I finally sat down to figure the cricut cake out...only problem is the frosting sheets that came with it. They don't work, they keep crumpling under the knife. Should I just throw them out and use fondant instead? any tips or advice for the cricut would be greatly appreciated!!

thanks
Colleen

From what I understand, if the fondant balls up in the blade, that means there isnt enough Crisco on the mat. Also, they suggest to freeze the fondant sheets on the mat for a bit before cutting as well! I just got my cake in the mail yesterday and hope to play with it this weekend!!

You will need to grease the matt well and then let the frosting sheet sit and soak up the crisco first. Then you will be able to cut it with no problems. You won't have to freeze it either.

Cat

I too have the Cricut Cake & have learned much from CC. I have tried the freezing & it still does not work for me. What did work for me, was to grease the mat,roll out fondant ( I found the Wilton fondant to work the best) thinly & leave uncovered overnight. I then used the machine & voila! It worked without bunching,tearing or raggedy edges. This worked for me. Give it a try. It may work for you.

I just told my husband I wanted this for my birthday in Oct. I hope I'm not making a mistake......

Now I want a Cricut Cake too! I don't think my husband will go for it since it is so expensive. Plus, I already own a cricut create for my scrapbooking/card making adventures.

He told me if I started my own cake business (can't do it from home in TX) that I could order it with the money I made with my cakes. So for now I get to wait and live vicariously through each of you!

I just sold mine on ebay today with all the cartridges. I got exactly my money back. I'm sorry I ever ordered it.

i bought a used one off of craigslist, still paid a bunch for it, but so far it has worked well. im actually quite excited about it. Ive only used satin ice. I grease the mat, roll out the fondant and then finish rolling it out on the cutting mat, trim the edges and load. i haven;t waited. there has been a little pulling along the top edge at the cut but before you remove the excess fondant just run your finger over the top and it smooths it out. i have the speed set at 1 and the pressure at 2. My friend has alot of the cartridges which i looked through and there are so many i could see using, example cutting palm trees and animals for a jungle cake, a pirate theme. its an endless list. I hope you get yours to work properly. its alot of fun.

I like the Cricut, but there really is quite a learning curve. I actually just bought the frosting sheets today ( I've only used fondant/gumpaste) I was very frustrated with them at first, but what worked for me was SLATHERING the mat with crisco,after that it workied fine.

I've had my cricut cake for a few months now and I love it! I've never used the frosting sheets though, I read too many bad reviews to waste my money on them. What I have found works best is Satin Ice. I roll it on the table, finish rolling it out thin on the mat (moderate crisco), and let it sit out 30-45 minutes before cutting. It usually cuts completely clean! I also use gum paste (made from the recipe found at http://www.sugarcraft.com/catalog/gumpaste/gp-recipes.htm) and it works well, but the edges are sometimes a bit jagged. When this happens, I flip the cut-out over and use the bottom side, which usually has a clean edge. Don't sell your cricut, its so much fun! Just play with it for awhile and see what works for you =D

i'm obsessed with my cricut cake! i hate the icing sheets and just use wilton gumpaste and have no problems whatsoever. and i usually just put the crisco on the mat, roll the gumpaste out right on the mat and cut right away. never an issue!

plus, i just got SCAL and it's amazing!!!!!!!!!! i feel like it's literally changed my life. sounds dramatic, but it's true. what used to take me 30 minutes (finding an image, printing it off, cutting it out, laying it on top of my gumpaste and tracing it), now takes me 2 minutes!!! which means less time decorating, more time to do another cake, thus more money! or just spend the extra time with my family either way, a win!!!

I really like the cricut gum paste. It tastes pretty good to and cuts great! there is a little bit of a learning curve, but worth the effort. I bought some sugar veil to try with it.

thank you all for your replies, you give me hope that it will work!!
I will try putting more crisco on and see if that helps....and I will also try rolling out fondant and see if that works better than those frosting sheets.

Too much shortening will not work either. Make sure it looks transparent. I use a pastry and swipe it both ways. For the Cricut gumpaste it didn't take a lot.

If you use Linda McClure's gum paste, roll it to #7 or 8 on a kitchenaid pasta roller,and let set covered over night you'll get perfect cuts every time.

I was ready to throw out the frosting sheets too. I don't have problems using fondant or gumpaste. Cutting Edge has a great gumpaste recipe. I also rub a little corn starch on top of the fondant and it seems to help. If you roll your fondant directly on the mat, that also helps. Getting back to the frosting sheets. If you put a damp paper towel in back of the frosting sheet (on the frosting sheet backing) and close the plastic bag, it will soften the frosting sheets up again. I just tried it on Friday, and it does work. Don't give up, cause once you find what works for you, you'll be fine. Also, do not put the fondant in the freezer on the mats, the fondant gets gooey, and you will not be able to get it off the sheets.

I read on another post about putting a light coating of shortning on the top of the the frosting sheet too and that helps keep it moist for cutting......myself, I haven't tried the sheets because I hear they taste absolutely disgusting and are frustrating to work with. So far the Cutting Edge recipe for gumpaste has worked the best for me.

The frosting sheets are disgusting to eat. They are also expensive and don't come in green, black etc. I would rather use fondant. If you do put your fondant in the freezer, cut it right away when you take it out and then stick it back in the freezer. I prefer not to freeze because it takes a lot of time.

Where do you get Linda McClure's gumpaste?

You can use edible image sheets and airbrush them they work perfect. In my photos I have a pink and brown bridal bouquet that i made the design with edible image sheets cut on the cricut. I have used gumpaste, and fondant with tylose mixed in it just roll it very thin..Once you get it down you will love it I do use the cricut expressions i love it and it is all worth it... Good luck

cakesmade4u That cake is stunning. Where do you get your image sheets? I'd like to give that a try.
The frosting sheets are gross tasting, but I had them, and I just wanted to use them instead of wasting money. I'll never get them again though.

I took Linda's class yesterday and got the gumpaste from her. The texture is different then anything I have ever used and it's wonderful. That's what I'll be using from now on. I think I'm going to sell my cake cricut and just use my expression.

Does Linda sell her gumpaste online?

Yes she does, check out deseretdesigns dot com / whats_new.html without the spaces. If you take her class you'll get the recipe.

I can never learn enough when it comes to the cricut cake machine.
Any tips and hints are greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
Jodi