Friday Night Cake Club For 1/3/14

Decorating By catlharper Updated 10 Jan 2014 , 3:26pm by Rosie93095

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catlharper Posted 4 Jan 2014 , 3:32am
post #1 of 28

Opening up another session of the FNCC. Everyone is welcome to come talk about their week, share photos of their work, ask for help or provide help if they can! 

 

Cat

27 replies
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catlharper Posted 4 Jan 2014 , 3:39am
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HAPPY NEW YEAR! Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and that the New Year has been good to them so far! Ours was very nice...low key but nice. We got to see almost all of our kids last weekend and then we have just been enjoying hanging out. We have two big parties coming up in February so have already kicked into gear preparing for those. Here is the closest I got to cake this week! LOL! I figured that even if we were not going out it didn't mean we didn't deserve a ritzy dessert!

 

Mexican Hot Chocolate Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream, silver sanding sugar on top. Vanilla bean and choco-choco chip ice cream.

 

Cat

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Norasmom Posted 4 Jan 2014 , 4:58am
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That looks yummy Cat!  No cakes but just made strawberry marshmallows from scratch for hot cocoa.  It's cold out here in MA!

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tdovewings Posted 4 Jan 2014 , 5:19am
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Happy New Year everyone!

 

Hello! It's been quite some time since I've been here. The fact of the matter is, I've been procrastinating so much lately, leaving no time to take a break and check in. 

 

I just finished up a "Hunny Pot" 1st birthday cake and cupcakes. I'm not sure what I was thinking when I took the order, the client wanted a 2D gluten-free cake carved into the shape of Winnie the Pooh's honey pot. I carve cakes quite often, but never a gluten-free one. Luckily it was 2D and chocolate so I didn't have much trouble with it. I had "extra" time tonight since I didn't try to do everything at the last minute, so I couldn't leave it alone. I messed it up a bit, so all my extra time was spent repairing it. Hahaha! But it felt good to start the New Year on track. Let's see how long I can keep this up. 

 

Cat, I love your cake, so festive! 

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catlharper Posted 4 Jan 2014 , 5:27am
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NorasMom...I have friends right outside of Boston and they have been posting photos so I totally believe how cold it is there! LOL! Is it hard to make marshmallows?

 

 

tdove, I have made two honey pot cakes and one rum cask using my Pampered Chef Batter Bowls...much easier than carving! Just invert one on top of the other. Do you have photos yet? 

 

As for me..the past three years I've worked a party NYEve, cake and party planning, so it was odd staying at home this year but really nice. My family was thrilled that this year I pulled out the fancy dessert for them! LOL!

 

Cat

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leilossweetshop Posted 4 Jan 2014 , 6:14am
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AI am new here and new to cake decorating.... the day before new years eve, I spent decorating my first cake... it taste delicious and didnt look too bad... I just love baking and have found a new love in cake decorating. I was trying to start a baking business but found out my state has no cottage food law... sux! Welp that was my week and here's a pic of my amateur cake... I plan on using fondant for my next cake instead of frosting and I start my cake decorating class om sunday :-)[IMG]http://cakecentral.com/content/type/61/id/3161319/width/200/height/400[/IMG]

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catlharper Posted 4 Jan 2014 , 6:23am
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Hi Leilo, Welcome! Looks like a good start at caking to me! I think you will have a blast with the cake classes! Are you going with Wilton Classes? Once you learn the techniques you will want to either learn how to make your own fondant or buy a different brand (when I buy I get Duff's brand but I usually make my own) for easier use and better tasting fondant. But you will learn SO much in the classes! YouTube will also teach you a lot of what you want to know and you can learn a lot here too. If you have a cake supply store near you then I would encourage you to buy an 8 inch cake "dummy". This is a 8 inch by 4 inch food grade styofoam block that you can decorate over and over again. Great for practice. There are a few places online if you don't have a store near you...my favorite is Dallas. Hope you come back again and share with us each week so we can see your projects!

 

Cat

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forjenns Posted 4 Jan 2014 , 6:29am
post #8 of 28

AI've been on CC for a while and posted occasionally but this is my first time with the Friday nigh club. I don't do cakes very often.

Anyways this is what I have been working I t his week. My daughters third birthday party if tomorrow. I decide in addition to a cake I would and home cookies as the party gift. The cookies are not my original design but I am not sure who's. I found the pics on the internet but haven't found the designers name to credit.

