CAKE ICING EMERGENCY- MUMSNET PELAE DON'T FAIL ME NOW!!!

[pinkmunkee]

It's my DS's first birthday party and I have baked a cake. So obsessed with the baking was I that I forgot to think about the icing! I have made a creme fraiche and lemon curd filling which is delish, but now I'm a bit unsure what to put on top. Can i just make butter icing? With vanilla? Or is this a bad mix of flavours? Shall I just do some more creme fraiche stuff?? There has to be something as I want to decorate it with a big smiley face.

Please? Thanks!

PS I'm a beginner, so talk slowly!

Maybe it will be a bit much with butter icing, creme fraiche and lemon curd?

How about you just do some plain old icing on top mixed with a litte bit of lemon juice/lemon zest?

Let it set, then do your smiley face.

ARGH! I'm not sure! What about a carrot cake type cream cheese topping with a bit of lemon zest in it...recipe for cream cheese topping here: here

I agree with Bellavita - just plain old icing sugar / water, maybe a bit of lemon juice.

I would make a template of a big number 1 - make it by increasing the font size on word and print out until you get one that fits the cake.

Cut out the number one and then put the negative of the template (i.e. the bit that is left after cutting out the one) over the top of the cake and sprinkle very, very liberally with icing sugar.

When you take the template away, it leaves a big white number 1 on the cake.

If you want it to stand out more, paint the number 1 with the template in place, with apricot jam or honey to give the icing sugar something to stick to - this will give a thicker coat of sugar and it will stand out more

put some icing sugar in a sieve and sprinkle a little on top. forget about smiley faces, sounds lovely so don't spoil it with crappy icing!

or what soapbox said!

Thanks ladeez! Some great ideas. I'll decide what to do whilst I'm hoovering!!!

Make a template of a smiley face if that is what you fancy on top and then just use the icing sugar thing as below