5Creating edible works of art is a cakewalk thanks to Shelly Baker. The world-renowned cake designer has whipped up a veritable hand-held course on baking and decorating beautiful cakes with her new title, The Complete Book of Icing, Frosting & Fondant Skills. For those of us whose cake-decorating skills end at Betty Crocker frosting in a can, as well as confidant decorators who want to expand their skills, this book is exactly what the pastry chef ordered. Whether the covering of choice is fondant, royal icing, buttercream, marzipan or sugar paste, readers will find everything they need to create fresh-baked perfection, including:

A variety of cake recipes and instructions for prepping cakes to take decoration

Techniques for working with various frostings--from piping buttercream to rolling fondant

Instructions for creating cake toppers, marzipan fruits, gumpaste flowers, and other delicious details

More than 50 step-by-step projects for creating stunning tiered cakes, cupcakes, cake pops, and more

Readers will also find a detailed review of essential tools and materials as well as a troubleshooting chapter for help with fixing or avoiding common mistakes. More than 400 gorgeous, full-color photos.