Thanks to Kate Sorenson and her team of savings
experts, this informative article was possible. As a busy and hardworking
mother in addition to a couponing guru,
Kate understands the costs that come with cake decorating.
When tightening one’s belt,
one of the first luxuries to go by the wayside is fancy foods, especially
deserts. Even before that, it’s common to ditch the frills that make your
deserts look aesthetically pleasing. So, for the cake-decorating hobbyists out
there, here are some ways to save while still continuing your craft.
Buy Tools for Cheap
Professional kitchen-grade
tools, such as decorating tips and pastry knives, do not need to cost an arm
and a leg. There are plenty of places to get these items for very cheap, even a fraction of
the cost of buying them in stores.
In addition to that, you can
save by avoiding buying tools that you might be able to “make” by repurposing
other implements. For instance, if you are very handy with spatulas, and you
don’t own a frosting spreader, just use your spatula instead. It may feel a bit
clumsy, but it won’t take much practice.
If you still need to save
more, try a different DIY approach.
Make your own Tools when possible
The easiest tool to make is a
frosting applicator. All you need is a Ziploc bag to hold the frosting, and
then a decorative tip. These can be bought for less than a dollar, but if you
have an empty aerosol whipped cream can, the tip can be removed and used for
your frosting bag.
Whether you buy or make your
own tools, it’s important to not waste them.
Recycle your Tools
Professional kitchens always
make a point to waste nothing, and this includes tools that seem disposable. Even
if you make your frosting applicator out of a Ziploc bag, don’t throw it out
when it gets dirty. Wash it out as you would any other dish, and dry it for
further use.
You can also repurpose tools
that aren’t even meant for baking. If you buy a large pizza in the near future,
save the little white plastic tripod that supports the box top. Just as this
piece protects the pizza from being crushed by the box, it can also be used
when storing a cake by protecting the cake from the plastic wrap.
If you already have all of
your tools purchased and in your possession, then you’re probably looking for
other ways to save when baking and decorating cakes.
Use Recipes with Few, Cheap Ingredients
Completely homemade cakes are
often quite expensive and rack up a large tab in ingredients. However, semi-homemade cakes taste just as brilliant and cut your ingredients to a
minimum.
As long as you use butter and
not olive oil, these cakes will still taste homemade because the cake mix is
only being used as “flavored flour.”
Cake decorating doesn’t have
to hurt your wallet. All you need to do is get creative, and reuse things when
possible. The result you’ll get is a cake that is delicious, pretty, and also
unique!
Additional
Source:
“Cake Decorating For Less”, Catalog