Flag Cake

Feeling Patriotic

Apparently Penguins Look Like Owls

Penguin Graduation Cake: Chocolate/Vanilla Marble Cake, Caramel Buttercream, Candy Graduation Cap

Baker-for-hire: Kindergarten Graduation. School colors are blue and gold. Loves penguins.

I tried to incorporate the school colors into the penguin's skin/fur and graduation cap. That Happy Feet penguin had a blue-ish tinge, right? I took some pictures to document (this was before the feet, mind you) and scratched my head. Did my penguin end up looking like an owl? I sent the picture to my mom and first thing she said was why did my supposed penguin look like an owl. My co-workers seemed to think it looked like a penguin, but most had never seen a blue penguin. One suggested that as soon as I had the penguin-y feet on, it would look less an owl.

So on went the feet and a longer beak, et volia! We have a penguin.

Most importantly, the client loved it!

How to Make a Mountain Cake, Part IV: My Co-workers Are Lucky and Other Final Thoughts

Ta-da!

Cake was devoured. I won the contest. Huzzah.

Despite all the fondant issues, I would still like to try working with it. But next time, I'll practice more before attempting such a project.

How to Make a Mountain Cake, Part III: Decorate!

L to R: Mountain Sheep/Goat ~ Employee; Atop Mountain

The little goat was made earlier in the week. Dyed some fondant (I think gum paste or marzipan would be more traditional) and had fun with it - just like Play-doh!

But... Nightmare! The day before Party-Day, I rolled out the fondant to cover the cake. Well, first I had to dye the fondant brown. Since dying the small amount I used for the goat left my fingers black for days, I decided to dye it in the mixer. But the fondant had stiffened up a little more on me, so I added corn syrup to compensate/add moisture. While it started to color, I'd need a lot more to get a dark brown. The fondant was still kind of stiff in the mixer and I had fears of making the fondant to wet/gummy with the corn syrup and overheating my mixer. I finally got it all dyed and was ready to roll.

It rolled out smoothly, but I couldn't seem to pick it up in one piece. It would always tear or stick to the board in the middle. Even with my liberal sprinkling of cornstarch, it seemed that the now moist fondant absorbed the cornstarch too quickly on the underside. So, by the time I was ready to lift, it would stick to the board.

I then tried to piece it onto the cake. It went on, but looked too piece-y. Then I was afraid it may not hold up through out the day. I gave in, tore off the fondant, and prayed I had enough buttercream to cover the cake. I did... just.

How to Make a Mountain Cake, Part II: Fill, Crumb Coat, and Sculpt

Chocolate Butter Cake, Cookies and Cream Filling, Vanilla Buttercream

How to Make a Mountain Cake, Part I: Fondant (from scratch!)

In my first attempt at working with fondant, I decide to make it from scratch! Why bother? The Mountain Cake, of course! Every year at work, we have a major Deadline-Completion Party this time of year. On the agenda? A cake contest dealing with this year's theme (something about climbing a mountain... yeah, I know)! Well, duh, of course I had to enter. So along with two birthdays to bake for, there are baking projects abound these two weeks. Not to mention all the last-minute things that popped up with work, trying to shop for/buy a major appliance, and trying to work overtime at work on top of all that (who knew I'd turn into a work-a-holic)! I have everything planned out, to the minute, every tiny detail. But then my procrastinating ways take over, and now I'm behind schedule.

Anyway, back to the fondant. Part of the reason I decided to make fondant was cost. I figured I needed 5 -10 pounds of fondant, and at $30 for a 5-lb bucket, I decided to make my own. Final cost? $5 for 10-lbs. The only kicker, is having to actually make the fondant.

The recipe was easy enough. Or should I say "seemed" easy enough. Having never worked with fondant before (brilliant move), I had issues gauging the texture. I knew it had to be pliable enough to roll out smoothly, but my first batch came out stiffer than I'd thought. For the second batch, I added less 10x sugar in the mixer stage. This seemed to come out better, but as I was kneading the rest of the 10x into the mix, I feared it becoming too stiff again. The recipe called for kneading in the full amount of 10x, but as I made the remaining batches, I kneaded in enough to keep the texture at what I thought it should be. I bundled up the batches of fondant, and hoped and prayed it would turn out by the time I needed to work with it.

