Sugarworks Blog

Liz Kraatz is the mastermind behind Liz's Cake Art in St. Louis, MO. Liz has been running her design studio for 6 years and has made a name for herself as a skilled sculptress, teacher, and creative artist. Today, she's going to show us how she uses Sugar Shapers for her detailed, realistic sculptures.

I started my business, Liz’s Cake Art, about six years ago and I really wish I would have these Sugar Shapers from the beginning. These tools make my sculpted cakes much more realistic and accurate.

I love each tool for a different reason, but I can say I use the firm and the soft tips equally. My Sugar Shapers give me the ability to get those super fine details that other sculpting tools can not achieve.

I’ve created this sculpted baby sea turtle and you can find this little cutie as part of Liz Marek's mermaid installation at the SoFlo Cake and Candy Expo in Miami, Florida, April 28-30! This turtle required very fine details in the shell, skin, and head. Thanks to my Sugar Shapers, they were easily achieved!

I put together a time-lapse video to show you how I used each tool and to show what amazing things you can create with the most innovative sugar sculpting tools available… the Sugar Shapers!

Find more videos on my YouTube channel, Liz’s Cake Art
Instagram: @lizs_cake_art
Facebook: Liz’s Cake Art

We hope you enjoyed this baby sea turtle by Liz Kraatz. If you decide to make your own baby turtle, Liz would love to see them! Email photos, or post them to social media and tag Liz's Cake Art and Innovative Sugarworks!

After we posted this sumptuous photo of a slice of Kaysie Lackey's carrot cake on Facebook, we got a bunch of requests for the recipe. Well, we love to make you happy, so here it is!

This recipe makes two 8" cake rounds. For more layers, scale up the ingredient measurements accordingly.

Ingredients

• 397 grams sugar
• 283 grams vegetable oil
• 200 grams eggs
• 200 grams cake flour
• 160 grams all-purpose flour
• 12 grams baking powder
• 2 grams baking soda
• 5 grams ground cinnamon
• 2 grams ground nutmeg
• 2 grams salt
• 410 grams shredded carrots

First, combine the sugar and oil. Then add the eggs and mix well.

Next, sift all the dry ingredients.

Then toss the carrots with 1/3 of the dry ingredients. Add the remaining dry ingredients to the sugar mixture and mix until combined. Add the carrots and stir until just combined.

Bake at 325 degrees until cake is fully baked, but still moist.

Enjoy!

Sachiko Windbiel of Mimicafe Union is a marvel at creating whimsical and playful figures. For if March is alleged to come in like a lion, why shouldn't it be a flying lion?

Watch her bring this fantastic beast to life using Sugar Shapers in this short video:

Sachiko uses firm-tipped Mini-Tip Sugar Shapers for this figure. In the pictures below you can see how different shapes on the lion were made by different chisels in the Sugar Shaper set.

The green, or Round Tip Chisel is perfect for shaping the hooves.

The Pointed Tip Chisel is ideal for drawing in details like the mouth and eye, while the orange, or Bone Chisel, is great for modeling head shapes and giving form.

We hope you've enjoyed this flying lion! You can watch more videos of Sugar Shapers in use on our YouTube channel! And you can follow Sachiko on the Mimicafe Union Facebook page!

Sachiko Windbiel grew up in Japan and relocated to New York in 2008 to attend culinary school. While originally specializing in vegetarian and healthful food trends, the charm and whimsy of sugarcraft eventually won her over.

Sachiko now runs Mimicafe Union in New York City and has made a name for herself as a master of edible art. With a style that is cute, light-hearted, and fun, Sachiko is most recognized for her fondant figures and cake toppers.

Today she is going to teach us how to make convincingly realistic human hands using fondant and Sugar Shapers!

Life Like Fondant Hand Step By Step Tutorial

 My work is all about Fondant Figures… my main tools are my fingers, but thanks to Sugar Shapers, I was able to realize some fun new techniques!

Let's get started!

First, we need to color the fondant. It's best to start with white fondant and add color so that you can get exactly the tone you want. Color a handful of fondant to the skin tone that you would like by adding AmeriColor Gel Color. I use AmeriColor Flat Gold Gel Color.

