Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Home-made Piping Gel recipe - Yessss! We Can!!

If you are like me you are gonna love this recipe. I mean if you live in India and love to decorate cakes . If you are perennially, unjustifiably envious of folks who live in the US / UK - only for the sole reason that they have easy access to cake decorating shops. How unfair!! They have cake decorating stores, baking aisles in every super market and have a plethora of baking and cake stuff easily available. People at stores do not stare at them when they ask for rice paper or piping gel or fondant or Dr. Oetker's Whip It or Ener-G. Forget these things, for me it was a victory to get a muffin tray, whipping cream, cooking chocolate, good pistachio essence, flaked almonds and a lot of other basic stuff. Excuse me if I am making India sound like an extremely under-developed country.. but that's reality.  How I wished we did better in Bangalore!! Sigh!! Double sigh!!
I have loved looking at glossy decorations made with the versatile piping gel and the freedom it offers to decorate a cake. Imagine my delight when I found a recipe for making piping gel at home here. I had Googled and found other recipes too, but this one was one to be tried as it did not have gelatin and sounded so easy and do-able. I tried this successfully and was able to paint my rolled fondant. This was my first ever tryst with piping gel and a home-made one at that!! I was of course over the moon...


I have halved the recipe and made it. Even half of this makes sufficient quantity to decorate one cake. Of course it would also depend on how elaborate your design is.

INGREDIENTS

1/3 cup sugar( I have used a 1/4 measure and halved)
1 tablespoon cornflour
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
, ( I used a teaspoon or so as I felt the gel would be too sour)
1/4 cup water.

METHOD 
Mix sugar and corn flour in a small saucepan, gradually add juice then water. Stir over high heat until mixture boils then thickens. Colour as desired using liquid or powder
Dont take your eye off the ball whilst making it or it goes lumpy you have to stir it all the time. It keeps for weeks in the fridge 

The  first time I made the gel, I used it immediately after it cooled. I made the Pooh and it turned out quite well for the first time. The second time when I made the Helicopter Cake , I made the gel and kept in the fridge, found that the sugar had crystallized( less lemon juice???). I could have tried reheating it, but I made the gel again as I did not want to take any chances at the last moment with the cake. The gel was perfect again.

Its worthwhile making the gel at home. If it thickens, add a couple of drops of water and adjust the consistency. Add the water with a medicine dropper to avoid making the gel too watery. Color and decorate as u please!!

Again, tips and advice would be very helpful and extremely appreciated!

50 comments:

Anonymous said...

Wooooooooooowwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww! I'm in love with your Pooh. You know why! ;)
Awesome work Suma! This is a must-try. Bookmarked! :)

Vrinda said...

pooh looks really cute....

Priya Suresh said...

Pooh looks super cute and thanks for sharing this piping gel..

Deepti Pawar said...

My next fondant cake is gonna have gel piping on it.. and the recipe is gonna be yours!! Thanks a ton!

Smita Srivastava said...

Thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe . I love the pooh it looks so cute & vibrant . Jus eager to give it a try .
I think this gel ( colorless version ) can be used to layer the fruit topped cakes for that sheen glossy effect , isn't it ???

Smita
@ Little Food Junction

M D said...

Hey Suma, I am so glad u've posted this recipe! I agree so much with u that we guys are left at the mercy of our kitchen skills and envy people abroad! This would definitely help us guys. Thanks for sharing!

Aparna S Mallya said...

Great post! we are moving to India sometime next year, and i always wonder if i will be able to continue baking. posts like yrs ensure me that i can keep going!!

SathyaSridhar said...

Wooow!!! looks perfect n neat finishing,, poohh looks perfect perfect,,, sure will try this one on my next next cake dear,,looks very easy to mix n only i need to train myself to come out good in piping,,

Divya Kudua said...

I always am feeling jealous of people living abroad only because of this!!!But you have found a temporary solution at least..thanks for sharing this recipe.Got to try this one for sure!!

s said...

I applaud u!!! this is awesome!! thanks a ton..will try!

Dhanya Ganesh said...

Pooh looks awesome. Also thank you for sharing the piping gel recipe.

Anonymous said...

HI suma, kindly accept 'Inspiration award'.Your blog inspires me to do try out something new all the time..Keep up the good work.
http://shubhada123.wordpress.com/2010/04/01/inspirational/

Tina said...

Lovely and perfect..

Nithya said...

The cake looks fantastic and its so true that we dont find baking goods here. I am in Chennai and I face the same issues as you do. Its so demotivating when I find a lovely recipe but not the proper ingredients here. :( anyways yours looks fantastic and now let me gain confidence to do such. Thanks for sharing the recipe. :)

I am here for the first time I guess and with no doubt that I will be often to find tips and tricks from you. :)

You are most welcome to my blogs as well. Do peep in sometime.

Nithya
www.4thsensecooking.com
www.nitsarts.blogspot.com

Simplyfood said...

This is alovely tip for making decorating icing.My 1st visit here am following your blog.

notyet100 said...

wow thanks for this,..

Spice said...

First time here....but glad I found, pooh looks cute.....thanks for sharing the recipe.....totally right about getting baking supplies in India...no i'm not in India...but whenever I think about moving back always think in my mind how i'm gonna find my supplies there so always keeping my eyes & ears open for home made options, will surely try this recipe....

Nachiketa said...

WOW!!!! That's awesome....
Your pooh has come out so well....

