Two of the most frequent questions we get about fondant are how to flavor it and how to color it, so here are some suggestions and tips.

Flavoring Rolled Fondant

Flavoring rolled fondant is strictly a personal preference, but if you are using buttercream to ice the cake before applying a fondant covering, the buttercream flavor and rolled fondant flavor should always complement each other.

Last week I did a fondant taste test in the decorating room. I baked a yellow cake and then iced the cake with buttercream icing. I flavored three strips of fondant, each with a different flavor: vanilla extract, orange extract and cherry oil-based flavoring.

For 24 ounces of rolled fondant use about 1 teaspoon to 1 1/2 teaspoons of any extract flavoring. For 24 ounces of rolled fondant use 1/4 teaspoon of any oil-based flavoring. Make a well in the fondant and place the flavoring and knead it into the fondant. Remember it is all about personal preferences and tastes.

• The cherry flavoring won over the vanilla and orange. It was much stronger in flavor.
• The vanilla and orange were too mild, but most people agreed it depends on the flavor of the cake and icing that determines the fondant flavor.
• Most agreed that the cherry oil-based flavor would be great with a chocolate fondant, and that the vanilla and orange extract amounts needed to be increased.

Most people prefer using a clear vanilla extract, but others prefer lemon, almond or orange extracts for flavor. You can also use candy oil-based flavorings that are used for chocolate, but the oils have very strong flavors and you can use only small amounts. For both extracts and oil-based flavors you would knead the desired amounts into the fondant.

Tinting Rolled Fondant

To tint rolled fondant, use icing colors and a clean toothpick, adding small amounts of color until you reach the desired color. Some colors like pink and violet do fade a bit from sunlight and fluorescent lights so you may want to deepen the shade a bit from what you originally need. After you knead the color into the fondant, wrap the fondant very well in plastic wrap and place in an air-tight plastic bag, then place it into a small box or plastic container to keep out the light.

You can also tint fondant by using pre-tinted fondant multi-packs. Just take a tiny amount of tinted fondant and knead into white fondant for your desired shade. Our fondant color blending chart lists several custom color combinations.

For marbleizing fondant, add icing color to the fondant and only knead slightly until the color begins to blend in, creating marbleized streaks. You can also use 2 or 3 different colors for marbleizing the fondant and get wonderful results. For black fondant, you can make chocolate fondant and add a bit of black icing color to the fondant.

See more fondant decorating tips on our website! For more inspiration, browse our fondant project ideas.

One of the first items a bride-to-be will purchase after getting engaged is her announcements. It can be very fun and exciting to determine how to tell your friends and families to “Save the Date!” From humorous announcements to a more formal approach, there are a variety of options available. My favorites are those that encompass a little surprise element that is unique and clever and will keep your special event top of mind for those you will be inviting.

Wilton has several “Save the Date” announcements that are sure to get the attention of those on your guest list, like the car postcard with a little envelope on the back that holds the Save the Date information, or this darling ticket design that can be perforated off so just the details are saved. Both come with miniature magnets so your recipients can easily keep the info on display on a refrigerator or magnetic bulletin board.

Many invitation designs are available to compliment your wedding style – from traditional white invitations to trendy pocket invitations. Pocket invitations have gained in popularity over the past couple of years as brides have found that the multiple cards included provide an organized and beautiful way to include a variety of information for their guests.

We have found that many brides would like to extend their signature wedding color to the invitation. If you have a little bit of time and a dash of creativity, you can customize your invitation with embellishments such as crystals, ribbons, layered bands, etc. and create a unique invitation that compliments your wedding style! Here are just a few examples of how to embellish invitations to match your style:

Wilton provides you with the templates, fonts, wording choices and layouts you need to produce beautiful invitations. After purchasing the style of Wilton invitation that you like (from your local retailer or from our online wedding shop), go to www.wiltonprint.com and follow the directions on how to print beautiful invitations that are sure to have your guests marveling at your creativity!

Congratulations on your upcoming wedding!

