Well I have started my Wilton classes and while I love my instructor she is not very informative about technique. I guess she thinks we all know the secrets and she keeps going on.
We just finished Class 2 and had to bring in BC in the 3 different consistencys(SP?). Well, needless to say I got medium and thin correct but my stiff came out medium. I followed the class BC recipe and she tells me to use less water and not to mix as long. How long is too long? How can I tell when it is stiff?


Any and all tips will be appreciated.

Ladytree....
Interesting....I wonder if my teacher moved up to NY!! I felt the same way. Above not giving us thorough instructions when you did ask a question they answer kind of snootty...like, how could you not know this.
I don't think this was isolated to just her cake techniques..she was like this all the time.
I had the same problem with my icing. It's very hard to tell when you've never done it before.
I would say the best way to tell the difference between the consistencies would be how much of a peak it makes when you stick a spoon in it. If you get well defined sharp peaks it's thick. You will also be able to judge for yourself once you start making flowers and borders if it's a little too thin.
Good luck with your classes.
Jennz

My Wilton teacher was actually pretty good at this.

Here's my test:

Take a spatula and stick it straight up in the middle of the bowl of icing.

1. if it doesn't stand up straight at all and immediately falls over, you've got thin consistency

2. if it stands up, but starts to fall and falls over, you've got medium consistency

3. if it stands up and doesn't move...you've got sitff consistency.

This rule of thumb has worked pretty well for me.

That is so excellent Treeg!!!

Guess I do know a thing or two! LOL