In which I was impatient and buggered it up...
Excited about my purchase of icing nozzles on Friday, I baked today. 24 plain cookies (using half the empire biscuits recipe from Hairy Bikers, Mum Knows Best) and 10 buns, 2 muffins (using Rachel Allen's Bake recipe)
I spent a fair while playing around with piping, I did some pressure piped chicks, rabbits and a couple of bears. I piped a few hearts and outline hearts too. Oh and an elephant, but he looks more like a mutant! I did them at about 3pm, and they still have not dried. I am not impressed! I used Royal icing sugar, instead of plain icing sugar and albumen powder like grandma used to... (Albumen powder is pasturised, making it safer than using egg white... plus you can make less than an eggs worth)
I made buttercream for the cupcakes, but then we had to go out to Zac's Mum's for tea, so I put it into the fridge until I came back. Well it was rock solid when I got back, and since it was 9.45pm and I really wanted to do the icing part, I left it out for a bit, then got bored of waiting and added a drop of milk and gave it a good beating with the electric handwhisk (which is rapidly losing it's magic smoke!!! :( )Needless to say this fucked it up good and proper. I was not deterred and still went on with my piping. Its got a sort of sweaty looking grainy texture. So I doubt I will be taking any buns to work tomorrow... It's no special occasion, just thought I could try them out as I'm making Jemma's wedding cake in July. The two muffin size cupcakes were going to be for her to take home for herself and the fiancé, but if they are a disaster I will be more likely binning them!
I think nexttime, I'll try Nigella's Passion cake meringue frosting... or get the book back from Liz. It has a recipe for Swiss Meringue Buttercream...
Oh and the cookies, I outlined in the royal icing mix, which went fine. Not perfectly neat, but that will come with practise. Then I let out the rest of the icing with more water to flood the cookie surface, but since it was yellow and pink mixed together the colour came out a funky orange... so I added more pink and now its funkylooking orangypink... I added hundreds and thousands, but theya re looking a bit faded too... Oh and they haven't dried either!
I spent a fair while playing around with piping, I did some pressure piped chicks, rabbits and a couple of bears. I piped a few hearts and outline hearts too. Oh and an elephant, but he looks more like a mutant! I did them at about 3pm, and they still have not dried. I am not impressed! I used Royal icing sugar, instead of plain icing sugar and albumen powder like grandma used to... (Albumen powder is pasturised, making it safer than using egg white... plus you can make less than an eggs worth)
I made buttercream for the cupcakes, but then we had to go out to Zac's Mum's for tea, so I put it into the fridge until I came back. Well it was rock solid when I got back, and since it was 9.45pm and I really wanted to do the icing part, I left it out for a bit, then got bored of waiting and added a drop of milk and gave it a good beating with the electric handwhisk (which is rapidly losing it's magic smoke!!! :( )Needless to say this fucked it up good and proper. I was not deterred and still went on with my piping. Its got a sort of sweaty looking grainy texture. So I doubt I will be taking any buns to work tomorrow... It's no special occasion, just thought I could try them out as I'm making Jemma's wedding cake in July. The two muffin size cupcakes were going to be for her to take home for herself and the fiancé, but if they are a disaster I will be more likely binning them!
I think nexttime, I'll try Nigella's Passion cake meringue frosting... or get the book back from Liz. It has a recipe for Swiss Meringue Buttercream...
Oh and the cookies, I outlined in the royal icing mix, which went fine. Not perfectly neat, but that will come with practise. Then I let out the rest of the icing with more water to flood the cookie surface, but since it was yellow and pink mixed together the colour came out a funky orange... so I added more pink and now its funkylooking orangypink... I added hundreds and thousands, but theya re looking a bit faded too... Oh and they haven't dried either!