• Gift cakes
• Cakes for fundraising at bazaars, fairs, galas, etc.
• Photo op cakes – cakes being photographed for a special occasion, a blog, a Flickr photostream, an instructional article, etc.
• Cakes being entered into competitions.

4
Decide on the type of frosting or icing you'd like to work with if icing a cake. It's important to feel comfortable with the frosting or icing techniques required for decorating cakes; some are more complicated than others and if you're just starting out, it's recommended that you don't take on difficult decoration projects until your confidence increases. Typical frosting or icing styles include:

• Buttercream or Vienna cream – this is an easy-to-use frosting that fills gaps and covers up all sorts of unsightly cake bumps and dips! It produces a whipped cream style of appearance and can be smoothed down or allowed to settle in peaks. Buttercream frosting is easy to color and flavor, with typical flavors including chocolate, vanilla, lemon, coffee, and strawberry.
• Fluffy frosting – this uses a frosting created by beating in an electric mixer. This must be applied on the day it is to be served; it has a marshmallow type consistency. In storage, the frosting becomes a little crisp and loses its gloss.
• Sugar paste – sugar paste is rolled fondant. It's usually easiest to purchase it ready-made from cake decorating suppliers.
• Royal icing – this is similar to sugar paste and is often available ready-made.
• Pastillage – this icing comes from the cake decorating supplier in powder form and is very useful for intricate decorating work that you need to keep in shape. It's a sugar paste dough or gum and can also be made from scratch. The icing dries very quickly, and once dry, it is so hard it will "snap" if bent. It has a high ability to resist breaking down in the presence of moisture. The downside to this icing is that you'll need to work with it very fast, before it dries. If you want to use pastillage for modeling, you'll need to mix it 50/50 with sugar paste.
• Petal paste – this icing is ideal for making flowers, as it produces extremely fine detail. It's a good idea to slightly dampen your fingers when working with this paste.
• Sugar glue – this isn't icing but a "glue" that allows you to stick together pieces modeled from icing.
• Modeling paste – this is a combination of sugar paste mixed with tragacanth gum to make an edible modeling paste.
• Pre-made icing sheets with printed designs – these are popular for children's cakes and feature such designs as movie, cartoon, and TV show characters. Follow the instructions provided on how to apply these to the cake's surface.
• Dusted icing sugar – while very simple, this can be very effective on the right type of cake, especially where the cake's constitution is already sufficiently rich without adding icing or frosting (such as flourless cakes and dessert cakes).

5
Think beyond icing or frosting. There are many other means for decorating a cake besides icing or frosting. You can use such items in combination with icing, or add them direct to the cake. These include:

• Fruit – fresh fruit pieces, dried fruit, fruit arranged into shapes such as flowers or animals, glazed fruit (with jam, etc.), toffee-dipped, crystallized rind, etc.
• Flowers – edible flowers can make a cake appear very elegant
• Cream – thickened cream can be shaped into quenelles, spread over a cake, used for filling or piped on
• Candies – all sorts of candies can make excellent cake designs
• Drizzled chocolate – either randomly drizzled, or in a pre-determined pattern
• Dusted cocoa or other chocolate – chocolate curls, sprinkles, pieces, shapes, etc.
• Nuts – especially halved, slivered, or shaved nuts
• Streusel topping – baked on, no need to decorate other than a quenelle of cream next to each serve
• Toffee strands, shards, or shapes – you'll need to practice making these until you get the knack of it but toffee can work well as a decorative element on a cake
• Coconut (shredded or desiccated) – coconut can be colored using food coloring (use wet hands or wet gloved hands to rub the coloring through); it can also be toasted
• Jam or preserves.

6
Learn some other essential techniques required for decorating cakes successfully. There are a number of helpful techniques that can help your cake decorating experience:

• Painting on sugar – use food coloring and a small, fine paintbrush for painting color on sugar paste, petal paste, pastillage, and royal icing. The paintbrush must be barely dampened, in order to avoid causing color run on the icing or sugar model.
• Stippling – use a medium sized brush with a firm head to dot paint across a smooth icing surface.
• Piping on icing or frosting – piping is an excellent way to create designs on the surface of a cake. Designs can include flowers, hearts, writing, borders, patterns, etc. Piping equipment can be purchased commercially, or you can make piping bags using paper or plastic at home.
• Shaping cakes – the ability to create amazing shapes in cakes is about breaking down square, rectangle or circular cakes through "sculpting" and reassembling them into the desired shape. Use a sharp, serrated knife to cut a basic butter cake or madeira cake into the appropriate shapes, following the instructions of a recipe. If you accidentally cut off more than you wished, "glue" it back on using buttercream.
• Always decorate the rim of the cake unless this would detract from your design. Take a piping bag and make draping designs around the cake. In general, leaving the rims and sides un-iced makes the cake look "unfinished".

7
Use color creatively. When choosing the color themes for your decorated cake, consider the following things to help you choose the right colors:

• Is the cake for someone who adores a particular color?
• Is the cake a character cake that needs to be colored in a particular way? Many children's cakes will be like this, and you can use photos online to guide your coloring choices.
• Is the cake for a special occasion, such as a graduation party? In this instance, you might like to use the person's future college colors!
• Use sprinkles, other frosting colors, or different types of chocolate for extra color.

