How-to: Make a fondant rose
February 14, 2011 at 10:21 AM | Posted in how-to | 11 CommentsTags: fondant, rose
This how-to is brought you by the letter V and the number 14.
(Sorry I think I’ve been watching too much Sesame Street with my nieces. haha)
When you think of Valentine’s Day what comes to mind? The color red, roses, hearts, I love you… Now me? I’m a sucker for roses. When I got married I wanted roses everywhere. So I thought a rose tutorial would be appropriate to celebrate Valentine’s Day with my readers.
Now before you start telling me that you don’t have the skills to make anything from fondant, I’m here to tell you PSSSHAAHHH! My tutorial is really simple. It doesn’t require fancy equipment or previous fondant knowledge like some other rose tutorials. Trust me. If I can teach my husband. I can teach you.
Ready?
Here’s what you’ll need:
ziplock bag
red fondant*
* You can find pre-made fondant at Michaels, Joanns or your local cake supply store. If you are feeling ambitious you can make your own fondant! I’m partial to red roses but if you like yellow roses (like my MIL), white roses, pink roses, feel free to use whatever color fondant you want.
That’s it!
Let’s begin. (Please ignore my hideous nails. I am desperately in need of a mani.)
Pinch off 7 balls of red fondant all about the same size. The bigger the balls, the bigger the rose. (LOL. I’m so immature!) Roll one of the balls into a cylinder. Fold a corner of the ziplock bag down over the cylinder.
Using your index finger gently flatten the cylinder. Start at one end of the flat cylinder and roll one end towards the other end.
This forms the central bud of the rose. Set aside. To make each petal, fold a corner of the ziplock bag down over one of the fondant balls.
Using your index finger, gently flatten the ball into a circle. Don’t worry if the edges look cracked. I think it makes the rose look more realistic IMO. But if you are a perfectionist and need perfect petals, use your index finger to flatten the petal slowly. The faster you flatten the more likely to get cracks. Fold the “petal” around the central bud.
You can sculpt the “petal” by pushing down on the tips to make it look more 3 dimensional. Repeat the “petal” step for the next 5 petals.
Alternate the petals around the central bud as you add more petals. You can add as many or as little petals as you like depending on how big you want the rose to be.
As you sculpt the rose you may create an elongated stem.
You can either keep it or pinch it off. I tend to pinch the excess off so it’s easier to place on top of a cupcake. Leave the finished roses in a cool dry place for a few hours or overnight to firm up. TADA! And you thought roses were hard.
XOXOs to all my cupcake monsters
“All I really need is love, but a little chocolate now and then doesn’t hurt!” ~Lucy Van Pelt
via Peanuts, by Charles M. Schulz
DIY Tiered Cupcake Stands
May 7, 2010 at 10:31 PM | Posted in how-to | 17 CommentsTags: cake stands, cupcake stands, DIY
Confession: I have a cupcake/cake stand fetish. Whew! So glad I got that off my chest. Admission is step 1 in my program.
I have square ones, round ones, mini ones, wire ones… But I’m always in awe of the DIY versions that I find online or via fellow cupcake freaks that emailed them my way. I guess I have those poor souls fooled into thinking that I can actually make one of them. Suckers.
Just thought it would be fun to share a few of my favorites with my readers.
Click “source” for the direct link with instructions for each project.
***********************************************
(Source)
I love how versatile this one is! You can just unscrew and switch out the parts to match your occasion or theme. Psst… Any excuse that directs me towards Anthropologie shopping is a VERY good thing.
(Source)
Not to split hairs but this picture is more of a cake stand in my opinion but you can easily make it a cupcake tier by building up and using various size plates. I have a feeling I know what will be on my next flea market list. Bud vases! Candlesticks! Take heed of Kate’s note. No dishwasher for this one. Hand wash only.
(Source)
I kinda new to DIY so forget projects that require power tools. I like all 10 fingers thank you very much. So this cupcake tier is right up my alley. Foam core boards. Ribbon. Paper. Glue stick. Totally doable. And it appeals to my current Modge Podge obsession. Genius.
(Source)
Another foam board one! With round cake boards. And glue stick! I am way too excited about glue sticks. *sniff* Kidding kidding! Check out Cake Journal’s cake stand gallery (here) for more examples too.
(Source)
I’m TOTALLY digging this terra cotta pots and saucer one. Now I have something I can do with all those neglected terra pots I have in my garage that I didn’t have the heart to throw away. RIP flowers. My black thumb is a gift. You wish you were as cool as me. Not.
