You've got your mini cake kit, now it's time to let your cake decorating skills shine. Whether you're keeping it real with the Buttcream Skillz kit, or going full-on pastry chef with the fondant in our Original cake kit, you'll find instruction videos below.
1) First, take 2 sticks unsalted butter and 1/4 cup cream out of the fridge to come to room temperature by the time you need it later.
2) Mix and bake the cakes. Gather the instructions, cake mix, and cake pans. Then get:
- 3 large eggs
- 3/4 cup neutral oil, like canola or safflower
- 1/2 cup milk (or milk alternative like soy or almond)
3) While cakes bake, make the frosting. Get the frosting mix, plus your softened butter and cream. (If they're not softened yet, zap them in the microwave in 5 second bursts.)
4) Color the frosting with natural food coloring (if your kit has food coloring).
Store frosting covered at room temperature until you're ready to decorate.
5) Frost your cakes! The easiest way to do this is to frost the sides first, while holding your cake from the top. Then place a finger on the little gold cake board tab while you frost the top.
6) Roll out and cut fondant decorations. You can use the cutters included in our kits, any cookie cutter, or carefully cut out shapes with a paring knife.
To mix together different fondant colors, check out our primer on mixing fondant colors. For fondant decoration ideas, check out the rest of our How-Tos, and Inspiration Gallery.
Fondant tips:
- Keep fondant covered when not using, otherwise it'll dry out.
- If fondant gets sticky (it happens when it's hot, especially during the summer), dust it with a little confectioners' sugar or cornstarch.
- It's okay to let fondant dry once you've shaped it and made your decorations. (Especially if you're making something large!)