8
Learn how to turn an ordinary piece of food into something decorative. There isn't enough space to explain the art of making decorations out of candies, dried fruit, vegetables, other baked goods, etc., but it's important to be creative when you're trying to make features for a cake. For example, you can make a perfectly acceptable mouse by using a date with two small candies tucked in for ears and a long rope of licorice sticking out as a tail. When placed on a cake, it makes for a realistic mouse. Or, use round candies as porthole windows in a ship, sliced marshmallows as flower petals, button candies as keys on a keyboard or phone pad, form a white ball of frosting as a golf ball, etc., and many candies can be put to imaginative use as eyes, whiskers, ears, noses, tails, etc.

• Use online searches for cake decorations (photos, blogs, etc.), to inspire new ideas for using food items creatively on your cakes.

9
Use ready-made decorations. While there is no need to over-complicate a cake with anything inedible, sometimes adding plastic or paper decorations can add special touches that none of the previously discussed methods can achieve. Some examples include:

• Wedding cake toppers such as depictions of the bride and groom, bells, doves, or an archway.
• Animals for a farm, theme park, or zoo scene. Where making all these animals in modeling paste might be too time-consuming or frustrating, turning to the plastic equivalent is a cinch. Just be sure that they're thoroughly washed first.

10
Use beautiful serving plates. Ensuring that the cake plate is suited to the overall design will ensure the cake's final decorative touch.

• Plates with patterns should not clash with the decorative design. Yet, with a cake that is more plainly decorated, a patterned plate can set it off perfectly.
• Basic white plates are elegant and easy to match to all decorative styles.
• Bold colors on plates can work well provided it doesn't clash with the cake's main color.
• Glass plates are lovely with decorated cakes; there is an old world effect brought about by a cake on glass.
• Cake stands are perfect for many decorated cakes; they lift the cake up for ease of viewing and make it the centerpiece of the table.
• If you don't want to use a plate or a cake stand, consider using a cake board. Cake boards make it easy to handle the cake for transportation, whether it be from your kitchen to the dining room, or from your kitchen via the car to somewhere else completely! These can be made at home using cardboard or thin wooden board covered with foil, or they can be purchased ready-made from a cake decorating supplier.

Tips

• If you're not sure about the design, always get a second opinion before presenting the cake.
• Color mixes are as follows:
• Orange = yellow + red
• Purple or violet = blue + red
• Aqua or teal = green + blue
• Light or lime green = yellow + green
• Take your time when icing.
• Gift wrappings for cakes can be considered another element of cake decoration, and can be as elaborate as you'd like, and even match your cake design if wished. Some presentation wrappings to consider include candy bags for cake slices, boxes, cellophane bags or wraps, baskets, cloth, glass containers, and wooden boxes. Whatever you choose, be sure that it is food-grade, non-toxic and will fit the cake or cakes properly.
• If you find you enjoy cake decorating, consider buying secondhand and new cake decorating books off online auction sites or from bookstores, to increase your decorating knowledge.
• Food colorings come in powder, liquid, and paste forms. The powders and pastes tend to have more intense colors than the liquids. Dissolve powders in a small amount of hot water before use, while pastes and liquids can be added direct to frosting and icing. When adding color, always err on the side of caution and add more if needed.
• You can make a piping bag by simply taking an air-tight bag or food bag and squeeze the icing to a corner and cut to adequate lengths.
• Taking culinary and baking classes can boost your knowledge in cake decoration.

Warnings

• If you don't want to use an icing base that relies on egg white, use either a pasteurized egg white, or a no-egg replacer equivalent.
• Don't use hard boiled candies or small toys on cakes for children under 3. They can present a choking hazard, even if you mean to remove them – it's too easy to be distracted during a party.
• Food coloring stains. Be sure to wear an apron or other form of covering to protect your clothing. Wear latex gloves when handling; although it will wash off, it can take several days before this happens.

Things You'll Need

1. Decorative items
2. Food items
3. Icing or frosting ingredients
4. Serving plates or cake boards
5. Design inspirations
6. Decorative icing tips (optional)
7. Plastic bag

How to Decorate a Cake

The purpose behind cake decorating is to turn an ordinary cake into a spectacular piece of food art. Decorating a cake can be as complex or as simple as you wish. Even a simple decoration can be highly effective, so you don't need to be afraid that you don't possess the skills needed to be good at decorating – much of it is about applying your creativity along with a little know-how on effective decorating.

Steps

1
Visit a cake decorating supplier. It's worth spending time to wander around a cake decorating store to see what's available and what tickles your fancy. If there are items that you'd love to learn how to work with, consider talking with the store assistant to find out more and make a decision about what to try at home.

2
Check out some cake decorations. You could head to a bakery, or just go on google images. The internet can definitely give you ideas and inspiration.