Thanks for stopping by at my blog... Looking forward to more interaction with you :-)

Cheers,
The Variable, Nachiketa

Monika said...

aaah i so agree with what u have said i am forever asking people going abroad to get me these stuff

Anonymous said...

Wow, nice one.
Well another thing that you can use is agar agar. Its just like gelatin, only vegetarian.

Ruchi M said...

Great recipe for piping gel - thanks for sharing.

I live in Gurgaon and am always looking for fondant and Dr. Oetkar pens etc but never able to find any... I should look around you site for the recipe of a nice fondant - I am sure you have it :)!!!

Great looking cake!

Ruchi
http://ruchisimplyfood.blogspot.com

Aparna said...

Hey Suma,

Lovely cake and fantastic blog...Good for me that i stumbled accidently and right on time..(I'm getting my first microwave soon...)I'm a baking novice and am dying to try all the recipes that you have mentioned here. I also stay in bangalore (Bannerghatta road to be precise) Can u please tell me where can i get all this baking stuff as getting dark chocolate itself was like an acccomplishment for me.

awaiting your reply

Aparna

Anonymous said...

All is not lost by living in Bangalore. I have a bakery. I work round many ingredients and create new baked foods. Many of my most popular stuff are my recipes. Your post is a case in point. Very very useful and much appreciated.!

Anonymous said...

thank u sooo much for dis....!! n well its d same in mumbai...!! :(

Tim Ziesemer said...

Thanks for sharing the recipe! We live on an island in Alaska, US and I couldn't get piping gel here either! ha ha Our younger son is turning 2 on Friday and I'm attempting to make a Thomas the Train cake. This recipe is going to be SO helpful!!

Thanks again!

Stephanie

Tammi R. said...

Love the looks of this recipe -- Can't wait to try it! Your sugar may have crystallized from keeping the gel in the fridge. I have only seen piping gel stored in an airtight container on the shelf.

aks said...

hey did u colour the cartoon with piping gel on the fondant.if so were u able to transfer the fondant on the cake..
Can this be done a day in advance(if u have a bday say 2moro)so u dont have to worry doing it the same day.

Anonymous said...

If you mix piping gel with tonix water it will glow under a black light

Recipeswap said...

wow this is awesome!

Anonymous said...

ok so im a 11 yr. old about to try this!!! wish me good luck:)

Anonymous said...

Hi Suma,

I picked up some cake gel from General Food Additives, but have no clue about how to use it. Can you give me some info please? Thanks. Sam

Suma Rowjee said...

@Sam - The cake gel is used in the cake batter, supposedly to give better texture to the cake, have never used it though. Cake gel and piping gel are different things I guess, do check the label for ingredients to be sure.

Anonymous said...

Hi Suma,

Thanks. Unfortunately I am not in Blr and I asked someone to pick it up for me thinking it was piping gel. Now I don't know what to do with it. LOL. The box also has no ingredients listed. Would help if you could let me know in case you figure out what it is used for. Thanks a ton. Sam

Anonymous said...

Dear Cakes & More:

There is a shop off Kammanahalli Main Road,Bangalore, on Oil Mill Road to be exact that stocks all manners of baking needs and is aptly called Baker's Needs. Frequented by bakers from all commercial bakeries.

Wawa said...

Hi, I'm wawa from Malaysia. I tried the recipe and it tasted good but i let it thickens too much..my bad..Tq for sharing this recipe:) I am definitely going to use the recipe again!

bims- Nigeria said...

Woow! You have been a life saver. Thank you for the good works.

Sylvia- Puerto Rico said...

Thank you so much for sharing this recipe!. Trully appreciate it! I will definitely use it on my next cake and cokies. How quick does it dries?

Mamma Olyn ♥ said...

thank u soooo much!! at last found this easy peasy recipe for my 1st time piping gel deco..hehe, i will make it for my son 4th bday tis april. Please feel free to visit my blog http://mammaolyn.blogspot.com .thanks again

Drishya said...

hi! i just have a doubt! can the piping gel be used directly on the cake without the fondant?
Thank you! :)

tess said...

I just wanted to know...is this piping gel a substitute for what the Wilton people use in their recipe for icing?

Suma Rowjee said...

Drishya - You could try! @Tess - Yes, kind of!

Anonymous said...

I too am living in a developing country and wondered where to find that illustrious piping gel so often used for transferring designs onto cakes. Now you've solved my dinosaur dilemma for an upcoming party in three days!!

Allenex75 said...

Thanks for the recipe I used whipping cream and the icing turn out stiff enough for my decorations on the cake I made.

Indigo Queen said...

Thank you for sharing this recipe, Suma!

sowmya said...

hi,
Nice work there! I want to pipe a thomas train on fresh cream icing from my son's birthday. What do you think? will it stay?

sowmya said...

Thanks for posting this. I need to pipe a thomas train design on cream frosting. Will it work?

Suma Rowjee said...

Yes Sowmya, it should work..

Unknown said...

Hi, I live in the US but still prefer innovative home made creations. A tip for your readers: If you make whipped cream and add clear (or colored) piping gel in the last stage of its medium peaks, it will stabilize your whipped cream, prolong shelf-life, improve its creamy texture and will give it elasticity to pipe decorations. Just make sure that your piping gel is smooth and lump free before its addition. Enjoy and share. A qualified pastry chef from NY.

Unknown said...

Wow dear...That's such a helpful post...Never thought that it can be made at home...You are making the world of baking so easy....Too good post.....

Unknown said...

Can this be used for gel transfer techniique