March 2012

Oriental String Work with Royal Icing Extensions and Hand Painted Fondant Plaque Cake

Hope you guys have been doing well. I usually publish a post on Friday but did not have the time to write my post this week. So I thought I'd say a quick hi and share with you what I have been busy with..... apart from keeping house and running around my two kids.

I am so excited at the compliments I received on this cake that I thought I'd share it with you today instead of next week.

This is my Yellow Cake recipe (coming up) with my favorite Homemade Vanilla Buttercream, Homemade Fondant and of course Royal Icing.

This the the front view....

This is the back view

That's close up of my Oriental String Work.

Cake tutorials collection

Hi Everyone,

Just wanted to share with you a video I did for you tube.

I use to try and make videos for you tube before but It really is more difficult for me to make videos as compared to taking pictures currently. Why?

With a 4 1/2 year old and 2 1/2 year old running around; managing a video, decorating a cake is already too much multitasking.

So, I wanted to share with my subscribers on you tube that though I don't make videos I still do share my work with them on my blog.

I wanted to keep it short to less than five minutes; but ....... I do have so much on my blog to share. All that just wont' fit on a 5 minute video.

Ah, well. I'm sure it will still give them the message........

Hope you like the video...

Thanks for stopping by.

Oriental String Work Cake

In one of my previous post I mentioned that I was working on a cake with Oriental String work and that I was also going to take progress pictures as always? I did.................! but guess what..?

Honey roll out cookies

I was once asked by some one if I could make some Honey cookies? At the time I did not have any good honey cookie recipe so I declined the order.

I never offer my customers new recipes. Unless I have tried a recipe a couple of times or unless it is my own recipe that I am usually very sure and proud of.... It's an ego thing with me and my recipe... Sorry- just the way I am.

My mom gave me a honey cookie recipe for my kids while they were babies. It was made with only honey, no sugar and minus the spices. The honey and eggs kept the cookies very soft so they were perfect for my teething babies.

I used the same recipes as a base and finally reached this versions which has since then become a favorite honey cookies even with family and friends.

Read more »

Decorating Easter Cookies II- Easter Eggs and Duckies

My son is now understanding what festivals and holidays are all about. He is just four and a half years old.

The fun part for him is that he gets to enjoy both Catholic festivities with mama and the Jewish festivities with Dada.

Gum Paste recipe

This post is long over due especially to the member of my website. I have sent the recipe to some of you by email but did not get a chance to publish this post as promised.

Women's Vanity Pouch Cakes for Women's Day

I hope you guys are having a better week then I am

I've had a terrible week and so have not been able to post anything recently.

I had more than the usual cakes to make plus my 2 1/2 year old is sick. She's premature so is more like a one year old right now. And you know one year old's when they are sick.... mama pick me up! So I've been doing piping with her in my arms this week.. I hope next weeks starts off better.

I made these for International Women's Day for a lady who gifted these to the ladies working for her. She did not tell me what she wanted just that she wanted some cute mini cakes with a feminine touch to them.

This is what I came up with. I've had this design in my head for a while now but never had the right opportunity to do them. I though this was a perfect gift to give a woman. What you do you think?

These are very easy to make too. Let me show you how?

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Beach Ball Cake

Hope you guys are doing well. I have a couple of cakes I want to share with you but haven't had the time to work on the post. I will try and do that soon.

I think you will love them. One is a my 'Women's Vanity Pouch Mini Cake' I made for Women's Day but have still not shared with you. I think you will love those. Today I am working on a Horse Ranch Cake - with a gum paste horse and......... tell you later.

Here's another small little cake I made as a gift for a friend's son's first birthday. Isn't it cute?

View from the top.

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Hand Painted Cinderella Cookies and Cupcakes

Hope you guys are doing well. I have been really busy this week with orders as well as unwell kids.

I usually accept only a certain amount of orders per week because I work alone from home. So juggling between kids, home, dinners and cakes is a big struggle sometimes.

