February 5, 2017
February is the month of love and romance, and heart-adorned cakes are the order of the day. Get into the Valentine spirit and learn to make this fabulous Teddy bear and butterfly, ombre heart cake design, with this simple step by step tutorial, by Saloni Salvi of Iced and Frosted.
Americolor soft gel paste: Black, White
Wilton Candy Colors: Red, Rose (pink)
24 gauge white floral wire
Sugar Shapers – Pointed chisel
Martha Stewart Butterfly Craft Punch
Bake two 2-inch tall cakes. Torte the cakes to make four 1-inch layers. Fill, crumb coat and frost the 4-layer cake with buttercream. A final height of about 5.5 to 6 inches is preferred so as to accommodate the design.
Cover the cake in fondant. Use a fondant smoother to smooth out imperfections on the top and sides. Flexible acetate smoothers can also be used to get perfectly smooth edges.
Mix 1/8th teaspoon of tylose powder into a 2-inch diameter ball of grey fondant. We will also need a ½ inch diameter ball of light grey fondant.
Create basic fondant shapes as depicted for the body, arms, feet, head and ears using the grey fondant. Use the light grey fondant to create an oval shape for the muzzle. Use a pinch of black fondant to make eyes and a nose.
Dissolve a 1/8th teaspoon of tylose powder in 2 teaspoons of water to make gum glue. Use this glue to attach the feet and arms to the body. Prop the body against a support and insert a toothpick on the top for the head. Stick the muzzle, nose and eyes to the face using gum glue and use the smallest Sculpey ball tool to attach the ears. Use the pointy tip Sugar Shaper to create an “O” for the mouth and make indents on the body and top of the head. I also like to prop one of the arms against a support to look like it is being extended outwards. Let these pieces dry for a couple of hours before handling.
Attach the head to the body using some gum glue. If the teddy bear is balanced correctly and is relatively dry, it will not need any support to stand. Also, add a few fondant patches and stitches using gum glue.
Punch out wafer paper butterflies using a craft punch.
For the ombre butterfly heart, we will need red, pink and light pink colored butterflies. Using a sponge brush, dab Wilton red and rose candy colors onto the cut wafer paper butterflies to make red and pink butterflies. Use a little white gel paste mixed with Wilton rose candy color to make the light pink butterflies. Let these dry before handling. It is also possible to use pre-colored wafer paper to avoid this step.
Bend and attach the dried butterflies to define the heart shape.
Attach pink and light pink butterflies to demarcate the gradual shift from red to pink to light pink. Fill in the remaining space with the respective colored butterflies.
Attach a few butterflies to twisted floral wire using gum glue. The floral wires may be dipped into Safety seal to make them food safe before inserting into the cake. Finish by gluing a few butterflies to the teddy bear. If required, use a bamboo skewer to secure the teddy bear onto the cake.
About the Author: Saloni Salvi
Hi, I am Saloni Salvi from Houston, Texas; reservoir engineer by day and cake artist by night, I wield my cakey weapons to create amazing edible magic! I am self-taught and love trying out new techniques to create edible art. I began my cake adventures in 2010 on a very small scale, baking fun cakes for friends and family. Since then, I have pushed myself to try to outdo my previous creations every single time. My passion is to create what others consider impossible and to reach new heights of cake artistry. I truly believe that dreams can be achieved with lots and lots of passion and hard work. Come what may, nothing is impossible if you try hard enough!
Page link: https://www.facebook.com/icednfrosted/