I was asked to make a cake with NO fondant. I asked in the CC forum for suggestions and info on rolled butter cream figure molding and got a few tips and was told about a good book to get (thanks kellyh57) .... so I tried out the RBC recipe in the CC recipe section, and I used Roland Winbeckler's Hand Molded Figures book. Since I couldn't find much info on here or anywhere about RBC I thought I'd share what I learned. The book is full of lots of cute ideas and the recipe. I had to add quite a bit more powdered sugar because of the humidity, and after sitting over night I added a bit more as I used it. It is, as some CC members had said, shinier than MMF.. as you can see with the cupcakes. The book's suggestion of painting with powdered food coloring mixed with melted cocoa butter didn't work for me. I did everything with RBC except the black pupils which were done with piping gel. Since it is what you use to glue the figures together it was what was convenient. I think it would work for painting as well, but I didn't discover this until I had already done all of the little details. Next time.. lol. They stiffened up just a little after drying over night, but they don't really get any harder than that. They do leave an oil spot when they sit for a while because of the crisco... so I would wait until the last minute to place them if you can. Also, they have a tendency to start drooping/melting in 100+ degree weather...go figure lol.

As far as using RBC to cover cakes, I think MMF is easier to work with. (Although I've only covered one cake with MMF besides the experimenting I did here.) RBC seemed to be kind of flimsy and not nearly as elastic. Though I'm sure with practice it would get easier to use... and it definitely tastes better. Y'all were so right about that.. I thought all the nibblers were going to eat it up before I got through making the decorations with it.

I think your cakes and care bears turned out great!
I think I saw them right after you posted them in the photos section and immediately saved the Rolled Buttercream recipe to my recipe box!

Thanks for the tips too. I'm excited and nervous to try it out!

They turned out great ! Thanks for sharing what you learned. I bet they were very happy!

Thanks for the info. Your cupcakes and Care Bears are all too cute!

I love your idea of experimenting with cupcakes. I hadn't heard that one before. Thanks for other info. too.

Blessings!

your cupcakes are darling !!!!

Thank you so much!! I have been wanting to experiment with RBC and what you have shared will be so helpful!!

You're so thoughtful! Thanks so much for sharing. Your work turned out soo cute! I would have never guessed they were made out of buttercream!

Thank you for sharing. I have my biggest cake order yet coming up, and birthday party for 100+! This is for a 1 year old, and under the sea is the theme. This might not be the route for me to go, since it will be an outdoor party, and I was looking for ways to avoid using fondant to make fish, mermaids, etc., but since you said it doesn't hold up well in heat..... great tip. I would have been devastated!
Your cupcakes and care bears are adorable! Thanks again for the info.

Ok, please tell me why a 1yr old needs to have a 100+ party?

I have no clue. Perhaps the mother is a little "touched", but this is what she wants, and I'm not about to turn her down! Most likely, its an excuse for her to throw a big party for her friends as well.
Anyway, its a nice chunk of money, an incredible chance for me to get as creative as I want (she said for me to design it as long as it keeps with the theme), and think of the exposure!

I used RBC on my daughter's birthday cake. I did find it rather soft. I kept adding more sugar but didn't want to dry it out. I did like how it draped over the cake though. It molded to the shape beautifully.

I do want to try MMF. I've never made this but I think I'm going to try it soon.

Thanks for sharing. I learned something new today!

I've been wanting to try MMF (with candymelts) and rolled buttercream but have put it off being afraid I'll mess up. What you've done is a great idea. Using cupcakes seems a bit less intimidating. Then one can also get some different methods of "decorating" practice in.
First question: I'm wondering how many cupcakes one batch of RBC or MMF will cover. Does anyone have an idea?
Second question: Can excess MMF/RBC be frozen.
THird question: Also did you frost with BC before putting the MMF on- or does it really matter?

Now I'm getting psyched! Thanks!

I don't think it's recommended to freeze any type of fondant. At least I haven't read that anywhere. RBC can be refrigerated but be sure it's at room temp when you want to use it. Put lots of powdered sugar on your mat and roller when rolling it out. I imaging that 1 batch would cover 12-18 cupcakes. Maybe more..not sure. My batch covered a cupcake shaped cake that used 1 box of cake mix. Plus I still have some left in the fridge.

Have fun experimenting!

Here's the cake I finished with BBC...

WOW !!! Your care bears are awesome and I really am in love with the cupcakes! You have really inspired me and I can't wait to try the RBC on cupcakes

Amber

Wow, THANKS! I'm glad y'all like my work.

I'm also very happy to share my experiences with y'all. I've gotten so much from CC it's good to give back a little

I have to say I am a fan of RBC, and I would recommend experimenting with it... After all, you can never have too much of a variety in mediums to work with right?

Experimenting with cupcakes... I originally did this because I had a bunch of leftover RBC and MMF in several colors, but not enough to cover a cake... which is mainly what I wanted to practice. Although, covering cupcakes may not be the easiest way to learn/practice covering lol. I would highly recommend it though... it's a great way to use up leftovers and try out different ideas and techniques. I will definitely be doing it again.

Raisen's questions
I'm not really sure how many cupcakes one batch of RBC or MMF would cover.. since I was just using leftovers. It didn't take much to cover the few I did though. With the RBC 1 batch made all of the Care Bears covered and decorated two cupcakes and I still had quite a bit left over despite the nibblers lol. So I agree with kakekornertwo... at least a batch of 12-18 cupcakes no problem.
From what I've read here MMF will last forever as long as it is well sealed. The RBC (according to Winbeckler's book) can be refrigerated for several weeks or frozen for several months.
I covered the cupcakes with BC before covering with both the RBC and the MMF since everything I've read says to do so to make it stick to the cake. I didn't use much though, and I let them sit for at least 20 minutes so the BC wouldn't ooze out of the bottom of the RBC or MMF or cause them to soften and tear... I learned that with the daisies MMF one. There was a tear and some oozing... A thin smooth coating of BC makes for a smoother covering with the RBC or MMF. HTH

kakekornertwo, that cupcake cake is so cute... nice smooth covering, and I love those star candles you made!

I love rolled buttercream's taste! I tried to make a My little pony cake with it (you can see it in my photos) and started to get very frustrated. I prob. needed to add a LOT more powdered sugar. Although I was adding fondant - shoot can't remember the brand but it was so soft itself it didn't help. When I used the Wilton fondant with the rolled buttercream, it provided mroe strength.

Winbeckler's book says that it can be kept in the fridge for a couple of weeks?? What if I've left it out?? I think I've left it out about 2 weeks now... do you think I could still use it? I mean it's basically corn syrup and crisco (how does it end up tasting so good??) ... I wouldn't think it would go bad, but I certainly don't want to poison anyone... I'm going to try to make a little golf figure with it.

Also, in Winbeckler's book, did he have any tips for adding structure to figures? For example, I think I'm gonna have to use toothpicks or something - I thought about using spaghetti b/c I heard that if someone bites into that, it won't poke a whole in the roof of their mouth and a toothpick might (if they forget it's in there - hopefully you tell them there's toothpicks, but I'd just like to avoid all of that if I can).

Thanks so much for sharing! I love this stuff but it doens't seem that a lot of people have worked with it so getting info. on it is difficult. I'm gonna buy Marsha Winbeckler's book A.S.A.P.!!! Hope it helps me too

Awww, your My Little Pony cake is so cute... tha pony is absolutely adorable!

I don't know why it wouldn't be ok left out.. as long as it smells and tastes ok I'd go for it.

The book suggests spaghetti, pretzel sticks, and cany sticks for structural support and accessories.
HTH

Be sure to post pictures and share what you learned!