At Wilton, we offer the complete solution for the hostess. She needs to make only one stop to get all the coordinating supplies including favors, decoration, games and candy. It’s easier than ever to have a fabulous party as unique and special as the mom-to-be! In addition to traditional baby showers, there are other fun types of celebrations to welcome the new baby.

Sip ‘n’ See

The Sip ‘n’ See is a celebration after the baby is born. It is usually done for one of two reasons. Either baby came early and there was not time for a traditional shower, or the baby is second or third in the family and a full fledge baby shower is not needed. Guests bring little gifts for the baby, sip a beverage of choice, and see the newborn! Favors can be given as tokens of appreciation. An activity like signing the welcome baby garland or autograph plate is oh so fun and provides a sweet keepsake that can be used to decorate the nursery.

Couples Shower

A great way to include the dad-to-be is to have a couples shower! These are more likely to happen in the evening and adult beverages and appetizers are typically served. Gifts are usually opened after the guests leave. A fun game to play is who can drink out of the bottle fastest!

Finding Out Party

My sister just had one of these and boy (or should I say girl) was it exciting! She asked the ultrasound technician to put the results in a sealed envelope. She took the envelope to the bakery and had a cake prepared – white frosting on the outside, pink or blue frosting center, dependent upon what information was in the envelope. She invited all their friends and family over for a finding out party. She took a vote to see how many thought girl and how many thought boy. Then, she cut into the cake! She was so excited to see pink frosting that she flipped the piece into the air! The guests who guessed girl won! For this kind of party, select from our gender-neutral designs for decorations and favors.

Cute favor ideas

To get the creative juices flowing, I have included two favor ideas. The first works for both favor and as a centerpiece for the tables. I call it Rattle Bouquet. To create, first fill the rattle favors with baby button candy or other baby shower favor candy. Write or print your message on the tags and attach using the ribbons provided in the kit. Create as many favors as seats at each table. Then, fill any dish, pot, or pail with another candy, like peppermint pearls and stick the favors into the center to form a bouquet. Finish by attaching a ribbon of your choice at the top of the container.

The second favor idea is umbrella favors. First, assemble the shade of the umbrella. Then, fill with small candy like pastel pearls. Stick the handle part of the umbrella into the center and fold over the top to hold in place. Lastly, write or print your message on the adorable ladybug tags and attach to the handle using the ribbon included.

We’d love to hear your baby shower game and favor ideas. Don’t forget to check our website for dozens of ideas for baby themed cakes, cookies and cupcakes too!

Stephanie is professional, dedicated and passionate about cake decorating. She continues to make teaching Wilton her full-time job by offering multiple classes every day of the week in both English and Spanish. Her efforts resulted in over 1,900 Wilton students last year at her Michaels store in Brownsville, TX. WOW!

Because she has so many students flowing through classes, she stays engaged with the community and uses cake decorating as a way to give back to those in need. Her current outreach project is a shining example of how much Stephanie cares – she is volunteering her time and talent to help a young cancer patient achieve her dream of learning cake decorating. I’m certain that this act of kindness will be very meaningful to both of them!

Congratulations Stephanie, we are so excited to have you on our team! For more information on The Wilton School or Wilton Method Classes in your area, please visit the Wilton Classes page. Learn more about becoming a Wilton Method Instructor!

Since Sheryl doesn’t feature seasonal projects on her show, I needed to come up with some other easy ideas. I was also interested in a more “sophisticated” look so I tried a more elegant combination of White Peppermint Pearls Favor Candy and Gold Pearlized Sugars in the dark cocoa and white Candy Melts®. By the way, I was in the Wilton Test Kitchen trying this.

As you can see I just placed some Candy Melt® disks into a disposable paper bowl.

Then melted the Candy Melts® on 50% power for 1 minute.

Stirred them so all of the Candy Melts® were melted and fluid. I did need another 30 seconds on half power for the amount I used. No, I did not measure.