3
Choose the right type of cake to decorate. Decorating a cake requires additional effort; hence, it makes sense for the reason to decorate it to be a good one. It wouldn't be worth trying to decorate cakes that are to be eaten warm from the oven, such as a cake topped in syrup or sauce. The point of such cakes is that they're already as good as they need to be. And some cakes are fine without decoration or with decoration, such as fruit cakes, and it is really the occasion that helps you to decide whether or not to decorate. Cakes that are suitable for decorating include:

• Cupcakes
• Christmas cakes
• Wedding cakes
• Children's party cakes
• Special age birthday party cakes
• A doll cake (known in the cake decorating world as a "Dolly Varden" cake)
• Farewell cakes
• Novelty "geek" cakes, often based on a computer, electronic, science fiction, etc., theme; often very fiddly work!
• Gift cakes
• Cakes for fundraising at bazaars, fairs, galas, etc.
• Photo op cakes – cakes being photographed for a special occasion, a blog, a Flickr photostream, an instructional article, etc.
• Cakes being entered into competitions.

4
Decide on the type of frosting or icing you'd like to work with if icing a cake. It's important to feel comfortable with the frosting or icing techniques required for decorating cakes; some are more complicated than others and if you're just starting out, it's recommended that you don't take on difficult decoration projects until your confidence increases. Typical frosting or icing styles include:

• Buttercream or Vienna cream – this is an easy-to-use frosting that fills gaps and covers up all sorts of unsightly cake bumps and dips! It produces a whipped cream style of appearance and can be smoothed down or allowed to settle in peaks. Buttercream frosting is easy to color and flavor, with typical flavors including chocolate, vanilla, lemon, coffee, and strawberry.
• Fluffy frosting – this uses a frosting created by beating in an electric mixer. This must be applied on the day it is to be served; it has a marshmallow type consistency. In storage, the frosting becomes a little crisp and loses its gloss.
• Sugar paste – sugar paste is rolled fondant. It's usually easiest to purchase it ready-made from cake decorating suppliers.
• Royal icing – this is similar to sugar paste and is often available ready-made.
• Pastillage – this icing comes from the cake decorating supplier in powder form and is very useful for intricate decorating work that you need to keep in shape. It's a sugar paste dough or gum and can also be made from scratch. The icing dries very quickly, and once dry, it is so hard it will "snap" if bent. It has a high ability to resist breaking down in the presence of moisture. The downside to this icing is that you'll need to work with it very fast, before it dries. If you want to use pastillage for modeling, you'll need to mix it 50/50 with sugar paste.
• Petal paste – this icing is ideal for making flowers, as it produces extremely fine detail. It's a good idea to slightly dampen your fingers when working with this paste.
• Sugar glue – this isn't icing but a "glue" that allows you to stick together pieces modeled from icing.
• Modeling paste – this is a combination of sugar paste mixed with tragacanth gum to make an edible modeling paste.
• Pre-made icing sheets with printed designs – these are popular for children's cakes and feature such designs as movie, cartoon, and TV show characters. Follow the instructions provided on how to apply these to the cake's surface.
• Dusted icing sugar – while very simple, this can be very effective on the right type of cake, especially where the cake's constitution is already sufficiently rich without adding icing or frosting (such as flourless cakes and dessert cakes).

5
Think beyond icing or frosting. There are many other means for decorating a cake besides icing or frosting. You can use such items in combination with icing, or add them direct to the cake. These include:

• Fruit – fresh fruit pieces, dried fruit, fruit arranged into shapes such as flowers or animals, glazed fruit (with jam, etc.), toffee-dipped, crystallized rind, etc.
• Flowers – edible flowers can make a cake appear very elegant
• Cream – thickened cream can be shaped into quenelles, spread over a cake, used for filling or piped on
• Candies – all sorts of candies can make excellent cake designs
• Drizzled chocolate – either randomly drizzled, or in a pre-determined pattern
• Dusted cocoa or other chocolate – chocolate curls, sprinkles, pieces, shapes, etc.
• Nuts – especially halved, slivered, or shaved nuts
• Streusel topping – baked on, no need to decorate other than a quenelle of cream next to each serve
• Toffee strands, shards, or shapes – you'll need to practice making these until you get the knack of it but toffee can work well as a decorative element on a cake
• Coconut (shredded or desiccated) – coconut can be colored using food coloring (use wet hands or wet gloved hands to rub the coloring through); it can also be toasted
• Jam or preserves.

6
Learn some other essential techniques required for decorating cakes successfully. There are a number of helpful techniques that can help your cake decorating experience:

• Painting on sugar – use food coloring and a small, fine paintbrush for painting color on sugar paste, petal paste, pastillage, and royal icing. The paintbrush must be barely dampened, in order to avoid causing color run on the icing or sugar model.
• Stippling – use a medium sized brush with a firm head to dot paint across a smooth icing surface.
• Piping on icing or frosting – piping is an excellent way to create designs on the surface of a cake. Designs can include flowers, hearts, writing, borders, patterns, etc. Piping equipment can be purchased commercially, or you can make piping bags using paper or plastic at home.
• Shaping cakes – the ability to create amazing shapes in cakes is about breaking down square, rectangle or circular cakes through "sculpting" and reassembling them into the desired shape. Use a sharp, serrated knife to cut a basic butter cake or madeira cake into the appropriate shapes, following the instructions of a recipe. If you accidentally cut off more than you wished, "glue" it back on using buttercream.
• Always decorate the rim of the cake unless this would detract from your design. Take a piping bag and make draping designs around the cake. In general, leaving the rims and sides un-iced makes the cake look "unfinished".

