Instore - August 2018 - 33

ways for decorators to create high-impact
designs using fewer mediums and techniques. Mona Lisa fondant rolls so thinly,
he says, that decorators are using it for
techniques that used to be reserved for gum
paste, such as quilling.

Barry Callebaut's Mona
Lisa fondant rolls so thinly
it can be used for quilling.
Photo: Barry Callebaut

Elena Taylor, director of wet ingredients for
Dawn Foods, says bakers need icings that
are easy to use. Very firm icings make it difficult to base a cake or pipe easily, and very
soft icing doesn't hold shapes. "It's important that icing is designed to be soft and pliable to allow for decoration while still being
firm enough to hold designs," Taylor says.
As consumers continue to demand icings
that have great aroma, flavor and visual
appeal, bakers must offer consistent and
vibrant colors, while also appealing to
consumer preferences for taste and smell,
Taylor says. "At Dawn, we're also seeing a
big opportunity within the industry when it
comes to packaging - bakers are demanding
easier to open lids, sustainable packaging
and product innovation."
As for icings and fondants, Dawn continues
to see a trend of bakers being interested in
limited time offers (LTO's), including offerings such as seasonal and holiday flavored
buttercreme. "We've also seen growing
requests for buttercreme style icings that
have more butter notes and less sweetness,"
Taylor says. "This demand is being driven
by consumers' desire for baked goods with
more whipped style toppings that aren't
overly sweet."

Color and texture
You can't talk about cake (especially wedding cake) without mentioning two other
crucial elements, Seaman says. "Color and
texture are the first two things people take
note of when they first see a cake," he says.
"In today's world, all decorators want to create an 'Instagram-worthy' cake that is immediately eye-catching."
On trend at the moment, Seaman says, are
bright, bold colors that not only are more appealing to the eye, but that "pop" on social
media. Proving the point, the 2018 Pantone
Color of the Year is ultraviolet.
Keith Appling, chief sales officer for Lawrence Foods Inc., agrees with Seaman that
color is about as big as it can be when it

comes to cakes. One trend in particular
Lawrence is keeping close tabs on is the use
of paler, more sophisticated colors that are
tailored to particular regions of the country.
Running parallel with increased demand for
bright colors is the "black is the new black"
concept, Seaman says. "To best fit current
demands and trends, Mona Lisa has been developing a deep black rolled fondant colored
only with Barry Callebaut's own black cocoa
powder." The result, he says, is a flavor reminiscent of an Oreo cookie and a black color
made with no artificial dyes.
When it comes to other trends, rolled fondant is still, well, on a roll - thanks in no
small part, Seaman says, to social media.
"Pinterest and Instagram both have a plethora of photos of modern cakes created with
rolled fondant," he says. "This icing opens

the creative doors of hand painting and creating textures that aren't possible in other
mediums."
Another trend to keep a close eye on, Seaman says, is the rise of ube. It's been popular
in Asia and Australia for a while, he says, but
it's just starting to catch on in the U.S. The
purple-colored yam used in ube is a mellowflavored root vegetable that can be used in
buttercream or filling to get the bright color
reminiscent of the aforementioned color of
the year, ultraviolet.
"What's great about ube is that the bright
color will never fade, unlike standard dye
which will likely lose its brightness after a
day or two," Seaman says.
In contrast to rolled fondant and ube, buttercream cakes created with only buttercream

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