Once you have a color you like, shape the Fondant into a form resembling a wooden spoon as shown.



Using your own hand as a model, cut the fingers in the fondant wooden spoon with an X-Acto Knife. Then, smooth out the squareness of the fondant fingers by smoothing and shaping them with your own fingers.



Now let's start using our Sugar Shapers to add shape and contour to our hand. Use the Orange/ Bone Chisel Sugar Shaper to create web area between each finger by pressing inward toward the wrist with the edge of the shaper. Then, use the same Bone Chisel tool to push up small mounds of fondant to create knuckles.  Smooth the knuckles with your fingers to keep them looking organic.



Next, use the Light Blue / Pointed Chisel to create the wrinkle lines of the middle joint on the back of the fingers. Then use the Green/ Round Tip Chisel tool to gently press down on the fondant at the end of each finger to create the nail beds.



Now, add a little bit of Red AmeriColor Gel to some excess skin toned fondant to create a pinker tone for the nails.  Pinch a ball of this pinker fondant, place it on the nail bed and smooth it into place with your fingers. Use the Green/ Round Tip Chis to add definition to the shape of the nail.



Use your fingers to add body / muscle tone and roundness to the fondant fingers. Then use the edge of your Pointed Chisel to lightly indent lines on the back of the hand to indicate the hand’s bone structure.



To create shadows and depth on the hand, use Petal Color Dust. I combined Light Brown Dust with a little bit of Pink Dust- you can test the dust tone on some spare fondant to make sure you are getting the color you want. Once you have your desired color, just touch the brush to the main knuckles and to the mid finger joints.  Also touch the brush along the back of the hand structure lines and on the side of the fingers to add tone. 



If you would like to create interesting positioning of the fingers, place the fingers on your shapers in whatever positions you would like them to have. Then, allow to dry.  You can also use just a touch of confectioner’s glaze to add a sheen to the fingernails.  



The fondant dries quickly.  If you would like to add more life-like wrinkles to the fingers, you can very gently bend the fingers a little bit after they have dried out some.

And there you have it! A life-like human hand made of fondant!



Sugar Shapers are wonderful tools for creating many exciting details, textures, and forms. Adding realism to  your creations is a pinch with these tools in your kit.

We hope you've enjoyed this tutorial by Sachiko Windbiel of Mimicafe Union in New York City. If you want to see more of Sachiko's work, you can follow her on Facebook and Instagram.

You can also watch Sachiko in action at the Innovative Sugarworks booth at That Takes the Cake in Austin. Video of her live demonstration is posted on our Facebook page here.

 Nathalie Sorensen of Lucy Cake Design and our own Kaysie Lackey recently paired up once again for an episode of Food Network's Cake Wars. This time they competed against other teams who had also previously won on Cake Wars. It was the Avengers episode of Cake Wars Champs!

Once again, Nathalie and Kaysie pulled off an epic win! Not only was their sculpted cake visually stunning and impeccably crafted, it was delicious as well! And here is the recipe for the cake within the creation!

Ingredients

Chocolate Cake:

• Unsalted butter, for greasing
• 125 grams (about 1 cup) awesome-quality unsweetened cocoa powder, plus more for dusting
• 90 grams dark chocolate, chopped
• 360 milliliters (about 1 1/2 cups) hot coffee
• 310 grams (about 2 1/2 cups) all-purpose flour
• 10 grams (2 teaspoons) baking soda
• 5 grams (1 teaspoon) baking powder
• 600 grams (about 3 cups) sugar
• 180 milliliters (about 3/4 cup) vegetable oil
• 6 grams (1 teaspoon) kosher salt
• 5 milliliters (1 teaspoon) vanilla extract
• 3 large eggs
• 360 milliliters (about 1 1/2 cups) buttermilk

Toffee:

• 2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter
• 2 cups sugar 
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt 
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Italian Meringue Buttercream:

• 369 grams (about 1 3/4 cups) sugar
• 125 grams (about 1/2 cup) water
• 20 grams (about 1 tablespoon) light corn syrup
• Pinch kosher salt 
• 170 grams egg whites
• Pinch cream of tartar 
• 452 to 565 grams (4 to 5 sticks) unsalted butter, cubed, at cool room temperature
• 2 tablespoons vanilla bean paste

Chocolate Feuilletine Crunch:

• 4 ounces great-quality dark chocolate 
• 4 ounces great-quality milk chocolate 
• 2 to 4 ounces feuilletine flakes

For the cake:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Butter three 9-inch cake pans and dust with cocoa powder, shaking off the excess.

