Faucets

DIY mastic cakes. Children's cakes made from mastic

Click Class

Tell VK

Previously, I didn’t think much about a cake for a holiday, I just went to the store and bought the one I liked or had a good price. But after the birth of my child, I began to look more carefully at the ingredients, and in some products I didn’t like the ingredients at all. I decided that I would bake the cake myself for all the holidays. Which I still cope with very well, but there are difficulties. And it lies in the fact that you want to serve a beautiful and elegant dessert on the table.

But I don’t know how to make mastic, and it’s not always possible to get the right cream consistency, so I started thinking: how and how to decorate the cake at home. I decided to devote a separate article to this; the options I found turned out to be very beautiful.

Cakes like the Count's Ruins or Rotten Stump are very convenient, because they become decorated and self-sufficient already during the cooking process. But not everyone knows how to make them or wants to diversify the tea menu. Then we bake a sponge cake, manna cake or sour cream cake and serve it to the table. But you can’t serve an ordinary cake to guests at an event; it needs to be brought into an appropriate and elegant appearance. And now you start racking your brains to come up with something like this. Personally, this happens to me every children’s birthday.

I have identified the main decoration options for myself:

Berries
Fruits
Powdered sugar and coconut
Chocolate, candy
MmDeMs
Marshmallow
Chocolate glaze

Somehow it doesn’t always work out with jelly, so I won’t consider this option.

Below we will look in detail at step-by-step photos of decorating a cake with your own hands for a child.

Of course, these ingredients can be used separately, but they look richer and tastier all together.

Did you know that before decorating, the sponge cake must be ready for assembly? It should lie in the refrigerator for about 12 hours, and only then be divided into parts into cakes.

The cream can also be different, for example, you can make protein, butter, cream, cheese. By the way, you can make the cheese yourself for the cheese cream, I wrote about it quite recently.

How to decorate a cake with berries

With the onset of the summer season, we add color to the cake with fresh berries. When it’s winter outside, use frozen ones for decoration, but take a closer look at those that keep their shape.

They can even be simply piled up, the main thing is to create the effect that there are a lot of fruits. A feeling of Abundance is created.

Any berries are suitable for creativity; contrast looks especially beautiful - red, blue and dark. If you are having a child's birthday, then take seedless fruits, for example, blackberries, raspberries, victoria, currants.

You can lay them out in a semicircle, in several rows, and sprinkle with cocoa and powdered sugar.

You can express contrast or use only fruits of the same color, as in the photo.

You can use flowers or leaves to complete the picture, but each stem should be wrapped in film before sticking into the cake so that the cream does not sour.

How to decorate a cake with fruits

Fruit slices are used more often with the onset of cold weather, when fresh berries are rarely available to anyone.

It is better to decorate the cake with fruits that do not turn black, for example, a banana is a very aromatic and soft product, but its weathered appearance can spoil the impression, so replace it with tangerines, kiwis, apricots, plums or peaches. It is also better to put apples in a fruit basket for the same reason.

Or cut only oranges with leaves or mint.

And here is another example of a cute palm tree made from the most affordable fruits.

Simple and beautiful, and, most importantly, completely doable!

How to decorate a cake with cream

But where would we be without cream flowers? After all, this material has many options for creating a pattern, and quite simple ones that any housewife can repeat.

To add color to the cream, you can use juices: cherry, pomegranate, beetroot, carrot. But, you can also buy food coloring, then you will have more choice.

If you don’t have a pastry syringe, you can create an analogue from a sheet of parchment by folding it into a cone and cutting off a corner. You probably did this as a child, remember?

So there is a very simple way to decorate using a teaspoon and a pastry syringe or replacing it.

Squeeze a drop of cream from a syringe onto the side of the cake and lightly grease the edge with a spoon, and so on along the entire side.

The photo shows the step-by-step principle of operation.

If you add its dye, then you can create an ombre effect, as shown below.

Using this technique, you can make a fish cake by adding several elements from mastic or berries.

Or you can simply run a knife or fork over the cream and create texture.

What do you think of the idea? I will definitely use it, it looks very elementary.

Ideas on how to decorate a cake with MmDeMs

The idea of a multi-colored decoration broke my stereotypes. Not entirely useful, but it makes the task so much easier! If you lay them out in the colors of the rainbow or come up with your own list of colors and patterns.

And you can just pour it on the cake in a chaotic manner, you can lay out a rainbow, you can choose only the colors that you need! And there are many more different options.

Or you can cut a circle in the cake and pour candy there, then the festive dessert will also be a surprise!

This makes for a very bright design and looks very festive and fun. The kids will definitely love it.

There is an option to decorate the cake using chocolate tubes or Kinder chocolate.

Place the tube to the side along the perimeter of the cake, and pour the candies inside.

To strengthen the structure, the cake is wrapped with ribbon so that the sweet fence does not fall apart.

Decorate the cake with powdered sugar

I started using stencils to decorate cakes a few years ago. It’s very simple, but it turns out so beautifully. Moreover, I didn’t buy stencils, but simply transferred the design I liked onto thick paper. It looked like it was the moisture-proof side of a tea box. I cut everything out with a stationery knife and still use it.

Some of my friends' homemade templates are laminated. Then I shook off the powdered sugar or cocoa and put them away.

They are placed on the cake and sprinkled with powder.

It is advisable to choose a closed ornament that can be easily cut out. Below are design options using powdered sugar and cocoa.

And once I saw the process of decorating the cake, also using powder, but using a napkin.

It turned out very nice! The lace and ornament stood out strongly against the black glaze. I didn't even need cream.

Ideas on how to decorate a cake with chocolate

There are fans of chocolate cake decorations. And I also think that melted chocolate will add zest and additional flavor to the dessert. If you don’t have enough melted chocolate, you can pour only the top of the cake and create an imitation of drops on the end. As in the photo, it turned out quite nice. And, most importantly, I didn’t have to invent anything extra – everything was natural!

It is important here not to smear this drop on the side of the cake.

I show you how to do this step by step below. Before decorating, you need to cool the cake very much and take the cooled glaze, which will already harden during the process.

Apply a little glaze around the perimeter and use a spatula to start pushing towards the edge.

As the icing flows down the cold side of the cake, it will have time to harden.

Another option for using chocolate is to grate shavings from a chocolate bar using a blade or knife. This option looks beautiful with contrasting white cream.

It’s also a great idea to decorate with chocolate candies, bars, long wafers covered with chocolate glaze and anything else that can be dipped in chocolate but have different shapes.

You can use more expensive candies, such as Raffaello or assorted.

How to decorate a cake at home with step-by-step photos

I present an option for decorating with cream and strawberries. This option always works, even if the cream turns out to be thicker. And strawberries are always a welcome guest on a birthday cake.

So, after your sponge cake is prepared, we cut it into cake layers. We coat each cake with cream and assemble the cake.