However, it is difficult to say 'No' to returning customers even when it's a last minute order. I am making a Pink Sponge Bob cake today. Yup! Pink.. tell you more about that on another day.

Anyway I was quite happy how my Hand Painted Cinderella Cookies turned out.

I made these for a six year old girl as party favors with her Princess Doll Cake..

A while ago I also did the same technique on my Cinderella Cupcakes.

Here are the cookies

Chocolate Pound Cake

If you ever feel like eating a chocolate cake without any frosting added to it, this is it! It doesn't need much dressing up.

Having said that, frosting it with heavy whipped cream and strawberries or even cherries... it's absolutely haven.

This is also one of my two favorite chocolate cakes to use for kids birthdays. It's rich but not delicate, holds it's shape well when frosted so serving kids is a bit easier.

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How to make Sour Cream for cake

Quite a few of my cake recipes have sour cream in it. I personally think it gives the cake a nice soft crumb and the sourness blends all the different flavors beautifully.

But as always we end up not being able to make a cake because we don't have sour cream on hand. It is possible to make sour cream for your cake at home.

Ideally you make sour cream with buttermilk but I also make it with lemon juice.

Take 250 ml / 1 cup of heavy whipping cream

Timeline for decorating a cake

When should I start decorating my cake?

A very common question I get asked often by people who want to use one of my recipes or tutorials. Last week someone suggested I make it a blog post and I though it would be a good idea.

This can be a difficult question to anybody; even cake decorators who bake cakes on a regular basis. We want to make sure the cake stays fresh for the event at the same time we want to make sure we have enough time to decorate the cake so we are not rushing with details last minute.

Having said that, technically a cake can be put together in less that 3 hours. The cake above was made in three hours from baking to decorating including the fondant cutout on top. Unfortunately, decorating the cake is such haste can be very stressful and sometimes lack professionalism. (read customer comment for this cake at the bottom of this post)

There are a lot of things you need to do before you bake the actual cake in an effort to save time later. For example you can prepare you cake boards and decorations such as sugar flowers and figurines. Check on your supplies to make the cake. Buy the necessary ingredients as well as download any templates or information you need.

Sugar flowers and figures can be made as early as two weeks ahead of time. Standard size cake boards can be bought or made ahead of time.

At present, this is a timeline I use for my cakes. This is based on the number of cake orders I receive per week. Should I receive more or less I make the necessary adjustments.

To better understanding; lets pick a day say you need the cake for your event on Saturday night.

Day I - Wednesday Night

Make Filling, Frosting including Fondant.

Bake the cake. Cool completely. Wrap well in cling wrap and store in the fridge.

Dress the cake board - if using Fondant or Royal Icing on the whole board.

Day 2 - Thursday Morning

Bring cake, filling and frosting to room temperature.

Day 2 Thursday Afternoon

Level, Tort, fill and crumb coat the cake.

Let set in the fridge for 15 minutes, then cling wrap and let sit in the fridge for at least 3 to 6 hours. This helps settle the cake.

Day 2 Thursday Night

For Butter cream cakes

apply second and third coat giving enough time to chill between coats

Back to the fridge to rest.

For Fondant/ Sugar paste cakes

Take cake out of fridge - let rest for an hour at room temperature

Novelty cake get carved and shaped at this point.

Cover with Fondant

Leave at room temperature or fridge if using perishable fillings

(I usually prefer not to put my fondant cakes in the fridge so I never recommend perishable fillings in my fondant cakes)

Day 3 - Friday

Complete design and decorating details including doweling the cake and setting up the tiers.

Decorating the cake board. Adding the additional details like sugar flowers and setting up the figures.

All decorations are completed by night and the cake is left to rest overnight.

Day 4 - Saturday

Check cake for any last minute hi-cups like bulges or burps.

Photograph and pack the cake for delivery.

