Do You Love Baking But Find Decorating Cakes a Little Daunting? Fear Not! Here We Have 5 Simple, Easy Cake Decorations Ideas That’ll Make Your Cakes Centre of Attention (2020)

Do You Love Baking But Find Decorating Cakes a Little Daunting? Fear Not! Here We Have 5 Simple, Easy Cake Decorations Ideas That’ll Make Your Cakes Centre of Attention (2020)

Turn a basic cake into a treat worthy of a celebration with different varieties of frosting and a few creative details. Use these easy tips and instructions to learn how to make cake decorations like a pro! Find helpful hints for frosting a cake and more cake decorating tips. Read on to find out all about it!

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Different Kinds of Frosting for Cake Decoration

Baking is right now the most favourite hobby during the lockdown. Hundreds of women are trying their hand on baking and posting fabulous baked creations on the internet. The baking itself is an art and if you can bake good cakes, but still struggling on how to decorate them then you are in luck. We have compiled a list of great tips on how to decorate a cake for you but before that let us learn about the various kinds of frostings you can use to decorate your cakes.

  • 1. Butter Cream
    It is the easiest to work with, it is a soft and spreadable frosting, which can be used as a filling or to decorate a cake with. To make perfect buttercream you need to cream sugar and butter or margarine together. The taste of the buttercream depends on the fat used in it. You can add some vanilla extract in it to enhance its flavour. You should keep it in the fridge as it will melt fast due to cream and butter in it.

  • 2. Whipped Cream
    If you like the fluffy look and a light taste of your cake then you can use whipped cream. Everybody likes whipped cream. You need to whip heavy cream and sugar together until it is light and fluffy. You can use meringue powder and add other flavours or colours to it.

  • 3. Royal Icing
    Royal icing is perfect for people with a sweet tooth. It is a pure white paste which solidifies as it starts to dry. You can make royal icing by beating egg whites, icing sugar and lime juice together till it gets smooth and hard. You can also use meringue powder in place of egg whites as there is a risk of salmonella through egg whites. You can mix different food colours to get different colours of Royal icing.

  • 4. Cream Cheese Frosting
    Cream Cheese is extra creamy and cheesy and tastes great on carrot cakes or red velvet cakes. You can make delicious cream cheese frosting by mixing buttercream with cream cheese. It is a little heavy but gives a great texture to your cake.

  • 5. Meringue
    Meringue is made by mixing egg whites, cold water and granulated sugar. To get perfect Meringue you need to learn to incorporate air in it. You can also add different nuts to add some flavour in it. There are three main kinds of Meringue i.e. French, Italian and Swiss and the difference between them is only the say the eggs are beaten to make it. If bakes they make great cookies too.

  • 6. Fondant
    Fondants are a lot of fun. You can make different shapes out of fondant to decorate a cake. It is made of water, gelatin, glycerin, water, sugar and shortening. Most of the professional bakers use fondants to decorate cakes.

  • 7. Ganache
    Ganache is great for chocolate lovers. You can make the perfect Ganache by warming up heavy cream and adding dark chocolate to it and mixing it well. You can make it in bulk and store it in the fridge to use it later. It tastes great and looks good on a cake. If you want to turn your Ganache into the frosting, then let it come to room temperature and beat in on high till it gets light and fluffy then use it as a frosting.

Tips for Decorating Cake Perfectly

If you already know about the different kinds of frosting, but still not able to decorate your cakes perfectly, then you should check out the tips given below. It will help you in learning the art of decorating cakes at home.

    You will need:

  • Rotating cake turntable (it is optional but makes it a lot easier to decorate a cake)
  • Serrated cake or bread knife, it helps in levelling and splitting layers.
  • Offset palette knife, helps in putting frosting easily without having to use your fingers.
  • Pastry bag with tips for creating designs from frosting
  • Cake smoother/scraper to smoothen the frosting before adding patterns on the cake
  • 1. It is advisable to freeze your cake before putting frosting on it. It is easier to apply frosting on a frozen cake as it does not crumble too much.