The top edge needs to be cut off a little to get a smooth surface.

You need to start coating with cream from the sides, you need to apply a little cream, spread it evenly over the cakes with a spatula.

The cream needs to be cooled first, because as it cools, marks from the spatula or spoon remain on it.

Then we squeeze donuts out of the syringe around the circumference, and place identical large strawberries in the middle.

The entire decorating process will take about fifteen minutes. And even uneven spots on the cream can be turned into decoration.

At your discretion, you can add pieces of marshmallows, a couple of candies, for example, chocolate-covered peanuts or marmalade.

I really hope that the options I’ve discussed will greatly help some busy mothers and housewives to quickly and beautifully prepare a holiday dessert and collect rave reviews from guests.

Tell VK

Homemade cakes have a special energy: they convey the warmth of the hands of the mistress of the house, the special mood of the holiday for which they are prepared. It is ideal when this dessert is original and skillfully decorated. It will be very useful for a hospitable hostess to learn about the types of mastic and learn how to make mastic for a cake at home, and also make holiday decorations from it and surprise your family and guests. Let's look at the variety of recipes and find out how difficult it is to create such sweet beauty.

Mastic is an elastic confectionery mass whose properties resemble plasticine. The most ornate confectionery decorations are made from it, but working with this confectionery product requires a certain dexterity and skill, which will be honed with experience. From the very beginning, you need to know some culinary tricks on how to work with mastic.

The base of the mastic is powdered sugar, which is best sifted through a fine sieve before cooking. If unground grains of sugar get into the mass, it will tear when rolling. After preparing the mastic, wrap it in plastic and put it in the refrigerator for 20 minutes - this time is needed for the mass to become more plastic. The finished mass, tightly wrapped in polyethylene, can be stored for 2 weeks in the refrigerator or 2 months in the freezer.

Dyes are added during the mixing of the sugar dough. If you need mastic of different colors, first knead the uncolored dough and separate a piece of the required size, and place the rest of the mass in polyethylene to prevent drying. Use your hands to form a piece of dough into a circle with a depression in the middle and, adding a few drops of dye, knead it until a uniform color is obtained.

At first, you will need culinary equipment, which is found in every kitchen. The mastic is rolled out with a wooden rolling pin on the table, the edges after covering the cake are cut with a round pizza cutter, some figures are squeezed out using cookie cutters. Skilled housewives use spoons of different sizes to make flower petals: they fill the cavity with rolled out dough, pick up the leftovers around the edges, and connect the finished petals.

When your passion for decorating cakes grows into your favorite hobby, it’s worth purchasing special tools. The first purchases may be a smooth plastic rolling pin for rolling out mastic, silicone mats with markings (larger for conveniently rolling out cake coverings, smaller for rolling out elements of figures). Stacks for modeling, cuttings for a variety of flowers, leaves, butterflies, and silicone molds will help in the work to form small figures of the same type - letters, buttons, beads.

It is very important that the base of the cake, which will be covered with mastic, is not wet: it must first be covered with butter cream and put in the refrigerator until completely hardened, because any contact with wet cream will dissolve the mastic. Crafts from mastic must be made in advance, preferably two weeks before preparing the cake, so that they have time to dry in the air. Finished jewelry is stored for several months in a tightly closed container.

Recipes for making homemade mastic for decorating cakes

First you need to figure out how to decorate, what idea you want to realize: for example, cover the cake with a patterned blanket, sculpt a sophisticated rose flower, or make a model of a sports car. Then you need to choose which mastic is best suited for these purposes. For many housewives, it is important that homemade mastic contains accessible, simple ingredients and has universal use.

Honey

This mass is softer than sugar, does not crumble or crumble, so it is very convenient to use for covering a cake and forming decoration details. Ingredients for cooking:

powdered sugar – 900 g;
honey – 175 g (in volume this corresponds to 125 ml);
water – 45 ml;
gelatin – 15 g.

We do this:

Soak gelatin in water for 30 minutes.
Heat the mixture of honey and gelatin in a water bath.
Set aside a glass of powdered sugar, pour the honey mixture into the rest, knead the sugar dough, gradually mixing in the remaining powder.
The mastic is ready if, when pressed, an indentation from your finger remains on it.

Sugar

Good for sculpting figures and flowers. We will need:

powdered sugar – 500 g;
water – 60 ml;
gelatin – 1 tsp;
lemon juice – 1 teaspoon;
vanillin.

The process consists of:

Soak the gelatin for half an hour, then heat it in a water bath.
Adding lemon juice, vanillin. Adding powdered sugar little by little, knead the mixture until it becomes an elastic dough.
You must not allow the mass to become too hard, because it will then crumble during work.

Dairy

This mastic is made with the addition of milk powder, sometimes baby formula or dry cream is used instead. To prepare you will need 160 g of milk powder and other ingredients:

powdered sugar – 160 g;
condensed milk – 170 g;
lemon juice – 1 tsp.

Cooking method:

Mix dry milk and powder in a container.
Add lemon juice, condensed milk.
Knead into a plastic dough.

Chocolate

To prepare it, they use dark chocolate - milk or bitter, but they also make mastic with a bar of white chocolate. One of the recipes:

Melt 100 g dark chocolate in the microwave, add 1 tbsp. lie honey and knead.
How to check readiness: tear off a piece of dough, roll it into a ball and flatten it with your fingers - the edges of the finished mastic should not tear. Chocolate roses made from this mass look very impressive.

This is how the chocolate mass is prepared according to a different recipe. You will need:

dark chocolate – 100 g;
cream 30% – 40 ml;
marshmallow candies – 90 g;
powdered sugar – 2 tbsp. false;
cognac – 2 tbsp. false;
butter – 1 tbsp. lie

Recipe step by step:

Melt the chocolate completely in a water bath.
Without removing from heat, add marshmallows, stirring constantly.
When the marshmallows are half dissolved, add cream, butter, cognac and stir until the mixture becomes homogeneous.
Remove from heat and add powdered sugar.
Knead until the mastic becomes like elastic dough.

From condensed milk

A frequently used type of mastic because, thanks to its oily, soft structure, it is convenient to use for covering cakes of various shapes and sculpting medium-sized figures. The mixture with condensed milk is tasty and is eaten with pleasure. In addition to 200 g of condensed milk, you will need:

powdered sugar – 160 g;
powdered milk – 160 g;
lemon juice – 2 teaspoons;
cognac – 1 tsp.

Mix powder and dry milk, gradually pour in condensed milk. Add cognac, lemon juice, knead the mixture well. This mastic will not be white; it always has a yellowish tint.

From marshmallows

Marshmallow mastic is very popular; to prepare it, it is better to buy plain marshmallow candies or separate them by color before cooking. You will need:

200 g marshmallow marshmallows,
500 g powdered sugar,
1 tsp. butter.