Poured the white melted Candy Melts® into the dark cocoa

and lightly stirred.

Then poured the mixture onto a parchment covered cookie pan.

And spread with a spatula to a thinner layer. Note…avoid stirring too much or you lose the marbling effect especially when combining dark cocoa with white. Using white and colors, there is not as much of an issue. If I were doing this for real, I would “serve” this to the family and make more with additional marbling. I would probably use 2 parts white to 1 part dark cocoa also.

Add Gold Pearlized Sprinkles. The new pearlized sprinkles are so dramatic.

On the other side I added some Peppermint Pearls.

Put in the refrigerator for about 10-15 minutes until it all hardens. Break apart into smaller serving sized pieces.

Yum!!

I serve as host and co-executive producer of Bake Decorate Celebrate! while Gretchen Homan, Test Kitchen Manager, runs the green room, determines product needed prior and during taping, handles the web projects, listens to and edits my sometimes “crazy” ideas for projects/recipes, standardizes a recipe when I say something like “I want a non-chocolate veggie cake please,” and a whole lot more. Diana Rodriguez, PR Manager, organizes all of us with season notebooks which include our projects, recipes, photos; processes all the paper work, orders, bills; takes care of our project and show images, plus, plus, plus. There are others who also contribute, but the heavy responsibilities rest on our shoulders. I will also mention that we do this in addition to our “real” jobs. It’s very interesting and rewarding, but a whole lot of work!

Before I started doing the show, I was used to doing five TV segments at a time, but the first season I think we did about 120 projects in seven days….my memory has faded. We tape from 8-13 segments per day in the studio, so we may be doing a cake and then switch to candy. We tape three days at the end of one week, handle a few details over the weekend and try to REST. We then tape 2-3 days of the next week. We hit the studio around 7 a.m. and are usually gone by 7 p.m. We tape all 13 shows at one time.

Some statistics on the show: In 2009 we had about 12,000 shows on 355 stations in 44 states for 88% of US coverage and a potential audience of 257 million. Since the initial show airing (2/6/06 through 12/31/09) we’ve had 48,500 shows on 571 stations in 46 states for 89% US coverage and a potential audience of 260 million people. Also in Latin America between April 1 and June 30, 2009 we had over 13.5 million shows air.

Bake Decorate Celebrate! may or may not be in your “hood” (neighborhood) since programming is up to individual station and program managers. It’s not like a major network where they deem a show to be on every Monday at 8 p.m. Check with your local Public Television station to see when it airs in your area. If it’s not currently available, you can ask your local Public Television station to air it. The feed is provided by NETA and is in the lifestyle, cooking and crafting categories.

We also have a companion website for Bake Decorate Celebrate! that has all of the recipes, projects, and techniques featured in the show. We just added the 7th season projects and recipes since that is hitting the airwaves right now. In case you missed past shows, seasons 1, 2, and 3 are available on DVD plus the Cake Decorating Basics DVD which came from the show.

I could go on and on about Bake Decorate Celebrate! but thought I would open this to any questions you might have.

The whole Yearbook process takes around 10 months. It starts in July, with Steve Rocco (our very talented art director and cake designer) sketching out his ideas for cakes and treats. He draws his ideas based on inspiration from current party and seasonal trends, magazine pictures, pop culture trends and even local party stores. The overall goal is to create cakes for beginner to expert cake decorators. We also try to feature our new and most popular products in our projects. These projects are not only to replicate, but also provide decorators with inspiration and new technique ideas.

Steve’s priceless sketches are passed out to our very highly-trained and skilled team of cake decorators. Then the cakes really come to life. Every project is made to ensure it’s consumer friendly to create. Meaning anyone and everyone can make these treats in their own home. The projects can take anywhere from 1 to 40 hours to complete.

We fill the Yearbook with 200-220 projects, depending on the size of the projects and how we choose to feature them in the pages. A project can be anything from mini cookies decorated for the holidays to a 7-tier wedding cake, or even candy treats. We do it all. Decorating is usually finished in March. These cakes and treats are then delicately placed in our storage room to wait for their chance to be photographed.