  • 2. Try to use a turntable for levelling and frosting your cake to get a perfect cake

  • 3. If your baked cake is curved at the top, cut the top layer of the cake to make it even

  • 4. Put the first layer of the cake on the board in the centre, you can put a small dollop of frosting in the centre of the board before putting the cake on it to prevent it from slipping or moving.

  • 5. Next is to apply the crumb coat. It is the light coating of frosting which prevents the crumbs from falling off before applying the final coat of frosting. For a layered cake, apply a layer of frosting on it and then place the other cake on it. Next, apply the crumb coat on the whole cake and let it chill for 30 minutes.

  • 6. Now, put a mound of frosting on top of your cake and spread it over with the palette knife. Cover the sides as well.

  • 7. Take a pastry bag and fit it with the kind of pattern you want on the borders. Keep the tip of the bag at 45 degrees and start making the pattern you want as the piping

  • 8. Take different coloured frosting and use either a piping bag or a spoon and decorate your cake with various patterns, flowers etc. Add sprinkles and your cake is all set to show off.

Cool Cake Decoration Ideas

Funfetti Buttermilk Cake

The Funfetti buttermilk cake is a delicious and easy bake cake. Here is the recipe for the cake and a great way to decorate it for your upcoming party.

    Ingredients:

  • 1 cup softened butter
  • 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 cups cake flour
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 3/4 cups sugar
  • 4 eggs
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 1/4 cups buttermilk
  • 1 3/4 to 2 ounces rainbow jimmies


  • Method:

  • 1. Take flours, baking powder and salt and mix it in a bowl and keep it aside

  • 2. Take the butter and sugar and cream it well in a mixer.

  • 3. Add two eggs at a time in the cream mixer and mix well then add vanilla extract to it

  • 4. Take half of the flour mixture and half of the buttermilk and add it in the cream and egg mixer. After mixing it well add the other half in it as well. Add the jimmies at the end.

  • 5. Take two round cake pans and cover with parchment paper and butter. Pour the batter equally in both the pans and bake it for 30 min at 350 degrees.

  • 6. Check by inserting a toothpick in the centre of the cake.

  • 7. Remove the cakes and let them cool completely.

    Ingredients for frosting:

  • 2 1/4 cups sugar
  • 9 large egg whites
  • 3 cups softened (room temperature) butter
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract


  • Method:

  • 1. Take a glass bowl and put it over simmering water

  • 2. Add sugar and egg whites and whisk for a couple of minutes

  • 3. Make sure the sugar is completely dissolved, but the eggs are not cooked.

  • 4. Rub it between your fingers to check for sugar granules, there should be none.

  • 5. Take the egg whites and beat them for 5 minutes on medium speed, then increase the speed to high and beat for 6 to 7 minutes more until it is stiff and you can see peaks forming in it.

  • Add two tablespoons of butter at a time and mix on low speed. Make sure the butter is off room temperature.

  • 7. After mixing all the butter, add vanilla extract

  • 8. If your frosting looks like cottage cheese you can use it as a Swiss meringue buttercream.

  • 9. If you see lumps in it remove 1/4 cup of it from the mixer and heat it in a microwave till it is melted. Now add this to the lumpy frosting and beat it in the mixer until smooth.

  • 10. Apply it generously on your cake and enjoy.

Chocolate Drip Cake

A chocolate drip cake looks beautiful. It is very easy to make it and the kids love it. All you need is to learn to make perfect Ganache and decorate any chocolate or even a plain cake with it. Making chocolate ganache does not take too much time, but can turn your cake into a piece of art in minutes. All you need is some chocolate and heaving whipping cream. You can use chocolate chips or another high-quality baking bar for the perfect ganache.

    Method:

  • 1. Put the chocolate chips in a bowl and keep it aside.

  • 2. Now, take the whipping cream and heat it. It should be nice and hot, but not boiling.

  • 3. Pour the hot cream on the chocolate and let it sit there for 5 minutes.

