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How to create a watercolor cake with buttercream – Video Tutorial

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When a dear friend of mine asked me to make her Gender Reveal cake I was SO very excited to do it! She said she was using my gender reveal printable set  so I wanted to make sure the colors matched up but you can use any shade of pink or blue you want to create this.  The baby Daddy did say he thought it was a little girly – but for me a cake is supposed to be pretty – boy or girl…

pink and blue buttercream rosette and watercolor cake - video tutorial

Of course in this case it WAS a girl so it worked out – MAN I gotta say knowing the gender but keeping it from my friend was HARD! She was SO ready to know! Of course her mothers intuition was saying “girl” and I personally totally believe in mothers intuition (I knew what my 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th babies were WAY before the ultrasound because of the differences in my cravings and morning sickness from my first)

this buttercream gender reveal cake features white, pink and blue rosettes, drop flowers and stars - video tutorial

After you have the cake frosted in white add spots of blue, pink and white frosting around the cake and then smooth one final time – DO NOT over smooth this or you’ll either wipe all the color OFF or your intermix them too much and create colors you aren’t looking for.

it is easy to create this buttercream watercolor effect - add some chocolate ganache and buttercream rosettes and drop flowers and you have a simple and lovely cake

For the ganache drips you want to do a 1:1 ratio of chocolate and cream vs the normal 2:1 ration I use for ganache frosting.  Then I started with the largest rosettes (in white) then worked my way down in size, filling in holes and gaps as needed with smaller tips.  I make all the rosettes out of the pink and white, leaving the blue for the drop tip flowers and stars – but you could totally do blue rosettes if you want.

I’ve attended a lot of gender reveals and my one piece of advice –  if one of the parents has their heart set on one gender and might not react well to the other than DON’T surprise yourself in front of everyone you know and love.  Find out privately then share when you are ready to be happy either way.  Just my 2 cents!

this pink and blue cake features a buttercream watercolor technique, chocolate ganche drips and is covered in pink and blue rosettes and stars - perfect for a gender reveal party

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  1. Tanya

    Beautiful cake! I totally agree with you about not appearing disappointed about the gender in front of everyone.

    I just started a blog of my own and I find your site very inspiring!

    Reply

  2. Sharon

    need your help 4bmy granddaughters wedding shower! i have pictures of the cakes i want to make. signed up 4 a cake decorating class & it was cancelled!! where are you located??

    Reply

  3. Marsha

    I love this and have been wanting to try it. What size cake did you use and how many layers. It looks tall and to me that makes the watercolor effect look great. Thanks for sharing.

    Reply

  4. Lynn May

    Absolutely beautiful!! I’ve been looking for a special cake to create for my sister’s 4th of July birthday and this is it! Not sure what color combo I’ll do but it will definitely be a french vanilla cake with chocolate mousse filling. Look forward to try some of your other designs.

    Reply

  5. ashley rinell

    I am in LOVE with this and thinking about trying it for my kids birthday. Do you have a link or page where you explain which frosting tips you use or and tricks/tips/hints? I am pretty good at cake decorating so I can just guess but I also love a good direction sheet! 🙂
    Love your work

    Reply

  9. Barbara Karr

    I was recently wandering through the Wilton site and came across some water colored fall leaf cookies. I immediately fell in love. I have painted cookies with frosting but sometimes it’s hard to get the effects you want. When I inquired about this technique Wilton had little to offer. They knew next to nothing about the painting. I have MS and don’t drive. There is no place here in Watertown, WI. to learn this craft. All they knew was it was done on Royal Icing (which I don’t care for). Was excited to see the gels used in your cake. Beautiful (as always) cake. Wish me luck I am going to do those cookies come hell or high water! You just showed me it will work with other frostings. Thank you for showing all your wonderful creations. You DO inspire others. Best wishes! Barbara Karr.

    Reply

    • Ashlee

      you are so welcome! it’s all about finding the right medium to add the gel’s too. If you use a frosting that crusts over you might only need water vs food grade alcohol. while the fondant needs something to “eat” through it, since water makes it just slimy… Good luck!

      Reply

  11. Esther

    This cake is beautiful! I saw your mention of 1:1 ratio for the ganache but I’ve never made ganache before. Do you have a recipe? Thanks

    Reply

  13. Destiny

    Love this idea & going to do it for our own gender reveal party! Coukd I use softened (not hot) fudge instead of the ‘ganache’ or will it run too much?

    Reply

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