Henna Style Cakes: Shades of grey
Henna / mehndi skills can be used to brilliant effects on cakes. I particularly love Christmas fruit cake, especially when it has been fed for a couple of months with rum, sherry or brandy. For this cake I used Nigella’s Easiest Fruit Cake recipe, and covered it with marzipan and royal icing. I sprinkled some very fine silver glitter on the icing base.
The Christmas theme was black and silver. I prepared glace icing with Wilton black icing colour gel in different concentrations to get three different shades of grey. I rolled cones (just like henna cones) and filled them with the different colours of icing.
For the mehndi / henna inspired design, I imagined a piece of lace draped over the cake. The design went over the edge of the cake. I highlighted the pattern with soft silver balls, and finished off with a wide black chiffon ribbon.
Henna mehndi icing tips:
- I mixed the glace icing a little thinner than usual, otherwise it was too difficult to squeeze out of the cone easily
- Gel paste colours are easy to mix, give a strong colour and don’t taste of anything
- I drew my design on grease-proof paper, placed the design on the cake and then used a blunt bamboo skewer to make an imprint of key parts of the design on to the cake (petals, vines)
- I used soft silver balls, rather than the hard balls. Be sure to stick the balls to the icing before it dries!
- I placed a piece of grease-proof paper over the cake to protect it while I was applying the icing
- Professional cake ‘turntables’ help put the cake in a good position for decoration
- I tied my hair back and wore vinyl gloves for hygiene purposes, plus the icing gets sticky as it dries
- A simple ribbon around the cake helps to present the cake beautifully
When we could bear to cut into it, the cake was delicious!
One thought on “Henna Style Cakes: Shades of grey”
Hello Cat!
I ‘ ve left it nearly two months before telling you that I just wanted to say how I ‘ m a little bit in love with the premium organic Rajasthani red.
I wanted to make sure that it didn ‘ t wash out. That I could do another application of pure red, – just for fun, 4 weeks after the first application & see that it still looked good, because I had added a little indigo to the first one, in fear of turning orange.
How I DID’T end up looking like a nasty orange clown ‘ s wig, but instead, with deep, glowing jewel – like reds and even the greys don ‘ t fade when they are washed. Yes, it starts off a SCAREY Ziggy Stardust bRigHtBriGhT copper but within minutes, it begins changing.
I can ‘ t stop watching it! It fascinates me and I become quite obsessed with seeing how much it changes each hour,deepening into gorgeous deep, burgundy reds .It still looks really dark in regular light but if the sun catches it, or overhead lighting, it just zinnNNNngs with this warm, red glow.
I am so,so happy to have found the colour I ‘ ve been wanting, for such a long time.I hadn ‘ t realised, until late last year, that you need body art quality henna, high lawsone content, and it WILL cover greys! And far easier to use than the blocks of henna ; easy to rinse, easy to apply. When I slept in it, not one single dribble on my bed linen!
I was really worried before using it, thinking it could go so wrong or that I was sacrificing a night of sleep and an hour or so of preparation and application, with little or no result visible. Happily , it covers the grey where previously, no other henna has done so, it doesn’t wash out and fade, and my hair shines. No cancer causing chemicals and a happy conscience.
Thankyou for your prompt service and your help beforehand,
Very happily,
From Purdy 🙂