if you go with royal sieve it first -- either through a never been worn brand new nylon stocking or a regular fine mesh sieve - that should help a lot with air bubbles in there -- which of course cause the breakage --
i would use buttercream made with black cocoa to darken it --
i just had a thought -- wonder what it would be like to use the black cocoa in piping gel -- if you wanted it shiny that might work -- I haven't tried it but it sounds interesting
sometimes peeps will extrude the fondant and twirl it all around for scrollies-- that would be my dead last way to go but it's an option
maybe -- it's rare that i use anything but butter in icing -- but for exactly this i would be tempted to use the high ratio shortening -- but if i already had icing made for the filling and undercoat -- i'd probably use that just out of laziness --
and i'd suggest you make up some icing a week in advance and set up a practice spot in your kitchen -- where you can go and pick up your ready icing bag and just practice and scrape it off and leave it for the next session -- practice 10 minutes at a crack for a few days -- pipe on a board or tray or the counter top and on the side of a cake pan --
best to you
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