Cake Decorating

• Recent advancements in cake decorating have elevated cakes from desserts to art. There are two basic styles of cake decorating. The first, and more traditional method, involves covering the cake in frosting, then adding decorative elements. These elements can include piping or other colors of frosting to create flowers and other designs or adding props like baby bottles and toy cars. There are even new technologies that allow you to create an edible version of your own photograph and apply it to the top of your cake.
  
  The second form of cake making involves using fondant. Fondant is a sugar-based substance with the consistency of modeling clay. It can be sculpted and formed into shapes in the same way modeling clay can. It can also be rolled completely flat, allowing you to cover a cake without the ripples of frosting. Fondant creates a more substantial surface to decorate on and molds into shapes that frosting cannot.
  
  Cake-making is also often combined with candy making, using candy to decorate cakes and to sculpt artistic elements out of cake. For example, decorative cake elements can be sculpted out of modeling chocolate, and heavy cake structures that will appear on the top of a cake can be made out of puffed rice candies, which are lighter than regular cake.
  
  

Rock Star Ideas

• Create a cake in the shape of a musical instrument. The obvious choice would be to make a guitar, as guitars are perhaps the ultimate symbol of rock 'n' roll, but you could also make a cake in the shape of a drum set, a keyboard or a specialty guitar like a bass guitar. You can also create a cake in the shape of a piece of musical equipment, such as a microphone, cassette tape, speakers, a boom box or a tour bus.
  
  Use the cover of a rock album for inspiration. If the birthday girl is a die-hard fan of a particular group or album, a cake depicting her favorite album is not only impressive but also adds sentimental value, as it shows you remembered her favorite album.
  
  Create an elaborate concert scene. If you have really fantastic cake-making skills, you can create a cake that looks like a crowded arena with a stage. You can either add her favorite rock star on the stage, or if she's a musician, you can add her to the stage, playing to a sold-out crowd.
  
  Decorate the cake to look like she is on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine. Use an old copy of the magazine as a reference, and add her image to the center of the cake. Rolling Stone magazine is regarded by many as the premier music magazine in the industry, so adding your rocker to the cover is a huge honor on her big day.
  
  Make a cake that looks like concert tickets or a concert poster. You could also make a cake that looks like her name on the marquee of a famous concert venue. Be sure to include interesting wording on the sign, like "Tonight, Live in Concert!"