That's the usual schedule I use. The exceptions to the rule would be if I have a novelty cake or a wedding cake that requires more decorating time, I would start a day early.

As a cake decorator who does everything from scratch at home, as well as take care of two kids and manage the home, it is very important that I organize and plan my work correctly.

For example; I prefer to bake twice a week, mainly Sunday and Wednesday.

I dedicate one day to making my fillings including butter cream

I dedicate one day to making my fondant.

That way I am not over whelmed with too much to do for one cake.

If you are a working mother making a single cake for your kids birthday, you can bake your cake ahead of time, prepare your buttercream as well as your fondant and freeze these. Two days before you want to start decorating, thaw it in the fridge first then on the counter.

Customer comment for the above cake.

The cake ws unbelievable!! In a very spontaneous decision I decided to visit for the last time toward my release from the army to go to the Golan Heights to visit my soldiers and I needed a cake SOS! My mom called Veena and in two hours that beautiful cake was at my home. Everybody was amazed. It was a huge success. Thank you very much, you saved me Veena:) Yael 8th Spet 2011

Yael, Koren, Ra'anana, IsraelCannon Cake - Army Cake

I hop you find this post helpful.

Until next time. Happy cake decorating

South Park Cartman Cake

I recently made this cake for a friend's son turning twelve.

He loves the show 'South Park' and really likes the character Cart-man.

A while ago, I promised to make him this cake for his birthday.

Unfortunately I completely forgot about his birthday until the morning of the birthday itself. Of course I still wanted to keep my promise so made this 6" cake for him of Cartman's face as promised.

As you can see I did not do a good job with the last minute photograph nor did I have time to dress my cake board.

Nevertheless; he loved his cake and called me with an overwhelming thank you.

Thanks for stopping by.

Decorating Easter Cookies I - Easter Bunnies

Being a Catholic I have been celebrating Easter all my life but now that I live here in Israel I feel almost lost because no one around me knows what is Easter.

In an attempt to introduce my kids to my religion and to get them to experience the joy I feel at these festive times I do celebrate in a small way Christmas, Easter and other holidays with my little family at home.

Here are Easter Bunnies I made this year.

I usually always try to do something new when decorating but there are somethings you just keep with the way they are meant to be.... should I say the way mom usually makes them?

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White Wedding Cake recipe

Most people make a white wedding cake with vegetable shortening and no eggs yolks at all.

I personally prefer to use butter for the superior flavor and half egg yolks for the structure it provides. I believe it adds a bit more strength which is important when making a tiered cake.

I've been using this recipe for a long time now and have had quite a few satisfied brides give me complements on the taste and flavor.

It's also my sons favorite cake (he calls it vanilla cake) and so here I made it for my own birthday.

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Rolled Royal Icing

Rolled Royal Icing! Ever since I mentioned it in one of my previous post I've had tons of emails asking me for the recipe and how to use it.. I hope I did not give you the wrong message. This is not going to replace the royal icing and is not really as easy as fondant to work with.

I like decorating cookies, don't always have the patience but still love doing the little I do.

If you are a person like my sister... who hates working with piping bags and nozzles and still love to decorate cookies, you will love this recipe.

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Pirate Face Cake

Here is a sweet little cake I made as a gift for a friend's son.

It was his 4th birthday. He loves pirates or should I say is crazy about pirates.

He has a pirate costume with the eye patch and runs around the house with his sword playing pirate all day long. At a recent Purim festival he dressed like a pirate to school too.

It's such an easy cake that I did not bother to take pictures of the progress.

This is a 6" cake but I baked it in a 7" pan because I did not want the cake to be high.

It's my Double Chocolate Chocolate cake recipe with my Vanilla Buttercream.

I covered the whole cake with my homemade skin tone fondant. For the skin tone I used Wilton ivory and a dash of peach (ever so little).

Then I used red fondant for the bandana and placed it at a slight angle.

Next I placed white fondant circle using a round tip. ( I think I used Wilton tip 12)

Ivory fondant for the nose.

