Chocolate is my addiction! I just love it! I have a great recipe in my website for aCrusting Chocolate buttercream.That recipe is great for cakes that are going to be stacked and for those who need a strong buttercream due to hot weather or humidity. The high ratio in this recipe helps stabilize the buttercream.
The recipe I am posting here (click here for recipe) is a recipe that I use all the time for my personal cakes. It’s made with butter and no high ratio. It’s delicious and very easy to make. Usually I like recipes that crust so I can smooth it almost to look like fondant. This recipe doesn’t crust the same as the recipe listed above, but it crusts enough to be lightly smooth out with Viva Paper.
If you haven’t used this technique you canclick here to watch tutorial about it.
I made a step by step Tutorial on this
recipe that is in a video on my website.
One benefit from this recipe is that you
can pipe beautiful borders with this recipe.
The cake itself can stay outside the
fridge for a few hours as long as you
leave it in a room with air conditioner.
If you live in a state that is colder than
Florida, you can probably use it on your stacked cakes. But make sure you do
a test before you use it on a cake for
a client. Just make sure to use
butter and not margarine when doing
the recipe.
I love to use this buttercream with my dark chocolate cake recipe. If you love chocolate, this is death by chocolate. I will work on the tutorial for the cake and post it soon. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy the recipe just as much as I do. Look below for the link to the recipe and tutorial.
Every year I do a Christmas cake. It’s a tradition I keep and enjoy. I used to make decorated cookies. But for the past few years I decided to make a cake instead of the cookies. I miss doing the cookies but time will just not allow me to do both.
I decided to do a blog to answer the questions that people ask me when I post a
cake. All the green letters are links to the products.
Here is the naked cake.
I wanted a Christmas style cake so I definitively wanted green in it.
The fondant I used for the green came from Renshaw. Most of you might
not have heard of them. They are a British company that over 100 years
experience in baking and cake decorating.
I was completely pleased with
this fondant. Often times dark
colors in other brands of fondant
tend to crack, but Renshaw did not crack, the flavor was good and
it was easy to work with.
For the bottom 2 tiers, I used my homemade white fondant. I will post that as soon as I can do a video tutorial on how to make it.
I used Luck’s Classic Gold Shimmer with my Airbrush to color the cake. I love to airbrush a cake but one thing you need to know is that airbrushing will make any small crack look more like a crater. Especially if you try to airbrushed too fast and make the fondant too wet.When it
is too wet it will begin to dissolve the fondant.
I suggest you give it a coat of color and let it dry in between coats to get a better finish. In between drying sessions I keep working with other details of the cake. This way I move faster.
For the bottom tier, I did a band in green. and I cut the top part of the band in the same swag shape I was using on top of it. This is the mold I used called, “The Ruffle Swag”. It’s from the company Marvelous Molds. The mold has two layers of ruffles and is topped with a string of pearls.
I decided to paint those pearls with a Gold Highlighter. (click here for gold).This gold is meant only for decorations that can be taken
down before cutting the cake.
There are lots of highlighter golds out there but none of them are edible. I have seen some companies say it’s approved, but the reality is that none of them are approved. There are other golden tones that are non-toxic but they don’t have the true gold color that the highlighter gives. If you need a true gold for a full cake,
then you can either use edible gold leaf or buy 24 carat luster gold.
This option is a bit more pricey, so I stick with airbrushing.
In between the ruffles I added this mold. This one is called, “Grand Tassel Drop Mold”. This one I finished with the highlighter Gold as well.
At the top of each tassel, I added a simple Blossom like the ones I made in my tutorial, “How to make Simple Blossoms”.
This mold has the same ruffle detail as the swag but it’s on a straight line. The molds connect easily so you can connect them and make them look
like a one big piece. I painted the ruffle part on both the swag and this
one with Super Pearl Luster Dust.
Some people may wonder why I used a mold when I can do bows so easily without the mold. Well, the reason is simple. It’s just a different look and it can be a fast approach too. But basically for me it’s just part of the look I wanted
for the cake.
For the tier that I airbrushed, I added cutouts that look like ornaments.
I don’t have this available at the web store at the moment but if you are
interested in them, feel free to leave me a comment below so I can order some.
They are really easy to work with and I hand painted them with Gold Highlighter.
For this tier, I used thePerfect Pearl Mold
to finish the base. I wanted to bring some of
the white, green and gold to it. This way I
have a color flow between all the tiers.
In the first and last tier, I used anExtruder
to finish the border. I kept those borders
green because I wanted them to blend
with the background.