Step-by-step preparation:

Place the marshmallows and butter in a container and heat in the microwave for a few seconds until the marshmallows begin to melt.
Stir the mixture with a spoon until smooth, add powdered sugar in small portions.
The finished dough should feel like plasticine.

From gelatin

This type of mastic is called pastillage: it is indispensable when you need to make durable parts to decorate a cake, for example, handles for a basket, but it is practically inedible because it is very hard. If pastillage is dried, it retains its shape very well, so it is sometimes used to make templates for sculpting figures with fine details. Ingredients for cooking:

powdered sugar – 240 g;
starch – 120 g;
gelatin – 1 tbsp. lie with a slide;
cold water – 60 ml;
citric acid – 1 tsp;
honey, preferably artificial - 2 teaspoons.

Pour gelatin with water for 30 minutes, then melt in a water bath, add citric acid and honey.
Separately mix starch with powder and gradually add to the gelatin mixture until a homogeneous, smooth consistency is obtained.
Line a bowl with cling film, pour the mastic into it, wrap it in film and refrigerate until the mass stops spreading.
Before using the pastillage, you need to knead it well; if it is very cold and cannot be molded, you need to put it in the microwave for 5 seconds.

Floral

Knowing how to work with floral fondant is a testament to pastry craftsmanship because it is used to sculpt delicate, lifelike buds. This mixture is a leader in decorating wedding cakes. Ingredients for cooking:

powdered sugar – 550 g;
gelatin – 10 g;
water – 50 ml;
lemon juice – 20 ml;
corn syrup – 60 ml;
cooking fat (shortening) – 20 g;
carboxymethylcellulose – 10 g;
egg white – 2 pcs.;
bleach for icing - optional, to give a snow-white color.

Cooking technology:

Add water to the gelatin and leave to swell.
Place powdered sugar, cellulose, bleach (if available), and lemon juice in a mixing bowl.
Heat the soaked gelatin in a water bath, stirring, add confectionery fat, then corn syrup.
Remove from heat, turn food processor on medium speed, and add liquid in a thin stream to powdered sugar.
Then switch the food processor to high speed, add the egg whites and lemon juice.
As soon as the mass turns white and becomes homogeneous, stop mixing immediately.
Place the mastic on a greased work surface, form into a sausage and pack tightly in cling film.

The mass is left to rest at room temperature for about 20 hours before starting to use it in culinary creativity. This mastic can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 months, in the freezer for up to 6 months. Before making the cake, you need to defrost it without using a microwave.

How to properly make mastic colored or shiny

Before you make colored mastic for, you need to determine exactly what colors will be needed and what dyes will be used: special store-bought or natural dyes made from fruits and vegetables. If natural dyes are preferred, they are made several days in advance and can be stored in the refrigerator.

To obtain vegetable dye, the berries are crushed, the vegetables are grated on a fine grater, and the resulting juice is squeezed through cheesecloth. When adding vegetable dyes, you need to be aware that they give a less saturated color compared to store-bought food dyes. If you add more natural dye to enhance the color, the mastic may end up with a bright taste of the added juice and will be more liquid, so you will need to add powdered sugar to achieve the desired consistency.

Plant ingredients give these colors:

shades of red– juice of cranberries, strawberries, raspberries, red currants, various red syrups or red wine;
rich pink color- beet;
yellow– saffron infusion or lemon zest;
green color- spinach;
Orange color– carrot juice or orange zest;
blue and violet dye– juice of grapes, blueberries, red cabbage;
Brown color– cocoa powder, strong coffee or sugar burned in a frying pan (in a 5:1 ratio with water).

Purchased food colorings are divided into the following types:

dry– they have a powdery appearance; before adding to the mastic, they must be diluted in water (take the paint on the tip of a knife for 1 tablespoon of water);
liquid– it is better to add them to mastic instead of water;
gel– thicker and more concentrated dyes than liquid ones, and more economical.

By mixing dyes, mastic of various colors is obtained. For example, yellow, green, and red dyes mixed together create a black dye that is added to fondant to give the dough shades ranging from light gray to deep black. The choice depends on both the product and the occasion: wedding cakes abound in white, pink, and golden shades, and children’s cakes – in all the colors of the rainbow.

After molding figures to decorate cakes, they often remain traces of starch or powdered sugar, which were used to roll out the mass. To make the mastic mass shine, you need to dissolve 1 tbsp. lie honey in 1 tbsp. lie vodka, apply the resulting mixture at the last stage of preparing the cake with a soft brush. The vodka will evaporate, leaving no taste or smell, and the jewelry will have a glossy finish.

Video

Forming a variety of decorations for cakes is a confectionery art that even a novice housewife can learn. After watching our selection of videos, you will notice all the important nuances of preparing different types of mastic, see practical techniques on how to make a cake cover, patterns, glue pieces of mastic and beautifully process the seams.

Photos of beautiful cake decorations

On a birthday, a cake is the main decoration of the table; it in itself can be a gift for the birthday person and often reflects his interests and hobbies. For men, they often make cakes with decorations on the theme of fishing, sports, cakes in the form of a book, or a case with money. When the hero of the occasion is a woman, she will be pleasantly surprised by a cake with decorations in the form of a bouquet of her favorite flowers, a luxurious bow or weightless butterflies. If the occasion for the celebration is an anniversary, it is appropriate to decorate the cake with numbers according to the number of years of the hero of the day, using food coloring with gold or silver glitter.

There is room for your imagination to run wild when decorating a cake with fondant for a children's birthday. Desserts for the little ones are decorated with figurines of angels, and inscriptions are made indicating how old the baby is. Older children will be surprised by figurines of their favorite cartoon characters, cakes in the shape of toys or cars, covered with multi-colored fondant. Such decorations are sometimes combined with decorating the cake with marshmallows. Pastila can be bought or also prepared at home. Cakes with themed decorations are appropriate for significant events, for example, when a child goes to school.

Those housewives who have good practice in working with mastic can even bake a wedding cake at home. Multi-tiered wedding cakes are popular now. To harmonize with the wedding theme, they can be covered with colored fondant in a specific color and include matching decor. The primacy in decorating these cakes is occupied by floral mastic, which is used to sculpt elegant figures of doves or a variety of flowers that cannot be distinguished from real ones.

No confectionery product can outshine the taste of homemade baked goods. And no event is complete without a birthday cake, where the main stage is its decoration. And not every housewife knows how to decorate it beautifully at home, but to know how to do it, you don’t need to have the skills of a professional confectioner.

Decorating it with mastic is practically the same as sitting in a craft class and sculpting various figures from plasticine. The sweet material for decoration is so flexible to use that any housewife can make an outlandish pattern, bow or any other composition for a birthday cake out of it.