  • 4. Now whisk the chocolate and cream together slowly and bring it to a smooth consistency. Your ganache is all set.


  • Take your cake out of the freezer and set it up on the board for decorating it.


  • 1. Take a squeeze bottle and pour the ganache in it

  • 2. Gently squeeze the bottle by keeping it just a couple of centimetres above the cake's edge.

  • 3. Let the ganache drip over the cake and keep turning your turntable as you drip the ganache on the cake.

  • 4. You will need to finish this process quickly before the ganache firms up again.

    Tips for decorating your drip cake


  • 1. You need to let the ganache sit for 15 minutes so that it hardens up before using it on your cake

  • 2. You test the thickness of the ganache by letting it drip using a spoon on the side of a bowl to see how fast it comes down. If it drops quickly then let it sit for 5 more minutes and test again.

  • 3. It is best to use a cooled down cake, a room temperature cake would do just fine or you can keep it in the fridge.

Buttercream Flower Cake

This Buttercream Flower Cake is another great and super quick cake to make. The frosting of the cake is simple with ingredients like butter and vanilla. To make the frosting of the cake you need to choose the two primary colours for your roses and the large swirls. The following recipe makes 21/2 cups of frosting.

    Ingredients:

  • 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
  • 3 1/2 to 4 cups powdered sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 to 2 tablespoons heavy cream or milk


  • Method:

  • 1. Bake a cake and keep it in the fridge

  • 2. Use soft, room temperature butter.

  • 3. Sift sugar in a bowl to avoid lumps in it

  • 4. Take the butter and run in an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth

  • 5. Add 3 cups of sugar first in the butter and run on low speed. Increase the speed to medium and mix well

  • 6. Add vanilla and cream and run again till mixed well

  • 7. Mix the batter until smooth and creamy

  • 8. Now add the rest of the sugar until the buttercream is firm and fluffy

  • 9. Take your cake out of the fridge and level it out by cutting off the top.

  • 10. Fill a piping bag with vanilla frosting and start with putting a layer of it on the cake starting from the edge and coming to the middle

  • 11. Use a spatula to even it out

  • 12. Keep the cake in the fridge again to let the crumb coating to harden.

  • 13. Fill a piping bag with the frosting for roses and make roses on the edge of the cake

  • 14. Now make large swirls where you want as per your design

  • 15. When you are done, put the cake in the fridge again for a few hours before serving it.

Cake with a Sprinkled Heart

If you are looking to make a beautiful cake for your partner this Valentine then this cake with a sprinkled heart would be great. It is very easy to decorate this cake and looks fabulous.

You will need a white frosted cake and sprinkles of your choice.

    Method:

  • 1. Take a piece of cardboard or cardstock and cut it in 12" x 12" piece.

  • 2. Cut out a heart in the centre of the piece

  • 3. Put the heart on the cake in the centre

  • 4. Fill the heart with colourful sprinkles and remove the heart carefully

  • 5. You are done. Watch your special someone smile when he sees this beautiful cake with a heart on it.

Sweet Clouds Lollipop Cake

This clouds lollipop cake is the best cake for a kid's birthday party. It looks great and tastes even better.

    Method:

  • 1. Bake two cakes and let it cool.

  • 2. Stack them, it should be a 6-inch high cake

  • 3. Ice the sides of the cake

  • 4. Take a paper towel and rip it in half lengthwise.

  • 5. Hold the paper up to the cake

  • 6. Take blue colour mist and spray along the edge of paper towel, start at the top of the cake and work towards the bottom

  • 7. Do not overlap or overspray on the cake

  • 8. Take lollipops and insert at the top of the cake, use multi-coloured lollipops for a colourful cake.
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In Conclusion!

Cake decorating is a very creative activity where you can apply all the ideas you have in your mind. The key is to be organized, to plan your cake decoration theme, and then just apply the techniques available you love the most. We hope this article helped you to make creative cake decorations at home. Now you know how to decorate an amazing cake, try out your new-found skills?