Royal Icing flowers

This is a sponsored post

A while a go I received some different types of sugar from Tate & Lyle to try out when I was baking so I’m back with an update. I baked my cakes with the caster sugar and they were just as delicious as usual. If anything I would say that the sugar isn’t quite as sweet as other brands, which is actually quite a good thing if you are then going to cover your cake in buttercream.

I thought I’d try the packet of royal icing out to make the flower decorations for this cake. Lots of people are wary of working with royal icing as it is often difficult to get it to the exact consistency that you need for the type of working you are doing. For piping flowers you need a very stiff mixture so the flowers keep their shape.

I usually make the royal icing from scratch using this recipe but these packet mixes are a quick, easy and inexpensive way to make up your own royal icing. However, be careful about the quantity of water the packet asks you to use – it is best to start with less as you can always add more! I actually found that this packet needed quite a bit more water than the box stated even to make up a very stiff mixture.

Piping flowers does take quite a bit of practice and you do need a few pieces of basic equipment such as a flower nail and petal nozzle. You also need something to pipe the flower onto so you can peel it off later, for example cut up small squares from some cellophane or a plastic document wallet.

I am happy to try and write a tutorial on piping flowers if anyone would be interested? I would attempt some vlogging but I’m not sure our little point and shoot camera is up to that!