Tips on Frosting a Cake

Inspired by my Moms In Heels friend who had a disastrous experience for her son's first birthday, I wanted to give some DIY tips on frosting a cake.  Whether you are making icing from scratch or using the pre-made kind out of the container, consistency is key.  You want the icing to have a medium consistency for frosting a cake, somewhere in between stiff and thin (or runny).  When in doubt, it is better to have it a little more thin than stiff.  Now, you don't want it to drip off of your spatula, but when you stick the spatula in the bowl of icing, it should start to lean slowly one way or the other, rather than standing straight up like a stick in mud.  If it falls immediately to the side, it is too thin and you can add confectioner's sugar to stiffen it up (I recommend Domino pure can 10x- it does not clump like other confectioner's sugar can).  To thin frosting out, add one teaspoon at a time milk or water, stirring after each addition.  It is easiest to use an angled frosting spatula like this one:

This spatula is from Wilton, and they are between $5 and $7, but will make life MUCH easier for frosting!  If you don't have one like this, a normal spatula will do.  Another key factor before frosting is to make sure that your cake has cooled completely.  If it is still warm, it is very likely that you will pull pieces off the cake and get a lot of crumbs in the frosting.  To start, you want to scoop out a lot of frosting and plop it in multiple places all over the top of your cake, or put a heaping amount in the center.  You can either start at one side and work your way to the other, or start in the middle and work out towards the edges.  Watch this tutorial on how to easily frost a cake:

Notice how she uses a back and forth motion with the spatula, and always has an excess amount of frosting to work with.  Frosting is literally "a piece of cake" with this video and anyone can do it!  If you don't have an angled spatula as shown in the video, use a small regular spatula and be sure to use a lot of frosting (you can scrape excess off when finished) and use the back and forth motion while spreading the icing out to avoid picking up crumbs.  Another tip for getting a perfectly smooth cake: once you follow all the steps in the video, let the cake sit out for 30-60 minutes, until the frosting is somewhat dry to touch.  You should be able to put your fingertip to the frosting and not have any frosting transfer to your finger- this will tell you it is ready.  Take a piece of wax or parchment paper and place it gently over the top of your cake.  DO NOT PRESS INTO CAKE.  Using the angled spatula or the non- perforated side of a long knife, run it gently over the paper all over the top of your cake.  This will smooth out any imperfections left behind from icing the cake.  Pull the paper off and do the same along the sides of the cake.  And voila!  A perfectly frosted cake.  Now you are ready to decorate it however you'd like!

New Business, New Kitchen...

Ok, so I might not be getting a brand new total kitchen (that would be awesome!), but when I came home from work on Friday, my husband had the old 70s linoleum floor completely ripped out!  Words cannot express how happy I am to see that flooring go!  That was the nastiest, most worn out, out of style floor ever.  Soon it will be replaced with pretty porcelain tile, and he's even putting decorative 4x4 tiles in as an offset!  I am so excited about this floor, but it has to be done soon!  I have two cupcake orders for the weekend, and currently the oven is sitting in the dining room.  Aside from baking, it's amazing how much you miss having an oven and stovetop for general cooking. 

Remember my last post about cleaning the house?  Surprise!  The house (well, the living room, kitchen, and dining room) are now a complete disaster due to the floor project, and there is dust from sanding everywhere.  I REALLY can't wait to get the house back in order now.  I also want to rearrange some of the cabinets in the kitchen to make room for my growing baking utensils and supplies.  Too bad we aren't expanding the kitchen ;)

I am really close to having a logo completed so that I can get business cards and stickers printed.  I have finally decided on pricing for my cupcakes, and have my website up!  Now I need to work on pricing sheets to hand out (more convenient for some people) and contracts/ invoices.  I also want to purchase in the very new future a new stand mixer- this will really cut down on the amount of time I spend mixing ingredients.  Right now I use a hand mixer, and have to stop mixing every time I need to add ingredients or scrape the bowl down.  I can also double or triple recipes easier with a stand mixer.  Another issue I have is that my hand mixer doesn't really have a SLOW speed, so when I mix flour or confectioner's sugar, it usually ends up all over me or the counters from being thrown out of the bowl.  I've got my eye on a Cuisinart mixer from Bed Bath & Beyond and am waiting for a 20% off coupon so I can get $60 off on it!  I am taking baby steps for now until I see how much my business will grow and how much profit I can make from it.  I'm still so excited about all of this!

