Professional Cake Decorating

Excerpts from the Book (Click on images to enlarge)

Basket of Fruit
This work of art is a magnificent collection of nearly life-size marzipan peaches, pears, oranges, and apples. The fruits are flanked with marzipan leaves, berries, and gumpaste blossoms.

On the bottom, the basket is iced in smocked panels with stitchwork, and finished off with clusters of blossoms. The result is truly an outstanding piece that’s suitable for the finale of a lavish dinner party.

SKILLS NEEDED
Marzipan fruit modeling
Smocked panels
Gumpaste flowers
SKILL: BASKET WEAVE

Ingredients
6 oz (170 g) Practice Buttercream Icing

Equipment
#46 or #48 basketweave tip
12-in (30.5 cm) flex pastry bag or lightweight pastry bag
8-in (20.32 cm) round Styrofoam attached to a 10-in (25.40 cm) cardboard round

Although basket weaving is an old-world technique, it is still commonly used and produces a stunning cake without a lot of effort. Amateurs and pros alike can give a tailored look to a cake with basket weave. With a little effort, your basket weave cake can be a work of art.

Basket weaving can be accomplished with several types of icing tips. Although the #46 and #48 are popular tips and often used to create this look, you can use round tips (#7, #8, #9, #10, #12), star tips (#16, #18, #20, #21, #22), or even petal-shaped tips (#101, #102, #103, or #104).

Illustration
Left, top to bottom: The steps to create basket weave, using different colors and a #18 star tip for the downstroke.
Right, top to bottom: The downstroke, crossover strokes, another downstroke that covers the first round of crossover strokes, and a crossover stroke over the second downstroke.

Decorator's Hint: If you are practicing on a flat surface, position the icing tip and pastry bag at a 45° angle to it. Use the lift-and-drop technique to move the icing to the desired points on the surface.

• Chocolates and Confections: Formula, Theory, and Technique for the Artisan Confectioner
• The Art of the Chocolatier: From Classic Confections to Sensational Showpieces
• The Art of the Confectioner: Sugarwork and Pastillage
• How Baking Works: Exploring the Fundamentals of Baking Science, 3rd edition.
• The Professional Pastry Chef: Fundamentals of Baking and Pastry, 4th Edition
• Maggie Austin Cake: Artistry and Technique
• The Complete Photo Guide to Cake Decorating
• The Pastry Chef's Companion: A Comprehensive Resource Guide for the Baking and Pastry Professional
• 100 Buttercream Flowers: The Complete Step-by-Step Guide to Piping Flowers in Buttercream Icing
• Wilton Decorating Cakes Book (The Wilton school)