There are many recipes for making mastic. It’s impossible to talk about each one, so we suggest you familiarize yourself with the most common and fairly simple ones.

Recipe No. 1: milk mastic

Average preparation time for milk mastic: half an hour.

Calorie content: 368.56 kcal.

Step by step process:

Recipe No. 2: gelatin mastic

This recipe is suitable for those who want to create clear figures for the cake.

Components:

multi-colored food colors;
gelatin – 10 g;
lemon juice – 2 tsp;
powdered sugar – 600 gr.;
water – 55 ml.

Preparation time for gelatin mastic: 40 minutes.

Calorie content: 333.24 kcal.

Cooking process:

Tools

So, we’ve learned how to prepare mastic, now it’s time to learn the basics of design and acquire the necessary tools:

Decor

Having the essentials at hand, we move on to covering the cake with a sweet background, that is, a layer of mastic. How to do it right:

Forms and their purpose

Plungers. To get started, purchase the most necessary things: gerbera, quinquefoil, ivy and rose leaves, and a butterfly. To begin with, this is enough, as needed and experience, buy the rest.

Cutters. Sometimes you don’t want to look for lids of different sizes, you don’t have time, and cutters come to the rescue - circles of different diameters.

Tassels. They must be synthetic; a budget option can be found at a stationery store.

When sculpting flowers, you will need a drying kit. But at first you can replace it with a box of chocolates.

A soft mat will be needed to roll the edges of the petals.

Silicone molds. Absolutely any molds of figurines, animals, beads, bows, buttons are on sale.

By purchasing an initial set of tools, molds, and watching demonstration video tutorials, you can create a culinary masterpiece to your liking.

How to decorate a cake with icing

Thin shiny icing is a fairly popular way to decorate cakes. To prepare it you will need:

icing sugar – 200 gr.;
oil – 2 tsp;
water as needed.

Cooking time: 15 minutes.

Calorie content: 48.93 kcal.

Mix the ingredients and melt in a water bath. For smoothness and density, you can add a little water. Constantly stirring the mixture until the glaze becomes shiny and smooth.

Types of glaze:

Principles of decorating with glaze

Mirror glaze

Makes the surface glossy and smooth.

Before cutting, it is necessary to wet the knife in hot water or heat it, otherwise the mirror glaze will crack.

To prepare it you will need:

chocolate – 1.5 bars;
glucose syrup -150 ml;
water – 75 ml;
sugar -150 gr.;
condensed milk – 100 gr.;
gelatin – 12 g (melt in 60 ml of water).

Cooking time 30 minutes.

Calorie content: 170.75 kcal.

Preparation:

Soak the gelatin and leave to swell;
Mix glucose syrup with sugar and boil;
Remove from heat and cool;
Add gelatin and pour in condensed milk;
Pour the chopped chocolate into syrup and beat with a blender;
Place the resulting mass in a cool place overnight, and in the morning heat it in a microwave oven to 35C, beat again and begin coating the cake.

How to decorate a cake with fruits yourself

Decorating a confectionery product with fruits, mostly exotic ones, is a fairly popular action among housewives. Firstly, it is bright, secondly, there is an incredible taste contrast and, thirdly, the fruit cake looks beautiful when cut.

The easiest way to decorate at home is to fan out mangoes, apples, kiwis, strawberries, and oranges cut into slices on the surface of the cake. And thin slices can be decorated in the form of a fruit rose. But the most spectacular option is considered to be a “bed” of fruit, filled with transparent jelly.

We decorate children's cakes with our own hands: inscriptions, sweets, figures

A child’s birthday is a great occasion to please a little miracle with original baked goods. Most often, children's cakes are decorated with ready-made figures made from fondant and marshmallows. This design is especially popular for children under 2 years old.

Cream flowers and leaves are no less loved by children, so we take note of this decor option. The decoration turns out to be more solemn and festive.

Another decoration option that will not leave any child indifferent is a cake completely covered in chocolate. And we’re not just talking about glaze, but also about various candies, curls, and shavings. Believe me, such a cake will be a real “chocolate happiness” for the birthday boy and all his friends.

But you need to be extremely careful with nuts and fruits, since many children may be allergic to these ingredients.

How to decorate a cake for a boy with your own hands

There is nothing complicated in this matter, because absolutely all boys love cars, cartoons, and want to become super heroes.

A cake made from Lego figures will look original, since all the boys love to build something from this construction set. To do this, bake the cake in the form of a rectangle, and make the round parts using Oreo cookies.

For a boy athlete, a cake in the shape of a ball would be an ideal option. There is nothing complicated in preparation. It is enough to bake round cakes and, after completely coating them with cream, give the product a spherical shape.

There is also a decor option for the laziest. Find round foam molds and attach candy bars, chewing gum, and chocolates to them.

Decorating a cake with your own hands: other original ideas

Standard roses won’t surprise anyone now, so you have to use your imagination. To make your work easier, we suggest looking at the most popular and little-known ways to decorate holiday baked goods.

A stencil will help you quickly and easily decorate the surface of the cake. You can buy ready-made or make it yourself. Which one should I use?

For surface decoration – large and round; small ones are for cupcakes and muffins; The sides are made rectangular; but single stencils with figures and inscriptions can be used on both large and small confectionery products.

To decorate through a stencil, you can use powder, finely grated chocolate, fine sprinkles and nut flour. Patterns are applied using melted chocolate, glaze, liquid mastic, fondant, cream and icing.

Nut mass is not new in cake design. Most often, the base of production includes almond flour and sugar paste. The marzipan mass has a very delicate taste and elastic consistency, which allows it to perfectly retain its shape. Marzipan is not only used to cover cakes, but also to create voluminous toys and figurines.

A lot has been said about this option for decorating cakes. There is probably not a single person who has not tried a confectionery product decorated with red roses and bright lime leaves.

You can use cream not only to make petals and flowers, but also to write congratulatory inscriptions, create an aesthetic edging, and more experienced housewives have long learned to create cream animals using attachments.

Cream

They will decorate not only a cake, but also any dessert, including ice cream, in an original way. In terms of design, they captivate with their snow-white hue, airy consistency and, of course, taste.

It’s easy to decorate a cake at home using cream: just cool it in the refrigerator and beat at high speed until strong foam. Be sure to use a piping bag when decorating.

Crispy meringue tops almost any dessert. Traditionally they are baked in the form of hemispheres. Which, when decorating a cake, look more voluminous and unusual. The decor will especially appeal to little ones with a sweet tooth.

Chocolate

This is not only an ingredient for layering and making glaze, but also an excellent material for decoration.

The decoration is quite rare and few people know about it, although decoration with candied flowers has long been used in European countries.

To do this, you need to collect violets or rose petals. Dip them into lightly beaten egg whites, and then carefully roll them in icing sugar. The finished decoration is dried on a wire rack and stored in an airtight container.

