Jan 26, 2014

Mini sweets tutorials: Pictures of the pie dish...

Good evening good folk.

Now Jennifer told me I did not have to post the massive load of stuff she sent me.. so I won't

Instead I will just show you this picture of my pie pan: Yummy!!
 
Hugs!!
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Jennifer did ask me to talk a little bit about some of the cakes I sent her so that I will do ;)
 
Now miniatures and miniature foods are not simple to make, the baking process can be even longer than real life baking. So while I will show you some of the hows, your processes can be different as all artists have their own tricks of the trade and techniques. Just try and have fun.
 
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Cookies:
 
Cookies are some of the easiest foods to start with as the technique for cookies can be expanded upon for lots of foods.
 
You can see in this shot I have mixed a bit of tan clay with some pre-baked crumbles of choco chip clay.
 
Cut out, stamp or shape your cookie. Then your going to smash a bit of tinfoil on the top of the cookie to give it some detail.
 
 Once you have your shape and dents you will apply some chalk around the edges and dabbed points to replicate browning done by oven. My cake tutorial shot....
 
You see I haven't covered the entire cookie, just edges and blotches.
 
This part is optional but I added a few extra chips to poke out of the cookie for detail before baking:
 
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Cakes:
 
Cakes and slices can be done the same way. For this piece I have done a square slice but you can do round or a triangular piece.
 
When doing light cakes you should use a translucent clay mix. As you know I use Premo Sculpey Accents clay in large quantities.
 
The key to cakes and bread pieces is the crumbling texture you produce when you swirl the clay: Using a pin, exacto or toothpick you will make circles or swirl the surface very delicately, but thoroughly.
 
 After lots of swirls and turning you will get your crumbled surface.
 
That's when you apply your chalk in in colors around the edges and top of the cake slice. If you are frosting the whole cake..then you don't need to.
 
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Cheesecake:
 
Cheesecakes can be done different ways as well but the piece I created for Jennifer was a single serve.
 
The crumb coat can be made with tan clay, yellowish brown whatever mix you are going for but this is how I do my bases, with brown and tan swirl
 
Then you will add a very thin layer of that mix to the bottom of your cheesecake colored square. And only swirl the bottom layer like we did with the cakes to produce crumb.
 
Color with your chalk
 
 
Of course there are many varied techniques here and more questions to field but this should get you started on making some wonderful treats yourself.
 
This got long ..talk Valentines soon ;)
 

35 comments:

  1. O my, this is a yummy post! The content of that frying pan: mouthwatering!!!! Delicious :-)
    As for the cakes, yummy again! Thank you so much for sharing your tips and tricks!!
    XX
    Véronique
    p.s.: shorts and tanktop? SRSLY??? LOL ;-)

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    1. I am glad you enjoyed these delectables ;)

      hahah ..well the shorts might be under a snowsuit.. and I am still bear lazy hibernating so more of a walk than run ;)

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  2. Yes! So cute! And it does take longer than real baking doesn't it?! :-P

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    1. It certainly does, I see you have been baking all weekend ;)

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  3. Holy Moly Jennifer sent a TON of minis! From what I can see they look great & I am sure you will enjoy them. Thank you for these great tips! Everything looks so yummy.

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    1. She boat load gifted me, that is because she is a wonderful thoughtful friend ;)

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  4. YUM! All those desserts look delish! I especially adore those heart shaped cookies. Perfect for Valentine's Day! Looks like you got tons of goodies from Jennifer too. How fun!

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    1. Now to make some life-size heart cookies!. And maybe..share ;P

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  5. Hello Jane,
    I really admire your skill at making food. It looks so realistic...especially the texture! A great big bravo!
    Big hug,
    Giac

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    1. Thank you hon even though I am just a "newb" at it ;)

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  6. Wow, that is an impressive pie pan! Thank you for sharing your tips on mini baking. Mini baking is something I have not had a lot of success with so I will have another go using your tips because what you produce looks so yum and realistic.

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    1. Oh my first ones looked like playdough so don't get discouraged. Just think with one pack of yellow sculpty you can probably produce 10000 bananas..by the end you would be a banana artesian!!!

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  7. Jennifer ha sido mas que generosa , unos regalos geniales , muchas gracias por esos tutoriales para hacer pasteles y galletas , siempre se puede aprender algo mas

    besitos

    Mari

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  8. Hi Jane! Thank you for your tutorial! You sure make it sound easy! I find it so difficult to work with very small items!!! Your cakes and minis look totally realistic and yummylicious!