7
Use color creatively. When choosing the color themes for your decorated cake, consider the following things to help you choose the right colors:

• Is the cake for someone who adores a particular color?
• Is the cake a character cake that needs to be colored in a particular way? Many children's cakes will be like this, and you can use photos online to guide your coloring choices.
• Is the cake for a special occasion, such as a graduation party? In this instance, you might like to use the person's future college colors!
• Use sprinkles, other frosting colors, or different types of chocolate for extra color.

8
Learn how to turn an ordinary piece of food into something decorative. There isn't enough space to explain the art of making decorations out of candies, dried fruit, vegetables, other baked goods, etc., but it's important to be creative when you're trying to make features for a cake. For example, you can make a perfectly acceptable mouse by using a date with two small candies tucked in for ears and a long rope of licorice sticking out as a tail. When placed on a cake, it makes for a realistic mouse. Or, use round candies as porthole windows in a ship, sliced marshmallows as flower petals, button candies as keys on a keyboard or phone pad, form a white ball of frosting as a golf ball, etc., and many candies can be put to imaginative use as eyes, whiskers, ears, noses, tails, etc.

• Use online searches for cake decorations (photos, blogs, etc.), to inspire new ideas for using food items creatively on your cakes.

9
Use ready-made decorations. While there is no need to over-complicate a cake with anything inedible, sometimes adding plastic or paper decorations can add special touches that none of the previously discussed methods can achieve. Some examples include:

• Wedding cake toppers such as depictions of the bride and groom, bells, doves, or an archway.
• Animals for a farm, theme park, or zoo scene. Where making all these animals in modeling paste might be too time-consuming or frustrating, turning to the plastic equivalent is a cinch. Just be sure that they're thoroughly washed first.

10
Use beautiful serving plates. Ensuring that the cake plate is suited to the overall design will ensure the cake's final decorative touch.

• Plates with patterns should not clash with the decorative design. Yet, with a cake that is more plainly decorated, a patterned plate can set it off perfectly.
• Basic white plates are elegant and easy to match to all decorative styles.
• Bold colors on plates can work well provided it doesn't clash with the cake's main color.
• Glass plates are lovely with decorated cakes; there is an old world effect brought about by a cake on glass.
• Cake stands are perfect for many decorated cakes; they lift the cake up for ease of viewing and make it the centerpiece of the table.
• If you don't want to use a plate or a cake stand, consider using a cake board. Cake boards make it easy to handle the cake for transportation, whether it be from your kitchen to the dining room, or from your kitchen via the car to somewhere else completely! These can be made at home using cardboard or thin wooden board covered with foil, or they can be purchased ready-made from a cake decorating supplier.

Tips

• If you're not sure about the design, always get a second opinion before presenting the cake.
• Color mixes are as follows:
• Orange = yellow + red
• Purple or violet = blue + red
• Aqua or teal = green + blue
• Light or lime green = yellow + green
• Take your time when icing.
• Gift wrappings for cakes can be considered another element of cake decoration, and can be as elaborate as you'd like, and even match your cake design if wished. Some presentation wrappings to consider include candy bags for cake slices, boxes, cellophane bags or wraps, baskets, cloth, glass containers, and wooden boxes. Whatever you choose, be sure that it is food-grade, non-toxic and will fit the cake or cakes properly.
• If you find you enjoy cake decorating, consider buying secondhand and new cake decorating books off online auction sites or from bookstores, to increase your decorating knowledge.
• Food colorings come in powder, liquid, and paste forms. The powders and pastes tend to have more intense colors than the liquids. Dissolve powders in a small amount of hot water before use, while pastes and liquids can be added direct to frosting and icing. When adding color, always err on the side of caution and add more if needed.
• You can make a piping bag by simply taking an air-tight bag or food bag and squeeze the icing to a corner and cut to adequate lengths.
• Taking culinary and baking classes can boost your knowledge in cake decoration.

Warnings

• If you don't want to use an icing base that relies on egg white, use either a pasteurized egg white, or a no-egg replacer equivalent.
• Don't use hard boiled candies or small toys on cakes for children under 3. They can present a choking hazard, even if you mean to remove them – it's too easy to be distracted during a party.
• Food coloring stains. Be sure to wear an apron or other form of covering to protect your clothing. Wear latex gloves when handling; although it will wash off, it can take several days before this happens.

Things You'll Need

1. Decorative items
2. Food items
3. Icing or frosting ingredients
4. Serving plates or cake boards
5. Design inspirations
6. Decorative icing tips (optional)
7. Plastic bag

How to Fondant a Cake

So you want to fondant a cake, but you've heard it's too difficult? It may seem challenging, but it's not as hard as you might think. With a little practice and know-how, you'll be able to easily fondant a cake and and create a spectacular presentation.

Ingredients

• Buttercream
• Fondant
• Powdered sugar
• Cake

Part 1:Getting Started

1
Prepare your butter cream and set aside. Then measure the top and sides of your cake with a piece of string. Lay a long piece of string over the top of the cake and fold the ends down against the sides of the cake. Trim of any excess string that touches the plate. Take the string off and set it aside. You will be using it to measure the size of your fondant.[1]

• If you are doing a multi-tiered cake, measure one tier at a time.
• For any other cake, measure the greatest width across the top (this would be diagonally, from corner to corner on a square or rectangle cake) and then add twice the height.