“Ice pattern” always looks gentle and romantic. The appearance resembles patterns on glass, and the taste of the icing is similar to crispy pieces of ice. The universal decor never spreads, so it retains its shape perfectly. Icing decor is mainly used in the design of wedding cakes.

Jelly

Usually they cover fruits, but jelly-filled nuts will look no less original. You can surprise your guests with your imagination in another way: purchase various chocolate molds, prepare colorful jelly and pour them into these molds.

Voila, in a few hours you will have a lot of jelly figures to decorate your holiday baking.

Marmalade and candies

It’s unlikely that a children’s party would be complete without a cake with candles. And young guests, compared to adults, pay more attention to the design, and not to the composition of exotic ingredients.

Therefore, the most advantageous option would be decor in the form of multi-colored marmalades and M&Ms candies.

And another option for simple cake decoration is in the next video.

Chocolate is loved by those with a sweet tooth for its melting taste and delicate texture, doctors appreciate it for its high content of microelements, vitamins and antioxidants, and pastry chefs and decorators love it for the huge number of techniques that can be used to decorate any cake. Professionals use special tools to create their masterpieces. But you can also make chocolate cake decorations at home, which will not only be tasty, but also spectacular.

What kind of chocolate can you use to decorate a cake at home?

Only those products that contain cocoa butter have the right to be called chocolate.. The main components of chocolate also include cocoa mass and sugar. They also produce unsweetened chocolate, which contains 99% cocoa.

The following types of chocolate are used when decorating cakes:

bitter (dark) – contains at least 40–55% cocoa;
dairy - contains at least 25% cocoa and dairy products;
white - contains at least 20% cocoa butter, but does not contain cocoa liquor or powder.

Professional confectioners use chocolate, which is produced in blocks and dragees (drops). Chocolate bars can also be used for decoration at home.

Cocoa powder can also be used for decoration, but it should be of high quality; poor powder can squeak on the teeth.

Photo gallery: forms of chocolate suitable for decoration

Chocolate in the form of dragees is convenient for melting Chocolate blocks are often used by professional confectioners Chocolate bars can be used for decoration at home

In addition to real chocolate, you can find confectionery chocolate (glaze) in stores, in which cocoa butter is replaced with vegetable fats. It is produced in bars or in the form of chocolate figures.

Confectionery chocolate is significantly inferior in taste to real chocolate, but, on the other hand, it is less capricious and can be used for applications, patterns, and glazes.

What you need to know about chocolate

How to store and melt correctly

Chocolate has a long shelf life, but it should be kept tightly closed, away from strong-smelling foods, and protected from light and moisture. Storage temperature - from 12° C to 20° C.

Before you start decorating the cake, in most cases the chocolate is crushed and heated. For heating, you can use a microwave oven, a water or steam bath, or an oven heated to 50–100° C. In all cases, it is necessary to stir the chocolate frequently.

Attention! When heating, chocolate must be protected from steam and drops of water, otherwise it will curdle.

Tempering

Cocoa butter is very capricious. It contains fats, the crystals of which melt at different temperatures. If chocolate is not melted correctly, it may become coated, melt quickly in your hands, or become too thick. In tempering (targeted recrystallization), chocolate is successively heated, cooled and stirred, resulting in chocolate that melts in the mouth but remains hard and crisp at room temperature. For tempering, you should use high-quality chocolate.

Confectionery chocolate (glaze) does not require tempering, as it does not contain cocoa butter.

Professional confectioners use a marble board and special thermometers for tempering. The easiest way to temper chocolate at home is to use a microwave:

Chop the chocolate and place in the microwave.
Turn on the oven at maximum power.
Remove and stir the chocolate every 15 seconds until almost completely melted, small lumps should remain.
Remove the chocolate and stir until completely smooth.

Correctly tempered chocolate, applied in a thin layer on parchment, hardens within 3 minutes at a temperature of 20° C indoors.

If the chocolate thickens too quickly, excess crystallization has occurred. Add a little melted untempered chocolate to this chocolate and mix.

Simple DIY cornet

Confectionery bags are used to pipe chocolate patterns; disposable polyethylene options are especially convenient. If you don’t have them, you can roll up paper cornets yourself. To do this, cut out a square from parchment and divide it into 2 triangles diagonally. The resulting right triangle is folded into a cone, combining the sharp corners with the right one. The corner is bent outward to secure the cornet. The corner at the bottom is cut off only when the cornet is already filled with chocolate.

The bag or cornet is filled with melted chocolate. It is convenient to fill the cornet if you put it in a tall glass.

You can also replace pastry bags with a transparent paper file or a thick plastic milk bag.

Express design options

m&m's and KitKat

This is a very simple and effective way to decorate a cake. Bright chocolate dragees in sugar glaze will fit perfectly into a children's party.

You will need:

m&m's;
KitKat.

The cake will look good if the height of the chocolate bars exceeds the height of the cake itself by 1.5–2 cm.

Procedure:

Place chocolate sticks on the sides of the cake. If the sticks are connected to each other, it is better to separate them.
Cover the top of the cake with m&m's.
Additionally, the cake can be tied with ribbon.

You can decorate the cake with others: Kinder chocolate, chocolate balls.

Photo gallery: how to decorate a cake with ready-made chocolate products

The square cake is lined with bricks of chocolate bars and decorated with towers of cookies glued together with chocolate. You can make flowers out of white and milk dragees In this assortment of candies, any sweet tooth will choose a piece to suit their taste. Chocolate candies are laid out in a circle, and the composition is complemented by two-color chocolate rolls, which can be replaced with wafer rolls

Chocolate chips

You can sprinkle chocolate chips on both the top and sides of the cake. Making it at home is very simple: the chocolate bar is grated or cut with a vegetable peeler. In the latter case, curly curls of chocolate are obtained.

Depending on the grater you choose, you can get different chocolate chips - small or larger. The warmth of your hands softens the chocolate quickly, so it is better to grate small pieces of chocolate. You cannot cool the chocolate in the refrigerator beforehand or during the process; chocolate that is too cold will crumble and break.

Drawing using cocoa and stencil

The famous tiramisu is simply sprinkled with cocoa on top. You can decorate other cakes in the same way. The top of the cake should be smooth, then it will look neat. And with the help of cocoa and a stencil you can create a design on the cake.

You will need:

cocoa;
sieve;
stencil.

Procedure:

Place the stencil on the cake.
Sprinkle cocoa on top through a sieve.
Carefully remove the stencil.

You can use a ready-made stencil or make it yourself by cutting out a design from paper. You can also use an openwork cake napkin, a fork, etc. as a stencil.

If the surface of the cake is covered with soft or delicate cream (whipped cream, custard, sour cream), then it is better to keep the stencil at a short distance from the cake so that it does not stick to the surface and spoil it.

