Tag: icing

How to Write on a Cake

Zoë François 17 Comments

How to Write on a Cake | Photo by Zoë François

For many happy occasions you’ll want to write a special sentiment on a cake. The problem is not what to say, but how to make it both legible and gorgeous. Everyone has had a good chuckle over the cakes on Cake Wrecks, but we want to avoid having our efforts resemble those mishaps. With a few tricks of the trade and a bit of practice anyone can learn how to write on a cake like a pro. In my previous how-to videos we have built the foundation for this cake and are now ready to put on the finishing touches

Part 1: Cut and Fill a Cake Like a Pro!

Part 2: Crumb Coat Your Cake

Part 3: Smoothly Cover your Cake with Icing

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How to Buttercream a Cake

Zoë François 63 Comments

Smoothing buttercream on a layer cake.

In the first two cake decorating videos I demonstrated how to cut, fill and crumb coat your cake. Now we are ready to put on the final coat of icing. I chose a very simple vanilla Swiss Meringue Buttercream to cover the cake. It is elegant, smooth and has a wonderfully rich flavor, but isn’t overly sweet. It can be left pure vanilla or you can easily add flavors to compliment your cake. This buttercream is wonderful for piping roses or doing basket weave as well. Before we get into the finishing touches we want to create a smooth surface, which will act as a canvas. If your cake is straight and smooth it will be stunning without any flourishes at all, but it will also show off your decorating prowess if you want to add some flowers or writing.

Also see my other How-to Cake Decorating Videos:

Part 1: Cut and Fill a Cake Like a Pro!

Part 2: Crumb Coat Your Cake

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How to Crumb Coat a Cake

Zoë François 14 Comments

How to crumb coat a cake (video) | Photo by Zoë François

There is nothing more disappointing than having a cake that is speckled with crumbs, unless of course that is the look you are going for, like my Brooklyn Blackout Cake. However, sometimes you’ll want pristine white or a perfectly smooth surface to write on and for this it’s helpful to know how to crumb coat a cake. Once you have the dome trimmed off the top of your cake, the layers cut and then assembled with your favorite filling, it is time for a crumb coat. This is a quick and simple step that acts as a guarantee that your final layer of icing will be clean and crumb free. This technique is particularly helpful when you are working with Devil’s Food Cake and White icing, the ultimate combination in taste and pesky crumbs.  Read More

How to Pipe Icing Roses

Zoë François 101 Comments
How to Pipe Icing Roses | Photo by Zoë François

I baked this spring bouquet of cupcakes for my Weekend Baker post on the Cooking Channel blog. I was limited in space in that post, and wanted to go into a bit lot more detail on how to pipe the icing roses, so I am sharing the expanded version here. Creating these flowers is not at all difficult, but it helps to have some simple tricks of the trade. With a little practice and the right tools you can easily recreate these flowers. The contrasting color that tips the petals is one of those easy tricks that takes them from ordinary icing roses to extraordinary. Here is how I did it:

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Vanilla Bean Pound Cake

Zoë François 37 Comments

Vanilla bean pound cake | ZoëBakes | Photo by Zoë François

There may be no better dessert than a well crafted pound cake. It is perfect in its simplicity and purity of flavor. This vanilla bean pound cake gets its name from the recipe’s old-fashioned formula; 1 pound butter, 1 pound flour, 1 pound eggs and 1 pound sugar. Very few modern recipes follow these exact proportions anymore, but the name stuck. Despite the richness of all that creamy butter and eggs the cake is actually quite delicate. I cream the life out of the butter to incorporate lots of air into it, whip the eggs until they are light and fluffy and add just a touch of baking powder to guarantee the texture I love. This is an excellent place to try out a European-style butter, which is made with less water and whey than American butters. It creates a melt-in-your-mouth cake that is like eating vanilla flavored velvet. I use 1 1/2 vanilla beans to make sure the flavor is as intense as possible, but even made with a single bean this cake will knock your socks off. You can shake some confectioner’s sugar over the top or create this vanilla bean icing that accentuates the flavor and seals in the moisture of the cake. Read More