Tie-Dyed Buttercream Cutouts

The tie-dyed cake was a big hit!  It turned out really nice (if I do say so myself).... I was so inspired by the batter, I decided to try a similar technique with the buttercream... check out the results....

I was inspired to create tie-dyed buttercream cut-outs.  I had never heard of such a thing, and had obviously never done it, but I thought "what the heck".... so I decided to give it a try.

First I tinted buttercream and dolloped it onto a wax paper covered cookie sheet.  I tapped the cookie sheet (quite hard) on the counter to get the buttercream to settle and flatten as much as possible.

I took a toothpick and swirled the icing together to create a tie-dye effect.

Next, I put another sheet of wax paper on toop of the buttercream and smoothed it flat with a fondant smoother.  I put the sheet in the freezer so it would get good and firm.  NOTE:  I used a combination of Swiss and American buttercream... I don't think this would work with just American buttercream alone.  Shortening doesn't get as firm as butter when it's cold, and there is a LOT of butter in Swiss buttercream (yummmm.....).

Isn't it gorgeous?  I was on pins a needles at this point... it was so beautiful, but if the cut outs didn't work, then there was a waste of time and buttercream.... plus I still needed to decorate the cake in some way....

I found that metal cutters worked better than plastic (the plastic is too thick and the buttercream was more prone to stick to the plastic).

I carefully removed each cut out and placed it back into the freezer.  I needed them to be good and cold before handling them to place on the cake.  I think they're so fun and so pretty....

I would absolutely use this technique again... A couple of notes... I think using Swiss buttercream alone would cut better and cleaner, plus remain firm enough to handle for a longer period of time.  These cut-outs were in and out of the freezer a LOT...

Second note?  They really did need to be thinner... next time, I would pipe the buttercream onto the wax paper.  I think I would have more control over the thickness of the final product. 

This project has really set my mind on a creative tangent... when the holiday season is over, I am certainly going to try some of my ideas.  Like, for instance, a tie-dye wrapped cake???? Sounds cool doesn't it?

Happy baking and decorating everyone... I hope you enjoyed my buttercream experiment... I know I did!