I have certainly been a busy bee lately with all the baking I’ve been completing for cake orders and a friends Birthday. It’s actually quite nice that I have a week off from orders and work this week so it’s given me a chance to experiment in the kitchen!
I seem to be obsessed with paper straws lately! I have been using them for a variety of my baking from this carousel cake I created for a client last month…
…to these Halloween cookie pops:
They are so perfect to add colour to cake & cookie pops and you can pick them up relatively cheap from quite a few high street shops & supermarkets. I purchased pink & white, orange & black, green & black and some festive green & red paper straws from £1 shops, Asda and Home Bargains!
I was a bit worried as to whether it was a good idea to bake them into my cookie pops at first as I usually just use the paper lolly sticks which are fine in the oven. It turns out they are just as strong and hold up really well considering the cut out cookies are quite heavy.
I also recently received a sample pack of lolly sticks, paper straws, cake dowels, cellophane bags and candy melts from Yolli
I couldn’t wait to try them out so sticking with the “Busy Bee” theme, I created these cookie pops (I love making cookie pops!) using the yellow & white stripey paper straws provided in the pack. I cut it in half so I could make a couple.
I melted the yellow Yolli melts in the microwave as clearly instructed on the back of the pack, they are pretty much the same as other candy melts I’ve used and I must admit that I tried a couple of pieces shortly after opening the bag. They have a pleasant vanilla flavour and melt perfectly smooth. If you do make any mistakes whilst using it in decorating or it cools in the bowl, you can just place it back in the microwave for about 15 seconds and it melts perfectly again.
I really wanted to try creating a honeycomb effect with the Yolli melts, so I used bubble wrap to create an interesting texture. I simply spread the Yolli melts on the raised bubble side of the bubble wrap then waited for it to cool before using my fancy square cookie cutter to cut it into the same shape as the cookies I baked. I turned the wrap over and peeled it away carefully and I must say I’m rather pleased with the results.
I made the bee decorations out of sugar modelling paste & finished with some gold edible paint & edible pen.
I think they look really effective and certainly brightened up this wintery day!
I’m now feeling inspired to create some festive bakes & think I may write a little series of Christmas cake decorating posts.
In the meantime, if you’re feeling inspired, go check out Yolli – they sell a large variety of cake decorating supplies to brighten up any cakes & bakes!