For the topper I used a Poinsettia. I teach how to make these flowers in my DVD, How to Make Gumpaste Poinsettia”. In the DVD I explain how to make fantasy Poinsettia like this one. I added some gumpaste snowflakes, finished with some disco dust and a cutout Christmas tree dusted in Gold Highlighter.
The Christmas tree cutter is made byXimena (click here for cutter).
On another note, I added a Newsletter button at the top of the blog for those
who want to receive an e-mail newsletter. I don’t like my email to be filled with
daily newsletters and I don’t plan to do that to you guys either. But I can send
news for a new tutorial posted, or a special sale at the store or even a contest.
Plus I plan to do more advanced tutorials too.
I would love for you to share any ideas you may have with me. Do you
guys like basic details on how a cake was done, or do you want
full step by step tutorials? I ask this because I can do basic tutorials
but the ones that are step by step are more time consuming and I
might have to charge a small fee for those. Do you prefer PDF
files or video tutorials?
Any ideas that you have will be great for you to share with me.I want
to do either A video or blog, where I answer questions you have.
So any ideas you have, comments and questions, feel free to
post here or go to my Page in Facebook and post them there.
You are my cake family and I have always tried to help in areas that you
need help. Hopefully with the new year I can finally finish the new website
and not have to stress about it anymore. I want to dedicate more time to
what I truly love, making cakes and teaching. Hope you guys help me with
all this work I have! lol
And don’t worry about misplacing recipes. The new website will have all the
recipes I have and I will add more to the list. Maybe some of the links
will change but all will be there. Even cakes I never posted from my earlier
years.I will leave my old cakes so you can see how much I have
grown through the years. I want people to know that to achieve better
cakes you need time and practice. Giving up is not an option.
Hope you had a wonderful New Year and wish you the best ahead.
Lots of hugs from my house to yours. Thanks for being my cake family!
Sugar Roses and blossoms fillers by Edna De la Cruz
I love this cake. Just one single tier, but it’s so delicate and elegant.
I designed this cake last year and some people were asking me how it was done.
With so much work on my hands, I postponed doing a blog or tutorial because I really wanted to do a You Tube video about it. I suppose for now I will do the blog and eventually I will let you know when the video tutorial is finally done.
Let’s get started!
This cake was covered in Fondant. I used Americolor Neon Green liquid-gel to color it. I love that tint. It can go from very delicate, if you use a little, to very funky, if you use a lot.
Edible Image Paper from Icing Images Co.
In the photo above you will observe a very delicate lace was used. The lace was made with a Martha Stewart cutter and an edible paper from a company called Icing Images, (link posted below).This particular paper has a pearl finish to it and they offer many beautiful colors you can choose from.
Martha Stewart Deep Edge Punch-Garden Gate
The name of this cutter is Deep Edge Punch-Garden Gate. These punch cutters are really fun to use for scrapbook projects but they also work really well for cake when you combine them with edible image paper. It’s very important to use paper of very good quality. Some papers are too thin or they dry too fast. This is why I love the Icing Image papers. They are thick and give you a bit more time to work without the paper breaking or cracking. NEVERTHELESS, still it’s a good idea to work fast so the paper doesn’t break.
I always keep my edible paper in the original plastic bag it came in and sealed well so it doesn’t dry. I also store it in a dry place because humidity can affect the paper, just as it affects anything with sugar in it. Just make sure to take care of the paper and store it well. Never leave the paper uncovered so it will last longer.
The Martha Stewart punch is packaged with the sides closed. This is a great way to store it. To use, just open the wings. I cut the paper with a guillotine to make sure I have a straight edge. Doing this will save the rest of the paper from drying
too. Make sure to take of the plastic backing that the paper has before you start
using it for this type of work.
Once the paper is cut, I place it in the punch, carefully aligning it to the back line of the cutter. This will ensure a straight cut every time. After you cut the first part you move that and align the cut with the side wing of the punch where the design is imprinted. This is very helpful when you make cut after cut, always ending up with a perfect pattern.
First practice with a regular piece of paper until you get used to it. I will be doing a tutorial of this soon to better show how to use it.
How thick you want the strip is just a personal choice. Just cut it to whatever thickness you prefer it to be. To finish the design, I used the Perfect Pearl Mold. I love this mold when making pearls. Here below is an old tutorial I made on how to use the mold. I am planning to redo this tutorial but for now this is still the way I make pearls. For those who want the mold, here is the link to it. Click here.
I use this mold all the time as it has 3 delicate pearl sizes.
Click to watch Pearl Tutorial
For the roses, I used my fast rose method on how to make roses. It’s part of my DVD “How to Make Sugar Roses”. This DVD has 4 hours of tutorials on the many ways to do roses. It includes the fastest way but also how to do the separate petals. This is in case time is not an issue and you opt to make a tight center. It also includes how to make
leaves, stems and even thorns. Then it teaches you how to color your roses.
