If you are really passionate about baking, you should know how much practicing it requires for perfect decoration. And you won’t be able to bring professional outcomes overnight of practicing. But with the practice, it leads to a lot of wastage, which is not expected.
So, how to practice cake decorating without waste?
To practice cake decoration without waste, use can use parchment paper, wax paper, a stock pot, cardboard, or a cooking counter. That way, you can avoid wasting the cake. If you want to reduce waste in icing, then go for mashed potato, shortening, or royal icing. That way you would make the least waste.
Till now, you have got the zest for the entire discussion. If you are interested in knowing more, give a read to the following article.
Practicing Cake Decorating Without Waste: 6 Most Effective Ways
To master the art of perfect cake decoration, one needs to practice it over and over again. And decorating a real cake will lead to waste. And if you want to avoid that, there are some effective ways to explore.
Here are the ways of decorating cakes without any major waste in the following-
Using Parchment Paper:
There are several usages of parchment paper in cake decoration. As these papers don’t absorb moisture easily, it will cause minimal waste of the icing. Moreover, you won’t need to have any real cake, you can practice on the parchment paper.
First, take good-quality parchment paper and place it on a smooth surface. You should always go for parchment papers that are made with 100% wood pulp, and organic material. And look for the parchment paper having silicon coated on both sides.
Now you can practice icing as many times as you want on the parchment paper. Once the paper is full of icing, you can scrape it off with a spatula and use the paper again for practice.
You can also preserve the icing in the fridge for further use just like you can reuse failed choux pastry.
Using Thick Cardboard:
Thick cardboard is a really good option for practicing cake decoration practicing. You can easily reuse the frosting multiple times and also don’t need to waste any cake. Cardboards are also reusable.
So collect cardboard that is clean enough for frosting practice. Cut the cardboard according to the cake turntable. You can cover the whole cardboard with a crumb coat of frosting. That way it would feel like a real cake, and now you are ready for practicing decoration.
The best thing about this practice is you can even practice coming intricate decorations or flowers on it. You can also go for cutting boards that would give you the same kind of practice experience.
Using Wax Paper:
As everyone is pretty much aware of the fact that wax papers are not heat resistant, but they are amazing for cake decoration practice. The using procedures of wax paper are pretty much similar to parchment paper.
You can cut the wax paper according to your convenience size. It is better to place the wax paper on the cake turntable and stick it to the table. That way it won’t move and you are ready for your cake decoration practice.
Like parchment paper, you can also use wax paper multiple times and also reuse the frosting or decorations.
Using Stock Pot:
The best practice of cake decoration would be practicing somewhere that has the shape of a cake. So for an alternative to the cake shape, a stock pot is one of the best.
All you need to do is to take a clean stock pot and place it on a suitable flat surface. Wipe it properly so that there is no moisture in the pot. And now the pot is ready for your decoration practice.
You can practice on a pot as long as you want and also save the frosting from it. And this is how you can easily practice cake decorating without a cake.
Using Mashed Potato:
Use smashed potato as an alternative to creams. It is the cheapest alternative to decorating a cake and you are not wasting too much food here. All you need to do is to use water for the correct consistency.
Once you have reached the perfect consistency, you can start practicing. Mashed potatoes can be used as many times as required. And this is one of the most effective ways to make fake frosting for practice.
Using Royal Icing:
We have already known multiple ways of practicing cake decoration without wasting any cake. But you can do the same with the icing too. Although you can use the same frosting for multiple practicing, buttercream icing is comparatively expensive.
So royal icing is an excellent alternative to buttercream icing. Royal icing is made with powdered sugar and egg white. Once you have made this, you can even add color to it if necessary. Once you are done decorating, you can scrape it off, wisp it and use it again.
The best thing about royal icing is it doesn’t get melted like buttercream. So you can use it multiple times just by whisking them.
Using Shortening:
Shortening is another amazing alternative to traditional buttercream or icing. It is a cheaper version of buttercream frosting and it doesn’t get wasted much. As shortening is 100% fat without any water, it can be used as a hard cream decoration as well.
One tin of shortening can be used multiple times without any waste and it doesn’t get melted easily.
But now the question comes which shortening you should use to practice cake decoration. Well, you can use spectrum or crisco shortening or any other popular brand’s you find reasonable for your use case.
These are the few things that you can use to practice cake decorating with minimal wastage.
To know more about practicing piping without wasting icing, you can also check:
How to Make Fake Icing for Practicing?
There are several ways of fake icing practicing like, plain peanut butter, mashed potato, butter, shortening, royal icing, etc. This way you would be able to reuse your icing as many times as you want. You can also go for cardboard or parchment paper instead of real cake for decoration practice.
Few Tips for Cheap Ways to Practice Cake Decorating
The process of cake decorating is quite an expensive procedure. You would need a lot of things to create a perfectly decorated cake. But if you can follow some simple tips, you can save a lot of money yet have a perfectly decorated cake.
Here are a few tips for you following which you can practice cake decorating in cheaper ways-
- Use plastic sealable bags instead of pastry bags for decorating
- Use a patterned paper towel for textured decoration or pattern
- Use natural ingredients for cake decorating, like fresh flowers and fruit
- If you are buying cake accessories, buy them in bulk amount
- Go for edible flowers instead of artificial ones
- Use chocolate shards for black forest decoration
That was all for cake decoration practice without waste. So, once you master the art of cake decoration, it’s time to master the art of making seafoam green icing.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs):
How to Improve Cake Decorating Skill?
For improving your skill in cake decorating, focus on a particular niche and master it. Other than that, you need to be very serious about practicing. You have to practice decorating several times. Do a lot of research and try to take challenges every time you are decorating.
What makes a cake look professional?
There are a few tips that would make your cakes look professional. Firstly, cool down your cake properly before decorating. Go for ganache or caramel decoration, trim the layers properly to make the top flat. And finally, prepare the pan properly with both butter and parchment paper. These are a few tips for your cake to look professional.
How to decorate a cake without creating any mess?
To avoid any mess while decorating a cake, always place a small paper sheet underneath the cake. When you are done decorating the cake, gently pull out the paper. That way you will get a drip-free plate. For the crumble layer, use your icing so that it can seal the crumb.
Final Words
That is it for today. Hope we could help you with How to Practice Cake Decorating Without Waste.
One last tip for you. If you want perfection in cake decoration, there is no alternative to practicing.
Hope to come back soon. Till then, happy baking!
