Hummingbird Cake Topper with Fluffy Frosting Flowers

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In today's video tutorial, you will learn to create a beautifully unique hummingbird cake topper complete with whimsical, fluffy frosting flowers!  

Hummingbird Cake Topper Tutorial with Fluffy Frosting Flowers! by MyCakeSchool.com

 

The brightly colored peony & buds from today's tutorial are similar to flowers that we've demonstrated in another tutorial, however, we've simplified the process by using a frosting that is a variation of our high ratio recipe.  We have listed it below.  

I could pipe these flowers all day long and never get tired of it--these are truly some of my favorite flowers to create!  The hummingbird is such a nice addition to the design, and with the anchor extending from the beak, the bird appears to be flying.  Enjoy the tutorial!

Materials for Hummingbird Cake TOpper

Hummingbird Template
Gum Paste (or Fondant with Tylose Kneaded into it)
Exacto Knife or Sharp Knife
High Ratio Frosting (*altered as explained below)
18 gauge wire (or other sturdy gauge)
Drinking Straw for anchor/barrier
Black fondant for beak
Vodka or Lemon Extract (not lemon juice)
Piping Tips: Large Petal Tips: 403, 402 & also 2D, 4, grass tip 233
Coloring Gels: Wilton Rose, Lemon Yellow, Americolor Avacado Green (hydrangea) Hummingbird: I used Americolor Electric Green, Teal, Sky Blue, White, and Red Red (there can be lots of color variation here, don’t feel limited by this list) –
Pearl Dust- optional. I dusted the hummingbird with pearl dust as a final touch
Black Food Coloring Pen for eye (or improvise with coloring gel)
Misc: Toothpicks, parchment paper, small paint brushes, tip 104 for making feather impressions in bird (optional), turntable

 

High Ratio Shortening for Fluffy Flowers! We slightly altered the sugar & milk amounts from our usual High Ratio Frosting Recipe.  In our other more detailed video on large frosting flowers, we featured a non-dairy whipped meringue frosting recipe.  I love both recipes for piping these flowers, but we were happy to find that this high ratio recipe makes a great alternative (as it is quicker to make and seems a bit more stable)  and the soft, billowy consistency is very similar.  Enjoy!

 
 
2 cups (386 g) high ratio shortening (We usually use Sweetex or CK Brand)
2 Tablespoons (24 g) clear vanilla extract)
½ teaspoon (2g) butter flavoring
½ teaspoon (2g) lemon or almond flavoring
2 lb. plus 1 cup (1022 g) confectioners sugar
½ cup  (119 g) milk or heavy cream
½ teaspoon (2g)  ( use popcorn salt because of its fine grain or let your regular salt dissolve in the milk)
 
Cream the shortening and flavorings.  Add the confectioners' sugar and milk, mixing slowly then gradually increasing speed.  Mix 5 to 6 minutes until creamy and smooth.
 
The consistency can vary depending on humidity, just add more confectioners' sugar to thicken or more milk too thin.
 
 

 

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31 Comments

  1. Melissa - what an adorable design! So glad I signed up for your classes on line. Was wondering how hard it was to find the straw after you made the peony? Looks like I would need to have something sticking out as a marker after I did my first set of petals.

  2. another thought was if I have to keep this cake refrigerated.There is alot more milk/dairy in this recipe.Thanks again.

  3. Thanks for your comments!

    @Cakerjoy- We have not yet tried this with Crisco--if you do, let us know what you think! Re: refrigeration, to be on the safe side, I wouldn't leave at room temp for an extended time--maybe just a day.

    @Karen- After doing this tutorial, I thought that really it probably would have been easier to go ahead and apply the hummingbird & wire with straw barrier/anchor all at once at the end. However, if you'd rather do it as I did, I would only push the straw in partially so that you don't lose track. It does get a bit tricky if you push it all the way in from the beginning & then pipe your flower! ;0)

  4. Loved the peony and the gravity-defying bird Melissa! My question is about the piping tips you use. Are they Wilton or Ateco? Reason I ask is because their piping tip numbers are not the same. Just wanna make sure I order the right tips in the Internet ?

  5. Thanks Jo! Strangely, the piping tips themselves have no brand identification on them--just the number (although I've seen them referred to as Ateco). Here are the Amazon links that I used!

    Tip 401
    http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0000VLE3Q/ref=pe_385040_127745480_pd_te_o_s_ti/183-7270713-7612614

    Tip 402
    http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00085F88G/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

    Tip 403
    http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008GUYI72/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

  6. I have to make this cake! When I saw this cake I had to join this site so I could learn how! This is the reason I joined tonight !

  7. Hi Laura!! I remember you from Facebook- Welcome!! We are happy to have you, and I'm so glad that you like the tutorial! xoxo

  8. I joined class yesterday when I saw this flower. I whipped up a batch of the frosting and made the flowers, as well as roses. The frosting works perfectly. Thank you so much for this tutorial.

  9. Melissa,
    I'm a big Facebook fan of Kathy at My Sweet Things and she recommended your training. I am particularly interested in making the peonies. Question - I have only used butter in my Buttercream frostings. Can I use butter in place of the high ratio shortening? The brands of shortening you recommend, I have not seen here on the West Coast.

    Love what I have seen thus far on your website. I'm an amateur baker and really enjoy decorating!

    Linda