Lessons Learned - Happily Ever After.

Tuesday, March 27^th, 2012

Here it is – the “cursed cake” as I called it, since it was baking when my oven broke! All’s well that ends well, but this one posed plenty of problems along the way. Lessons learned are frustrating, yes, but looking back I’m grateful because this is what will make my next cake better. It seems with every project, I learn at least one “what not to do” for next time. Aside from my oven, which was beyond my control, the rest could’ve been avoided with a little more research and effort on my part.

Lesson number one – Always test a recipe before using it for anyone other than yourself. The request was for a marble cake. New one for me. But I felt confident because I used my trusted vanilla cake recipe for the base, so I knew it would be delicious. However, the “marbling” is what I faulted on. The majority of chocolate sat on the surface, even after dragging a knife through the batter. When I started leveling the layers I realized that most of the chocolate was being trimmed off. Next time I’ll layer the vanilla and chocolate batter, rather than just swirling chocolate over the top.

Lesson number two – Don’t skimp on the buttercream when crumb coating! I started running out of buttercream on the large tier about halfway through coating. Rather than going out to buy more powdered sugar and making another batch, I was determined to make it stretch. I ended up with a cake that had the most minimal amount of coating, and therefore resulted in a not so smooth finish. Once I covered it in fondant I could see the imperfections underneath.

I wasn’t given an exact design to follow, and thank goodness, because that allowed me the opportunity to improvise. Originally I planned to do a quilting technique, with some fondant cut-outs, but I knew it wouldn’t look perfect unless I had a smooth base to work with. So after spending some time online looking for a plan B, I decided on fondant swags. (Something I’ve never tried). I found a video and learned how to make them using wooden dowels to create a pleated look. I was so surprised at how easy it was, and guess what? It looked amazing! Once I had the swags on I had to figure out what to use to cover the seams where the swags were adhered to the cake. Saturday night I spent an hour making daisies out of fondant, then went to bed,

Sunday morning I started adding the daisies but it just didn’t look right. The swags were so elegant, and daisies just didn’t seem to fit. I decided on roses instead. So, after two hours spent making 18 fondant roses and white accents, it was time to call it a day. With only 30 minutes to spare before pick up I took a final look, snapped some pictures on my cell, and breathed a huge sigh of relief. Gorgeous… Long story short – Although it began with heartache, it ended with happily ever after. Not only did I learn some “what not to do’s” next time and some new techniques too - I also felt good about my improvised cake. Success!

Close Call In The Kitchen

Thursday, March 22^nd, 2012

I received a request for a two tiered birthday cake for a party this Sunday, so last night I filled four cakes pans and popped them into the oven. 20 minutes later the oven was filled with smoke and the heating coil was on fire. Gasp! I thought, this cannot be happening; I still have four more layers to bake!  Luckily the cakes were done so I pulled them out and assessed the damage. The coil was snapped in half and a flame was traveling down the length of it. That can’t be good. I turned off the oven and tried to think of who would be home the next day and would let me temporarily take over their kitchen so I can finish baking.

This morning I discovered the oven still on, even though the knob was turned to off, (strange) but thankfully nothing was smoking.  I figured I better try to get the rest of this cake baked before the oven either completely shuts down or blows up. So I filled the remaining four pans and crossed my fingers. Success! Replacement parts are in route as I speak, but until then it looks like dinners will have to be cooked in the microwave. Oh well; could’ve been much worse! I’m just happy that my kitchen is still intact.

Not Your Traditional Wedding Cake

Friday, March 2nd, 2012

When I think of the cakes I’ve seen at weddings I think of multi tiered cakes, white in color, decorated with flowers and topped with ceramic figurines. The request I had for my most recent project was unique, both in design and flavor – Pistachio! I had never tasted or made a pistachio cake so I was a bit nervous. The majority of the recipes I found online called for boxed cake mix and instant pudding. Although I’m sure delicious, I vowed prior to starting this blog that I would never again use a boxed cake mix. So, after some more research I found a recipe and went to work in the kitchen.

