What Does THAT Do?! -- Cake Leveler

If you follow this blog, you've seen me use it a zillion times...

My Cake Leveler

This $5-6 gadget, which you can buy at your local craft store or cake supply store, is awesome, and worth every penny.

You use a cake leveler to level off the dome on the top of the cake - as seen in the pumpkin cake photo above.

Or to add layers to cakes/tortes as seen in this vanilla-chocolate cake.

Do you have an idea for "What Does THAT Do?!" Send me a photo or a description, and I'll try to find out for you.

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What Does THAT Do?! - "No Taste" Red Icing Color

"No Taste" Red?! Really?! Do most icing colors have a taste? To me, they don't. To lots of people, including my friend, Jeff, they do. He came up to me at his daughter's birthday party, "Beki, why does red icing always taste so awful?" I told him that it doesn't have to.

Enter... "No Taste" Red Icing Color.

Ever since I learned that some people do taste red, I use this coloring for any icing that I am going to serve to people who I don't know well enough to know if they taste red. It will take a little more coloring to make a deep red, but as you can see in the fondant and in the icing bag in the photo below, it will get you a deep color.  (And by takes a little more, I mean sometimes you'll use the whole jar on one batch of icing.)

Another note on getting a "good" red coloring. Start with any color other than white! I usually dye my icing or fondant a little yellow or orange before I add the red coloring. If I start with white, it tends to look pink, then pinker, then pinker, then pinker... etc., etc.

Your color will deepen as it sits. So, I also try to make my red (or black) the day before. I get it almost as dark as I want it to be, then I let it sit overnight before I decide if I need to add more. Dark icing colors do take a lot of coloring. Stock up before you start a big, dark cake.

Do you have an idea for "What Does THAT Do?!" Send me a photo or a description, and I'll try to find out for you.


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The Proof is in the Photos - Bake Even Strips

A few weeks ago, I posted about using Wilton's Bake Even Strips, and how they work so well that I never even bother to bake without them... not even to take a comparison shot.
Well, I decided I should do it, even if I didn't want to. So, I took advantage of the fact that I was baking a cake for cake pops, so it didn't matter if it domed, and I baked one with the strip and one without.

Here's the photo comparison:

 I baked two cakes in 9" round pans. SAME cake mix. I even measured 2 1/4 cups into each pan so that they would be completely even. I wrapped the cake on the right with the strip, didn't wrap the one on the left.

Out of the oven, you can see how the one on the right baked more evenly and flat than the one on the left.

And check this out! Look at the difference in the color and "crust" on the sides of the cakes!! That cake on the right is going to be a lot easier to make into cake pops, because it won't have the annoying crusty sides. And it will also be easier to ice and decorate without extra crumbs.
Neither of these cakes ended up with a big dome, but the one baked with the strip is still a little flatter than the other.

*Note: I'm not paid by anyone here. I'm just sharing what works for me. (Though I do teach Wilton Cake Decorating Classes.)

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What Does THAT Do?! - Bake-Even Strips

You know how your cake comes out of the oven with that annoying dome in the middle? You know how to ice your cake and make it look all smooth and stuff you have to level off that dome? You know how it sucks to lose that much height on your cake, and you're left with a squatty-looking cake? Problem solved!

Let me introduce you to Bake Even Strips. They're from Wilton, and I have used them for years. These save you a lot of time and a lot of cake!

Here's how they work: You soak the strips in ice water for 15 minutes (or so) to get them cold and wet. You then wrap them around the outside of the cake pan and use the pin to keep them tight.
(Note: I got these a dozen years ago, that's why they look so... loved. The newer ones don't have this little extra flap of fabric, so you just pin it right through the other end.)

Occasionally, you may need to add an extra few minutes to bake your cake, but they keep it nice and level. Why? Because they keep the outside of the pan cool. See, your cake domes in the middle because the outside cooks faster than the inside.

I always remove the strips from the pan as soon as I take the cake out of the oven-- to allow the sides to cool better.
Don't mind that this cake is kind of lumpy. It's a chocolate-covered cherry cake, so it's supposed to look like that.

And this is what the cake looks like when baked with the Bake Even Strip.


Click the link for the photos comparing cake baked with and without the Bake Even Strips.

Do you have an idea for "What Does THAT Do?!" Send me a photo or a description, and I'll try to find out for you.

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What Does THAT Do?! - Cake Release

Does your cake stick to the pan? Here's the answer... You may have seen the little bottle of "Cake Release" on the shelves with the other cake decorating supplies, and wondered "What Does That Do?!" Well, it keeps cakes from sticking. It really, really keeps cakes from sticking to the pan.

All you do, is squirt some in the bottom of your pan...

Then use a pastry brush to cover the bottom and sides of the pan.

If you use the cake release... then place the cake pan on a cooling rack/grid straight from the oven (never on the counter top)... wait 10 minutes... then flip the cake out of the pan... your cakes will almost never stick.

Do you have an idea for "What Does THAT Do?!" Email me a photo or description.

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The Icing Bag "Bullet"

Revolutionize your icing bag clean-up with icing bag "bullets." I only recently started using these... after more than a decade of decorating, and I am In Love!

What You Need
Icing (any kind)
Piping bag (disposable or reusable)
Plastic wrap
Scissors
Coupler
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What does THAT do?! - Bismarck Tip

The Bismarck Tip, (Wilton's #230), is a fabulous tip. This is what you use to fill cupcakes—or Bismarck doughnuts, if you’re so inclined. And once you’ve made filled cupcakes, you just can’t go back to plain, boring cupcakes again!
Wilton’s Bismarck tip does not fit on a coupler, which can be kind of a bummer because if your cupcakes are dense, it can push the tip back up inside the bag and make a big mess. Ateco’s Bismarcktip says it fits on a standard coupler. (I’ve never tried it.)

How to use it:

Using a disposable pastry bag and a thin filling (pudding is perfect), insert the Bismarck tip about halfway into your cupcake. Squeeze.

It will take you a few tries to figure out just how much filling is getting in there. So, you’ll just have to split a few in half, and eat the rejects. (Bonus!)

*Tip: Hold the cupcake in your hand when filling it. You can feel the bottom of the cupcake start to “puff” when you’ve got enough filling in there.
Do you have an idea for “What does THAT do?!” Send me an email with a description or a photo, and I’ll do my best to explain it for you.

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