Check out my website: http://sweetaddictionsbykari.weebly.com/

Finally, A Break!

After literally baking for a week straight and putting over 80 hours in between that and my full-time job, I am ready to have a night for ME!  I finally get a night to relax & take care of some of the things I haven't been able to get to such as painting my toenails (yes, this is the first item on my list because one of my biggest pet peeves is unpainted toenails and mine are nearly in that state due to lack of time- yuck!), TANNING, and getting back to the gym... amazing how much you notice after only a week of no cardio!  I am so excited to dedicate this night to do whatever I want and to be able to get to bed at a decent hour tonight!  And this weekend?  CLEANING THE HOUSE (especially the kitchen!).  The house has totally been neglected in the last week and I will be glad to get everything back in order.

This is what my kitchen table looked like last night...

The past week has been a total learning experience...  I have learned my place of preference for supplies, more adequate pricing for the cupcakes, and how much time it takes to complete large orders!  Good thing I have the skill of time management!  I also learned more about baking certain batters at different temperatures, and have come up with a few different twists on some recipes.  Another thing that was made very obvious to me this past week is that I need to upgrade my utensils and appliances!  I have a good oven, but could absolutely use a better zester, stand mixer, and a food processor would be wonderful to have.  I have become more productive, getting faster at mixing batters and icings, and I believe I have nearly mastered piping pretty swirls of frosting on the cupcakes.  I get to breathe easy and do "casual baking" for the next couple of weeks now.  I can't wait to try some new recipes!

I Survived!

Boy, did I have a CRAZY weekend full of baking!  Thankfully, everything turned out great!  11 dozen cupcakes down, 12 more to go for the week!  I have 7 dozen red velvet cupcakes (check out the recipe posted under recipe tab) to bake for Valentine's Day tomorrow, and 5 dozen left to bake for an 8 dozen order (all different flavors) for Thursday.  Thank God I made all of the cream cheese frosting ahead of time yesterday!  I feel like a cupcake machine... and now I DEFINITELY need a bigger kitchen!  So, for the weekend I made 2 dozen cupcakes for a young girl's birthday (12 chocolate and 12 strawberry) with a request of zebra print on top.  This is how they turned out:

It took me quite a while to pipe the zebra stripes on- good thing I am familiar with drawing zebra stripes or it would have taken me longer!  Note to self:  when working with a piping bag on a design that will take some time, it might be a good idea to use Crisco instead of butter next time.  The heat from my hands was literally causing the butter to melt and ooze out the top of the bag- I had to squeeze it all out back into the bowl and mix it in with the rest of the frosting!

These were the cupcakes for the baby shower and were strawberry cake & frosting (I just tinted the frosting two shades of pink):

Last but not least I had to make 5 dozen cupcakes for a wedding shower with a "Lost" (TV show) theme.  It took a little rearranging to get everything to look good, but these actually took less time than the four dozen I made the previous night:

Needless to say, I was exhausted by the end of the weekend, but it was worth it!  I am getting faster at making batters and frostings and learn every time I make a new batch.  This is a whole process of trial and error with note taking.  I expect to start having certain recipes memorized after making them so many times!  I have many more new recipes to try, but I'll save it for next weekend!  Now I need to work on getting my website and Facebook page finished...





Let the Baking Begin!

D-day, as I'm calling it, is here!  I have a weekend full of baking ahead of me, as well as a huge shopping trip to Gordon Food Supply to buy everything in bulk.  My grocery list consists of 20 pounds of both flour and sugar, 25 pounds of confectioner's sugar, 68 sticks of unsalted butter, 50 eggs, over half a cup of vanilla extract, a gallon of milk, and lots of various fruits and other single specialty items.  After buying all the grocery items, I have to make a stop at a local cake supply store for cupcake liners and boxes.  Then the fun begins! 

