A child's birthday is one of the best occasions for hosting a party at home. For the child, this day is the most memorable of the year, a celebration of his or her personal New Year. For the parents, it is also an opportunity to share a special time with your child. Memories of early birthday parties follow us into adulthood, so Party at Home host Heidi Bohay introduces us to a couple of party planners who share the secrets of planning and hosting a memorable children's party. It is important to plan age-appropriate party activities that spark the children's interests and imaginations. Crafts are ideal in this regard, as what the child makes can be taken home as a party favor. When you and your child join forces, there is no limit to the ideas that will lead you to a successful celebration of this most special day. The centerpiece for any child's party is the birthday cake. Joining Bohay to offer some helpful hints is cake-decorating specialist Zella Junkin, Director of the Wilton School in Woodridge, Illinois. Wilton makes decorating equipment and also shows people how to use them to create unique cakes for any occasion. For this children's party, dinosaurs and cheerleading are the themes that are carried out through the cakes. Wilton makes cake pans in a variety of shapes that are available in craft or department stores. After the cake is baked, the pan leaves detailed lines that guide you when decorating with icing. Junkin demonstrates how to use the icing bags and offers some tips on creating the perfect birthday cake. - Always remember to grease and flour the pan or use a pan spray to prevent the cake from sticking.
- Sometimes it is hard to find a platter that accommodates large, oddly-sized cakes. Junkin recommends cutting a piece of board to the shape of the pan and covering it with aluminum foil. There is no reason to use wire-cooling racks.
- Decorating bags are the most efficient way to decorate your cake (figure A ). They are available in a disposable form that eliminates the need to clean them between applications.
- Wilton's food color pastes give the icing a much brighter color than standard food coloring (figure B). The paste is thicker and just a small amount is needed in the icing to produce sharp, vibrant colors. Add a small amount to the icing for pastel shades and a little more for darker colors.
- The sides of the dinosaur cake are frosted with a knife, and the top is covered with decorative icing. The cheerleader cake is decorated with the bags of icing alone. Whether frosting is used on the whole cake or just part is entirely up to you and your imagination.
- To fill the decorating bags, hold the bottom where the tip is and fold the top over your hand (figure C). This prevents the icing from getting all over your hands or on the outside of the bag.
- Once the bag is filled, pull the top back up and twist closed. As you twist the top, the icing is pushed down into the bag (figure D).
- To make decorative stars, use the appropriate star-shaped tip and hold vertically at the point where the tip is almost touching the surface. Squeeze out a dime-sized amount of icing, stop squeezing then lift the tip away (figure E).
- Zella demonstrates how to outline the dinosaur cake using a round decorating tip. Simply touch the icing down at your starting point then lift and drag along until you wish to touch back down (figure F). You can follow the lines on the cake and even add your own for a grinning mouth or perky nose.
- After you outline the cake, simply fill in with stars (figure G).
RESOURCES :
Cake Decorating
Wilton Industries has every supply needed for cake decorating.
Wilton / Wilton Enterprises / Wilton School of Cake Decorating / Weston Gallery
Woodridge, IL 60517
Phone: 630-963-7100 (IL res
Fax: 630-963-7196
Email: info@wilton.com
Website: www.wilton.com
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