I’ve added another flower to my sugar-flower collection. Admittedly it’s a small repertoire—just two—so please welcome Miss Magnolia alongside the Anemone.
I discovered a helpful three-part video by Minnette Rushing of Savannah Custom Cakes while browsing supplies at Flour Confections. The tutorial uses clear instructions and close-up camera angles that made each step easy to follow. Since I already had most of the tools on hand, I set out to make my own magnolia right away. The video gave me the confidence to tackle the project.
Originally, I hadn’t planned to make a cake for this post — it was an afterthought made the same day. I’m glad I added it; the cake lends an elegant setting for the magnolia, and the flower enhances the cake in return.
The cake is a simple vanilla-bean pound cake: two stacked 6 x 3″ layers, filled and crumb-coated with vanilla-bean buttercream. I covered the cake in white fondant and used a ruler to score a diamond pattern. To create rows of pearls I used a pearl mold. Initially I intended to keep the surface plain so the magnolia would stand out, but the cake needed a bit more character.
A while back I purchased a range of dust colors during a sale, and 24-karat gold dust was among them. I mixed a few drops of vodka with the gold dust and painted the pearls and selected diamonds to give the cake a softly aged, rustic finish.
I’m very pleased with the result. The gold highlights add warmth without overpowering the clean, white backdrop, and the magnolia provides a graceful focal point.
I truly enjoyed making the sugar magnolias — I made three and had to stop myself from making many more. Working with petals, shaping, and subtle dusting was relaxing and rewarding.
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