Frosting the cake

Chocolate glaze is very appetizing, especially when combined with fruit or fresh berries. You can also add colored sugar sprinkles or beads to the frosting. Before icing the cake, make sure it is well cooled. But the glaze should be warm.

Read more about chocolate glaze in our article:.

The cake can be covered with icing entirely or just the top, leaving delicious smudges on the sides. The glaze is poured into the center of the cake in a circular motion, then helped to spread using a knife or spatula. If you need to make more uniform drips, then first apply liquid glaze in a circular motion to the edges of the cake using a cornet or bag, and only then pour the top.

Chocolate and heavy cream ganache

Ingredients:

100 ml heavy cream (30–35%);
100 g dark, 150 g milk, or 250 g white chocolate.

Preparation:

Grind the chocolate.
Heat the cream to a boil.
Add the chopped chocolate to the cream and stir thoroughly with a whisk.

You can adjust the thickness of the glaze by increasing or decreasing the amount of cream or chocolate.

Chilling the ganache in the refrigerator for a few hours, then letting it come to room temperature and whisking will create a chocolate cream that can be used for cream decorations and cake layers.

Made from chocolate and milk

Ingredients:

100 g milk chocolate;
3–4 tbsp. l. milk.

Preparation:

Grind the chocolate, add milk.
Heat in the microwave or in a water bath, stirring constantly.

Made from chocolate and vegetable oil

Ingredients:

100 g chocolate;
2–4 tbsp. l. odorless vegetable oil.

Preparation:

Chop the chocolate and melt.
Add vegetable oil, stirring constantly.

You can make icing from different types of chocolate. Less oil is added to white, and more to bitter.

From cocoa powder

Ingredients:

1 cup of sugar;
1/2 cup cocoa powder;
1/4 cup milk;
50 g butter.

Preparation:

Place all ingredients in a bowl.
Place in a boiling water bath. Stirring constantly, heat for about a minute.
Remove from the bath, beat with a mixer until smooth.

Mirror glaze with gelatin

The cake to be covered with this glaze should be smooth (mousse cakes filled in silicone molds are ideal). Before covering it with mirror glaze, you need to keep it in the freezer for several hours.

Ingredients:

Preparation:

Soak leaf gelatin in cold boiled water. Let the gelatin swell for 10 minutes. When using powdered gelatin, pour 50 g of cold water into it, stir thoroughly and let it swell.
Combine sugar, water, cocoa powder and heavy cream and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. After boiling, add chopped chocolate and stir until completely dissolved.
Squeeze out excess water from leaf gelatin.
Add the swollen gelatin to the glaze and stir until completely dissolved.
To get rid of bubbles and for smoothness, the mixture is passed through a fine sieve or blended with an immersion blender, and then poured into a jar and covered with cling film. Frosting should be left in the refrigerator overnight before using..
Before covering the cake, you need to heat the chocolate glaze to a temperature of 35–45° C. To obtain smudges, you can reduce the temperature to 30° C, then it will harden faster. If there are a lot of bubbles in the glaze, strain it again through a fine mesh sieve. To cover the entire cake, place it on a wire rack and a baking sheet or other suitable surface lined with cling film. Pour warm glaze from the center in a spiral to the edges. The excess glaze on the baking sheet is collected for further use.

Photo gallery: cake design options with dripping and mirror glaze

Dripping frosting looks great on a contrasting colored cake. Using fruits and mirror glaze, you can create a bright composition on the cake The glaze can also be made white

Video: how to make beautiful smudges on a cake

Painting on icing with liquid white chocolate

Drawings on glaze using a toothpick or bamboo stick have already become a classic. A pattern is applied to dark chocolate glaze with white melted chocolate, and to light glaze - with bitter or milk chocolate. You need to apply the chocolate while the glaze is still liquid..

You can also apply the design to a cake covered with cream if the cream has a soft consistency.

Options:

Cobweb. Chocolate is applied to the glaze in a spiral from the center. Draw lines from the center to the edges.
Chevrons. Chocolate is applied to the glaze in parallel strips. Draw lines perpendicular to the stripes in both directions.
Hearts. Chocolate is applied to the glaze in small circles in a straight line or in a spiral. Draw a line through all the circles in one direction.
Marble. Chocolate of different colors is applied to the glaze using chaotic movements. Mix the glaze using circular motions to create a marbled effect.

Photo gallery: options for applying patterns to glaze

To draw a web, the stick moves from the center to the edges Applying a pattern in the form of chevrons involves moving the stick in turn from left to right and from left to right. Hearts are made by holding a stick through the center of round drops of melted chocolate. The marble effect is created by the free, chaotic movement of the stick.

Decorating the sides of the cake

The sides of the cake can be wrapped with chocolate ribbon, lined with chocolate teeth, tiles or tubes. The most difficult way to decorate is with tubes. They will require not only a lot of chocolate, but also a lot of patience.

Lace (chocolate)

Graceful chocolate curls or a simple geometric pattern are not difficult to make from chocolate, but they look very impressive. A chocolate ribbon made of dark or milk chocolate looks great on a white background, and a white pattern will highlight a dark background.

You can also use confectionery chocolate. It is less capricious, but significantly inferior in taste to natural.

You will need:

chocolate;
pencil, scissors.

Procedure:

Melt the chocolate in the microwave or in a water bath.
From baking paper, cut out a rectangular strip with a length equal to the circumference of the cake plus 2–3 cm, and a width equal to the height of the cake plus 2–3 cm. Draw a pattern with a pencil and turn the drawn side to the table. You can print the pattern on a printer and simply put it under baking paper.
For a wide cake, it is more convenient to make a chocolate ribbon from 2 halves.
Place the chocolate in a cornet or bag, cut a corner.
If the chocolate flows out too quickly, it should be allowed to cool slightly.
Gently pipe the chocolate onto the paper strip in a pattern.
Place paper strip with chocolate on sides of cake.
Place the cake in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
Remove the cake and carefully remove the paper.

After this, you can decorate the cake with a border of cream, berries, fruits or fresh flowers.

Video: how to make chocolate tape

Panels or crenellations

For this spectacular decoration you will need at least 400–500 g of chocolate, depending on the size of the cake. You can use bitter, milk, white chocolate, and also combine them to create marble patterns.

You will need:

chocolate;
knife or spatula;
parchment or baking paper.

Procedure:

Melt the chocolate.
Apply chocolate to parchment or baking paper and spread in an even layer using a knife or pastry spatula.
Let the chocolate harden.
Cut with a knife or break with your hands into pieces of arbitrary shape. The height of the panels should be higher than the cake.
Place on the sides of the cake so that the panels slightly overlap each other.

For a raised texture, you can crumple the parchment before applying chocolate to it. To create a pattern, first apply a pattern on parchment with white or dark chocolate, and fill it with a contrasting color on top.

