Decorating Basics Wilton Method Course Review

This summer I decided that it was time to learn how to decorate a cake, especially if I keep on making them. I figured that it would give me a new ways to make a cake interesting. This four week course taught me how to make zig zags, write, and the ribbon rose in buttercream. The first week we decorated sugar cookies with the star tip.

The next week we had to bring in our first layer cake. We learned how to transfer designs and decorate it. Unfortunately, I didn’t have that much time to make a cake from scratch, so I made a two layer chocolate cake from mix, with cookies and cream pudding in the middle. My frosting was the Wilton Buttercream.  Personally, I’m not a fan of it. To me, it just leaves a coating in your mouth as most Crisco-based frostings do. As you can see, I chose to put a cupcake on my cake. Here’s a picture – be nice, it was my first cake.

The next week was cupcakes. I made vanilla cupcakes from the book Hello Cupcake! As Zach Morris says, “Time Out,” this book gives you amazing ideas on how to decorate cupcakes. “Time In” - This vanilla cupcake recipe, however, I felt was too dense to eat. My favorite sous chef decided that it was much better when cold. In the class, we learned how to make various flowers to decorate our cupcakes. My favorite flower was the yellow shaggy mums.

 

The last week we made the final cake. We learned how to make the ribbon rose. This was my favorite flower for the week. This cake was my favorite cake to make (and all from scratch). It was chocolate cake with a vanilla filling along with a chocolate frosting.

This cake went by the pool in my backyard very quick. My sister’s friends came over for sun and sangria. Let’s just say this cake was devoured by the end of the day. Now onto this amazing recipe.


This recipe for chocolate cake is definitely my go-to chocolate cake. Believe it or not, it is actually from the back of the Hershey’s Unsweetened Cocoa powder box.


Hershey’s “Perfectly Chocolate” Chocolate Cake

2 cups sugar
1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup HERSHEY’S Cocoa
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup boiling water
Directions:


Heat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two 9-inch round baking pans. Stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt in large bowl. Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla; beat on medium speed of mixer 2 minutes. Stir in boiling water (batter will be thin). Pour batter into prepared pans.  Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely.

After the cake cools, cut off tops to form layers. Insert the Vanilla filling.


Vanilla Cream Filling
From Group Recipies

3 tbsp all purpose flour
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 scraped vanilla bean or 1 tsp vanilla extract

Whisk together the flour and milk and cook in a small saucepan over medium heat until thick. This will only take a few minutes. Sir continuously to prevent the mixture from clumping and do not bring all the way to a boil. When thickened (consistency will be that of a thin pudding or custard), strain with a mesh strainer into a small bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let cool completely to room temperature. When the milk mixture is cool, cream the butter (or shortening) and sugar together in a medium bowl until light. Add in the milk/flour mixture and the scraped vanilla bean seeds (or vanilla extract) and beat at high speed with an electric mixer for 7 minutes, until light and fluffy


Lastly, frost the cake with the Chocolate Buttercream. This recipe is also from Group Recipes.


Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2-3 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla extract


Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and beat, with an electric mixer, until frosting is creamy, 3-5 minutes. Add additional powdered sugar as needed to achieve a thick, but not stiff, frosting that is easy to spread. Add additional milk, if necessary, to thin the frosting if it gets too thick.

Overall, I think this class is a great class to learn how to decorate cakes. I learned a lot of skills, even if they still need work. Personally, I loved this class so much in July that I signed up for the Flowers and Cake Design Wilton Method Course for August. Review coming soon.