Enjoy this free triple threat tutorial, specially for #NationalHandwritingDay! (23.01.2019)
Here are three popular varieties of mushroom, created by Rhianydd Webb, to suit a range of abilities and even better, the meringue mushrooms are fabulous to dress up desserts!
Difficulty: intermediate
Techniques: modelling, colour dusts, edible soil, styling
Leeanne (editor): Rhianydd is the queen of ‘green’ cakes and cake master of the mushroom. Rhianydd, we salute you and thank you for sharing your expert tips on these woodland wonders…
Not Mushroom in Here!
For amazing recipes, decorating inspiration and more, pick up your copy of Cake Decoration & Sugarcraft today!
YOU WILL NEED
EDIBLES:
Modelling paste: 108g white, 40g brown, 60g red (Saracino)
edible glue
edible dust colours: white, yellow, orange, brown and red (Saracino)
dust colour: nutkin brown (Sugarflair)
edible paste colour: yellow
a small amount of royal icing
wafer paper 0.27mm x 1 sheet
spray glaze (PME)
200g caster sugar
¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
¼ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large egg whites at room temperature (120ml)
cocoa powder to dust
100g dark chocolate
EQUIPMENT:
small sharp knife
palette knife
cornflour puff
paintbrush: no.8 filbert
scissors
Dresden (PME)
glass cake stand and cloche: optional
scalpel
greaseproof piping bag
wooden skewers
glass bowl
hand mixer or stand mixer
piping bag
oven trays with greaseproof lining 3/8in
no.2a piping nozzle (Wilton)
sieve
coarse fur texture tool (Kemper)
MERINGUE MUSHROOMS
1 Pre-heat oven to 110 °C. Break egg whites at room temperature into a spotlessly clean (any grease residue will prevent a good whip) glass or metal bowl. Use mixer to beat the egg whites with a balloon whisk until frothy.
2 Add cream of tartar, salt and vanilla extract to egg whites and continue to whisk to soft peak.
3 Continue to whisk and gradually add the caster sugar. Whisk until firm peak.
4 Grease the baking tray and cover with greaseproof paper. Load the piping bag with the piping nozzle and pipe stems of varying thicknesses and textures.
5 On the second oven tray, use the same piping nozzle, holding steady and piping until the mushroom caps and between 4cm (1 ½in) to 6cm (2 ½in). Bake for forty-five minutes, then turn the oven down to 100°C and bake for a further twenty-five minutes or until the meringues come away from the paper cleanly. Turn off oven, open door and leave to cool for three hours.
6 Break 100g dark chocolate into a glass bowl. Melt in the microwave for thirty second bursts at a time until two thirds of the chocolate has melted. Stir until the remaining chocolate has melted. Leave for three minutes, then paint chocolate onto the flat base of the mushroom caps.
7 Hold the mushroom cap and gently push the base into place. Leave upside down until set.
8 Put 2 tbsp cocoa powder into a sieve and gently shake over the mushrooms.
AMANITA MUSCARIA – DEATH CAP MUSHROOMS
1 To create the stem, roll 28g white modelling paste into a sausage 6.5cms long and 2cm wide. Press the base onto the work surface to flatten and insert a skewer. Pinch the top of the paste to attach to the skewer.
2 Scratch the surface of the stem with the coarse fur texture tool.
3 Use the length of the scalpel blade to gently lift up very thin sections of the stem.
4 Roll 60g red modelling paste into a ball. Dust the base of a semispherical mould (or a curved bowl) with cornflour and press the red paste to shape. Press 10g white modelling paste into the centre of the red and hollow slightly by pressing the end of a rolling pin into the centre.
5 To create the gills, cut wafer paper into 3cm wide strips (stack no more than five pieces of paper at a time for neat cuts). Cut the end to a curve then cut one side straight to create shapes as in the image. Also cut a strip of the same depth long enough to wrap around the stem of the mushroom. Fix the ends together into a circle.
6 To create the gills, cut wafer paper into 3cm wide strips (stack no more than five pieces of paper at a time for neat cuts). Cut the end to a curve then cut one side straight to create shapes as in the image. Also cut a strip of the same depth long enough to wrap around the stem of the mushroom. Fix the ends together into a circle.
7 Use edible glue or Saracino wafer glue to fix the wider ends of the pieces together in batches. Bend the wider ends at a right angle.
8 Glue the white paste. Press the circle into the centre. Begin the fix the sections on the circle with edible glue. Continue until you have filled the area (individual sections can be added to fill gaps).
9 Roll a small amount of white modelling paste mixed to beige by adding a tiny amount of brown into a long very thin sausage (compare the thickness to the Dresden as in the image). Dust the board with cornflour and press and drag the broad end of the Dresden along the full length.
10 Glue around the inner and outer edge of the gills and fix the paste into place. Glue the centre and gently press onto the stem.
11 Use the side of the broad end of the Dresden to create slight dents around the edge.
12 Dust the gills with brown dust using the no.8 filbert brush.
13 Dust the cap with red, then patches of brown. Spray lightly with PME Spray glaze to set the colour.
14 Half fill a small piping bag with white royal icing. Snip off the end and add random dots onto the cap of the toadstool. Try not to be neat, and pat the royal icing into place with the end of the piping bag.
15 Dust the stem of the mushroom lightly with brown then nutkin brown.
GOLDEN CHANTERELLE MUSHROOM
1 Marble 70g of white modelling paste with yellow gel colour. Push three kebab skewers into a polystyrene block and cut to 5cm long to support the mushroom. Shape the mushroom as in the picture and push onto the skewers. Press to fix.
2 Press a thumb into the centre to hollow and pinch around the edge to thin.
3 Use a Celpin or paintbrush handle rolling from the outer of the cap into the centre to create ripples into the cap.
4 Accentuate the ripples in the cap by pushing them up with thumbs.
5 Pinch the edges of the cap between finger and thumb to thin.
6 Allow to set for thirty minutes, then drag the narrow end of the Dresden from halfway up the stem up and under the cap following the curve. Press deeper closest to the cap. Use the broad end of the Dresden to draw up the base of the stem and finally on the top edge of the cap to create dents.
7 Lightly dust yellow onto the whole mushroom, with the greatest concentration at the edges of the cap and stipple onto the top.
8 Add a little orange into the yellow and add more depth to the edges and onto the upper stem.
9 Add more orange onto the cap of the mushroom.
10 Dust a little white onto the base and just away from the edge of the cap. Spray lightly with PME spray glaze.
HOW TO DISPLAY THE MUSHROOMS
Roll two balls of 20g of brown modelling paste and press onto the cake stand for the death cap and chanterelle mushrooms. Paint them with the remaining dark chocolate, and paint more around them. Place the meringue mushroom onto the chocolate and push the two larger mushrooms into the balls of brown modelling paste. Sprinkle crushed bourbon biscuits over the chocolate to finish.
For more amazing recipes, decorating inspiration and more, pick up your copy of Cake Decoration & Sugarcraft today!