[IMG ALT=""]http://cakecentral.com/content/type/61/id/3161324/width/350/height/700[/IMG] [IMG ALT=""]http://cakecentral.com/content/type/61/id/3161326/width/350/height/700[/IMG]

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leilossweetshop Posted 4 Jan 2014 , 6:31am
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AThanks for replying Cat! Yes, im starting the Wilton course 1...I was thinking of making my own fondant, from what alot of bakers I ask for advice, they say its easier to work with then the stuff you buy at the store. I also heard great reviews from Duff's brand. The dummy cake idea is ingenious, im going to look into it. Yes, I will be back weekly to check in... im sure I will learn a great deal from you guys!

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auntginn Posted 4 Jan 2014 , 9:27am
post #10 of 28

Good evening everyone and a Happy New Year!

 

Cat your dessert looks so delish...

 

Welcome to the group and to caking Leilo, I'm sure your really enjoy it not that the bug has bitten.

 

Forjenns, just love your cake and cupcakes.

 

Norasmom, I love making marshmallows, they taste so much better than the store bought ones.

 

Can't wait to see the honey pot - tdove.

 

As for me.  I have a baby dino that just hatched with the egg cake.  (Sorry for the long title)  But I'm procrastinating as well.  Must be something in the air, lol  Instead I decided to make my nephew his fav cookies.  Egg Nog sugar cookies.  And I have a cheesecake in the oven as we speak.  Oh well I'm sure the cake will come out fine.  I have til 4pm tomorrow. lol

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Norasmom Posted 4 Jan 2014 , 2:40pm
post #11 of 28

Cat, marshmallows are very easy to make and they taste 100 times better than the store bought ones.  I'm hooked!  It's just corn syrup, sugar, gelatin and flavoring.  very easy to do!

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anaelisabethlee Posted 4 Jan 2014 , 2:52pm
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AOoh homemade marshmellows...

Cat, how are your fingers?

Love Angelina ballerina!

My week has been Giraffe week. As I have only men in my family, I hound people to let me do their girls' cakes, so I had fun with this one. Next time I need to think of a better way to make the spots on the giraffe. Happy new caking year! [IMG]http://cakecentral.com/content/type/61/id/3161582/width/200/height/400[/IMG]

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tdovewings Posted 4 Jan 2014 , 5:09pm
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Forjenns, what a wonderful job on the cake and cookies! They are too cute.

 

anaelisabethlee, great job on the giraffe cake. My 2014 goal for cakes is to take a class or two in figurine modeling and to practice some 3D figures like animals and people.

 

Here's the 2D Hunny Pot cake:

 

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catlharper Posted 4 Jan 2014 , 6:42pm
post #14 of 28

I just love coming in on Saturday morning and see who checked in while I was sleeping!!!

 

forjenns: Angelina is one of my favorites and while I love the cake it's the cupcakes and cookies I adore!!! HOW ADORABLE!

 

Leilo: I used wilton fondant for the first few months of learning to cake and then dove in the deep end and made my own. I use Duff's when I need red, black or dark blue since those all take a lot of dye if you are making it yourself. The only issue with that brand is that it is very loose. Now this is great for covering a cake because it makes it really easy to roll and smooth but if you are making any details for that cake you have to add a lot of stiffener like tylose to the fondant and then let it dry about twice the amount of time you would with regular fondant. But it tastes good!

 

Ginn...love the cake concept, can't wait to see your little dino! The cookies sound interesting too..love  all of these egg nog recipes I keep finding this year! I'm sure they have been around a long time but I'm just now catching up.

 

Norasmom, I'll have to give the marshmallows a try sometime when I have two hands again! LOL!

 

Ana: Your giraffe cake is just too cute! LOVE the little birthday cake in her lap! My fingers are doing better. I go to a "compression" bandage in two weeks and that will give me a lot more freedom with my hand. A month after that I should be right as rain!

 

Tdove! How adorable is your hunny pot!! I love how the black edges look like drawings! Simply perfect! And the cupcakes make for a perfect accent to the cake. I'm sure that Shai will just love it!

 

Have a great weekend everyone!

