Having a perfect cake is the perfect way to start any occasion. A cake should be easy to make and should look beautiful and to make that the icing and piping of the cake should be perfect in every way. Even if you have started making your own cake, you need to get the basics right. Here are some of the icing and piping tips for beginners:
Icing
Icing smoothly in a first attempt is not an easy task especially when you are a beginner. It requires a lot of patience and practice. To have a good start you must start with icing on a round cake because trying on other shapes can be a bit harder. This blog will help you in discussing icing cake designs for better icing your cake.
Let’s start with icing equipment- the essentials you need to do any kind of icing. You need a metal spatula, icing bag, and a plastic spackle tool. A spackle tool is the magic tool for smooth icing. More you need is a cake board.
To make up your icing game, you need to do a huge amount of icing on top of a cake. Don’t hold back once you start. Spread the icing on the top to cover the cake and try not to lift the spatula too much to prevent any crumbs. In case, you get crumbs to wipe it off on another bowl and use those for filling. Otherwise, you can spread the icing towards the side of the cake and you can take some off.
Here are some of the icing tips and simple cake icing designs.
1- Do some icing with your spatula, hold it against the side on a 90-degree angle and spread it covering the cake all around. Make sure that the edges are hanging a bit higher on top of the cake.
2- When the cake is all covered up, take the spackle tool and hold it against the sides again on a 90-degree angle. It may take a few trips before you have a smooth icing.
3- Using a metal spatula push the edges towards the center of the cake and wipe the excess buttercream to the bowl. Make sure to have clean edges. Lean the spatula and run it across the top to smooth the cake.
Piping
You are not the only one who is jittered by royal icing or is amazed by cake piping designs. It’s not a piece of cake to be a pro in piping but these little techniques will definitely help you to boost your confidence to handle any and every cake decoration.
Here are some of the piping tips for beginners:
Planning
Start with an easy-to-pipe frosting
You can easily pipe any kind of frosting with little pre-planned steps. Piping doesn’t make you nervous when you are well prepared. However, you can’t go wrong with royal icing.
Make a sketch
It will be easy to pipe when you have a better map to work accordingly. When you have your decoration ideas clear, then you just need perfect cake decoration tools so that you can pipe really well. Try measuring your cake well to fit your designs.
Find out the right consistency
If you need to get your piping game strong, you should know about how consistent your workease. Look closely to the icing and if you see air bubbles, you definitely need to look closer at your skills.
If you can pipe a string between your fingers, you are good at piping. If the string doesn’t break immediately after shaking the icing is fine, if it breaks it’s wet so the best option is to add a little powdered sugar. Otherwise, if the piping is dry, you can add a little amount of water.
With all this knowledge you are ready to pipe. Congratulations!
Practice
It’s not easy to create pearls, leaves, shells, and filigree as it takes a steady hand to keep the lines fine and straight. And the only thing that will make you perfect is practice. We will share some really easy tips to make your piping more professional.
1- The first thing is to get comfortable with the bag, you should hold a quarter of the bag and the other end to rest on your palm so you can get an idea about controlling the pressure and movement of the bag.
2- Keep your elbows straight and hands steady in order to do a fine piping.
3- If you will try to drag the tip across the cake, chances are you will spoil everything. The better idea is to lift the tip and guide the frosting to the ends where you want it to be.
4- You have to be a pro, you need to practice more. Try doing the same on other rounded surfaces like wine glass and bottle. Try keeping the piping bag away from the surface,use a damp paintbrush and touch it gently to the piping to form a small ball.
To conclude-
No matter what you are, a beginner or a pro you will need to hone up your icing and piping tips to get that perfect cake. So, trying your level best to make the best one is the only option. Try practicing and you will be owning the game soon.
