There are several important tools to use in the basics of cake decorating. This section notes and explains the absolute most important ones to have and to know.
BREAK BREAK BREAK BREAK BREAK
Turntables are the literal most basic, from-the-ground-up tool for cake decorating. They're what sits between the cake and the table, and allow for easy and even access to the entire product, with significantly less risk to get a finger dragged through the frosting.
Most turntables consist of a metal plate with a central post on the bottom, placed into a heavy base with a slot for the post. It is important that the post and slot are kept both clean and greased for ease of turning; with no stray frosting hiding out underneath. That being said, with the metal-on-metal mechanism, a little grease goes a long way. Gunmetal oil is nice, but a quick burst of cooking spray will do in a pinch, if you wash it out again after a session. A healthy and clean turn table will spin if guided deliberately, but not be so loose as to spin on its own from minor table tilt or passing breezes.
To use a turn table, make sure it is placed on a level surface at an accessible height, with the top just below a decorator's elbows. Most people can accomplish this by simply using a regular kitchen counter, but especially short decorators may need to use a stool for themselves or a shorter table, and tall decorators (like myself) may choose to use a bucket or crate atop a counter with a non-slip pad. Having the turntable at an inaccessible height can result in oversights, errors, sloppy work, and even back or arm pain.
BREAK BREAK BREAK BREAK BREAK
Spatulas are also critical for even the most simplistic cake decorating. There are many types available in the world, but not all are created equal. Rubber spatulas are useful for getting icing from a mixing bowl into a piping bag, but not much good for getting icing onto a cake. The two best spatulas to have for basic decorating are the flat spatula, and the offset spatula.
The regular flat spatula is a nice universal tool for moving a decent volume of icing. It can get a reasonable-sized scoop into a piping bag or onto a cake, and spread out the scoop into an even layer without suffering material stress. These come in different lengths and widths, but ones with a fully rounded tip and fully straight working blade are best. This type of spatula can even be useful in other areas of the kitchen, for activities such as quickly spreading butter onto bread for garlic toast, or getting the last stubborn bit of peanut butter out of the jar.
The offset spatula is the most commonly thought of as a decorating spatula, and has a thin, rounded-tip blade set parallel to the handle, but with a bend so that it is a few centimeters off center downwards. This spatula is excellent for smoothing smaller cakes, or smaller areas of a detailed design, but may be a bit small or flimsy for stiff frosting or large areas of cake.
Both these spatulas should be made with a metal blade; if plastic versions exist, they should not be bothered with by anyone serious about decorating at any volume beyond a single cake. The metal blades stay smooth for longer, wash easily, and can even be exposed to heat before being applied to a frosting coat for a perfectly smooth finish. Most have plastic handles, and that's fine enough, but if you're using secondhand or corporate-owned spatulas, make sure that the plastic handle isn't cracked in any way as to make the blade wobble with pressure. If a plastic handle becomes cracked in the middle of a project, application of a tight wrap of duct tape or electrical tape should allow enough stability to finish.
BREAK BREAK BREAK BREAK BREAK
Piping bags are where almost all of the actual "decorating" portion of cake decorating is involved. Most of the time these are cones or conically-inclined triangles made of plastic, wax paper, or waxed canvas. Wax paper piping bags are flimsy and disposable, rarely good for more than one cake, and prone to bursting with stiff frosting, but can be made quickly in a pinch by rolling up ordinary flat-roll wax paper into a cone and taping it shut. Canvas piping bags are sturdy, washable, and reusable, but expensive to acquire in the first place and replace when disaster inevitably strikes. Plastic piping bags are disposable and wildly varied, and may come in a flat stack or a perforated roll, and range from cellophane-thin plastic not much sturdier than wax paper, to heavy-duty plastic that can handle even a congealed fudge frosting with minimal issues. A heavy-duty disposable plastic bag is the preferred product for all of the techniques in this guide, and any other choice may result in these directions proving insufficent.
Piping bags are most often used with piping tips, placed into the narrow end of the bag opposide the open side, and the bag then cut to fit. Piping tips are wildly varied, and have an entire section of their own on the next page. In absence of piping tips, the corner can simply be snipped in the bag with no tip at all, creating a rounded application of a size matching the snipped portion. Loading a piping bag with frosting will also be covered in the frosting section; the important part at present is simply to have the bags.
BREAK BREAK BREAK BREAK BREAK
Scrapers are the first tool in polishing up the base look of a cake design. They can be made of plastic or metal, with a straight or a textured edge, and function primarily as a smoothing tool.
A flat-edge scraper is used for an even, smooth finish of frosting, on top or on the sides. A textured scraper should really only be used after a flat-edge scraper, adding a dimension to the sides and only very rarely the top of the frosting coat. Different textures can create different designs.
BREAK BREAK BREAK BREAK BREAK
It is, of course, important to keep yourself and the cake safe before, during, and after the decorating process.
For the cake, it is best to have a cardboard cake board slightly larger than the intended product, to build the cake on and keep it stable on the turntable, and then allow for easy transferring to a final packaging. Final packaging should also be available, in the form of either an appropriately sized cardboard box, with or without a plastic window; or a cake dome, disposable or reusable.
For personal protection, food safety regulations for commercial sale require using disposable gloves, a hair net or hat, and an apron; and working in a kitchen free of animals and potential contaminants. These conditions are also recommended to be followed as closely as possible in a home setting with intent for serving privately, but you are much less likely to be fined for things that are impractical to correct.
No ads, ever. Clean, simple, accessible, and above all, full of goblin energy. Thanks for visiting!
Back to Main Pagecopyright whatever bloody year it is, created 2024