Video: Decorate a Christmas Cake

In this short video, Kim Patino of Coffee and Cakes in Frodsham demonstrates how to decorate a Christmas cake.

Video Transcript

Hi I'm Kim Patino of Coffee and Cakes in Frodsham and on behalf of CakeBaker.co.uk I am going to demonstrate how to finish a Christmas cake.

Instead of using the usual snow scene or fluffed up icing for a Christmas cake, I'm going to show you how to make some handmade choir boys.

So you need some red roll out icing, again any good craft shop will sell this and again you just mould it a little bit to make it pliable and this makes your body of the choir boy.

To make the feet of the choir boys you need a tiny amount of black, probably that much, again that would make two feet.

You need a small amount of white and plenty of icing sugar because you're going to roll it out. For such a small amount I tend to use a smaller rolling pin and this just makes it a little easier to work with. So you need a small cutter, this is the inch cutter but you need the fluted side and you need to cut two for each choir boy.

Cocktail stick again and plenty of icing sugar and at the end of the table again, just flute and work all the way round - it doesn't have to be an exact science, the frills won't be the same on each one.

Then you need to get back to your clear alcohol, a tiny little bit again. Just make each one have a flat top, tiny bit on each one and attach two to each one, so you can see they've got a ruffle round their neck. Stick that on there and there are the three choir boys.

What you need to do now is make the facial expressions, so you need to do a mouth with the cocktail stick - wide open as though they’re singing. Tiny little bit, not even the size of a bead for a nose, this is quite soft so you really don't need anything else to stick them on, you don't need any liquid, the marzipan is quite good, and it stays on.

Food colouring pens are really handy and any good craft shop will sell them - I've got a black one and a red one. Make little balls and flatten them down with your finger and thumb and just put two hands just on the front of their tunic.

You now need to make some hymn books just to prop at the front of each one. So a small amount of regal ice, plenty of icing sugar and you just need to roll out a little bit and cut it into squares. You don't need a lot because if the hymn book is too big and too heavy it'll just pull the arms off the choir boys, so you just need amount. That's the hymn books attached.

Now they all need some hair. So to do the hair you just want some basic food colouring, a tiny little bit. If you use the table again, wet it a little bit, this just lessens the intensity. So you get a little bit of colour and a paint brush, start at the back, and just paint them some hair on.

So if you can imagine that being your Christmas cake, you've got your three little choir boys which look quite effective and they're completely edible. If you just leave to dry overnight, by tomorrow they'll be completely dry and ready to use.