An ideal Christmas
present for bakers of all skill levels. (Review by Beverley Millar)
This is the perfect
book for anyone who watches TV reality programmes such as Cake Boss, or the South African equivalent, and wishes they could
create similar masterpieces. The problem with all these shows is that you see
the beautiful end product but are left in the dark as to how to achieve this
magic.
Grace Stevens has
solved this problem with her informative and beautifully illustrated book Cake Decorating.
The book offers
instruction on how to decorate 14 different cake styles. Included are designs
for celebration cakes, a Christmas cake, an Easter egg hunt cake, a traditional
wedding cake and an Indian-inspired one, welcome home to a new baby cake and
several styles of birthday cakes, such as aeroplane, train, fairy or sports
cake and many more.
The book includes a
list of the equipment required for cake icing and a countrywide list of
suppliers. So there should be no problem in obtaining the right requirements
for your icing task. There are also templates for cakes that need cutting.
Also included is
the book are five cake recipes as well as recipes for vanilla and mascarpone
buttercream fillings, white chocolate and dark chocolate ganache, basic recipes
for modelling paste, edible glue, royal icing and the various different pastes
that are needed to complete the task.
There is a well-illustrated
section showing how to sculpt a cake. There is also instruction on how to
create things such as faces, arms, legs and other body parts, hair styles such
as buns and pigtails, various plants, leaves and flowers from modelling paste.
Each cake is given
a difficulty level rating, a timeline showing when the various elements of the
cake should be prepared, which recipe you will need from the five provided and
a list of the equipment and materials required complete the cake.
The step by step instructions
and excellent photographs that accompany every recipe make this a very easy
book to follow and understand.
Author Grace
Stevens is a highly experienced cake decorator who teachers this art in Cape
Town and travels locally and internationally to share her expertise. She is a
member of the South African Cake Decorators Guild. Cake Decorating with Grace Stevens is her second book on the
subject and it will inspire beginners. Even experienced cake decorators should
find new and useful information between its covers.
It would be an
ideal Christmas present for bakers of all skill levels.
Cake Decorating with Grace Stevens is published by Struik Lifestyle. ISBN 9781432303396
Recommended retail price R220. - Beverley Millar
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