Cake Icing & Decorating

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General Equipment for Making Cakes

Basins

The best type of basin to choose is a china or glass one. Frequently acetic acid is added to icing but it has been known to stain a metal basin. In addition, some aluminium type basins spoil the color of pastel shade icings. As small quantities of icing are easier to handle, small basins will be found less cumbersome than larger ones.

Spoons and Spatulas

Always choose wooden spoons for icing work, preferably those with a large bowl. Icing mixtures will beat up more quickly with a large spoon than a small one. Have several spoons in the icing kit, as this will save time when changing the colors of the icing being used. Never leave spoons or spatulas in the icing when it is covered with a damp cloth. They, should be removed when the icing has been completed and washed in clean warm water. Never use these spoons or spatulas for cooking, especially with fatty or greasy mixtures which may affect the icing.

A Palette Knife

The best type of knife for icing work is the broad-bladed, pliable palette knife. The surface of the knife should be kept bright and shiny as this will help when smoothing icing on the cake. A palette knife also has a straight edge which is invaluable for icing the sides of a cake, and ensures a perfect finish.

Compasses

A set of compasses will be found invaluable to the cake icer. They are used for measuring distances and dividing sections for designs on top of the cake.

Turn-Table

This piece of equipment is most useful to the home icer. There are quite a few types of turn-tables on the market, ranging from the expensive tilt type to the inexpensive tin variety. Any handyman can make a turn-table from wood (see illustration), or use may be made of a revolving savory platter with ball-bearing base. Failing any of these, a large cake tin, upturned on a larger tin (such as a biscuit tin) will serve the purpose temporarily.

Icing Nails

These are used for the manufacture of icing flowers, but are not readily available in this country. Improvised nails may be made from the ordinary flat-topped ones used by a carpenter, or the small piece of paper on which the flower is to be piped may be fixed to the top of a wooden spoon or top of a screw-topped jar by

Pick Boards

If roses are made on small wooden picks it will be found that the easiest way to dry them is in an upright position. A board with small holes, similar to a cribbage board, is most useful for this. Using a small drill or a nail, make rows of holes, not more than 4mm deep, in a flat board such as a chopping board.

Templates

A template is a pattern used as a guide when marking out a design on a cake. A simple template can be made at home from a piece of thick cardboard or thin plywood. Use a compass to describe circles outwards from the centre, one inch apart. Now divide the circle with straight lines into equal segments. Pierce the template at every line junction. If a plywood board has been used it will be necessary to carry out this operation with a fine drill. By placing this over the cake and marking through the required holes with a pin, circles, triangles and other geometrical shapes may be obtained.

Piping and Greaseproof Paper

Strong greaseproof paper is used for making icing bags, while waxed paper is used for flower making. The smooth waxed paper surface allows the icing flowers to be easily removed when they are dry. Do not attempt to use waxed paper for icing bags. This will prove too fragile and will not stand the strain of the icing.

Thin Cardboard

Thin pieces of cardboard, with slits about 2.5cm in depth round the edge, are useful when removing sugar roses from the small picks on which they have been piped.

Paint Brushes

A few fine water colour brushes are needed for tinting moulded fruit and flowers, for adjusting fine pipe work and for coloring some types of icing.

Scissors

Keep a pair of scissors in the icing kit for cutting paper for bags and for covering the board which holds the cake.