Photo gallery: options for decorating a cake with chocolate panels

A cake with chocolate panels can be complemented with fresh flowers Chocolate panels can be made in unusual shapes The combination of white and dark chocolate gives an interesting marble pattern. The embossed texture and irregular shape of the teeth give the cake a special charm.

Video: how to make chocolate teeth with nuts and dried fruits

Tubes

Ready-made chocolate tubes are sold in specialized confectionery stores. However, you can make them yourself, including using white chocolate or mixing white and dark chocolate.

You will need:

chocolate;
acetate film;
thin tape;
knife, scissors.

Instead of acetate film, you can use transparent corner folders for papers.

Procedure:

"Cigars"

You will need:

chocolate;
marble board or metal baking sheet;
shoulder blade;
metal scraper or spatula.

If you don't have a special metal pastry scraper, a new stainless steel spatula will do.

Procedure:

Temper the chocolate.
Cool the marble board or metal sheet and place it on the table.
Spread the chocolate in a thin layer on the sheet using a spatula.
Use a knife to mark rectangles on the chocolate layer.
Let the chocolate thicken a little, but not harden..
Using a metal scraper or spatula at an angle of 45 degrees, remove the chocolate layer along the marked lines; it will roll into a tube.

Video: how to make chocolate “cigars”

Decorative elements made of chocolate

Curls, numbers, inscriptions and patterns

Melted chocolate is used to draw various decorative elements, figures, and numbers. Butterflies and various curlicues are very popular. These elements can be used to decorate both the top and sides of the cake..

You will need:

chocolate;
pastry bag or paper cornet;
parchment or baking paper;
stencil with a pattern.

Procedure:

Melt the chocolate. Fill a cornet or bag with melted chocolate and cut a corner.
Print or draw the desired design on paper (curls, numbers, inscriptions). Place a sheet of parchment on the sheet with the pattern, you can secure it with paper clips along the edges. Gently pipe the chocolate onto the parchment according to the design.
Allow the elements to harden.
Remove the chocolate pieces from the parchment.

If the parchment is placed on a rolling pin, wrapped around a glass, or other suitable objects while the chocolate is hardening, the blanks will turn out voluminous. This way you can create chocolate spirals, flowers, butterflies.

Photo gallery: options for decorating a cake with decorative chocolate elements and examples of stencils

Openwork triangles are laid in a circle supported by cream rosettes or berries The cake can be decorated with a chocolate inscription or numbers Graceful decorative elements are usually mounted in cream rosettes You can put one large or several small butterflies on the cake Openwork butterflies can be flat or consist of two halves located at an angle to each other Openwork decorative elements will decorate the top or sides of the cake Small decorative elements are usually used to make a border around the edge of the cake.

Video: creating a chocolate flower

Applications with outline

Unlike lace, such decorative elements have a background and a contrasting outline along the contour.

You will need:

white and dark chocolate (bitter or milk);
pastry bag or paper cornet;
parchment or baking paper;
paper with a pattern.

Procedure:

Place a sheet of parchment on the sheet with the design.
Melt dark chocolate. Squeeze it onto the parchment along the contour of the design placed under it and let it harden.
Melt white chocolate. Fill out the rest of the application. Allow to set completely and then turn over.

By mixing white and dark chocolate or by adding dyes to white chocolate, you can achieve different shades and make the applique colored. For colored applications, special chocolate dyes are required. Do not use fruit juices for this, as the chocolate may curdle.

Simple cutouts

Even a child can handle making these parts, so feel free to call your son or daughter to help you.

You will need:

chocolate;
parchment or baking paper;
spatula or knife;
cuttings, cookie molds.

Procedure:

Melt the chocolate.
Using a knife or spatula, spread the chocolate in an even layer of 2–3 mm on the parchment.
When the chocolate begins to harden, use molds or cutters to cut out the elements.

If the chocolate sticks to the mold, it has not cooled enough. If the chocolate breaks, it has already hardened too much and needs to be reheated.

Chocolate leaves

This is a very simple idea with great results. You can get creative and use a variety of leaves as a base.

You will need:

chocolate;
brush;
leaves, such as roses.

Procedure:

Wash the leaves and dry well. Melt the chocolate.
You need to apply chocolate - pay attention! - on the back side of the leaves. Then, using a brush, distribute it from the middle of the sheet to the edges and transfer it to a clean surface to harden.
Leave the leaves with the chocolate until completely hardened.
Carefully remove the base leaves from the frozen chocolate. These chocolate leaves would be good on an autumn cake, for example, on a cake in honor of September 1st. You can decorate both the top and sides of the cake with chocolate leaves.

Photo gallery: cake design options with chocolate foliage

Making figures using molds

Molds are silicone molds designed specifically for molding chocolate. With their help, you can easily and quickly get a lot of decorative elements to decorate one or even several cakes.

You will need:

chocolate;
silicone or plastic molds for chocolate.

The molds must be clean and completely dry before pouring chocolate.

Procedure:

Melt the chocolate.
Pour chocolate into molds, remove excess chocolate from top, let harden.
Get out the chocolate figures. To do this, you can turn the silicone mold inside out, and turn the plastic one over and lightly tap it on the table.

Molds for chocolate are sold in specialized confectionery stores, art stores, and in household departments with tableware. Molds for making soap or ice are also suitable.

Chocolate bow

This cake will be an ideal gift. In addition, he will practically not need any other decorations: a huge bow on its own will make a stunning impression, rest assured.

You will need:

chocolate;
parchment;
scissors, ruler, pencil.

Procedure:

Draw rectangles approximately 3*18 cm in size on parchment and cut. For 1 bow you will need about 15 such blank strips.
Melt the chocolate.
Apply chocolate to strips. Each strip must be completely covered.
Remove the strip of chocolate and move it to a clean place.
When the chocolate begins to set, connect the ends of the strip and place the resulting loops on their sides. Let it harden.
Once hardened, remove the parchment from the chocolate.
On a piece of parchment, use melted chocolate to join the bottom row of 6 stitches. Let it harden.
Make the second and next rows in the same way, gluing the loops in the center with melted chocolate.
After hardening, transfer the bow to the cake.

Modeling chocolate

Chocolate mastic allows you to create quite complex figures, flowers, you can also completely cover cakes with it, create draperies, bows, and ruffles. Fresh mastic is plastic, reminiscent of soft plasticine, but when it dries, it becomes hard. Plastic chocolate is similar to mastic, but is more used for modeling.

Store the mastic in the refrigerator, tightly wrapped in several layers of cling film.

Plastic chocolate

Modeling chocolate is prepared from bitter, milk and white chocolate and glucose syrup. At home, glucose syrup can be replaced with light liquid honey or invert syrup.