Gumpaste Roses, blossoms, leaves and fillers.
The blossoms and buds are part of my DVD “Blooms and Vines”. This DVD shows how to make Hydrangeas, blossoms, buds, their leaves and Ivy vines. It even includes how to make these flowers without cutters, another way to make flowers. Finally, it teaches how to color and finish them.
Remember that in my website there are a number of tutorials that can help you get started in the wonderful world of cake decorating. You will find them under tutorials. If you are a beginner and have never done gumpaste flowers, I suggest you start with my tutorial on “How to Make Calla Lilies”.
I am posting all the links below too, so you can go check them out.
We have the winners! What an awesome contest. I loved everyone sharing their cakes with me and everyone that visits my Facebook page. So many beautiful cakes!
This is the last day for this contest, and here are the winners.
For the beginners category, the winner is, Daniella Dahl. Love this cake. Makes me want to go to Starbucks to get a coffee. lol
Daniella Dahl
For the advance Category, the winner is Michelle Head. Beautiful cake. Looks like a simple cake, but we know it has a lot of work in it. Very clean design.
Michelle Head
Once again, thanks to everyone that posted a cake and participated in the contest. You are all winners in my heart. I will be doing another one soon.
Subscribe to the blog, I will be trying to post more often. Hopefully we can keep up with it. I am still learning how to use the blog, but we only learn if we keep trying. Just like I say with cake, “The more you do it the easier it gets”.
This is it for today. Congratulations to the winners!!
Until next time, Ta ta!
Here we have the winners for last week by popular vote. Congratulations No Ordinary Cakery and Daniella Dahl!
No Ordinary Cakery-Cabanatuan
Daniella Dahl
We are in the last week of this contest. I need you guys now to vote for your all time favorite cake. We still have 2 categories to choose from, beginners and advanced.
Please make sure to vote for one person of each category.
Here are the 3 advanced winners. Choose your favorite one.
Michelle Head
Beverly Call Brown
No Ordinary Cakery-Cabanatuan
And here are the 3 winners from the past weeks for beginners. Choose your favorite one!
Alis Nonoleta Nuta
Daniella Dahl
Debbie Shaw
Remember to choose one cake for the advanced level, and one for the beginners level. Post the names of your favorite cakes in the comments below. I will announce the winners next week.
I will ask of you guys to not spam the contest with fake votes or business promotions; this is a contest that is for fun. Remember to vote only once, and to list the names of each contestant for each division. Just have fun with it.
Next week I will post the winners of this 4 week contest.
Thanks so much to those who participated in this contest. The winners will win a DVD from my collection, check them out here:
We are reaching the end of this contest. So many beautiful cakes! I wish all of them could win a prize, but I assure you that you guys are all winners in my heart. The love and passion for cake decorating shows.
Here are the winners for this past week contest. Beautiful job!
Michelle Head- advanced
Debbie Shaw-beginner
We now begin voting for this week contest. This is the last week for the contest, but I love when everybody shares their work with me, so please keep sharing! I still need you to come and choose the winner for this week and the winner of the month which will be posted next week. So stick around. 🙂
Scroll down to choose your favorite beginner and advanced cake. Leave a comment below with your favorites for each division.
Here are the names and the cakes chosen for Advanced cakes:
Brenda Oliveira Henkel
María Alejandra Lizárraga
No Ordinary Cakery-Cabanatuan
Here are the names and the cakes chosen for Beginners cakes:
Daniella Dahl
Holly Rhodes
Sandra Van Berkel-García
Remember to choose one cake for the advanced level, and one for the beginners level. Post the names of your favorite cakes in the comments below. I will announce the winners next week.
I will ask of you guys to not spam the contest with fake votes or business promotions; this is a contest that is for fun. Remember to vote only once, and to list the names of each contestant for each division. Just have fun with it.
Next week I will post the winners of this week and then the voting will begin for who is the winner of the month, for both advanced and beginners category.
Thanks so much to those who participated in this contest. I will do another one soon so others can have the chance to win too and show off their beautiful creations to other cake friends.
I need you guys to stick around to help me choose the winners next week too. I will post the reminders in my Facebook Page.
This week I am starting a contest that will run for around 4 weeks. This past weekend was the first week of the contest, and I asked my cake friends to share their cakes in my Facebook Page for Design Me a Cake. I was going to put the names of each contestant in a jar and choose 3 winners each week, but to make it a bit more fair for beginners I’m choosing 2 divisions of 3 winners: Beginners and Advanced. That way beginners won’t feel intimidated by the more advanced cake decorators.
