How to Make Decorated Sugar Cubes

Impress your friends with fancy decorated sugar cubes at your next get together. While they stare in wonder at the intricate designs, you'll know that they were quick and easy to make. These sweet decorations can also add to Christmas time, Valentine's Day and even a baby shower as you could create a snow man, a love heart, or a baby's bottle. Be as creative and daring as you like.

Things You'll Need

• Bowl
• Teaspoon
• Granulated white sugar
• Ice cube tray
• Icing sugar
• Almond extract
• Food coloring
• Pastry bags

Instructions

Make Sugar Cubes

1. Fill a bowl with 1/2 a cup of sugar and add 1 tsp. of water. Mix the bowl's contents and add another teaspoon of water. Repeat this process until the mixture has the consistency of paste.

2. Pack an ice cube tray with this mix so that each cube is half full. Push the mix down into the cube so it is compact.

3. Allow the sugar cubes to stand for the night and gently remove them from the tray in the morning. Turn the tray over and tap gently on the bottom to release the cubes.

Decorate the Cubes

1. Stir 1/4 cup of water into 1 lb. of icing sugar and ¼ tsp. of almond extract until smooth.

2. Mix in some food coloring until you get the color you like.

3. Repeat Steps 1 through 3 until you have the selection of colors that you need for your sugar cubes.

4. Pour each color of icing mix into its own pastry bag.

5. Hold the tip of the pastry bag with one hand and grab the top of the bag with the other hand. Press the top of the bag to get rid of the excess air inside. Stop when icing comes out the end.

6. Hold the bag on a 45 degree angle and aim with the hand near the tip.

7. Squeeze with your other hand when you are ready to add some icing.

Sunflower Design

1. Squeeze brown icing to make a small brown circle in the center of one side of the sugar cube.

2. Pipe yellow oval shapes from the brown center to form petals.

3. Pipe a green line from the brown circle to one of the cube's edges. Decorate this line with two diagonal ovals. You now have a sunflower sugar cube.

Pumpkin

1. Squeeze out orange icing to create a circle taking up most of one side of the sugar cube.

2. Draw three black triangles inside the circle, one for a nose and two for eyes.

3. Create a zigzag line underneath the nose for a mouth and add a vertical green line on top of the pumpkin. This design is great for Halloween parties.

References

• Gomestic: Sugar Art How to Decorate Sugar Cubes
• Nifty Thrifty Things: DIY Sugar Cubes