Ingredients:

200 g white, milk or dark chocolate;
respectively 50 g, 80 g or 100 g of invert syrup.
For the syrup:
- 350 g sugar;
- 150 ml water;
- 2 g citric acid;
- 1.5 g soda.

First you need to cook the invert syrup:

Boil water with sugar, stir until sugar dissolves.
Add citric acid, cover and simmer over low heat for about 20 minutes. Cool to 50–60° C.
Add baking soda and stir. The syrup will begin to foam.
Cool. The foam will go away as it cools.
Pour into a closed container and leave at room temperature.

Let's move on to preparing the mastic:

Chop the chocolate and melt.
Heat the syrup until warm.
Mix the syrup and chocolate thoroughly so that there are no lumps left.
The resulting mass may seem quite liquid at first, but after cooling it becomes thicker and harder.
Carefully wrap the mastic with cling film so that there is no contact with air.
After a few hours you can sculpt the figures. Before modeling, take the chocolate in small pieces and knead it thoroughly with your hands. Large pieces of mastic are heated in the microwave for a few seconds.

The proportions given are approximate, as they depend on the thickness of the syrup and the percentage of cocoa content in the chocolate.

Video: preparing modeling chocolate and decorating a cake with ruffles and roses

Chocolate marshmallow mastic

Marshmallow is an airy marshmallow that is produced in the form of pillows or braids. By combining chocolate with marshmallows, you get mastic, which can be used both for modeling and for covering the cake.

Ingredients:

180 g marshmallows;
200 g dark chocolate;
150 g powdered sugar;
1–3 tbsp. l. water;
1 tbsp. l. butter.

Preparation:

Sift the powdered sugar.
It is better to use a little less powdered sugar rather than more.
Melt the chocolate.
Add water to the marshmallows and melt in the microwave at maximum power, stirring every 20 seconds.
Mix marshmallows with chocolate and butter.
Add the chocolate-marshmallow mixture to the sifted powder and knead until smooth.
Wrap tightly in cling film to avoid contact with air.
After a few hours you can use it to sculpt figures and cover the cake. At first the mastic seems very soft, but after it sits, it hardens.

No celebration is complete without a birthday cake. Not only children, but also adults are waiting for his final appearance. A beautiful cake, decorated without the help of a specialist, at home, can be a big, pleasant surprise for guests. How to do this without special skills and equipment? We will teach. The main thing is desire and patience.

In this master class we will decorate a cake weighing 6 kg with fondant.

Decorations made from mastic must be made in advance (1-2 days in advance).

Required Products:

For decoration:

Cream (35%) – 700-800ml
Powdered sugar – 4-5 tbsp. lie
Vanilla extract – 0.5 – 1 tsp.

For mastic:

Gelatin – 6 g
Water – 25 ml
Protein – 0.5 pcs.
Lemon juice – 0.5 tsp.
Powdered sugar – 500-600g
Starch (potato) – 50g (1.5 tbsp.)
Food colorings

Tools:

rolling pin
Glass
Food foil
Coffee cups (same size)

How to decorate a cake with fondant

1. For mastic you need store-bought powdered sugar because it is finer. Before work it needs to be sifted. Soak the gelatin in water and leave to swell. After this, bring to complete dissolution in a water bath.

2. Pour some of the powdered sugar into a separate bowl and mix with starch. Pour in gelatin, lemon juice, add protein (first mix the whole protein in a cup and divide into 2 parts).

3. Mix the mixture thoroughly, adding powdered sugar if necessary.

4. Mastic needs to be kneaded, just like yeast dough. You should get an elastic mass that does not stick to your hands. Cover the bowl with cling film to prevent the mastic from drying out.

5. To tint the mastic in the desired colors, you need to use food dyes (or natural ones - beets, spinach, carrots, etc.) But you just need to decide on the required amount of mastic for each color (for flowers you will need more than for leaves).

6. The mastic is ready and you can start sculpting a flower, something like a poppy. While working, the table should be dusted with starch or powdered sugar. Roll out a piece of mastic into a layer 3-4mm thick.

7. Using a glass, cut out circles - these are the future flower petals that will decorate our cake.

8. For one flower you need 5 such blanks. You shouldn't cut out more because they will dry out and crumble before you start working with them.

9. Cut 10×10 or 15×15 squares from foil. Place one square into each coffee cup, creating a small! deepening The edges of the foil need to be bent in such a way as to give a certain uneven shape (all parts do not have to be of equal height). The “beds” for flowers are ready and you can sculpt them (like from plasticine). Take the blank circle in your hands and, using finger pressure, give the future petal a thinner edge, moving in a circle. After this, an elongated oval is formed. Transfer the petal to the foil, giving it a more curved shape in some places.

10. Place the petal in the foil mold so that the bottom is covered (this is the base of the flower). To connect with the rest of the petals, you need to apply a little solution of gelatin, syrup or water to this place with a brush.

11. Proceed identically with the rest of the blanks, giving a more elegant edge to the petal.

12. When forming a flower, you need to overlap the petals, giving the shape as you wish.

13. The collected flower should consist of 4-5 petals. The main thing is that there are no voids between them.

14. There should be a pestle in the center. It needs to be formed from yellow mastic. Take a small piece (the size of a pea) and use your hands to shape it into an elongated shape. Make small cuts on one side with scissors. Glue it to the center of the flower.

15. While the mastic has not yet dried, you can make some adjustments to the shape of the flower, giving it a natural look.

16. Carefully transfer the cups with the preparations to a dry place until completely dry. This will take 1-2 days.

17. You can also sculpt roses and other flowers from mastic.

18. To work with mastic, you can use various forms for flat flowers (you can add volume by raising the edges).

19. To make leaves, you can also use ready-made molds or cut them with a knife. To give a natural look, you need to make shallow grooves with a knife, bend them with your hands as desired, or place them on a rolling pin sprinkled with powdered sugar.

20. Before decorating the cake with bouquets of flowers, its surface needs to be given a finished look. Therefore, the cake should be covered with buttercream. To do this, whip the cream with powdered sugar and vanilla extract into a fluffy, stable mass.

21. It is advisable to decorate the cake after it has been completely assembled and soaked a little.

22. Grease the entire surface of the cake with buttercream (you can skip the sides, they will have a different fate).

23. Use a figured nozzle to decorate the sides, making weaving like a basket.

24. Use the same nozzle to make a border for the cake, drawing zigzag lines. The cake is ready for further decoration with flowers.

25. Before placing ready-made mastic flowers on the cake, you need to plan their arrangement to create a beautiful bouquet. First, flowers are placed, and only then the bouquet is filled with leaves.

26. Because the leaves have dried on a rounded surface, they can be used to give the edge of the cake an airy feel. Volumetric flowers and leaves will always look more natural.

Advice: It is advisable to practice mastic in a good mood. This is painstaking but exciting work that requires a calm, creative approach. Good luck in creating beauty and mood.