Mix the chocolate into the hot coffee in a medium bowl and stir to melt. Set aside to cool completely. In another bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and baking powder. Set aside.

Combine the sugar, oil, salt and vanilla in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium speed, 3 to 5 minutes. (This batter is fluid and tends to get lumps; mix carefully with the paddle, or even use the whisk attachment on low speed to avoid lumps.) With the mixer on low speed, add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Scrape the bowl and continue mixing on medium-low speed until fully incorporated, 2 to 3 minutes. (Don't worry about overmixing at this stage; you need to make sure the batter base is fully mixed.)

Stir the buttermilk into the coffee mixture. In alternating batches, add the flour and buttermilk mixtures to the batter base. Mix until just combined, being careful not to overmix. The batter should be thick but fluid. Stir or mix by hand to get rid of any lumps; strain if you feel compelled.

Divide the batter among the prepared cake pans. Bake until a toothpick comes out clean or with just a few crumbs, 20 to 30 minutes. Let cool completely.

For the toffee:

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Combine the butter, sugar and salt in a heavy-bottom saucepan fitted with a candy thermometer. Heat over medium-high heat to 300 degrees F (the hard crack stage), 7 to 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract. Pour over the prepared baking sheet and let cool completely. Break into small pieces, then process into a powder using a food processor or coffee grinder.

For the buttercream:

Combine 339 grams of the sugar, the water, corn syrup and salt in a heavy saucepan fitted with a candy thermometer. Heat over medium-low heat until the sugar dissolves. Increase the heat to medium, being careful not to let the flames go up the sides of the saucepan. The target temperature for the syrup is 250 degrees F.

Meanwhile, combine the egg whites and cream of tartar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. When the syrup has reached 230 degrees F, run the mixer on medium speed until the egg whites get frothy. Sprinkle the remaining 30 grams sugar into the egg whites and continue to whip on medium speed. (The egg whites should increases in size and form soft peaks by the time syrup reaches 250 degrees F.) Once the syrup reaches 250 degrees F, increase the mixer to high speed and carefully pour the hot syrup down the side of the bowl, being sure not to hit the whip. Whip the mixture until it has cooled to room temperature, 5 to 10 minutes.

Replace the whisk with the paddle attachment. Gradually beat in the butter, a few cubes at a time, on medium-low speed. Mix until the buttercream comes together, then mix in the vanilla bean paste.

Mix 3 to 4 ounces of the powdered toffee into 1 cup of the buttercream and set aside.

For the chocolate feuilletine crunch:

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Melt the dark chocolate and milk chocolate in a double boiler. Remove from the heat and mix in the feuilletine. Spread on the prepared baking sheet and let cool. Crumble into bite-size pieces. Set aside.

To assemble the cake:

Set one cake layer on a serving plate. Spread with a thin, even layer (about 1/4 inch) of the buttercream, then spread with a thin, even layer (1/8 to 1/4 inch) of the toffee-buttercream mixture. Top with feuilletine crunch. Repeat with the remaining layers. Cover the cake with the remaining buttercream.

You might have seen the video going around Facebook of Kaysie Lackey's gorgeous Chocolate Covered Strawberry Roses. 

It was such a hit, we thought we'd give you all a little look at how Kaysie made them, just in time for Valentine's Day. Because we love you. 

Ingredients:

• 12 large strawberries
• 24 ounces semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips
• 1 pound white modeling chocolate
• 2 egg whites

Supplies:

• Innovative Sugarworks' Sugar Shapers
• 12 wooden skewers, covered in green florists' tape
• 9 piece rose cutter set
• Pink petal dust
• Floral foam

The prep for this is real simple- put your semi-sweet or dark chocolate in a double boiler and drive one skewer into the top of each strawberry. The skewers will be the stems of your roses. Use a block of floral foam to hold your roses upright. This becomes important once you dip them in the melted chocolate.

