Tuesday, January 17th, 2012
Well, the cake made it to the baby shower in one piece; thank goodness! I’ve had some troubles with transporting in the past, and because of that it’s probably the most stressful part of cake making. I’ve learned some tricks along the way, some of which involve duct tape. Don’t judge. You gotta do what you gotta do! (Tape never touched cake; only the bottom of the cake board). The most ideal scenario is to have someone else drive while I hold the cake; cursing that driver for what I believe to be purposely hitting every bump in the road the entire way. (My apologies to you if you were in the driver’s seat). But alas, I didn’t have that luxury with this one, so I had to go it alone.
Unfortunately I can’t share a picture of the final product. I was literally adding the last minute details up until it was time to deliver. No time for a photo shoot! But I will share some of the highs and lows with this project…
High points:
Cake flavor -
I thought it tasted fantastic! Chocolate layers were really rich but not overpowering, and the vanilla was spongy and dense. Both were incredibly moist; perhaps in part to the brushing of simple syrup prior to stacking. I’ll add this trick to my “Secrets” page on my blog later. Originally I planned to make four layers, but once I started stacking I knew that would make it too tall. So it turned into a three layer cake; chocolate on the bottom and top, with vanilla in the middle.
Cake made it damage free –
No need to elaborate on this one!
Low points:
Well, the cake made it to the baby shower in one piece; thank goodness! I’ve had some troubles with transporting in the past, and because of that it’s probably the most stressful part of cake making. I’ve learned some tricks along the way, some of which involve duct tape. Don’t judge. You gotta do what you gotta do! (Tape never touched cake; only the bottom of the cake board). The most ideal scenario is to have someone else drive while I hold the cake; cursing that driver for what I believe to be purposely hitting every bump in the road the entire way. (My apologies to you if you were in the driver’s seat). But alas, I didn’t have that luxury with this one, so I had to go it alone.
Unfortunately I can’t share a picture of the final product. I was literally adding the last minute details up until it was time to deliver. No time for a photo shoot! But I will share some of the highs and lows with this project…
High points:
Cake flavor -
I thought it tasted fantastic! Chocolate layers were really rich but not overpowering, and the vanilla was spongy and dense. Both were incredibly moist; perhaps in part to the brushing of simple syrup prior to stacking. I’ll add this trick to my “Secrets” page on my blog later. Originally I planned to make four layers, but once I started stacking I knew that would make it too tall. So it turned into a three layer cake; chocolate on the bottom and top, with vanilla in the middle.
Cake made it damage free –
No need to elaborate on this one!
Low points:
Filling –
With every cake I’ve made, I decided to try something new without a test run first. Vanilla custard was requested for the filling. Sounded easy enough, but something I’ve never done before. I followed a recipe I found online, which tasted amazing; however it didn’t thicken up enough. I had to scrap it and use a plan B – instant vanilla pudding. It worked, but it wasn’t ideal since it wasn’t homemade.
Design –
My original sketch incorporated the elements of the shower invitation and the baby’s nursery, in sort of a haphazard way. The night before assembly I decided to make a quilt design, with squares of pattern to match the crib bedding. Super cute on paper, but when it was finished it looked disconnected. I had four squares; two with butterflies, one with a small green flower design and one with larger purple and white flowers. When I delivered the cake it was greeted with big smiles, but for me it didn’t mesh. The feedback I received was really positive though so that’s all that matters.
So, what’s next? I have a request for a wedding at the end of February – a small cake for the reception and cupcakes for approximately one hundred people the following weekend. In the meantime, who knows what will come up. I'll keep you posted!
Design –
My original sketch incorporated the elements of the shower invitation and the baby’s nursery, in sort of a haphazard way. The night before assembly I decided to make a quilt design, with squares of pattern to match the crib bedding. Super cute on paper, but when it was finished it looked disconnected. I had four squares; two with butterflies, one with a small green flower design and one with larger purple and white flowers. When I delivered the cake it was greeted with big smiles, but for me it didn’t mesh. The feedback I received was really positive though so that’s all that matters.
So, what’s next? I have a request for a wedding at the end of February – a small cake for the reception and cupcakes for approximately one hundred people the following weekend. In the meantime, who knows what will come up. I'll keep you posted!
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