2
Cover the cake with a thin layer of buttercream using a pallet knife. The buttercream will help the fondant stick to the cake, so make sure to get the top and sides of the cake. Try to get the surface as smooth as possible, as any bumps will show. If there are any cracks or holes in the cake, be sure to fill them in using buttercream and then smoothing it down.[2]

• Consider using a cake decorating turn table to make this step easier and quicker.
• You can also use light or dark ganache or apricot jam instead of buttercream.[3]

3
Put the cake into the refrigerator for 30 minutes. This will give the buttercream enough time to harden. If the buttercream is too soft, the fondant will slide right off.
Image titled Fondant a Cake Step 4

4
Clear a large, smooth work surface and dust it with powdered sugar. The surface must be smooth, as any imperfections will get imprinted in the fondant. Lightly dusting the surface with powdered sugar will prevent the fondant from sticking to your work surface.

• If it is humid where you live, use a mixture of one part cornstarch and one part powdered sugar. If it is very dry, then consider using a thin layer of vegetable shortening.[4]

5
Allow your fondant to reach room temperature. This will make it easier to work with. You can knead it for about five minutes to make it softer and easier to work with; do not let it get too soft and sticky, however.

• Consider kneading in some gel or paste icing color. You can also add in some flavoring as well. Do not use a liquid food coloring.[5]

Part 2:Rolling and Using the Fondant

1
Use your hands to flatten the fondant into a rough pancake shape. Do not make it too thin yet. If you are covering a square or rectangular cake, then flatten the fondant into a square or rectangular shape.

2
Roll out the fondant until it is about 1/4 to 3/8 inch (0.64 to 0.95 centimeters) thick. Make sure to turn the fondant 180° every so often while you are rolling it out. This will help keep it circular and even. Do not lift and flip the fondant over, as this may cause it to rip.

3
Measure the fondant with the piece of string. Take the string you cut earlier and lay it across the fondant. The fondant should be the same size as the string or a little bit bigger; you can always trim any excess fondant off later.

4
Loosely roll the fondant onto the rolling pin. Place the rolling pin at one end of the fondant, and roll it towards the opposite end, picking the fondant as you go. This will help you transfer the fondant to the cake and lessen the chances of it ripping.

• Lightly the rolling pin with powdered sugar before attempting this.

5
Gently unroll the fondant over the cake. Place the rolling pin down on top of the cake, close to one of the edges, and roll it towards the other end, unwinding the fondant.

6
Smooth the fondant over the cake. Start at the top first, then smooth down the sides, using your fingers. Make sure that there are no folds, wrinkles, or air bubbles.Trim off any excess fondant. You can use a knife or even a pizza cutter. Try to cut as close to the bottom of the cake as possible.

7
Finish smoothing the fondant. You can give your cake a smooth, professional finish by "ironing" the surface of the fondant with a flat-sided glass or a fondant smoothing tool.

• Add shine by spraying it lightly with cooking oil mist and smoothing it over again.

8
Finish decorating the cake. You can leave the cake as it is, or you can add decorations to it using buttercream frosting, such as lettering, swirls, or flowers. You can also use embossed silicon gel mats to give your fondant a pattern.

9
Finished.

Tips

• Keep the fondant covered when not in use so it doesn't dry out.
• For a smaller cake, use one batch of Marshmallow Fondant. For a larger or multi-tiered cake, use two or more batches. It's always better to over-estimate.

Things You'll Need

1. String
2. Rolling pin
3. Smooth, clean surface to work on
4. Knife or pizza cutter
5. Fondant smoothing tool (optional)

How to Make Your Own Cake

Here are some basic tips to help you make a cake. You have grown up hearing how your grandmother could bake a cake without ever using a recipe, the story may even claim she never measured anything. However if we ordinary humans want to successfully make a cake we need to follow a recipe and measure carefully.

Steps

1
Decide what kind of cake you want to make. You need to find a reliable recipe for your cake. Look for a recipe that has good reviews. If you have a cookbook you like use it.

2
Check to make sure you have all the ingredients needed for the cake. Flour is especially important. There is a difference between cake flour and all purpose flour. Make sure you have the proper kind. Don't substitute ingredients unless the recipe lists alternatives. Cake baking is fussy; ingredients have to be in the proper ratios for good results. If you are looking for an easy cake look for a dump cake or an applesauce cake. Recipes that require you to beat egg whites separately are especially difficult. If you don't have a mixer use an egg beater or a whisk. It will be more work to mix ingredients by hand but it is still possible.

3
Preheat the oven to the temperature listed in the recipe. If your oven doesn't cook items reliably (it burns them or doesn't cook them) get a thermometer and adjust the temperature until the thermometer reads the proper temperature. It can take up to 30 minutes for the oven to come up to temperature.

