Lindy Smith, of Lindy’s Cakes Ltd from the UK, is a highly creative multi-award winning cake designer. She is also a best-selling international cake decorating author, with her much anticipated fifteenth book, ‘Simply Modern Wedding Cakes’, being published. Lindy, who has over 24 years of experience within the sugarcraft industry, has a great passion for design and colour which she loves to share with her students, readers and social media followers. In her tutorial, Lindy shows us how to create a stunning Christmas table centerpiece using her Christmas Cracker Cookie and Snowflake Cutters.
Step 1
Thinly roll out the pastillage between 1mm spacers. Pick up the paste, place it over the Intricate Snowflake Cutter and roll over the paste with a rolling pin. Run your finger over the edges of the cutter, turn it over and carefully press out the paste onto your work board using a paintbrush.
Step 2
Take the no. 16 piping nozzle and use it as a cutter to remove circles from inside the snowflake, as shown. Swap to the no. 1 nozzle and remove smaller circles. Leave the snowflake on your work board until the paste has firmed up a bit to prevent the snowflake distorting when you lift it.
Step 3
Carefully place the completed snowflake on a foam pad and dry thoroughly. Repeat using both the suggested snowflake cutters. An airing cupboard or a very cool oven are ideal places to dry pastillage as the gentle heat removes all the moisture from the paste.
Step 4
Roll out some red sugarpaste between 5mm spacers. Place a snowflake stencil on top of the paste and press down onto it with a smoother. Smear the paste that has come through the stencil with white vegetable fat.
Step 5
Dip a soft dusting brush into edible lustre dust and liberally dust over the top of the stencil. Remove any excess dust and carefully peel away the stencil.
Step 6
Line up the centre of the stenciled pattern with the centre of the cracker cookie cutter and cut out as shown. Cut away the excess paste with a palette knife.
Step 7
Paint piping gel over the central section of a cookie to act as glue. Next, place the red patterned sugarpaste in position. Add the gathers by pressing the sharper end of a dresden tool into the paste in a radial pattern, as shown.
Step 8
Roll out the ice blue sugarpaste between 5mm spacers and emboss using a snowflake stencil and a smoother as before. Using the cookie cutter, cut out one of the end sections, as shown. Add to one end of the cookie using piping gel as glue.
Step 9
Repeat for the second end. Texture with a dresden tool as before so the cracker looks as if it can be pulled. Cover the rest of your cracker cookies with sugarpaste as before, varying the colour way as desired
Step 10.
Carefully attach the pastillage snowflakes to the centres of the crackers. Remember that pastillage, although strong, can be very brittle!
Step 11
Place a small ball of red modelling paste in to the flower mould, enough to completely fill the cavity.
Step 12
Flex the mould to release the flower. Repeat, making half red and half blue flowers. Attach these to the centre of each snowflake, as shown. Top with a small ball of rolled white or blue paste as desired.
Step 13
Attach the decorations, and your cookies are finished!
