Faculty

PSTR-2350 Wedding Cakes

Ellen Sternau

Credit Spring 2026

Section(s)

PSTR-2350-001 (18303)
LEC F 9:00am - 9:50am HLC HLC2 1303

LAB F 10:00am - 1:20pm HLC HLC2 1303

Course Requirements

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

Skills, concepts, and techniques for preparing wedding cakes. Includes marzipan, molding chocolate-rolled fondant, chocolate garnish, flower making, and royal icing piping work.

Readings

Reading Material:

Professional Cake Decorating

Edition: 2nd

Publisher: Wiley

ISBN: 9780470380093

Course Subjects

Date

Class

Lecture

Lab

Reading Homework

Lab

Recipe

Day 1

1/23

Introduction to class/review

Overview of class outline/ Cake Competition

Safety/Sanitation

Rolled Fondant

Recipes:

p. 350- 1x Rolled Fondant - by hand - individual

Day 2

Lab 1

1/30

Business of designing the cake

Fondant enrobing/ Royal Icing Piping

Understanding how to design and create a cake with a customer

Design Technology

How to calculate size and cost

Royal Icing Piping Techniques

Rolled Fondant -

Demonstrate Rolled Fondant Technique for covering dummy cake

Textbook:

Basic Piping Skills p.38-51, Royal Icing Design Skills p. 133-145

Covering a cake with rolled fondant p.16-32

https://chelsweets.com/cake-pricing-guide-how-to-price-a-cake/

Lab #1

Recipes:

p. 347 Royal icing (full recipe)

Day 3

Lab 2

2/6

Royal icing advanced decor

no Lecture

Continue royal icing piping techniques/ flooding/feathering/string work

Textbook:

Advanced Piping Skills p.78-105, 191-213

Lab #2

Recipes:

p. 347 Royal icing (full recipe) all teams

Gumpaste (full recipe) - 1 x individual - in blackboard Module 2

Day 4

Lab 3

2/13

Gumpaste Flowers/decor

for wedding cake

Roses from buds to full bloom, filler flowers

Gumpaste Flowers

Gumpaste flowers p.237-281

Cake Designs due for Styrofoam Wedding Cakes

Lab #3

Recipes:

Gum Glue recipe - Module 2

Day 5

Lab 4

2/20

Gumpaste Flower /Decor for Wedding Cakes

Modeling Chocolate & Modeling Marzipan Decor

(optional)

Learn proper ways to handle, work with and store Paste and finished products

Learn How to Create Figures, Flowers and other decor pieces with modeling paste

Lab #4

Recipes: provided

Modeling Chocolate - 1x - choose type - if needed

Marzipan Modeling Paste 1x - if needed

Gumpaste (full recipe) if needed

Day 6

Lab 5

2/27

Gumpaste Flower

Styrofoam cake decor and practice

No Lecture

Begin making flowers for cakes

Lab #5

Recipes:

no recipes

Day 7

Lab 6

3/6

Gumpaste flower & Modeling Chocolate/

Marzipan Decor

(optional)

No Lecture

Continue cake decor and practice - individual help if needed

Make rolled fondant for cakes

Lab #6

Recipes:

p. 350 Rolled fondant - work individually - amount to be determined for your cake

3/13

NO CLASS

SPRING BREAK

Day 8

Lab 7

3/20

Enrobe and begin decor on Cakes

No Lecture

Cover Styrofoam cakes

Assess what is necessary to practice for your individual cake designs

Lab #7

Recipes:

p. 347 Royal icing (full recipe) if needed

Day 9

Lab 8

3/27

Continue Working on Wedding Cakes

No Lecture

Start decor work for cakes.

****Design Project for 3 Tier Buttercream Cake Due

Lab #8

Recipes:

p. 347 Royal icing (full recipe) all teams- if needed

Day 10

Lab 9

4/3

Wedding Cakes - Final Day - Finish Decor

No Lecture

Continue working on cakes

******Completed Styrofoam cakes due

Lab #9

Recipes:

p. 347 Royal icing (full recipe) all teams - if needed

Day 11

Lab 10

4/10

Production for Practice Cakes

Make High Ratio/Two stage Yellow Cakes

Buttercream flower practice- begin

Textbook:

Review method for 2 Stage mixing method

Lab #10

Recipes:

hand out - High Ratio Yellow Cake (full recipe) hand out

Teams of 2 - 1 cake each

Day 12

Lab 11

4/17

Buttercream Cake Practice

Understand the various techniques used to ice and finish a cake with buttercream

Learn how to cut, fill, crumb coat and ice a buttercream cake

Buttercream flowers

Textbook:

p. 6-15 - Review

Lab #11

Recipes:

Swiss Meringue Buttercream (1x recipe) p. 333

Work individually

Day 13

Lab 12

4/24

Buttercream Cakes & Buttercream

Pastillage Plaques

Learn what Pastillage is and how it is used in Pastry for design

Basic recipe for pastillage

Begin Buttercream Cake Production

Cut Pastillage Plaques

Textbook:

p. 232-233 Pastillage

Lab #12

Recipes:

Pastillage - 1/2x recipe - p. 351

Student Recs:

Bring your recipes for your Cakes

Day 14

Lab 13

5/1

Continue working on Buttercream Cakes

No Lecture

Work On Cakes

Finish Pastillage Plaques

Lab #13

Recipes:

Bring your recipes

Day 15

Lab 14

5/8

Finish Buttercream Cakes

No Lecture

Work on Cakes

***Completed Cake Due

Lab #14

Recipes:

Bring your recipes

Day 16

5/15

Final Written/

Cleaning

No Lecture

No Lab

Student Learning Outcomes/Learning Objectives

Course Learning Objectives

Prepare a variety of cakes to be masked; prepare a variety of specialty castings; mask wedding cakes with a variety of castings; demonstrate the construction/assembly of various wedding cakes.

By the end of the course, students should be able to:

Set up a station for working with the various decor mediums and properly maintain the equipment used
Demonstrate critical safety and sanitation measures used for decor work
Identify ingredients and equipment used for decor work
Demonstrate improvement on piping skills through varies homework assignments
Assemble, ice, properly construct, and decorate a three tier wedding cake for service using the materials and techniques taught in class
Produce and demonstrate the proper technique for handling a variety of rolled decor media such as pastillage, gumpaste, marzipan, modeling chocolate, and rolled fondant
Use templates to make royal icing decor
Apply proper storage procedures for rolled decor materials
Produce and display a special occasion cake utilizing concepts covered and applied in precious course work

Course Outcomes

Use baker’s scales and specialized pastry tools and ingredients.
Work with various forms of chocolate in making desserts, candy and decorations.
Properly utilize pastry bags, paper cornets, and decorative tips.
Produce a range of European style custards, creams, tarts and pastries.
Bake various sponge cakes, assemble and decorate tortes, gateau & cake pastries.
Create individual and multi-portion European pastries using laminated & short dough.
Prepare ice creams, ices, and frozen or gelatin based refrigerated desserts.
Produce and work with buttercream, glazes, ganache, and fondants.
Create decorations using sugars, chocolate transfer sheets.
Develop professional skills and safe work habits.
Students will develop skills of accomplishing products in a timed matter.
Apply pastry shop techniques including recipe modifications; prepare laminated dough's, choux, pastries, meringues, creams, custards, puddings, and related sauces; and prepare a variety of hot soufflés, fritters, crepes, cobblers, crisps and assorted inlays to include sugars and chocolates.