While the decorators are hard at work on these cakes, our team of excellent copywriters receive write-ups (or notes) on the completed cakes and projects. They then write the final easy-to-follow copy that you see in the finished Wilton Yearbook. Steve and Carey Thornton (our prop stylist) set up each and every beautiful shot you see — keeping in mind what other projects will be featured on the same spread and how to best feature each one. Photography can start in November and go until April and even into May.

Then comes my part. I receive all images and copy, along with hand-drawn layouts from Steve to follow. And I begin to lay out the pages you will see. Every year we set a goal to make the Yearbook a little different and better than the year before. Once a section is complete, we route them to different people in the company to review. The more eyes the better. Then once it’s all approved, the files go to the printer in May to create the finished Yearbook. In June they are featured in select stores and our online store for everyone to enjoy.

This has to be one of the most exciting projects I get to work on, to see the project go from an idea that Steve sketched to the beautiful hand-crafted designs you see on the pages of our Yearbook is truly amazing. Every year it’s a team effort and hard work that gets this one-of-a-kind publication into your hands.

I can’t really reveal too much, but the idea on the cover is incredible. Any guesses on what you think 2011 Wilton Yearbook cover will be?

Trying to salvage icing that has burst onto a cake is very tricky (and messy too!) – especially when you have used several icing colors. Sometimes all the icing can be removed and you can start over. If you are creating your cake right before the party, the stress of a cake re-do can ruin what should be a fun and stress-free experience.

There were many times that I waited to decorate my sons’ birthday cakes right before the party, and I’ve learned over the years that planning ahead takes the stress out. I rely on the quality of Wilton products, especially disposable decorating bags, to insure that my decorating experience is fun. I’m always learning with every cake I do, it builds my confidence and skills. My oldest granddaughter has chosen some terrific cakes from the Wilton yearbooks and they are usually ones that require planning and preparation ahead of time. Having product that works saves times!

I have spent 30 years making sure that Wilton has the highest quality decorating bags in the market place. With my associates here at Wilton, we have spent 1000’s of hours hand testing our bags in our test kitchen. This is something we do with every shipment that we receive, so you know we do it all the time! There have been days when we have all helped out squeezing icing through a bag until our hands hurts. But this is the work we have to do to make sure all our bags have consistent high quality, year in and year out.

I feel very comfortable saying Wilton disposable bags are the best quality in the market place. The testing standards we have employed include strict material specifications for food safety standards, but also for strength and use. We ensure that our disposable decorating bags are the highest quality product. They simply feel better in your hand and are soft and strong to provide the decorating performance you can rely on. Of all bag styles, disposable bags are the convenient choice since you can use them once and discard them.

For a stress-free decorating experience plan ahead, read through all the instructions, and rely on your Wilton products for a great decorating experience.

When I started out, I was determined to cut down the amount of fat needed in a traditional rollout cookie, but they still needed to taste like the real deal. The end result is a cookie that is fortified with applesauce (for moisture), whole wheat flour (for fiber), and cinnamon (for antioxidants AND flavor). Using these ingredients, I was able to cut the butter content in half and still have a cookie that tastes and smells great. In keeping with the theme, I used the Heart Comfort Grip™ Cutter to make my cookies. Ice them with Wilton Cookie Icing, like mine, or just drizzle with confectioners’ glaze. Here’s to your heart!

Cinnamon Applesauce Cookies
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons butter
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup sweetened applesauce
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3/4 teaspoon almond extract

Optional Icing:

• 1 cup confectioners’ sugar
• 1 tablespoon water

In medium bowl, combine flours, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. In large bowl, beat butter and granulated sugar with electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add egg; mix well. Add applesauce, vanilla and almond extract; mix until well combined. Add flour mixture to butter; mix until all dry ingredients are incorporated. Press dough to flatten; wrap tightly with plastic wrap. Refrigerate at least 3 hours or overnight.