Stir the chocolate constantly while it's melting until you get a silky smooth consistency with no remaining lumps. 

One at a time, hold each strawberry by its skewer and dip it in the chocolate.

After dipping, return the skewered strawberries to the floral foam and allow to cool completely.

While your strawberries are cooling, roll out the white modeling chocolate to about 1/8" thick (If you're using a pasta machine, set it to 6). You're going to use the 4 cutters from your rose cutter set that best fit the size of your strawberries. These will be your petals.

Find the one size that best fits your strawberry- this will be your second layer. Go one size larger for your first layer and third layers, another size up for your 4th layer, and two sizes up from that for your 5th layer.

The number of petals you need corresponds to the layer you're on. For example, you'll need 1 petal for your first layer, 2 petals for your 2nd layer, and so on. If you don't feel like mathing, you can always cut them as you go along. :)

Once the chocolate on your strawberries is completely cool, you can start wrapping the petals around the strawberry. Start by smoothing some modeling chocolate around the strawberry so that no dark chocolate will be visible between the rose petals.

Remember to warm each piece of modeling chocolate you use in your hands before wrapping it so it doesn't crack or break.

Your first petal will be oriented sideways (with the point to one side and a long rounded side facing up. Tool the top edge with your pointed tip Sugar Shaper to give it some shape. Then, wet your strawberry with egg white, line up the point of the petal with the side of your strawberry's cone and start wrapping. Keep the top of the petal tight for a closed spiral.

For all the remaining petals, the point will face downward. Use your Sugar Shaper to tool the top (wide end) of each petal. 

For your next layer, paint a stripe of egg white on one long side of one petal and tuck that side under the preceding layer. Place the 2nd petal opposite the first and wrap in the same direction as your first layer, keeping the petals still fairly tight. Tack the petals in place with egg white.

Use your Sugar Shaper to open up the petals a little if you wish, and use the side of the shaper to curl back the edges slightly.

Repeat for your third layer, arranging the petals equally in thirds around the strawberry.

For your 4th layer, use the back of a soup spoon to give the petal a rounded shape, curling back the top edge as desired. Let these petals set for 10 minutes so they'll hold their shape. Paint egg white on one side of each petal and attach to your rose at equal distances. Do not tack down the other side of these petals with egg white.

Let dry until the petals are firm and the eg white is set. Do mostly the same thing with your last layer, but curl the petals back even more- curl both sides, but curl one at least twice as much as the other.

Don't worry if all your petals aren't exactly uniform. Roses are organic objects and their individual uniqueness will add to the realism.

Lastly, brush some pink petal dust along the edges of the petals. Don't go overboard with the dust- you want a soft blush of color.

That's the end! You now have a dozen long-stemmed Chocolate Covered Strawberry Roses for the one you love. (Or maybe just for yourself!)

We hope you're as excited as we are about Timbo's Starfish and Seashells! If you want to see more of Timbo's work and hear about his upcoming classes, follow him on Facebook and Instagram.

Liz Marek is the owner of Artisan Cake Company in Portland Oregon and runs the online cake decorating school Sugar Geek Show. She specializes in sculpted and special effects cakes, and enjoys making tutorials, teaching classes around the world and coming up with new and innovative cake techniques.

Liz is the author of the highly acclaimed cake decorating book, Artisan Cake Company’s Visual Guide to Cake Decorating. Her work has been featured in many magazines such as BRIDES, Oregon Bride, Portland Bride and Groom, Cake Masters, American Cake Decorating Magazine and more. She has competed and won on Food Network's Duff till Dawn (2015) and her work has been televised on Food Network's Outrageous Cakes series and news stations. 

Liz is also an early adopter of Sugar Shapers as her professional go-to tool for sculpting and modeling. Today she delivers an update on one of her first highly popular tutorials. The original mermaid cake topper tutorial was made before Sugar Shapers were developed. This new one reflects her current sculpting habits, as well as her growth as an artist. We adore this mermaid and we know you will, too! Check it out!