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  9. Hi Jane! Thanks for the mini cake making tutorial. I have done some miniature cakes myself and have found that getting the textures right is probably the most challenging so I really appreciate this information. I must say that Jennifer has been turning out some pretty spectacular cakes herself, as seen with her little bakery, so no doubt your tips as a Pro will prove to be useful to her as well.
    But Oh My! .... What a pie plate! You must be over the moon Jane! I know that I would be! :D

    elizabeth

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    1. Food minis are not my mainstay as you know but I think we should all know a little about making mini food for some of the varied projects we all do and purchase elaborate pieces when the urge compels ;P

      I was swooning when I opened Jennifer's amazing gift package, she is a genuine sweetheart !

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  10. Congratulations on your lovely gifts from Jennifer. It is really wonderful gifts you made and thanks for show and tell.
    Hugs
    Wyrna

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  11. Hi Jane, I love your pie plate too! :-D For those who don't know, Jane has been loading me with her amazing handmade masterpieces since I won her giveaway last Easter. I didn't know how to even begin thanking her, so one day recently, I was in a mood to clean out my stash, with Jane in mind, of course. So everything I had that looked like something Jane could use went into a package for her. That's what's in the pie plate. Now, back to sweet, thoughtful Jane: Your mini tutorials are above and beyond. Thank you so much for this fantastic information and beautiful photos. I never realized that cookies were good for a beginner. I've wanted to make some but had no idea where to begin. Plus, I love your "recipe" for cheesecake crust--too cool! Thanks for being such an awesome friend. I can't wait to show everyone what you made me for Valentine's Day too! xo Jennifer

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    1. Big hugs to you hon! I expect some amazing cookies to be filling your amazing bakery soon ;)

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  12. Many gifts from a generous friend.
    Thanks for the tutorial. Your cakes are delicious.
    Bye, Faby

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  13. thanks for the great tutorial :)
    Hugs
    marisa

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  14. Tiene un aspecto estupendo.

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  15. Wow! The pie plate is awesome, very characteristically of dear, generous Jennifer.
    Thank you very much for sharing these wonderful cake and cookies making tutorials. Your work with clay is simply great. I am the proud owner of some of your Miniature food.
    Hugs, Drora

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  16. A fun pie plate from Jennifer! Thanks for the baking tutorial!

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  17. Congratulations to this wonderful gifts!
    Thank you for this great tutorials. I am still a beginner in miniatures and so it is always nice for me to learn something new. How have you made the "sauce" above the cherrys on the cake? Did you use nail polish?
    Hugs
    Melli

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    1. Hey Melli, The sauce is "Triple Thick Glaze" mixed with some red chalk and a dab of red paint. You want your sauce to have some transparency ;)

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  18. I can't get over those choco chip cookies! (and that cake!!) I must remember this for my sweet shop (which I'll get to in another ten years at this rate). Great GREAT post!! Thank you. <3

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  19. Did you get everything in the first picture from Jennifer? That looks like a LOT of things =)
    Thanks for sharing your technique, your cakes looks sooooo tasty!!
    Hannah

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  20. Ciao Jane, i doni sono molto belli e invitanti a mangiare sono i dolcetti...
    Un caro saluto. Manu

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  21. Jennifer is so cute sending you all those miniatures!! She rocks!! Your sweets are so lovely and I love how you make them so realistic!! Hugs!

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  22. Jennifer is so generous!! I love your sweets tutorials, so realistic cakes and cookies!! Hugs

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  23. Hi Jane, congratulations on Jennifers lovely gifts, she is such a sweet and generous lady !!
    Thank you for sharing your wonderful tutorial, I´m also a beginner with food making, I would like to ask you : how do you make the cream on top off the cake, it looks sooo realistic, and has the right shape, I always wonder how people manage to do this :)
    Have a great week.

    Hugs Mieke xxx

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    1. Thank you ;)

      There are quite a few options, one is to pipe a bit of white tub silicone and let it dry. You can shape the clay with ridges and twist it.

      After trying to create a star shaped tip for piping and various twisting methods I decided to create a very small star shape for my clay press. I used the smallest circle press and cut 4 lines extending from it to resemble a cross hairs shape.

      So I press a little clay from that so that it has the ridges. Then place it on the baked cake. That's when you would pull the edges of the cream down a bit to melt the topping. I

      It a bit difficult to explain via writing. but here is a picture to get you the idea of the shape.

      I hope it helps ;)

      http://rlv.zcache.com/crosshairs_stickers-re255702a049a47209c5b9c2abde0f36a_v9waf_8byvr_512.jpg

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    2. Wow Jane, thank you soo match for this wonderful explanation and for giving me the picture, now I understand what you mean, and I can start trying :)
      Have a great week !

      Hugs Mieke xxx

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  24. Those look incredible!!
    hugs♥,
    Caroline

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