Tweety69bird

Voila!

Maybe try touching down on your item before pulling up at the end of your piping so it will 'hold' onto the item. Kind of like how you finish piping a pâte a choux eclair. Does that make sense?

Kerry, The way you dipped the centers, didn't they stick together once they had dried?

Thanks for reporting back Tammy, it sounds like a great deal compared to the $100 or so I spent on the 4 bars of 1 x 5/8 x 22 that I bought from ChefRubber.

You can boil it down on the stove to thicken it up a bit... maybe add in some gelatin too. Also, to make it easier on you, you can spread the jam filling thin on a baking sheet and freeze it and then put it on the cake while it's frozen so it'll go on as one sheet. I saw a show where Thomas Haas was making a cake with jam layers and he sprinkled a bit of gelatin over the jam layer to reduce the sliding factor between the jam and the cake.

I use fake stamens that you can buy in the dollar store. I think most people use them too... As for sticking them to the cake, I use royal icing. I try to avoid having any wires or anything touch the cake, so that rules out sticking them right into the cake.

Thank you for that. Now I can sound a little smarter!

...you meant feed, right? Talk about Freudian slips...

Chufi, I was looking at that recipe yesterday and it sounded interesting. Yours came out stunningly beautiful!

I used 1/8" plexiglass that I bought at the same hardware store and cut into 3 sections at home with a saw (I think a 'sawsall'). I used 90º brackets screwed into the top and bottom wood pieces, back to back, with about 1/8" in between to hold the plexi pieces sturdily. The reason you see brown on the plexi in the picture is because I hadn't removed the protective paper yet. To join the 3 plexi pieces together, I used some - gosh I don't know how to describe it - metal hinges that have holes running up the whole length of the plexi, and I drilled holes every so often and screwed it all together. I put one hinge on what is the inside of the box when erected, and the other hinge on the back so that I can pretty much get a nice Z fold on the 3 plexi's so it folds nice and flat when I'm not using it. And yes, the answer to your question about the box is deffinately to keep in the heat. It is amazing how much heat that little bulb generates. Also, to add to what Panini wrote about the ceramic socket, that's true. I found that the socket I bought had a certain wattage limit on the outer label (don't remember what is was now) but if you look right into the socket it should be printed in there too, and that one said 250W for me. Oh, and the light cord came with a clamp to help keep secure the bulb. I also tape mine to the wood at the top, it's not heavy and hasn't moved on me yet. If you look at these sugar boxes for sale online - Chef Rubber, Notterschool etc... you'll see them priced somewhere around the $300 mark or more. I made mine for probably about 80$, but I already had the tools (or should I say the man who has the tools). Let me know if you have other questions!

Here is a pic of the sugar box that I made last year. You can get a good view of the lamp. I bought it at the local hardware store, I think it was a 250W bulb, and boy does that puppy get HOT. The silver cone around it is a protector for the bulb which is nice, and it comes as a kit with the cord and socket for the bulb. I don't remember exactly, but the whole kit probably didn't cost me more than $20, and that's in Canadian funds. Please excuse the sugar mess in the foreground of the pic!

Kerry and everyone else who went to the class, thank you for your pictures and information! I can live through you all.... And that tip in the plastic wrap IS fantastic!!

Aaaaaah! Now I know why I've been thinking of using up the left over pineapple jam the same way! Thanks for the inspiration! ← Milady, I am honoured to inspire! How did it turn out?

I don't agree that one should start out with the cheapest materials one can find in any discipline. If you want to learn to play a musical instrument, you will experience nothing but constant frustration if you go pick up some junky knock-off at Sears that doesn't play properly. Same applies to painting, sculpting and cooking--cut the wrong corner and you're actually costing yourself more money in the long run. I also cannot say that any of your work looks particularly realistic. It's decorative to be sure, and I'm sure many clients would be thrilled with them as they are, but can you honestly say that anyone would be fooled into thinking that those were real flowers? ← It is the OP's request for 'Gumpaste 101' and mild horror (that I share) of the cost of classes that prompted Pastrymama to suggest a viable solution of Wilton. Pastrymama's work is very nice and she has no need to defend her work just because she made a very useful suggestion to somone wanting to learn gum paste. The critique is out of place in this discussion. ← I second K8. Pastrymama's work is beautiful and I think that the Wilton gumpaste flower kit is the perfect set to start out with in order to get a taste for what gumpaste flower making is really all about since you get a nice range of shapes. It's a nice inexpensive way to see if you even are interested in learning more once you see how much effort really goes into making gumpaste flowers.

I'm not sure how the ganache and transfer sheets would react... if you want the ganache to be shiny, it might be too soft to work proplerly. I could be totally wrong though. I made some fancy brownies for my Stepmother's 50th last year, and I cut them in diamonds, coated with a mirroir ganache and then did some piping detail on them. I'll attach a pic, but forgive the quality! I also thought maybe some candied flowers - violets for exmample - might be nice on top.

David, I am so impressed by how nice your platform came out with all the 1/4" cuts. Everything is sooooo straight! Did you go over it with a brush to help remove the extra fibers from between the cuts? I don't know what a fence is, but I'm sure my construction-savvy better half will know what it is, and I'm sure he has a miter guage. I am so going to try to make one of these. Anyone I speak to that's not into pastry and try to explain what a guitar cutter is can not believe how expensive they are. I think they think I'm lying! I couldn't believe how much a sugar box was, so I made my own for a fraction of the cost. Thank you for sharing your experience with us!

David, How is it going? Have you advanced any since your last post? Have you tried to cut the cutting board? Did it work? I'm really impressed with what you've shown us so far, and I'm waiting on the edge of my seat to see an update!!

I put mine with the lip down too..... plus when I make cheesecake I usually have a cake board cut to fit and put it at the bottom, so it makes it a lot easier to get under the card when it's cooked.

Hi everyone, I'm trying to get my hands on cello bags about 4 x 2 x 8 inches (100mm x 50mm x 200mm) that have the bottom card already attached. Pricing in town is crazy, so I'm hoping someone out there can help me locate a better option. I'm flexible for size so far, so anything in that range would be acceptable. I'm hoping to buy in decent quantities. TIA!

I made these cinnamon marshmallows on the weekend. I started with Martha Stewart's vanilla recipe and added in some cinnamon oil and ground cinnamon after they were done. Nice flavour. Does anyone know how long marshmallows are good for... I mean as long as they're in a well sealed container.. and that they don't get eaten?

Lovely dessert, Tweety69bird, and you're right, that's a beautiful plate - do you know what it is? Rover ← The plates are from Christopher Vine Design, but I did a search and can't find them anywhere... good luck...

What about pouring the first flavour into the pan and freezing it uncooked, layering the top flavour and then baking it? On paper it looks like it could work...

Congratulations tammylc!! Best of luck, and keep us posted on how it's going.

I made this pineapple creme caramel for a dinner party. It's from David Leibovitz's book Ripe for Dessert. It was actually last Saturday... I'm kinda slow at processing pictures. It tasted really nice, the pineapple was very good. Doesn't my friend have the most beautiful plates?

I'd say weight too.