One of the very first videos I ever made for my YouTube channel was a fondant mermaid topper tutorial. It quickly became very popular and was one of the reasons I began making more videos for youtube.

That was four years ago! I have learned a lot about making figures and the tools that I WISH I had when I first started sculpting. Yep, I'm talking about those amazing Sugar Shapers!

It would have been a lot easier to get those face shapes and little details with Sugar Shapers and I'm not just saying that! I use mine so much, I even found one in my purse the other day! My favorite sugar shaper is definitely the pointed shaper!

I use it for everything from shaping lips, eyes and making my signature smiles.

I love the rounded wedge for making perfect scales or fingernails. The knife is great for making wood grain texture or soft lines without tearing the fondant. The ball tool is invaluable for all kinds of textures but I especially love it for making eyes on my toppers faces. 

I have put together an updated (timelapse) version of my popular mermaid topper tutorial her for your enjoyment! And you can learn more about sculpting figures and making awesome cakes on my online tutorial school Sugar Geek Show.

This time-lapse video should give you a good idea of how to use Innovative Sugarworks Sugar Shapers to sculpt your own mermaid, or another figure using similar techniques. To see the full step-by-step video, click this link to Sugar Geek Show!

We hope you've enjoyed this mermaid topper instructional by Liz Marek! If you want to see more of Liz's work, visit Artisan Cake Company and follow her on Facebook. And if you're interested in learning more and crazier cake decorating techniques, go to Sugar Geek Show and check out its extensive library of tutorials. With skill levels ranging from beginner to advanced, Sugar Geek Show has something for everyone!

It's just about time to ring in the new year! And in these last moments before we all make our resolutions to forsake sugar, fat, chocolate, and alcohol, we thought we'd indulge in all of those things with these delicious boozy chocolate truffles! This year's flavor selections are Chocolate Peppermint Schnapps Truffles and Mocha Amaretto Truffles. 

Ingredients

• 2 10-oz bags of semi-sweet chocolate chips (I like Simple Truth chocolate, but use whatever brand you like. Just note that most other brands sell their chips in 12-oz bags, not 10-oz. So scale up accordingly)
• 6 Tablespoons unrefined coconut oil
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup liquor of your choosing
• 2 Tablespoons instant coffee
• Powdered sugar and/or cocoa powder for rolling

These truffles are insanely easy. The first thing you're going to do is melt the chocolate in a double boiler. If you don't have a double boiler, don't worry; just stack up two pots, boil water in the bottom one and put the chocolate in the top one. Easiest kitchen hack ever. And it will prevent your chocolate from burning as easily as it would in a single pot alone.

Once the chocolate is melted, add the coconut oil and stir until it's completely melted and everything is smooth. 

I wanted to make two different flavors, so at this point I divided the mixture by pouring into two separate bowls. Into one, I added 1/8 cup Peppermint Schnapps and into the other I added the instant coffee and 1/8 cup Amaretto. Stir well. You can play with how alcoholic you want your truffles and add more or less to taste. These were not super boozy.

Now, just pop the bowls in the fridge and chill until firm. I left them in overnight, but a few hours is probably sufficient.

Once the mixture is firm, scoop out enough chocolate to make 1 1/2" balls, shape them into spheres, and roll into a coating. I used powdered sugar and red decorating sugar for the Peppermint Schnapps truffles and cocoa powder for the Mocha Amaretto truffles. The coating not only makes the truffles look nice, but allows you to pick them up without getting your fingers quite so messy.

Your New Year's dessert is now ready! If you're not serving them right away, keep them in the fridge until it's time to celebrate. Happy New Year!

We don't have a lot of traditions in our family, but the one constant thread of our holiday celebrations is cookies. For as long as I can remember, we've made cookies together at Christmas- drop cookies, rolled cookies, dipped cookies, jammy cookies. Everywhere we go around the holidays, people know to expect a basket of assorted cookies. At some point, friends even started requesting their favorites.

This year, I'm going to share with you a few selections from our family cookie extravaganza. We'll start with my signature Bourbon Sugar Cookies. These are a take on the traditional Christmas sugar cookie archetype, but with a few notable aberrations. Most obviously- booze. I like the slight edge the bourbon gives these cookies, but don't worry- the alcohol content is minor. No one's going to get tipsy off your cookies.

