As I was looking around the internet for decorating ideas, nearly everything that I liked seemed to be made with fondant. I'd never worked with fondant before, and quite frankly, it scared me. Also, I knew I couldn't run to the store and buy it here in Tanzania, so I'd have to find a recipe and make it myself.
When I finally settled on making a cake in the shape of a gift box though, I knew that I wanted to try fondant for the bow. I knew I couldn't do that easily with buttercream frosting. Thankfully, I found a decent recipe for homemade rolled buttercream fondant. I liked the recipe overall, even though it was a little greasy.
I wasn't brave enough to try fondant to cover the whole cake, so I used chocolate buttercream for my base.
I was pleased that the fondant came together well and rolled out easily. My only headache was getting my bow loops to dry. Next time, I'll try making these several days in advance.
The finished product:
We kept the party a secret, and I think she was pretty surprised!
One of the best parts of cake decorating is celebrating the wonderful people for whom they are created. Happy Birthday, Julie Anne!
