Cupcake Envy. Amy Eilert
the cake rose above the pan, use a serrated knife to cut away the top of the cake to make it level (set the knife across the top of the pan so you can use it as a guide). Run a knife around the edge to loosen the sides. Invert the cake out of the pan onto a wire rack and allow it to finish cooling. When completely cool, wrap in plastic wrap and freeze for at least two hours until cold and firm.
Prepare to decorate
1 Remove cake from the freezer and unwrap. Use a serrated knife to cut out a 4½ x 3¼-in (11.25 x 8.1-cm) rectangle.
2 Using a tapered angled spatula, crumb coat the four sides of the cakelet (but not the top or bottom) with the Vanilla Frosting. Use enough frosting so that the spatula doesn’t come into direct contact with the cake. This will keep you from dislodging too many crumbs.
Cover the cakelet
1 Tint ¾ lb (340 g) of the fondant with the blue gel food color. Dust a clean, dry work surface with cornstarch. Roll out the fondant into a sheet ¼ in (6 mm) thick and about 10 in (25.5 cm) long and 5 in (12.5 cm) wide.
2 Set the iced cake onto the fondant, allowing for an extra fondant lip at the top. (You want the fondant to be a little higher than the cake to give the impression of a bag and so you can add the fondant tissue paper effect coming out of the top.) Gently wrap the fondant around the cake and cut away any excess. Your fondant seam should be in the back corners of the cake. Smooth with palms or a fondant smoother.
3 Once the cake is completely wrapped, stand the cake upright onto a piece of parchment.
4 To make the bag creases, use the scoring tool to score a triangle at the bottom of each side of the bag. Starting at the top of the triangle, score a straight line up to the top of the bag.
Assemble
1 Use the blue gel food coloring to tint approximately 4 oz (115 g) of fondant a lighter or darker shade of blue to complement the bag. (You can divide the fondant in half and tint it two different shades, or chose a different color altogether—or opt to use none at all; I went with white in the example to the right). Roll the fondant out into a thin sheet. Use a pastry wheel to cut randomly-shaped pieces from it. This will be your “tissue paper.”
2 Apply frosting onto the top inside edge of the bag and use it to adhere the pieces of “tissue.” For a more realistic look, fold some pieces over the top of the bag.
3 Very gently press the dried handles into the “tissue” to make a mark where you want the handles to go. Use a ball tool to push down into the marked areas to make a hole, which will make it easier to insert the handles. (If you don’t do this step and simply push your handles into the tissue, you will risk breaking the handles…trust me!)
Finishing touches
Roll out the remaining white fondant into a sheet ⅛ in (3 mm) thick. Cut out several 4 in (10 cm) long strips that are ¾ in wide (1.8 cm). Use a little water to adhere the white fondant stripes vertically around the entire shopping bag.
Decorating ideas
Roll out fondant and use cutters or pattern tools to create embellishments for decorating the bag. Some ideas include: flowers, paisley motifs, store names, monograms, and patterns or stripes.
| Flower Party | Level EasyBatter yields enough cake for 4 mini cakeletsFondant quantity listed is suitable to complete 1 mini cakelet |
Sometimes even a cakelet is bigger than you need. When just a bite or two will do, this mini-cakelet is the perfect solution. It’s decorated with delicate flowers—a simple, versatile, customizable design that works for almost any situation, from tea parties to wedding favors.
Tools
9 x 13-in (23 x 33-cm) cake pan
The Necessities (pages 11–12)
3-in (7.5-cm) circle cutter
Medium blossom cutter
Toothpick
Ingredients
One 16-oz (455-g) box cake mix (any flavor) prepared, or batter for one 9-in (23-cm) cake
1 recipe Vanilla Frosting (page 17) or 1 container store-bought frosting
1 lb (455 g) white fondant (see Resources, page 114)
Red gel food coloring
Pink gel food coloring
Bake the cake
1 Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Prepare the cake batter. Spray the cake pan with non-stick spray.
2 Pour the batter into the pan, filling it three-quarters full. Smooth the top and bake for 25 minutes, or until the top springs back when lightly pressed and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
3 Place the pan on a wire rack to cool for about 10 minutes. If the cake rose above the pan, use a serrated knife to cut away the top of the cake to make it level (set the knife across the top of the pan so you can use it as a guide). Run a knife around the edge to loosen the sides. Invert the cake out of the pan onto a wire rack and allow it to finish cooling. When completely cool, wrap in plastic wrap and freeze for at least two hours until cold and firm.
Prepare to decorate
1 Use the pink food coloring to tint 4 oz (115 g) of the fondant the desired shade of light pink. Use the red food coloring to tint 5 oz (140 g) of the fondant the desired shade of dark pink. Wrap in plastic wrap until ready to use.
2 Remove the cake from the freezer and unwrap. Use the 3-in (7.5-cm) circle cutter to cut the cake into up to eight round mini cakes (you will need two mini cakes for one cakelet).
3 Coat the top of a mini cake with Vanilla Frosting. Stack another cake on top of it to create a layered mini cakelet about 3 in (7.5 cm) high.
4 Place the cakelet on a piece of parchment. Using a tapered angled spatula, crumb coat the cakelet with Vanilla Frosting, starting at the sides and finishing at the top. Use enough frosting so that the spatula doesn’t come into direct contact with the cake. This will keep you from dislodging too many crumbs.
Cover the mini cakelet
1 Dust a clean, dry work surface with cornstarch. Roll out 6 oz (170 g) of the white fondant into a circle ¼ in (6 mm) thick and 9 in (23 cm) in diameter.
2 Slide your hands under the fondant, lift up and lay it on top of the mini cakelet.
3 Use two fondant smoothers to smooth the top and sides of the cake. Cut away excess fondant around the base with a pastry wheel.
4 Place in the refrigerator to chill for 30 minutes.
Finishing touches
1 Dust a clean, dry work surface with cornstarch. Roll out 1 oz (28 g) of the white fondant into a 2-in (5-cm) ball. Flatten the bottom of the ball and use a little water to adhere it to the top of the mini-cakelet.
2 Roll out 4 oz (115 g) of the light-shaded pink fondant into a sheet ⅛ in (3 mm) thick. Use the medium blossom cutter to cut out approximately thirty blossoms.