(Source)
Whoa. This one requires MDF and power tools and things I’ve never heard of before. Hex nuts? Threaded rod? But I love the idea of being able to switch out the panels for any occasion or theme.
*************************************************
There you have it.
Lovely aren’t they? Makes me feel so inferior with my lack of DIY abilities. But it’s just easier to let Martha Stewart mass produce them and I buy them. HA!
I’d love to see if any readers try to DIY their own cupcake stand. Hit me up with an email.
Well… I’m off to find those terra cotta pots. Peace out cupcake nerds.
How to: Double Swirl Chocolate Cupcakes
October 22, 2008 at 7:33 PM | Posted in cupcakes, how-to | 22 CommentsTags: saran wrap method
T and I are both involved with his school alot. We go to the football and basketball games, winter formal, prom, club activities etc etc and of course I always come bearing cupcakes. There’s nothing like cupcakes to make any loss feel like a victory right?
Since I have a bit of a “cupcake lady” reputation at his school now, I am getting more and more orders for cupcakes. I love baking for school events and it totally rocks if I can get paid too! Score!
My most recent cupcake order were simple chocolate and vanilla cupcakes for the water polo team ordered by the assistant coach to surprise the team. The cupcakes were served at a rally a couple days before the big game against our rivals. I guess we don’t have the greatest record against them so she thought some custom cupcakes would raise the team’s school spirit. Of course I was happy to oblige!
I decided to bust out some dual color frosting (scroll down for how-to pictures and instructions) to resemble the school colors and also made some custom toppers of the school logo and mascot.
… and guess what?
Our team won! ::doing the robot-chicken dance::
It’s the power of the cupcake. Did you really have any doubts? HAHA
(Recipe adapted from Beantown Baker | photos from me!)
Makes about 12-15 cupcakes (I doubled and got 25)
INGREDIENTS
1-1/2 cups unbleached white flour
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup cold water
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 tablespoons vinegar
For “school colors” buttercream
2 sticks butter
7 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
blue and yellow food coloring gel (I used Wilton royal blue and golden yellow)
INSTRUCTIONS
To make cupcakes—
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a 12-cupcake tin with foil or paper liners and set aside.
Sift together the flour, cocoa, baking soda, salt, and sugar in a large mixing bowl. In a 2-cup measuring cup, measure and mix together the oil, water, and vanilla. Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix the batter with a fork or a small whisk. When the batter is smooth, add the vinegar and stir quickly. There will be pale swirls in the batter where the baking soda and the vinegar are reacting. Stir just until the vinegar is evenly distributed throughout the batter.
Working quickly, distribute the batter into the foil- or paper-lined 12-cupcake tin. If you have leftover batter (depending on how high you fill the liners) you can make a few extra cupcakes by using a few foil liners on a cookie sheet.
Bake for 20 minutes. Set the cupcakes on a wire rack for 10 minutes to cool in pan, then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.
To make buttercream—
Beat butter until creamy, scrape bowl. Add 5 cups of sifted powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla, beat until combined. Add more powdered sugar until you get to the consistency you want (not too stiff so that its hard to pipe)
Take out half of the buttercream and using blue food coloring, tint to desired shade.
Add yellow food coloring, tint to desired shade, to the remaining buttercream.
To assemble cupcakes—
Frost cupcakes using 1M star tip and the Saran method.
Saran Wrap Method: Special thanks to Andrea for sharing her saran wrap instructions and pics!
Take a piece of plastic wrap about 8″-10″ long. With a spatula, take a bit of frosting and place it in the center 1″ away from the edge.
Take one side of the plastic wrap and fold it over to the next side matching up the edge – your frosting will now be enclosed on the side of the plastic wrap.
Roll the plastic from where the frosting is to the edges. Twist the free end of the wrap. Tie off in a knot.
Insert the plastic “tube” of icing into the decorating bag.
Repeat Saran method for multiple frosting colors.
ENJOY!
Husband rating: N/A
Wifey rating: N/A
Other rating: A
The team liked the cupcakes alot. I think the coach told me their exact words were “These cupcakes are tight!” HAHA. Some cupcake eaters mentioned they preferred my usual go-to chocolate recipe over this new one but overall I got raves from the team, coaches and parents.
Like this:
Sponsored Banners
Copyright
Photos, Original Recipes & Text ©iheartcuppycakes! 2007-2011 unless otherwise indicated. All rights reserved. If you repost any material from this blog, please give credit by including a link back to me. Thank you!-
Cupcake Hero
Subscribe
Blog at WordPress.com. | Theme: Pool by Borja Fernandez.
Entries and comments feeds.