I want to make it clear that there are many beautiful cakes posted in the thread. It’s very difficult to choose just 3 winners for each division. So to make it fair, all the names went into a jar for each division, where both jars will have a lucky draw to declare the winners at the end of the contest.
The next 3 cakes I’m posting below are competing for advanced cakes of this week. Choose one of these as your favorite. Here are the names and the cakes chosen:
Beverly Call Brown
Brenda Oliviera Henkel
Charmaine Magro
The next 3 cakes below are the those chosen from the beginners jar. Choose one of these as your favorite:
Alis Nonoleta Nuta
Laurie Young
Tiona Reed
Remember to choose one cake for the advance cake, and one for the beginners. Post the names of your favorites in the comments below. I will announce the winners next Friday.
In the meantime don’t forget to go post your cakes in the Thread for the contest I posted in my Facebook Page Design Me a Cake.
Remember you can be a winner! The final prize will be a cake toy for each division from my web Store www.designmeacake.biz. You can go check out all the goodies.
I will ask of you guys to not start spamming the contest with fake votes. One vote per person for each division each week. Just have fun with it.
Remember, we still have a few more weeks to play so if you didn’t win this week; keep posting your cakes with your title of beginners or advance level. Good luck to everyone!
Most delicious Pineapple Filling recipe for cakes.
I love this recipe. I grew up in Puerto Rico eating what became my most favorite cake ever. I used to asked my mother for this cake every year for my birthday. It was a very moist cake with pineapple filling and the frosting was called Suspiro. Even when I moved to Florida, she would send this cake to me. I didn’t care if it came in pieces. I just wanted my cake!
My Mom got sick and my favorite cake stop coming. So I decided to figure out this cake filling since I knew how to make the cake and the frosting.
After plenty of testing I figure out what was the closest to my memories of this cake filling.
I used canned pineapples for this recipe because they are always available. But at some point I will try to figure it out using fresh pineapple.
Cream cheese Cake with Edna’s Pineapple Filling recipe.
I just posted the recipe in my website, Here is the link :
There you will find my tutorial on how to make this awesome Pineapple Filling recipe, along with many other cake recipes, icings and other cake related tutorials.
You can use this cake filling with any white or butter cake recipe. Here, I used a cream cheese cake. This filling is fast to make, delicious and can stay out of the fridge once it’s in the cake.
In Puerto Rico, we add simple syrup to make the cakes moist and delicious. Soon, I will share how to make this syrup along with the frosting used for this cake. You can also use my crusting buttercream recipe for this cake on special occasions; but when I’m home, I love to use a Suspiro frosting that complements it perfectly. I will do a tutorial for the Suspiro frosting since it has some complicated steps to be followed.
So for now, we will start with this delicious filling. You can store the leftovers of this filling in the fridge. As far as how long it last, that is a question I have yet to figure out. ‘It never lasted long enough to test how long it will last (lol).’ I would say that it lasts pretty long since it doesn’t have any eggs or dairy in it. Just remember when you are making this filling, as soon as it’s ready, you pour it into a mason jar that has been sterilized.
Best pineapple cake filling by Edna De La Cruz from Design Me a cake.
Feel free to stop by and visit me at Design Me a Cake for my recipes and tools needed to create this delicious cake. Also, subscribe to my YouTube Channel for a more hands on approach on how to make wonderful and tasty treats, and a bit of silly humor to go with.
Hope you enjoy this recipe. Until next time, ta ta!!
Edna 😉
I have been using the Blog included in my website for a long time.
But my server changed owners and they have decided to not update my services. The most amazing part is that I am still a paying customer but seems easy to not tell customers that they have decided to forget you instead of helping you do a smooth transition to the new services. I found out because my website was moving so slow and not working as it used to do.
Not being happy with this situation I have decided to try another blog. I am right now working in a new website for my company, Design Me a Cake. I will be moving all my tutorials, photos, recipes and everything I have in the old website.
I didn’t build my website in one day. It took years to build. I open a website to help my students learn and it grew more than I’ve have ever expected.
My dream is to continue to make the website bigger and add more information, more designs and even advanced tutorials so that everybody have easy access to them. I have my DVD’s but people in other countries have a hard time with the shipping charges and I totally understand why. I just found out yesterday that Global Priority went up for around 5 dollars more. It’s a bit hard for me to see this. But I am trying to work around this.
The photo of the flower I just posted its a Gumpaste Rose.. I will talk more about it in my next post.
I have a lot of work ahead of me. Hopefully things will move fast.
All I can do is keep working and hope for the best.
It’s a New Year with a New Start…
tutorial about it.
sh 
Design Me a Cake 