Preheat oven to 325°F. Lightly flour work surface and roll dough 1/8 in. thick. Cut dough into hearts or other desired shapes. Gather scrapes and reroll to 1/8 in. thick and cut shapes; prick with a fork to prevent bubbling.

Bake cookies 12-14 minutes or until bottoms are lightly browned. Cool cookies on cookie sheet for 2 minutes; transfer to cooling grid to cool completely.

Optional Icing: Stir confectioners’ sugar and water together until smooth. Spread or drizzle over cookies.

Makes 12 large cookies.

First, let’s define tool. According to Webster’s dictionary – tool, noun: 1) a hand instrument used to aid in mechanical operations. 2) the cutting or shaping part in a machine; also a machine for shaping metal in any way. 3) an instrument or apparatus used in performing an operation or necessary in the practice of a vocation or profession. That’s the definition that works for cake decorating! and 4) a person used by another. Hey that’s me! Glad to help you!

So now, what’s my favorite tool? Hmmmm…There are too many to choose from – angled spatulas for icing my cakes, pattern presses for easy designs and lettering on a cake and stencils too, rolling pin guide rings for fondant… And the list can go on and on. But my three (I know they only asked for one!) favorite tools that I could not live without are:

1. Cake Release
2. Bake Even Strips
3. Non-Stick Parchment Paper

I know it might sound silly but I use these items the most.

1. Cake Release

Cake Release is used for coating cake pans instead of greasing and flouring. Shake the bottle and then squeeze a small amount in the pan; use a pastry brush to lightly coat the entire inside of the pan. Then add your batter and you know the rest…bake, cool and release without STICKING! I have even forgotten to remove a cake and it still came out of the pan without sticking.

2. Bake Even Strips

Bake Even Strips are used for baking a level cake. These strips properly conduct the heat so the cake sides don’t bake before the center. Have you ever baked a cake where the center raised higher than the sides? That happens because the sides baked first because they are closer to the heat, which makes sense…right?

To use Bake Even Strips, soak them in water, squeeze out the excess so they don’t drip, and pin them around the outside of round, square or sheet cake pans. Sometimes you can get them around a few of the character cakes, but it does depend on the shape of each pan. Then bake your cake and the results will surprise you! A more even height cake! I’ve lost the pins that come with each set and have been using those U-shape drapery pins or you can get T pins at a hobby/craft shop.

3. Parchment Paper

Then there is the parchment paper (on the roll). It is great for baking cookies, especially when you hate washing the cookie sheets between batches. You don’t need as many cookie sheets when baking if you are using parchment paper. I usually use 2 or 3 sheets and I only put one in my oven at a time so I rotate as needed. I can get my cookie shapes rolled out, dropped or shaped as needed before a cookie sheet is ready.

I just take a damp cloth and wipe the table or counter where working, then place a sheet of parchment (cut to same size as cookie sheet) down and go to work with my cookie dough. No major mess to clean up after baking, just throw out the parchment. You still have to wash your cookie sheets when your baking is done, but no more scrubbing those baked-on tiny fragments.

I swear by parchment not only for baking or smoothing out my buttercream iced cake, but also for lining my roasting pans. I hate cleaning my roasting pans that are used for any meat or even casseroles or lasagna! Before, I would have to let them soak before scrubbing and scrubbing. No more! I just line the pan and let the parchment paper extend up the sides. If doing a roast on a rack, place the parchment under the rack.

But remember, parchment paper does not work for broiling or toaster ovens…unless you want a fire roasted meat! If you don’t have it on the roll, you can use parchment triangles for lining cookie sheets, smoothing your iced cakes and lining pans. But it just won’t hold the liquid like the one piece from the roll.

So now, let’s hear what’s your favorite tool? I’m sure each of you will have something different. I know Wilton’s Blog is one of your favorite tools too! You can learn so much by sharing with each other. Keep it going, keep sharing and we’ll learn together.

Happy Decorating!