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FROSTING THE SNOWMAN

ARROW-CIRCLE-RIGHT Standard icing is made with powdered sugar and liquid — cream or milk, citrus juice, or liqueur — mixed to a smooth consistency. You can add melted butter or vanilla extract for additional flavor. Standard icing is thick enough to decorate a cookie but thin enough to pour or drizzle over cakes. It tends to set quickly and harden when dry. Food coloring can be added to make it colorful. ARROW-CIRCLE-RIGHT Royal icing is powdered sugar, egg whites (or meringue powder), and flavorings; the egg whites give it more stability than standard icing. Royal icing is most commonly used for cookie decorations; it can act as edible glue to hold gingerbread houses together and secure candy pieces and decorations to the gingerbread. It dries to a hard, shiny, candy-like finish. ARROW-CIRCLE-RIGHT Fondant is an icing made with powdered sugar, water, butter, and gelatin (or marshmallows). There are two different types of fondant: poured and rolled. Poured is melted and poured over cakes. Rolled is draped over a cake; it can also be molded or cut into elaborate shapes for decoration. ARROW-CIRCLE-RIGHT Frosting is made by whipping a cream base, like butter, with powdered sugar until light and fluffy. It is thicker than icing.

ARROW-CIRCLE-RIGHT Buttercreams are popular frostings used on birthday cakes and layer cakes. American buttercream , also known as plain or quick buttercream, calls for mixing powdered sugar with butter, and sometimes milk or heavy cream and vanilla — it doesn’t use any egg whites. Swiss, Italian, and French buttercreams all contain eggs. Swiss and Italian buttercreams are made with meringue; French buttercream uses egg yolks rather than whites. ARROW-CIRCLE-RIGHT Whipped cream frosting is a bit lighter than American buttercream frosting because there is no butter. It is made with heavy whipping cream and powdered sugar. Whipped cream frosting is used on desserts that are already sweet, like cheesecakes. Cream cheese frosting tops red velvet and carrot cakes. It’s made the same way as traditional American buttercream, but with butter and cream cheese. ARROW-CIRCLE-RIGHT Ganache — a 1:1 mixture of chocolate melted into heavy cream — works as a filling and frosting; it can even be poured and makes a beautiful drip for cakes. You can use semi-sweet chocolate (traditional), bittersweet chocolate, milk chocolate, or white chocolate as your ganache base. A white chocolate ganache base can be colored with food coloring.

milk or cream, one teaspoon at a time). Add food coloring, if using, and beat for 30 seconds until smooth, or until desired color is reached. For chocolate buttercream frosting add ½ cup unsweetened natural or Dutch- process cocoa powder at the same time you add the sugar.

MILK CHOCOLATE GANACHE Makes ¾ cup

WHAT YOU WILL NEED: ½ cup heavy cream 4 ounces milk chocolate, finely chopped

HOW TO PREP: Bring cream to a boil in a 1-quart

saucepan over medium heat. Put chopped chocolate into a medium bowl and pour in hot cream; let sit for 1 minute, then stir slowly with a rubber spatula until smooth.

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