 

Cat

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rexygirl Posted 5 Jan 2014 , 1:50am
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ACatlharper I swear I read somewhere on cc that duffs fondant is simply satin ice with his endorsement which would explain it feeling really loose their fondant has been funky lately, I make my own 99% of the time (Michelle fosters recipe luv it) but once in awhile I will order satin ice when I'm doing ordering other stuff on GSA and it's on sale, but it's really changed, and just recently read a post on here about just that, glad to know it wasn't just me

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catlharper Posted 5 Jan 2014 , 2:00am
post #16 of 28

Rexy: I want to agree with you...having heard the same thing...but the black satin ice and the black duffs don't taste the same so maybe he had something to do with the flavoring change? I don't mind the loose except when it comes to making embellishments and then you just have to plan way ahead for them which is kinda irritating. I'd rather do that than make my own black! LOL!

 

Cat

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rexygirl Posted 5 Jan 2014 , 2:17am
post #17 of 28

AAgreed black is a pain in the butt! And yes I do the same but doing the 50/50 gum paste to fondant works well for the set up time. And to be totally honest I haven't tasted it in quite a while!!

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Gerle Posted 5 Jan 2014 , 5:06pm
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Rexygirl, I had heard that Duff's was Fonderific or Fondex with his name on it.  Can't remember the name exactly, just remember that it started with an "F".  I want to say I was told that at the local cake supply store I buy from once in a while but can't remember exactly.   I tried it, but wasn't that happy with it, but that was also before I was told I had to add something to it to help it harden.  I made some hearts with it around Valentines day and they took almost a year to harden like other fondants.  I haven't tried it since.  I've made marshamallow fondant once and everyone loved the taste of it, but I keep saying I'm going to try making Michele Foster's recipe and I haven't done that yet.  When I want black fondant, I use Satin Ice chocolate and add black to it.  Doesn't take as much coloring to make it black and everyone loves the taste of that one.

 

Want to add "Happy New Year" to one and all and hope it will be a very productive and prosperous year for those of you who bake and decorate cakes as a business (I'm a hobbyist only).  I love looking at your cakes and do a lot of lurking, but not much posting here.  And thanks to Cat for always getting the thread up and running for us!

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debidehm Posted 5 Jan 2014 , 5:25pm
post #19 of 28

Just finished a friends cake for her daughter (who is turning 1). I really had fun making it, and made characters (polar bear and penguins) like I had on a couple other cakes. *I made this for a little girl's 1st birthday. Her Mom wanted a winter theme and let me do what I wanted. 8" white cake with a 6" carved (igloo) cake with a 4" smash cake. All cake is vanilla bean.

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Rosie93095 Posted 5 Jan 2014 , 8:25pm
post #20 of 28

 

I made this cake and cupcakes for a New Year's Eve wedding. I thought the drape around the bottom of the cake was a little too much, but the customer insisted on a drape all the way around the cake .Flowers are gumpaste air brushed silver.

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catlharper Posted 5 Jan 2014 , 8:30pm
post #21 of 28

Debi, That is just the cutest Winter birthday cake! Love the little guys on it and adore the smash cake!

 

Rosie! How beautiful! Love the silver flowers. For a small wedding?

 

Cat

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auntginn Posted 7 Jan 2014 , 6:35am
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Saturday's Birthday Cake.  

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catlharper Posted 7 Jan 2014 , 7:07am
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Ginn! That's totally adorable! Love his little face! SO cute!

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Rosie93095 Posted 7 Jan 2014 , 3:37pm
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Yes, a small wedding. Only 24 attending.

Auntginn- Love your dragon!

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anaelisabethlee Posted 7 Jan 2014 , 5:07pm
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AOh love him auntginn!!

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miniflowercake Posted 8 Jan 2014 , 1:57am
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I made this pirate ship for my little brother's b-day. The first pirate took me a couple of hours (even though it might not look like it did!) and the last pirate took me about an hour. I guess the more practice I have, the quicker I should (hopefully) get. :D

 

                                

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auntginn Posted 9 Jan 2014 , 10:20pm
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Thank you Cat, Rosie and analisabethlee.

 

miniflowercake, your pirate ship and characters are so.. cute.  Just love how you used cupcakes to create the water effect.

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Rosie93095 Posted 10 Jan 2014 , 3:26pm
post #28 of 28

miniflower- love the "ocean" on your display!

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