4
Prepare the pans you will be using. The pan size and type will also be listed in the recipe. Most recipes assume you are using shiny metal pans. If you use glass or dark metal you may want to reduce the oven temperature about 25 degrees. Using a differently sized pan can cause problems. Most baked items require a pan to either be greased or greased and floured. To grease a pan, use a paper towel or pastry brush to apply a thin even covering of shortening. Grease generously only if the recipe calls for it. Try using solid vegetable shortening, it won't add flavor to your cake. You can also use a cooking spray specifically for baking. If a recipe calls for greasing and flouring a pan, grease the pan as usual and then shake the pan to coat all surfaces. Turn the pan upside down to get rid of the excess flour. You can use non-stick pans to make thing easier. Even though they are non-stick you should grease them.

5
Follow the instructions in the recipe. If the recipe calls for sifted flour, sift it and then measure it. After you measure the sifted flour, sift it again together with the other dry ingredients if the recipe calls for it. The best way to sift flour is with a sifter, a fine sieve for draining pasta will also do in a pinch.

6
Strictly speaking you should use glass measuring cups for liquids and the measuring cups that come in different sizes for dry ingredients. Use a set of measuring spoons to measure salt, baking powder and other teaspoon type measurements.

7
After you mix the batter you put it in the pan. Smooth the batter out with a knife or spatula. Pick up the pan a few inches and drop it on the counter to remove air bubbles.

8
Put the pans in the oven. Set the timer for slightly less time than the recipe says. When the time is up open the oven and pull the rack out to look at the cake. The color should be golden and the cake should have pulled away from the sides of the pan. If you stick a toothpick or a knife in the pan it should come out clean. There shouldn't be any batter on the toothpick/knife. Leave the cake in the oven for a little longer if you need to. When the cake is done take it out of the oven and let it sit for about 10 minutes. Put it on a hot pad or leave it on the top of the stove.

9
After that time run a knife around the sides of the pan. Put a cooling rack over the pan and flip it so the pan is upside down on the rack. The cake should drop out. If it sticks tap it a little. If need be turn it back over and run the knife around it some more. If you greased and floured it well you shouldn't have a problem.

10
Enjoy your cake. If you want it to be fancier you can find a recipe for a cake glaze and put that on it. Or you can dust it with powdered sugar or make a batch of frosting to put on it. You've found that cakes from scratch aren't all that hard to make and taste so much better than a packaged mix.

How to Make a Cheap Cake

Ingredients

• Yellow Cake
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons butter, softened
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 egg
• 1 cup milk
• 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon *1 1/2 cups flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon vinegarsalt
• Chocolate Cake
• Fruit Flavored Cake
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups fresh, frozen or canned fruit of your choice (blueberries, blackberries, diced apples, etc.)

Method 1:Making Yellow Cake

1
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F/190 degrees C.

2
Grease a 9 x 13-inch baking pan. Use butter or a light vegetable oil to grease the bottom and sides of the pan to keep the cake from sticking.

• If you'd rather make a round layer cake, use two 8-inch cake pans instead of one larger rectangular pan.
• You could also use this recipe to make a dozen cupcakes.

3
Mix the dry ingredients. Mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl. These inexpensive ingredients can all be found in the baking aisle of your grocery store. Use a fork or whisk to make sure they're well incorporated.[1]

4
Mix the sugar and butter in a separate bowl. Beat the mixture well, until the sugar and butter are completely combined. The mixture will look crumbly.

• Margarine may substituted for butter if you're looking for an even cheaper option.
• Or try replacing butter with the same amount of canola or vegetable oil.

5
Beat 1/3 cup milk into the mix. Scrape the sides of the bowl and keep mixing.

6
Add an egg and the vanilla. Beat the mixture until the ingredients are fully incorporated.

7
Fold in the flour mixture. Use a spatula to gently stir the flour into the batter. Take care not to stir too vigorously at this stage to keep your cake tender. If you over mix the flour, the cake will turn out dense.

8
Pour the batter into the greased 9 x 13-inch baking pan. Use a spatula to scrape the sides of the mixing bowl.

9
Bake 25 to 30 minutes. After 25 minutes, insert a toothpick, wooden skewer or cake tester into the center of the cake. If it comes out clean or with only a few small crumbs on it, the cake is done. If it's wet, put the cake back in the oven for another 4-5 minutes.

10
Cool the cake and frost as desired. Yellow cake makes a great snack on its own, but it's also nice to eat with frosting. Try one of the following inexpensive frosting recipes to finish your cake:
Simple five minute frosting

• Chocolate frosting
• Strawberry frosting

11
Finished.

Method 2:Making Chocolate Cake

1
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F/176 degrees C.

2
Grease a 9" x 13" baking pan. You could also use two 8-inch cake pans or a a cupcake tin.[2] Rub the pan with either butter or a light oil to keep the cake from sticking.

3
Mix all the ingredients in a large bowl. Measure out the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, cocoa, water, vegetable oil and vinegar into the same bowl. For this easy one-bowl recipe it's not necessary to separate the dry ingredients from the wet.

• The vegetable oil is a cheap ingredient that produces a very moist cake. If you prefer, you can substitute the same amount of butter.
• Use milk instead of water if you want a richer flavor.

4
Beat the mixture until it forms a smooth batter. Use either a whisk or an electric mixer to beat the batter well.

5
Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Use a spatula to scrape the batter from the sides of the bowl into the pan.

6
Bake the cake for 25 to 30 minutes. After 25 minutes, test to see if the cake is done by poking a toothpick into the center. If it comes out clean, the cake is ready. If it's wet, bake the cake for another five minutes and test again.