The result was a dense, heavy cake with a nutty flavor that came from ground pistachios and a touch of almond extract. Definitely not a light, fluffy cake. I filled the layers with basic buttercream, using more powdered sugar than usual to create a stiff frosting that would hold up to the weight of the cake. I didn’t have specific instructions for the design, other than I picture I was given of the floral dress the bride will be wearing to the celebration party on Sunday. Not your traditional white wedding cake! So, here it is… Yes, it’s sitting on my couch. It was the only place in my house that had enough natural light to get a decent picture...

Baby Shower Cake

Saturday, February 25^th, 2012

I had an opportunity to make a cake for a friend who, after having three boys is now blessed with not one, but two girls! Twins! (I see a mini van purchase in the near future). Today was her baby shower and she asked me to make a cake, using a couple of pictures she found online as inspiration. I was especially pleased as she started to unwrap the gifts because most of the clothing, blankets, bibs, etc. matched the cake. Lots of pink and brown! There’s something about that color combo that is so cute! Maybe because it reminds me of Baskin Robbins?

So, the first for me on this one was the fondant bow on top. I formed all of the pieces the day before so they would have time to dry and assembled it at the last minute. I had a hard time getting it to look seamless since the pieces had no give. (Notice the blob of fondant holding it together in the center…) I think next time I’ll put the bow together before the pieces are completely dry so they’re easier to adhere. That’s the fun part about being given some leeway with design; it allows you to experiment, and worst case scenario, switch to plan B if it doesn’t work.

I also planned to try out a quilted pattern on the top tier, but was afraid to try after putting the cake in the fridge. I just knew if I didn’t do this while the fondant was still soft it would probably crack, so I played it safe and left it alone. Next on the project list – a wedding cake for Wednesday and cupcakes for the following Sunday. Super excited!

"Be Mine" Valentine’s Day Cake

Friday, February 17^th, 2012

After overcoming some technical difficulties I’m finally able to share the picture I tried posting on Wednesday. Computers and I don’t always get along. Anyway, this is the second cake that I made this week for Valentine’s Day. I love the pink and brown color combination! It was my second attempt at making fondant roses and this time I worked in a couple pinches of gum tex, which helped them hold up much better. Turned out well I think!

Heart Shaped Box Of Chocolates - Made With Cake!

Wednesday, February 15^th

I’m having a tough time getting good quality photos to post, since the only camera I have is the one on my cell phone; and an old cell phone too! But still, I’ll share them anyway. This idea was inspired by Bakerella; a heart shaped box of chocolates, made with cake. It’s a 6 inch chocolate cake, filled and frosted with chocolate buttercream. I covered the top with red fondant, then cut a strip about ½ inch taller than the cake and wrapped it around the bottom. This created the space for the “chocolates” to sit, which were actually cake pops (minus the lollipop stick). I used the little bit of fondant I had leftover to decorate the tops.

Of course, every cake I’ve made has posed at least one challenge. Frustrating at the time, but in hindsight I’m grateful because this is how I learn what to do (or not to do) the next time around. The biggest struggle with this one was the fondant. So much food coloring has to be used to achieve that rich red color, which breaks it down and makes it difficult to work with. But after adding a bit of water and Crisco, and spending some extra time kneading it, I was able to get it to come together. As far as what to do differently next time? I’m not sure to be honest. I’ll have to do a little online research. Any suggestions?

I hit another snag with the candy melts that I used to cover the cake pops. I wanted to use both light and dark cocoa melts for a contrast of color. I covered half the pops with dark chocolate, and then used white icing color to try to lighten up a second batch. It instantly seized up and was useless! I didn’t have time to run to the store for light cocoa melts which wasn’t a complete disaster since I had enough finish the cake. Unfortunately the end result was chocolates that were all the same color. Oh well. Another lesson learned!

Fondant Roses

Thursday, February 9^th, 2012

One of the cakes I’m making for Valentine’s Day is going to be decorated with fondant roses. Something I’ve never done. So, today I had a little practice session, and was pleasantly surprised at how easy they were to make! The only thing I’m worried about is whether or not they’ll keep their shape. I’ll let them dry for a couple days and see what happens. If they don’t hold up I’ll mix some gum paste into the fondant next time. Maybe I'll add an extra petal or two. Not too shabby for a first attempt though. What do you think?