When I am making a topper for a cake I always try to have something that resembles what I am making. Usually it is a sketch or a picture of what I am trying to achieve, in the best cases I have the actual object. For this topper I knew I was going to use cereal treats as a base as I do with most all my 3D objects. However, there are specific rules you must stick to in order to use them:
1. Always coat with icing before applying the fondant. It acts as a spackal and fills in all the nooks and crannies so the texture of the cereal treats does not show through your fondant.
2. Always roll your fondant out to at least 1/8 of an inch. You need it nice and thick to obtain a good smooth surface and to again avoid the texture of the cereal treats from showing through.
Now that I have told you that, cereal treats are an awesome medium to use in making edible sculptures! To save on time (which is SO precious to me!) I purchase the snack pack of pre-made Rice Krispy Treats. I then cut and mold it into the shape that I need. To do so, I break the object apart by shapes if that makes any sense!
In this case, I made Thomas!
You can check out my completed cake HERE.
Next, I covered him in a thin coat of buttercream, but not too thin!
Next, comes the fondant. I only use Satin Ice Fondant because it is delicious and reliable. I purchase the white, red, and black then dye the other colors myself. In order to make a rich red or black by dying it yourself you end up using a TON of dye and it changes the consistency and taste of the fondant. So I choose to purchase these colors and I end up with amazing reds and blacks. My favorite dye is Americolor gel dye which I used here to dye the white fondant blue.
I first applied the blue fondant….
And then the red…
And then the black…all following the colors on my toy Thomas.
I then use a craft gun to make the red trim. This is a MUST HAVE tool for me. It comes with different shaped disk that allow for a variety of delicate pieces for all my cakes.
Lastly comes his face, then he’s ready for the cake! Make sure you put a dowel underneath him to support his weight.
If you have any questions regarding this tutorial please ask them in the comment section so other’s can benefit from the questions and answers.
Happy caking!
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