I already started the baking for the week- I made 2 dozen banana cupcakes with a vanilla pastry cream filling & topping for my husband's birthday yesterday and they were delicious!  Definitely a favorite recipe.  I have to get creative for the weekend, as one request includes zebra print frosting, and another order of 5 dozen for a bridal shower for the "Lost" television show theme.  I am excited to see how everything turns out and will be posting pictures and recipes as well!

These are my banana creme cupcakes!

Box vs. Scratch

Before my discoverance of homemade cakes, I was an avid user of box mixes and frostings.  NEVER AGAIN!  It really is amazing how different boxed cake mix or frosting tastes compared to that made from scratch.  I especially think frosting tastes quite generic and sugary out of the little Pillsbury or Betty Crocker container.  It amazes me how I've gone 25 years without knowing what I was missing out on with real cake and frosting.  Even something as simple as adding water to a pre-made frosting to thin it out for easier icing never occured to me.  Oh, the things to be learned about cake making and decorating!  Here are some of the best tips I picked up on as a beginner that even "box" users can try:

• Add one teaspoon of milk or water to frosting to thin it out- it is much easier to frost if it is less thick (add more teaspoons if necessary)
• NEVER bake at a temperature higher than 350 degrees- I learned this one the hard way!
• Know how cakes always bake with a hump in the center and then looks kind of funny when you frost them?  Use a bread knife to cut the top off (about 1/4") to make it level.  Turn the newly cut side upside down so that it is on the bottom- this keeps all the crumbs on the bottom and out of the icing!  (Do the same for both cakes if you are doing a double layer.)
• DIY piping for frosting: you definitely want to thin out the frosting for this one.  Add a drop or two of food or frosting coloring (if desired) then mix well.  Use a spatula to put your frosting into a zip-loc bag (don't fill more than halfway).  Cut a small portion of one of the corners of the bag off.  Twist the top of the bag to stop the frosting from squeezing out of the top.  Squeeze the bag of frosting to design or write on your cake!  Refill with more frosting when needed.
• Fill cupcake liners about 2/3 full with batter- this will prevent "muffin top"
• Beating the sugar and butter alone together first is an important step.  This creates a fluffy mixture, but also creates air pockets in the batter, which makes for a light, fluffy cake.
• Add eggs one at a time- eggs are heavy and can collapse those air pockets in the batter
• Once the batter is all mixed, pour it into the pans and get it in the oven as soon as possible.  The longer the batter sits, the more the air pockets will collapse, which results in a more dense, less fluffy cake.
• Start checking your cakes with a toothpick to the center TWO minutes before the recommended time (if it says bake between 20- 25 minutes, start checking at 18 minutes).  When the toothpick comes out clean, they are done.

I would highly recommend trying to make your own buttercream frosting.  It is fairly simple and tastes MUCH better than the canned packaged kind.  As for cake mixes, box will work and usually comes out tasting pretty good & moist, but if you have time, try baking a cake from scratch- you will notice the difference!

Sweet Beginnings

I would love nothing more than to quit my job to bake and craft (my other spare- time hobby) all day.  I have stumbled upon an obsession and passion for making cupcakes.  What is it about these little cups of heaven that is so enticing?  Perhaps it is the cute variety of liners available, or the way each little cupcake ends up slightly different than the next, or the number of ways they can be decorated.  I love trying new batters and usually bake a batch every weekend.  There are so many possibilities, and cupcakes are much easier to hand out than slices of cake.

Now that more people know that I am capable of creating such delicious treats, more and more keep ordering.  I was faced with decisions on how much to charge, and discounts for quantity or friends?  How much were the supplies even going to cost me in bulk?  These are all questions that I am still finding answers to, and each time I bake I learn whether or not my pricing is appropriate.  Most bakeries in my area charge $20- $25 per dozen, depending on the type of cake and icing.  These next few weeks will definitely be a learning experience for me- I have 6 orders for over 25 dozen cupcakes!

The next step is creating a business name for myself.  I have not loved any that were suggested so far, but I think if I see them in a creative, logo format, I will be able to make a decision on a name.  This has been the hardest part for me!  I think a name can really do a lot for a business, so I want it to be one that is catchy and has character.  Hopefully I will have decided on one in the next week so I can have cards printed.  Hopefully this is just the beginning of something great!  Here we go...!