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Smooth frosting is the number one challenge of most cake decorators
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but you can avoid it with these seven cake decorating ideas. For the first technique, spread some frosting onto your cake to cover it
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but don't worry about making it perfectly smooth. Put your cake in the fridge for 15 minutes to chill the frosting slightly
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so that it firms up a bit and then put it on a tray or a baking sheet
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Scoop up some sprinkles and press them into the cake. and they'll stick to the frosting with a bit of pressure
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but since the frosting has chilled and started to set in the fridge
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it won't be super soft so the sprinkles won't sink into it and get buried and hidden
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The tray will catch any bouncing sprinkles so you don't have a huge mess to clean up afterwards
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The cake will look so neat and pretty without needing to make the frosting perfectly smooth
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I find that non-Perelles, or hundreds and thousands, work best for this technique because they're
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so tiny that they don't add a lot of texture to the cake when you bite into it
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Chocolate collars or wraps are another way to conceal the frosting on the cake completely
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so it doesn't matter if there are lots of imperfections in it. You can do this with parchment paper or wax paper or baking paper flat or scrunched up covered with chocolate that you melted in the microwave using 50 power for 30 seconds at a time and stirring until it smooth
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Spread it to cover the paper and slide your hands underneath to pick it up while it's still
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melted, and wrap it around the cake. The cake should have a thin layer of frosting to cover it
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to seal in the moisture, but it doesn't need to be neat. Press the melted chocolate against the cake to attach it and then put the cake in the fridge
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for about 30 minutes to set the chocolate. Pinch a corner of the paper and peel it away
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to leave the pretty chocolate wrap behind. You can decorate this with chocolates or flowers on top
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and a ribbon tied around it if you like. Instead of hiding the frosting on a cake
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because it's not smooth, add texture to it so that it doesn't need to be smooth
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You can use the back of a spoon for this or an offset spatula, pressing it gently against the cake
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while you spin it on a turn table and you'll leave grooves. in the sides of the frosting
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Pull up slowly to drag those grooves all the way up the cake
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You can do this vertically instead, pulling upwards, and this is a good choice if you don't have a turntable
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because you don't need the cake to be spinning smoothly as you do this
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This is my four minute butter cream, and it takes on texture so nicely
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Use random movements instead to create beautiful rustic texture with these little arcs and any of these textures not only avoids smooth frosting it also creates a stunning base for any other decorations
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you add to your cake, like flowers. For more defined texture, use piping bags and piping tips
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and as many colours as you like. For the best results, spread a thin layer of frosting over the cake
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first, which seals it to prevent it from drying out, even if there are any gaps in between the
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texture you pipe. I'm using pastel rainbow colors for this cake with a different texture for each
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row for lots of colour and texture and variety, but using the same piping tip for the whole cake
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can look gorgeous too. This is a petal tip with the narrow end of the tip pointing upwards to make
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these wavy ruffles. Cover your frosting completely with fruit or chocolates or candies
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choosing ones that are all the same size and that don't stick out too much from the cake
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otherwise their weight might cause them to slide down the sides of the cake
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If you've just frosted the cake and the frosting is still soft, the decorations will stick to that frosting easily
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Arrange them in diagonal rows to completely cover the cake and the neatest way to do this is to choose an order
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For example, raspberry, blueberry, blackberry. With so much fruit on this cake, it's almost healthy
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Skip the frosting on your cake completely with a naked cake And to make sure this doesn dry out it a good idea to drizzle the layers with simple syrup first to keep it moist
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Make simple syrup by putting half a cup of water and half a cup of sugar in a pan
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and bring to a simmer over medium heat until the sugar dissolves
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Then let it cool. Pipe your filling for pretty texture. This is my four-minute butter cream and these are 1M star tips
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After the cake is assembled, you'll see the colourful texture between the layers, so the cake will be beautiful as well as delicious, and you've saved yourself the
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time of frosting the outside of the cake. Here's another design that doesn't need any frosting
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to be spread or smoothed. Bake your cake in a pretty dish and choose some piping tips and colours of
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frosting. I like to tint small amounts in a cupcake pan because it's much easier to wash this than lots of
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little bowls. Pipe randomly onto the cake or outline a design with a toothpick and then pipe
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within that. The colours and piped details make this cake design so pretty and intricate without
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taking much time and without needing to get any frosting smooth. I hope you've seen some ideas you
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like. Tell me in the comments which is your favourite idea and visit my cake school at Britishgirlbakes.com
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to learn hundreds of cake decorating techniques and designs. Thanks for watching