Black fondant to cut out a thin strip, placed it across the eye and head.

An oval cutter for the eye patch.

A round tip for the other eye and

trimmings from an oval cutter to make the mouth.

The balance of the black for the cake border. Just rolled it into a long log then used my shell toll to impress a pattern.

Voila! How easy was that?

I love making these simple, easy and yet out standing cakes that make kids happy.

I believe every child should have a special cake for his or her birthday but that special does not necessary have to be difficult, expensive or time consuming.

Well, that's all from me for today. Thanks for stopping by.

Happy cake decorating.

Proposal Cake

I have a couple of cakes that I still haven't shared with you.. here's one.

My business tag line is - unforgettable cakes for memorable occasion and this could not be more true in the case of this cake.

This Valentines day I had a very sweet young man come to order a Valentine cake for this girl friend. He seemed very confused and unsure about what he wants and very hesitant about almost every design I showed him.

Basic Icing String Work on Cake

Finally my internet is working. It's amazing how life almost comes to a stand still without the internet. I don't really get to spend a lot of time on the web but the little I do is so important.

My Birthday Cake

I have not been able to put up any post recently because I have some problems with my internet connection. I just can't seem to upload any pictures. Waiting for the technician now.

I wanted to share with you guys my birthday cake today - 8th March 2012.

I do hope you like it. It's a lot of pink. I do love pink but here I used it because that was what I had around from my previous cake. I've done some string work on beads here and lovely rose spray up and around the cake.

I do have some progress pictures that I will post once I have my internet up an running again. It took me 2 hours to up load this picture.

I really want to take this opportunity to thank you for the love and support you have shown me thru this blog. I was hesitant about starting my blog but the response I have received from you all by comments, messages and emails has been very encouraging.

Today its four months for my blog and it has about thousand page views a day. Thanks for visiting me so often and for sharing it around. I do appreciate the support.

Have a good day you guys and Happy Purim to my local fans.

Thanks for stopping by.

Diabetic Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Frosting

When it comes to desserts especially my cakes I'm all for the real deal. My principal is there is nothing like the real thing.

So no low fat, no low sugar or any low for me. I'd rather eat one good slice of dessert than a couple of low on calorie stuff..

Now that does not mean I don't believe in eating healthy! When I'm cooking I do everything possible to keep dinner for my family lean and simple. I avoid cooking with butter as well as introduce brown rice and healthy meals for my family including my kids.

Having said that, when it comes to special dietary restrictions or physical intolerance I believe there is a valid reason to do everything possible in terms of low sugar or low fat or no flour.

Birds Cage Mini Cakes

I was recently asked to make some mini cakes, but no information on how I should decorate them.

The only message I received was - Do something fun, do the first thing that pops up your head, make sure they don't look small, try to use some blue and yellow in the colors. I did not even know who or for what age they were for!

Well, here's what I did.

What do yo think? Did I follow instructions well? Would you be happy if you were the customer?

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Victorian Style Royal Iced Cake

Every time I see a picture of a Lambert Style royal icing piped cake I go aaaahhwww!!! It's so elegant and beautiful. I always hoped that some day I'd have the opportunity to take a class or two and learn these techniques from the pros. Not that I don't know how to pipe, I do my fair share of piping but I think I'd just like to learn from the experts and refine my skills some day. No luck so far!

Anyway, you remember my resolution for 2012. I placed it on the side bar of my blog to motivate me.

Today I had to make this small 6 inch cake for some one special. So I decided to do some piping work.

I looked on the internet for ideas, tutorials or any information on how to go about doing the Lambert style of piping but nothing. So didn't really have an idea or draw up any design. Just decided to go with the flow.

This is what I came up with.

What do you think? My first Victorian Style cake. Not my best work of course but I honestly thought it was a lot more difficult. Though I wasn't expecting it to take so long. I was slow so it took forever to finish.

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