7
Cool the cake before frosting it. This chocolate cake would be great with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and any kind of frosting you like. Try one of the following cheap frosting recipes to create a delicious, inexpensive cake:

• Vanilla frosting
• Cream cheese frosting
• Chocolate chip frosting

Method3:Making Fruit Flavored Cake

1
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F/176 degrees C.

2
Grease a 9" cake pan. A round or square baking pan both work fine. You can also bake this cake in a deep cast iron skillet.

3
Mix the flour, baking soda and salt in a small bowl. Use a whisk or a fork to make sure the ingredients are well incorporated.

4
Cream the butter and sugar in a separate bowl. Place them in a mixing bowl and beat until the mixture is light and fluffy.

5
Beat in the eggs and vanilla. Keep the mixer going until all of the wet ingredients are well incorporated.

6
Stir in the flour mixture. Use a spatula to stir the flour mixture into the batter until you no longer see dry bits of flour. Be careful not to overmix.

7
Stir in the fruit. Pour the fruit you're using, whether it's blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, or chopped apples, into the bowl. Stir it into the batter until just incorporated.

• Fresh fruit tastes great in this recipe, but frozen fruit is a great substitution that's often cheaper than fresh options.
• Or try using canned fruit; just make sure to drain the syrup it's packed in before using.

8
Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Use a spatula to scrape the batter from the sides of the bowl.

9
Bake the cake for 40 to 45 minutes. After 40 minutes, test to see if the cake is done by inserting a toothpick in the center. If it comes out clean, the cake is ready. If it's wet, bake the cake for five more minutes.

10
Cool the cake for 10 minutes before serving. It's delicious with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or sprinkled with powdered sugar.[3]

How to Make a Chocolate Cake

Are you looking forward to making a delicious chocolate cake? There are so many variations that it might be difficult to choose a single recipe. Here are six simple ones to get you started, along with several variations to suit the occasion.

Ingredients

Basic Chocolate Cake

• 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 large eggs, at room temperature
• ¾ cup vegetable oil
• ½ cup sour cream
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• Moist & Fluffy Chocolate Cake
• 2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 cup hot coffee
• 1 cup canola oil
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Eggless Chocolate Cake
• 4½ cups all-purpose flour, sifted
• 3 cups white sugar
• 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 3 cups water
• 3 teaspoons baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 3 tablespoons vanilla extract
• Milkless Chocolate Cake
• ⅔ cup soy milk or almond milk
• 1 teaspoon cider vinegar
• 1¾ cups all-purpose flour, sifted
• 2 cups white sugar
• ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup strong brewed coffee
• ½ cup dairy-free sour cream
• ½ cup vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Gluten-Free Chocolate Cake
• 1 ½ cups gluten-free flour
• ½ cup cocoa powder
• 1 cup sugar
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• ¾ teaspoon xanthan gum
• 5 tablespoons cooking oil
• 1 tablespoon vinegar
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 egg
• 1 cup water
• Vegan Chocolate Cake
• 1½ cups all-purpose flour or rice flour
• 1 cup white sugar
• ¼ cup cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ⅓ cup vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon distilled white vinegar
• 1 cup water

Method 1:Basic Chocolate Cake

1

Sift the dry ingredients together. The dry ingredients are the flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Place all the dry ingredients in a sifter and shake it back and forth over a bowl to eliminate the clumps.

2

Stir in the liquid ingredients and mix well. These are the eggs, vegetable oil, sour cream, and vanilla extract. Some people like to add these ingredients individually, but others stir them together in a second bowl and before adding them to the dry ingredients.

3

Pour the mixture into an 8-inch greased and floured round pan. The grease and flour will keep the mix from sticking to the pan.

4

Bake at 350 °F (177 °C) for 30 minutes.

5

Let the cake cool for five minutes.

6

Frost as desired.

Method 2:Moist & Fluffy Chocolate Cake

1

Prepare to make the cake. Preheat the oven to 325° Fahrenheit or 162° Celsius. Grease and flour two 9-inch round baking pans.

2

Mix the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, combine the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cocoa powder, and sugar. Mix until the dry ingredients are properly folded in.

3

Add the coffee, oil, and buttermilk. Pour in the hot coffee, canola oil, and buttermilk into the dry ingredients. Mix using a whisk or hand blender, until the ingredients resemble a light brown cake batter.

4

Add the eggs and vanilla. Crack in the eggs and pour in the vanilla extract into the cake batter. Mix one last time until there are no more flour streaks and the chocolate cake batter is slightly thick.

5

Pour batter into the cake pans. Using a rubber spatula, scrape the cake batter into both of the cake pans. Remove any leftover batter by scraping the edges of the bowl.

6

Bake the cake. Place both cake pans in the oven to bake. Have the cake bake for about an hour, until the cake rises and is fluffy.

7

Let the cake cool. Remove both pans from the oven and have the cakes cool on a wire rack for about ten minutes. Leave them until they are cool enough to touch.

8

Frost and decorate. Consider stacking both cakes to make a two-layer chocolate cake. Frost with chocolate buttercream frosting and/or decorate with any desired toppings such as berries, powdered sugar, coconut flakes, and sprinkles

9

Serve and enjoy! Slice the chocolate cake and serve on a serving plate. Enjoy!

