I have always been intrigued by cake decorating. I have very little spare money or space to work in, in both kitchen and fridge. How would you suggest I start exploring, short of too much time on YouTube?
You bet! Great question and I'm sympathetic. Here are a few thoughts and I hope it's helpful:
If it's purely the decorating aspect you wish to work on, then don't bake from scratch. Buy a mix and either make a cake, or cupcakes to start. [About $3 a box]
If you're already a baker and know you could whip out a batch of cupcakes or cake, then by all means go for it. I would do a six inch cake if practicing decor. Cupcakes are an easy practice surface too.
But. If it's just piping technique, you could start there and buy a simple set at a craft store or the grocery store. You can practice piping on a cutting board or even a metal cake tin without making the cake. See what each tip does and play with it.
I use pinterest to save cakes I think are beautiful and then study the decor in the picture. Tumblr is helpful too if you type in cake decorating, buttercream, piping, etc.
Use a homemade buttercream. I don't think store buttercream pipes very nicely. You want to control the butter amount. If it pains you to think of wasting butter for practice, you could just whip up a frosting with Crisco [or the equivalent] and powdered sugar [which, let's be honest, is what most store bought cakes are doing. -___- }
If you don't have a kitchenaid or equivalent, a hand mixer works. The hot tip here is to whip your butter [room temperature] all by itself for about ten minutes BEFORE adding powdered sugar and flavor. It makes it lovely and light. Crisco can just be whipped with powdered sugar immediately.
I practice flowers on parchment paper and then chill them so I can more easily transfer them to the cake or cupcake. Cupcakes can serve as a handy flower piping base as is, but you might want to practice on something else before directly applying the piping to the cupcake.
Hope that helps friend! Always feel free to ask questions. I love nerding about artsy cake decorating things. :D Happy Fourth!
