12 top baking tips from Channel 4's Extreme Cake Makers

Adam Lawrence and Twofour Group

Are you watching Channel 4's Extreme Cake Makers? No challenge is too great for this line up of cake-making extraordinaires. The charismatic group are willing to go to great lengths to make the perfect celebratory pieces, with some whacky experiments combined with scientific precision.

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From giant swimming turtles and giant squid to birthday cakes from years one to 100, wedding cakes in all shapes and sizes, working windmills and body builders, and dragons in many forms, the series lands us in the heart of the whirlwind that is extreme cake making.

The show's expert cake makers shared their top baking tips with House Beautiful UK, to inform your creative culinary adventures...

1. Practice makes perfect

'If you try something and it doesn't work try again... cake making is all about practice and you learn more from your mistakes than your successes.' – Suzanne Thorp, The Frostery

2. Get the temperature right

'Make sure all your ingredients are at room temperature before starting to make a sponge cake.' – Suzanne

3. Use ganache

‘If you’re looking to make a novelty sculpture cake I would always suggest using ganache rather than buttercream... and the firmer the ganache the more confident you can be with your design; allowing you to make something intricate and potentially gravity defying whilst being confident it will stay sturdy.' – Ben Cullen, The BakeKing

4. Don't be afraid of mess

'The main thing that was a big turning point for me in confidence was realising that everyone making cakes; from beginners to experts; go through the really messy stage when making a cake sculpture.... so don’t be afraid when it looks like a big mess in the middle of the build because it can still be on its way to a masterpiece!' – Ben Cullen

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5. Use helpful ingredients

'Add CMC powder to your fondant to make it stronger for modelling and making flowers.' – Eloïse Durrant, The Gourmet Cake Company

6. Gum can help

'Gluten free bakers, using a little Xanthan gum from the supermarket in your cakemix will make your bakes as springy as regular ones.' – Eloïse

7. Digital scales are best

'When you’re making cupcakes use digital scales to weight the mix in so they all come out the same size.' – Eloïse

8. Try Trex

'When rolling out dark coloured icings use Trex (vegetable fat) on your work surface instead of icing sugar to avoid a dusty finish.' – Eloïse

9. Trial and error is key

'If your buttercream won’t pipe nicely don’t be put off. It’s probably not your fault. Consistency changes at different temperatures and it makes a huge difference. If it’s too stiff you can always add a little water and if it’s too thin you can add more icing sugar. Voila! Perfect buttercream every time.' – Rosie Dummer, Cake Diva

10. Make it personal

'It’s the thought that counts. If you are making a cake for your loved ones, do something extra to think and find out about the person’s interests, passion, hobbies or something that are memorable and put that little details into your creation. I’ve made a celebration cake for a friend’s wedding anniversary who loves to travel and on the cake, I decorated with names and photos from places around the world that they’ve been leading to their anniversary day. They loved it! It reminded them about their life journey and what a great adventure they had. These little details can go a long way. At the end its all about being thoughtful and showing that you truly care about the persons you love.' – Michelle Wibowo, Michelle Sugar Art

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11. Challenge yourself

'It’s fun to challenge your yourself, turn a problem into a golden opportunity! As a working mum often I stretched myself thinking yeah I can do that and get really stressed out and frustrated when things aren't going as planned?

'One day, I was busy doing late night baking a cake for my daughter's 7th birthday party on the next day. only discovered that I run out of time as I had to prepare other things for the party, such as food, decorations, activities, etc, that I haven't got enough time to make all the decorations for the cake! I was so stressed out but then an idea came out, 'why don't I let her friends played with the sugar paste, creating little animal figurines?' It'd be an amazing activity, and I can use the animal figurines that they created to decorate the cake!

'As it turned out, the children loved the activity, everyone was having a good time and my daughter was so happy that she had something special on her birthday created by her closes friends! Don't be so hard to yourself and sometimes having problem can be a good thing and it really pushes you to think creatively.' – Michelle Wibowo, Michelle Sugar Art

12. Buttercream is a must

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'Great cakes have great fillings, it’s all about the buttercream. Don’t just reach for the old icing sugar and butter recipe, try some new ones like Italian or Swiss meringue buttercream. They take a bit of extra time and effort but will repay you with deep joy! If you show your buttercream some love, it’s going to love you right back.' – Phil Jensen, Peboryon

Extreme Cake Makers airs every weekday at 5.30pm on Channel 4.

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