Method 3:Eggless Chocolate Cake

1

Prepare to make the cake. Preheat oven to 350° degrees Fahrenheit or 176° Celsius. Grease and flour a 9x13-inch cake pan.

2

Sift the dry ingredients except the sugar. In a large bowl, sift the flour, unsweetened cocoa powder, and baking soda with a whisk. Mix until properly combined.

3

Add the sugar. Carefully pour in the sugar into the dry ingredients. Mix again with the whisk until the sugar combines in with the dry ingredients.

4

Fold in the wet ingredients. Pour in the vegetable oil, water, and vanilla extract into the dry ingredients. Stir with a whisk or a hand blender until the cake batter forms and there are no more flour streaks.

5

Pour the batter into the pan. Using a rubber spatula, scrape the cake batter into both of the cake pans. Remove any leftover batter by scraping the edges of the bowl.

6

Bake the cake. Place the cake pan in the oven to bake. Have the cake bake for about an hour, until the cake rises and is fluffy.

7

Let the cake cool. Remove the pan from the oven and have the cake cool on a wire rack for about ten minutes. Leave the cake until it is cool enough to touch.

8

Frost and decorate. Frost with chocolate chocolate buttercream frosting and/or decorate with any desired toppings such as berries, powdered sugar, coconut flakes, and sprinkles.

9

Serve and enjoy! Slice the chocolate cake and serve on a serving plate. Enjoy!

Method 4:Milkless Chocolate Cake

1

Prepare to make the cake. Preheat oven to 350° degrees Fahrenheit or 176° Celsius. Grease and flour two 9-inch cake pans.

2

Combine the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, mix the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Mix the ingredients with a whisk and then form a well in the middle of the bowl.

3

Add the wet ingredients. Pour in the soy or almond milk, vinegar, eggs, brewed coffee, and dairy-free sour cream into the well. Use a blender to mix for about two minutes until the cake batter forms and there are no more flour streaks.

4

Pour batter into cake pans. Using a rubber spatula, scrape the cake batter into both of the cake pans. Remove any leftover batter by scraping the edges of the bowl.

5

Bake the cake. Place both cake pans in the oven to bake. Have the cake bake for about 30-40 minutes, until the cake rises and is fluffy.

6

Let the cake cool. Remove both pans from the oven and have the cakes cool for about twenty minutes on a wire rack. Leave both cakes until they are cool enough to touch.

7

Frost and decorate. Consider stacking both cakes to make a two-layer chocolate cake. Frost with chocolate buttercream frosting and/or decorate with any desired toppings such as berries, powdered sugar, coconut flakes, and sprinkles

8

Serve and enjoy! Slice the chocolate cake and serve on a serving plate. Enjoy!

Method 5:Gluten-Free Chocolate Cake

1

Prepare to make the cake. Preheat oven to 350° degrees Fahrenheit or 176° Celsius. Grease and flour a 9-inch square pan.

2

Combine the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, mix the gluten-free flour, cocoa powder, sugar, salt, and xanthan gum. Stir with a whisk until well-combined.

3

Add the wet ingredients. Pour in the cooking oil, vinegar, vanilla extract, water, and egg. Mix well with the whisk or use a hand-mixer and blend until the cake batter forms and there are no more flour streaks.

4

Pour the batter into the pan. Using a rubber spatula, scrape the cake batter into both of the cake pans. Remove any leftover batter by scraping the edges of the bowl.

5

Bake the cake. Place the cake pan in the oven to bake. Have the cake bake for about 30-35 minutes, until the cake rises and is fluffy.

6

Let the cake cool. Remove the pan from the oven and have the cake cool on a wire rack for about ten minutes. Leave the cake until it is cool enough to touch.

7

Frost and decorate. Frost with chocolate buttercream frosting and/or decorate with any desired toppings such as berries, powdered sugar, coconut flakes, and sprinkles.

8

Serve and enjoy! Slice the chocolate cake and serve on a serving plate. Enjoy!

Method6:Vegan Chocolate Cake

1

Prepare to make the cake. Preheat oven to 350° degrees Fahrenheit or 176° Celsius. Grease and flour a 9x5-inch loaf pan.

2

Combine the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix using a whisk until the dry ingredients are well-combined.

3

Add the wet ingredients. Pour in the vegetable oil, vanilla extract, white vinegar, and water. Stir using a whisk or blend using a hand blender, until the cake batter forms and there are no more flour streaks.

4

Pour batter into cake pans. Using a rubber spatula, scrape the cake batter into both of the cake pans. Remove any leftover batter by scraping the edges of the bowl.

5

Bake the cake. Place both cake pans in the oven to bake. Have the cake bake for about 45 minutes, until the cake rises and is fluffy.

6

Let the cake cool. Remove both pans from the oven and have the cakes cool for about twenty minutes on a wire rack. Leave both cakes until they are cool enough to touch.

7

Frost and decorate. Consider stacking both cakes to make a two-layer chocolate cake. Frost with chocolate buttercream frosting and/or decorate with any desired toppings such as berries, powdered sugar, coconut flakes, and sprinkles

8

Serve and enjoy! Slice the chocolate cake and serve on a serving plate. Enjoy!