STARS AND STRIPES CAKE

How to make glittery star-shaped cake toppers using wire. A simple cake decoration you can make in advance! Mary and Brenda, Maher of Cakegirls, have a new tutorial for you.

I keep a container with bouncy wire stars in a snap-on lid at my fingertips to decorate any cake I want. Many cake decorators probably do. You may ask why. For me, they are like great earrings. They’re quick to add, and they complete the look. They can be used as an accent to a cake that already has lots going on, or they can become the centerpiece.

My stars are made of gum paste because they’re durable and will last long. They are also made without extra decoration, so I can customize their color and sparkle to suit the cake’s design. This was very useful when I made this “Stars and Stripes’ cake. I wanted to make a simple 4th of July cake that still captured the theme. The stripes are made of layers of vanilla cake-filled strawberry preserves. As fireworks, silver, and red glittering star shapes are used. This is the perfect picnic cake to serve at the Independence Day dinner table. It is also an excellent technique that can be used for any other cake occasion.

STARS AND STRIPES CAKE

To allow time for drying, start this project at least a day in advance.

Set aside one egg white. Use scissors to cut different lengths of wire, some longer than others. Set them aside.

Then, roll out a small amount of gum paste. If you roll the gum paste thicker than 1/8″ or more, the stars won’t be able to stay on the wire. Cut out stars in different sizes using the star cutter.

Then, holding a star between your fingertips, gently insert the wire into the lead by dipping the end in egg white. Insert the wire 3/4 up the information. You will see the wire through gum paste, but it should not poke on either side.

Please continue making the rest of the stars, then place them on a tray covered with parchment. After a couple of hours, flip over the stars and let them dry overnight.

Sprinkle disco dust on the star once it is dry. You can use a piece of parchment to collect and reuse the extra disco dust.

Fold the parchment paper in half, and gently pour the excess dust into the container.

Let the stars dry for one hour. Add them to your completed cake.