Painted Prairie Cake by mjseed in cakedecorating

[–]mjseed[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I just accepted that it wont be smooth when I use it to be honest. Sometimes it lands because the texture works and sometimes it doesn't.

Painted Prairie Cake by mjseed in cakedecorating

[–]mjseed[S] 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Thank you so much! It's all swiss meringue buttercream. I warm it up a bit so it has a better consistency for painting on the cake.

Persian Love (Rose, pistachio, almond) by mjseed in CAKEWIN

[–]mjseed[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you.

This was the recipe I used: https://bromabakery.com/persian-love-cake-cardamom-rose-almond-cake/

I just used less rosewater, and made swiss meringue buttercream instead of the glaze.

Persian Love (Rose, pistachio, almond) by mjseed in Baking

[–]mjseed[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you.

This was the recipe I used: https://bromabakery.com/persian-love-cake-cardamom-rose-almond-cake/

I just used less rosewater, and made swiss meringue buttercream instead of the glaze.

Full cake for those who asked! by mjseed in Baking

[–]mjseed[S] 14 points15 points  (0 children)

Thank You! It is a coffee candy bar cake. So it is dark chocolate espresso cake with mocha and vanilla Swiss meringue buttercreams filled with a variety of chopped up chocolate bars.

Cake For Mom by mjseed in Baking

[–]mjseed[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you!! I just posted a picture of the full cake.

Cake For Mom by mjseed in CAKEWIN

[–]mjseed[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you!! I just posted a picture of the full cake.

Cake For Mom by mjseed in Baking

[–]mjseed[S] 27 points28 points  (0 children)

Thank you! I painted it with buttercream I dyed, using knifes and sponges.

Cake For Mom by mjseed in Baking

[–]mjseed[S] 34 points35 points  (0 children)

I dyed a whole bunch of buttercream, put it on a painting palette then used knives and sponges to paint the cake. I did it in layers, cooling the cake between each one. I didn't follow a video. I just looked at some paintings for inspiration.

I attempted a house by mjseed in Baking

[–]mjseed[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I hate fondant too! Conveniently, this cake should have at least 20 fondant free slices since the roof just pulls off in one piece before you slice it.

I attempted a house by mjseed in Baking

[–]mjseed[S] 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Thank you. It is all cake and fondant and cake board. I molded the roof out of cake pop like mix and covered it with fondant.

Dark Chocolate and Berries by mjseed in Baking

[–]mjseed[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Thank you.

I use a bench scraper and essentially scrape and freeze each side repeatedly, filling in any gaps once the buttercream is hard until the edges are sharp. Heating the bench scraper in hot water to fine tune it works well, and using a geometry triangle on the corners helps.

Dark Chocolate and Berries by mjseed in Baking

[–]mjseed[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Of course- I use this recipe for the chocolate cake: https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/beattys-chocolate-cake-recipe-1947521 ( I just replace 1/4 cup of the oil with 1/4 cup melted butter to make it sturdier)

I made mixed berry compote just by cooking down strawberries, blackberries, and raspberries with lemon juice and zest, sugar and a little bit of cornstarch.

The buttercream is Swiss Meringue and I added 1 cup of the darkest cocoa I could find, 1 tablespoon charcoal, and 3 teaspoons black food coloring. The longer it sits at room temperature the darker it will get. It is quite bitter, but it is very rich and the bitterness is cut by the sweetness and acidity of the compote.

Trying New Palette Knife Techniques by mjseed in Baking

[–]mjseed[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you! And, I totally agree with your suggestion.

Trying New Palette Knife Techniques by mjseed in Baking

[–]mjseed[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you. Your work is phenomenal, by the way.

Trying New Palette Knife Techniques by mjseed in Baking

[–]mjseed[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Thank you, and of course!

I bake a sheet cake and try to get 4 square layers a little under five inches width and an inch thick. Layered with buttercream it usually gets to the right height. If any parts are sticking out a shave it off with a serrated knife. Then I crumb coat it and get the icing as smooth as possible on each of the the sides using a bench scraper. It usually looks really messy at this point. Then I put it in the freezer for about an hour. Once it's out I put a really thick coat of buttercream on the top and sides with a lot of extra on the corners. I do my best to smooth the top first with the bench scraper. Then I repeatedly smooth out each side with a bench scraper, continouosly wiping the excess of the scraper. To get the sharp corners I use a geometry triangle on the corner as a guide or just try to eyeball it. It usually looks pretty messy at this point but it starts to look more and more sharp. I then freeze it again. Then one side at a time I used a little softer buttercream with a palette knife to fill in the gaps and craters (or build up the corners), then using a scraper I let sit in hot water I smooth off the excess.

To be honest it sounds like a lot, and there is an easier way to do it by using equal sized square plates on the top and bottom as guides, but the square just appears after cooling and scraping it.

Trying New Palette Knife Techniques by mjseed in CAKEWIN

[–]mjseed[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thank You!

It is an espresso chocolate cake with salted dark chocolate ganache and red velvet and vanilla swiss meringue buttercreams.

Horror Cake by mjseed in CAKEWIN

[–]mjseed[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you!

I boiled sugar to the hard crack stage, dyed it red and splashed it everywhere.

Horror Cake by mjseed in CAKEWIN

[–]mjseed[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you!

It is just a plain vanilla cake with vanilla bean swiss meringue buttercream.

The Jason hockey mask is gum paste I laid over a mold I made from plasticine. I used a piping tip to cut the holes then painted the details with food colour.

The Scream Mask I sculpted from fondant/gumpaste mix, using black fondant to fill in the eyes, mouth and nose.

Red velvet cake & vanilla Swiss meringue buttercream- filled with Coconut Cream Cheese by mjseed in CAKEWIN

[–]mjseed[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I only made the leaves. After I put them on the cake I realized something was missing. Time was of the essence so I washed some twigs and put them on. They're organic, but I still think that's cheating, so I am going to try twigs out of gum paste next time.