Hello Sugar Lovers!
I apologize to all the kids right now who are dreading going back to school. However, maybe this cake can make it a little more cheerful. After all who doesn’t enjoy a good cake.
I really had no idea what I was going to make until I was walking around some stores and I found an abundance of back to school supplies. This cake has a very simple design which I was glad for because I haven’t made a cake for almost five months now. So if you want to learn how I made this just sit back relax and we will take the journey together!
You will need:
- Rainbow cake mix (as well as ingredients on the box)
- 2 jars of cream cheese icing
- Icing colouring (red, blue, yellow & peach)
- Fondant tools
- White vanilla flavoured fondant
- Sprinkles of your choice (I used more pastel colours)
- Piping Bags with a rose type of tip
- Table top turner
- Cake leveler
- 2 round cake pans
- Alphabet cookie cutters unless you would like to try free hand
*Everything else you will be able to find in your kitchen*
I started with the letters I made out of fondant. I used white fondant, vanilla flavoured. Now I didn’t even bother trying to make the letters free hand so I went out and bought some cookie cutters. You are first going to want to dye the fondant that you will need. I chose red, blue and yellow for the letters. I wish I had gone a bit darker with at east the A. You can choose what ever colours you would like though. To dye the fondant put a few swipes of the colour onto the fondant that has been rolled out. I have learned over quite a few tries at this now that it is almost impossible to not get any dye on your hands. So say a silent prayer for your hands and dive in!
Once your three fondant rolls are dyed and ready to go your going to want to roll them out to what ever thickness you would like. I cut out each letter with the cutters first and then went back and touched them up as necessary. I did notice that it is VERY difficult to get the letters perfect. I particularly had a hard time with the B because I had to cut out the 2 holes myself. Luckily it doesn’t look to bad and I think that has a lot to do with the fondant tools. Also fondant can be pretty forgiving as I have continuously said since I have started using it. If you mess up just roll it on up and start over again!
Once you have got your letters all cut out place them on a plate and set them in the fridge to harden up a little bit. While that is cooling in the fridge this would be a good time to get things started with your cake. I used two cake tins and split the batter between the two. Before you put in the mixture your going to want to spray the pans with non stick spray. I like the butter flavoured one because it doesn’t smell or taste as chemically as the other ones.
While the cake is baking you can make your icing. This won’t take long as you are just making one colour. The other icing you will just keep the same colour. I took about half a jar of icing and made the border peach colour with it. You won’t need that much as I had lots left over in the bag but I also like to be on the safe side. So mix up your colouring in the icing. It is a similar idea as when you are putting colouring on fondant. I put a few toothpick swipes in it and stir. You can make it what ever colour you like. I did mine a peach colour. Once your finished put your icing in a piping bag and your good to go. I have explained some things on some of the basics of baking in my past posts such as properly putting icing in the piping bag and such. Let me know if you would like me to make a blog post just about those things because some simple tips and tricks that will help! So once your finished put the piping bag in the fridge to give it time to cool down.
When your cake is all finished take it out of the oven and place it to cool. They best way to check and see if your cake is done is to insert a toothpick in the centre of each cake and if it comes out clean your good! Let them cool a little until you can neatly take them out of the pans. I usually let them cool for quite awhile because I have learned the hard way that icing can be very unforgiving on a warm cake.
Once they are all cool and ready to be cut you can get your turn table and the cake leveler ready. I leveled both sides of the cake because I wanted the top to be level as well instead of a dome shape. You can also use a knife for this but a cake leveler is always better for someone who is as uncoordinated as I am. The leveler will have some notches on either side of the bars your going to want to choose what thickness you would like. I believe mine was at about 3 notches up. You set the cord to what level you want and your ready to start cutting. Make sure you hold the cake steady as you slide the leveler through you are going to be making a sawing motion. Do this to both pieces unless you want more of a dome shape for the top of the cake.
Your going to then place one piece on your table top turner. Take a spatula and cover the top with a thin bit of icing then placing the top piece on top. After that is done you can started to ice your cake! Now I believe there is an easier want to do it if you have a special piping tip. The sides can be tricky but its manageable. Now this is also optional but it makes things easier if you have an icing smoother. Once you have gotten the amount on that you would like all you have to do is plant your icing smoother on one side and turn the stand around. This is why having the table turner is a lot easier. So that you can just spin the top.
This is also an area that I have mentioned before but its the area of my icing game. I seriously need to up it. Buttercream icing would probably be a lot better to work with because I still find jar icing way to sticky. I have seen lots of images of people using bits of napkin to really get that smooth look with icing. If you tried that with jar icing it would be a COMPLETE disaster. I am hoping the next cake I make I will have enough courage to make some fricking buttercream icing.
Alright! now its time to decorate! Another fear that I decided to face with this project was piping lines. I have gotten better with piping lines on cupcakes but not so much on cakes. I have also tried to face my other fear of the rose type of piping technique you see it a lot on wedding cakes. Its that little flower looking thing usually in a line along boarders. Its basically like a dot of icing. I don’t have a picture for you guys to see as I have not been able to do it yet. I think that eventually when I get better with buttercream I can try that again.
First things is to take your fondant out of the fridge and place them where you would like them on the cake. I placed mine in the centre as I thought it looked best there. Next you are going to take the piping bag out of the fridge and let it warm up a small amount so its more pliable. I piped a border along the top and bottom edges of the cake. Then you are going to put a small amount of sprinkles on the top and bottom of the letters. The decorating part is also up to you. What ever you feel works best and what ever you like. That is when it will turn out the best.
There you have it! I have to admit it wasn’t the best thing I have made but I think I did alright for not making a cake for a long time. This cake was also really rich which I didn’t love about it but I’m sure different icing will help that. Let me know if you would like me to make that blog about basic baking tips and tricks. Also if you have any ideas that you would like me to try out let me know.
Thanks for reading and happy baking!
Your Friendly Nighbourhood Baker
The Baking Project 