A fresh cake is like a blank canvas, the possibilities of what it could be are endless! This year we have seen countless popular cake trends, from retro rolled cakes to cakes with adorable piped frogs and everything in between. It is fair to say, boring cakes are a thing of the past. With some frosting, sprinkles, edible decorations, and a stroke of creativity, any cake can be transformed into a work of art. Serve up your showstopper with a splash of decadent and flavorful Nielsen-Massey® Pure Vanilla Extract and you’re sure to be the talk of the table. Here are five fun and easy decorating techniques to start your journey as an artist of cakes.
Splatter Paint Cake:
A messy and abstract style allows you to let your imagination run free! Not to mention, its quick, simple, and totally on trend. To create an imperfectly perfect, webbed masterpiece, first prep your splatter station. Cover your counter with parchment paper or plastic wrap to ensure an easy clean-up. Next, prepare as many bowls as the desired number of colors, with a ½ cup of powdered sugar. Add one tablespoon of water per bowl and color your icing using natural food coloring.
Once prepared, gather a small amount of colored icing on an offset spatula, fork, or a small paintbrush. Channel your inner Jackson Pollock, and with a hard flick of the wrist, splatter the icing on to the cake. Rotate the cake to ensure all sides of the cake are splattered.
Edible Garden with Licorice:
Edible decorative ingredients don’t have to be expensive or hard to find. Swap gold foil and glitter for the candy you have in your cabinets and transform it into an awe-worthy landscape. Grab some licorice and get planting to create a sugar garden cake!
To create your daffodils, cut six ¼- inch thick pieces from yellow licorice, then cut one ½- inch thick piece from a piece of orange licorice. Arrange the yellow licorice around the larger orange licorice pieces.
Sprinkle Coated Cake:
Add a sprinkle of joy to any occasion, from birthdays to holidays with this colorful cake. To create a confetti coated cake, all you need is sprinkles. Start with prepping your station with a baking sheet or something with sides. Take a handful of sprinkles and press them gently into the sides of a cake. Don’t be afraid to add as many sprinkles as possible, the fully covered, colorful, and a bit messy look is the goal! It’s youthful, fun, and delicious! Try tilting the cake to get hard to reach spaces and continue covering the sides until they are completely packed with sprinkles. Lastly, cover the top of the cake, again pressing the sprinkles into the frosting.
Powdered Stencil Sugar Cake:
Going for a cottage-core cake vibe or elegant and simple? This method is easily customizable to match any occasion. Grab a stencil or print and cut out a design of your choosing and lay it on the cake. Simply dust powdered sugar over the stencil and remove it when done. Try using a doily for an understated, beautifully vintage, granny-chic cake.
Drip Glaze Cake:
Drip cakes are both versatile and an eye-catcher. Use this style as an opportunity add luxurious amounts of your favorite caramel sauce or ganache.
Start by making your ganache using any recipe you’d like. Next, grab a spoon or a plastic squirt bottle. To use a spoon, grab a teaspoon of ganache and carefully pour it over the edge of a chilled cake. Make sure to scrape the bottom of your spoon against the bowl each time you get more ganache to prevent extra bits of ganache splashing on your cake.
To use a squirt bottle, fill the bottle with ganache and slowly squeeze it out over the edges of a cake.
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