And so ends Part I of my little escapade.

These Might Just Be Cupcake Perfection

Vanilla/Vanilla, Meyer Lemon Curd, Raspberry

Mocha Tart with Blackberries

Spicy Gingerbread Cookies

So there might be some confusion. I made these cookies for a holiday party back in December... and I'm posting it in late-April. I'm so awesome at keeping up with this blog.

Carrotcake Cupcakes with Buttered Pecan-Cream Cheese Frosting

Rum & Coke Cupcakes

Mocha Tart

Green Tea Shortbread Cookies

Blueberry Muffins

Macarons, Take 2: I have feet! Sort of.

I am on a quest to create a version of Pierre Hermé’s Ispahan macaron. Though I have never personally sampled this treat, how could one refuse a rose-lychee-raspberry concoction? Deliciousness all around!

NB1. There is no “Take 1.” That’s because my first attempt was such a disaster, I’m too embarrassed to post. Instead of that light, chewy goodness, I was faced with something resembling a crisp baked meringue. No characteristic “feet” to be found.

My second attempt at a proper French MACARON (macarons are not macaroons) fared much better. I tried to stick to the recipes as much as I could, choosing to omit the egg-aging step found in a number of recipes. This was mainly due to the fact I had no patience and wanted macarons ASAP.

I ad-libbed a raspberry pâte de fruit using raspberry puree and agar powder. May have gone a little heavy on the agar powder (I wanted to be sure the gel would set). NB2. Agar powder has stronger “gelling” properties than gelatin.

The cookie itself was your basic macaron no additional flavorings added, only food coloring (I use gels) for that rosy hue. I did make sure to rap the baking pans on the counter so as to get rid of any air pockets. And I also let the macarons set for an hour or so, as suggested in several recipes. NB3. I think this may have been an integral contribution to the formation of “feet,” minimal as they were. Nevertheless, more testing needs to be done to be certain.

And that luscious filling. A white-chocolate ganache infused with rose and lychee. Or not so much. I can never get chocolate to work properly. (This, I must change!) My ganache didn’t set as I’d hoped. It was more a medium-soft ganache, rather than the stiffer texture I was aiming for. And it was lacking in rose-lychee flavor. There was some flavor, but very, very faint, almost an aftertaste. I have got to figure out how to extract the most of these flavors without compromising the ganache texture. I think I may try a rose-lychee infused syrup next time.

Despite my critical evaluation, the Taste Testers were very happy with the result. Hurrah!

Cake Deco Experiment

Haring Cake/Fall Love

The Christie's Prints sale/viewing started today. And well, since my sister is an intern in that department... Et volià. We have cake. I wanted to do a bunch of roses/flowers on top. But noooo, my "manager" (manager = my sister = self-appointed title without consulting of the baker) insisted I recreate the Keith Haring on the catalog cover.

Personally, I wasn't completely happy with the result. My sketch was much better. But no matter, everyone loved it. Including the Latin American department, who apparently shared in cake-love.

On a side note there has been serious lack of updates (and time to cook)! I've been working a lot lately. Now I'm off to Texas tomorrow, as I have an appointment with a potential employer next week. Since my plane ticket was more than I'd care to spend, I decided to make it a week-long trip considering I had the week off from work. Then it's back to NYC. Work for a week. Then to Texas for Thanksgiving/Miscellany-Trips and in between a trip to Vegas for Dad's-Early-60th-Birthday-Celebration. Yay for Fall! I love the Fall/Winter because I get to make Holiday Dinners. I have been doing them in my family for a number of years now. And I must say, I am the Queen Bee of Holiday Dinners. Stay tuned for the coming posts...

A Cupcake Decorating Experiment

Lemon Meringue Tart

Used foodbeam's recipe for sa tarte au citron meringuée (adapted from Pierre Herme). I didn't whip the egg whites stiff enough for my tastes. Plus, I kept playing around with the top design, so it probably wasn't as neat as it could have been. But the lemon curd was absolutely fab! I even had a little extra leftover. If only I had some buttery scones and clotted cream on hand!

Mango-Ginger Wontons

Mango, grated ginger, and a touch of brown sugar (the mangoes were a little tart).