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Sugarpaste cracks!!
Hi everyone, am having real trouble covering my cakes at the moment – 1. I can’t seem to roll a circle!!! 2. when I have a “shape” and eventually drape over my cake I get cracking around the top rim – I think one I have rolled a bit thin – less than 5mm and 2 maybe over kneaded??? Smoothing down I press in from one side so as not to pull down and cause tearing but then have some big pleats to try and “iron” out……. any advice would be greatly received!!!! if anyone knows any tutorials that would be fab too, I couldn’t find one for Paul…… THANK YOU!!!!!
Over kneading the sugar paste will make it very soft initially. If you keep adding icing sugar while kneading, the chances are it will make it dry and prone to cracking. Adding lots of colour will change the consistency, it can start becoming grainy. Renshaw’s is a good professional paste and reasonably priced, there are many other sugar pastes available, it might be worth trying out something like Cova paste or Satin Ice, however they’re expensive. I use Satin ice only for very special cakes and Renshaws for other occasions. If you’re making cakes for children you won’t go far wrong with the Asda sugar paste, it costs £2.00 for 200g. I have to say I was pleasantly surprised at how well it works. As for colour, sometimes it pays to just buy the ready coloured pastes, it avoids all the hassle of getting the right colour every time and the consistency will always be the same. Rest your sugar paste overnight after kneading, it helps it to settle down, you’ll get less problems with air bubbles, it will have cooled down, making it easier to handle. Hope this helps, but if you need more information please post again. x
Paul covers a round cake in this tutorial http://www.cakeflix.com/online-cake-decorating-courses/free/covering-a-round-cake, it will help you step by step, how to keep the shape of the sugar paste when you are rolling out, the thickness it should be and how to avoid cracking. You can watch the same technique in all the tutorials. Try not to have too much of an overhang of sugarpaste, it pulls and causes tears and cracks at the top. Good luck.
Thank you madeitwithlove – this looks very easy – wish I found it so – do you think I over knead which dries it out? I have just done a covering that I have added paste colour too, so wonder whether I have over kneaded as being cautious to get the colour right!! Am using Renshaw’s paste, apart from the antique white is there another brand that might dry out slower? Thank you.!!!
