The Clever Cookie Cutter Hack For Hassle-Free Cake Decorating

When you're hosting a party, baking a homemade cake can be a great way to add some extra love to the dessert you serve. You can completely customize the flavors of both the cake and frosting, and you'll get to decide exactly how the dessert is decorated.

If you're still a beginner when it comes to cake decorating, however, it can be difficult to keep your frosting looking clean. It can be frustrating to spend a while piping out your buttercream, only for the decorations to look messy once you're done. Fortunately, you can use cookie cutters to decorate your cakes more easily while maintaining a cleaner look.

You'll first want to make sure your cake is completely frosted, and that the frosting is slightly sticky. Then, choose your desired cookie cutter shape. Decide where you want the design placed on the cake, and carefully set the cutter down, leaving no openings on the bottom. Next, pour in some sprinkles to fill in the design.

Be sure to pour your sprinkles slowly — you don't want to overfill the cookie cutter, since they could spill out and ruin the clean edges once the cutter is pulled away. You should only be pouring in enough to cover the buttercream frosting. Then, to make sure the sprinkles stick, you can gently press them down using your finger or a spoon. Once they're secure in the frosting, you can carefully take the cookie cutter out, leaving behind the sprinkles in the shape of the cutter.

This trick will work with any shape of cookie cutter, so long as sprinkles can be poured in from the top. If you're celebrating a birthday, you can buy number-shaped cookie cutters to add an age amongst the candles. The sprinkles will add a pop of color to stand out against the frosting, as well as some texture to the top of the cake. This method works with anything sprinkle-like: rainbow jimmies, crushed-up cookie crumbs, chopped nuts, or crushed peppermint.

If sprinkles aren't your thing, cookie cutters can also help shape some chocolate toppers. Lay out some parchment paper or a silicone mat on a baking tray, and arrange your chosen cookie cutters. Using a double boiler, melt down some chocolate, and carefully spoon it into the cutters. Once that chocolate has solidified, you can carefully pop it out of the cookie cutter mold, and place it on top of your frosted cake.

If you want to try your hand at decorating with frosting, cookie cutters can help make a visual guide for decoration, too. Gently press the cutter into the frosting and pull it off, leaving the outline visible. Then, take your piping bag and carefully pipe out the frosting, following that outline.

The next time you want to add some quick and easy decorations to the top of your cake, grab some fun-shaped cookie cutters. With some brightly colored homemade sprinkles, you could wind up with a fun and whimsical-looking cake with minimal effort.