Ingredients

• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 3/4 cup Earth Balance spread
• 2 tablespoons vanilla almond milk
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup bourbon
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 1/2 cup flour

Stage One

In a mixing bowl, combine the sugar and Earth Balance until well blended. Add the almond milk, vanilla, and bourbon and stir together. Then mix in the dry ingredients and stir into a firm dough. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate at least 3 hours.

Stage Two

On a floured work surface, roll your dough out about 1/8' - 1/4" thick and cut into whatever shapes you choose.

I usually decorate my cookies at this stage using colored sugar, sprinkles, or crushed candy. If you plan on decorating them later with frosting or icing, leave them plain now.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 8 - 10 minutes. The time on these can vary a lot based on the thickness of your cookies, so check them frequently. They can go from slightly underdone to burned real quick.

These might be my favorite Christmas cookie. They're classic, yet with a twist. They look great on a holiday cookie platter, and this recipe makes about 3 dozen so you've got plenty to share!

Roasted chestnuts are an iconic element of the winter holiday season. We all sing about them, (in fact, nearly everyone from Garth Brooks to Twisted Sister has sung about them) but here in the United States, very few of us ever eat them. And fewer still have made them ourselves. 

Of those I've met who have tried to roast chestnuts at home, most expressed frustration and disappointment- the chestnuts came out dry, or hard, they burned before they even softened, the whole batch was internally mildewed. They can be tricky, especially if you're unfamiliar with the nuts in their raw state.

So today, I thought I'd show you how to get a full batch of perfect chestnuts every time you roast.

Be Picky!

The first thing we need to do is select our chestnuts, and this is really important. The nutmeat of chestnuts is softer and moister than most other nuts. This makes them really susceptible to mold and mildew. So you need to be very careful when you're picking your batch. Don't just blindly scoop a bunch out of the bin; be that obnoxious shopper that picks nuts out of the bin one at a time and scrutinizes each one. Your kids will be embarrassed, but trust me- the payoff is worth it.

And here's what you need to look for. First, check the bottom of the shell. If you see any trace of green mold, toss that one back. It's not just exterior- that nut is definitely moldy.

Next, look at the tip. If the pointy part of the nut is starting to look pale and fuzzy, don't take that nut. This is a sign that mildew might be growing inside. Now, this sounds really obvious. "Why would I buy fuzzy food? Fuzzy always means bad!" But this doesn't look like mold fuzz. If you're not very familiar with chestnuts, this slightly fuzzy pale tip looks like a normal feature of the nut. Even many grocers don't realize it's a sign the nuts are bad internally, so you'll find many fuzz-tipped nuts in the bin. If it's only slight, the nutmeat might still be okay, but it's not worth the risk. Hold out for some really good ones.

A healthy and delicious chestnut will be firm and shiny with no sign of fuzz. In the below photo, the chestnut in the foreground is a good one; the one in the background is questionable.

Toil, but not much trouble

Okay, so now we've got our good-looking raw chestnuts. There's a little prep work involved before we start cooking. You need to cut open the shells or your chestnuts will explode during the roasting. (This sounds exciting, but really is just disappointing and a little messy.) I just use a paring knife for this. It's a little tough to cut through the shells, so I find the smaller the blade the less chance of accidents if the nut slips while I'm cutting. (And they're very smooth and hard, so watch out for slipping.)

Make sure you cut all the way through the shell and that you're not just scoring the surface. Most people cut an X shape into the shells. Not only does this make it easier to peel the shell away after they're roasted, but they look so pretty with the four corners peeling back to reveal the delicious roasted nutmeat inside.

Next is the crucial step that most people don't seem to know about. You've got to boil them before you roast them. Boil the nuts, shells and all for 15 minutes. 

Then drain the water and lay the nuts out on a baking sheet, cut-side up. Now just bake at 425 fahrenheit for 12 - 15 minutes.

They're best eaten warm, but give them a few minutes to cool before you try to peel the shells off or you might burn your fingers.

Now, put on a little Nat King Cole and let Jack Frost nip at your nose!