The Wedding Cake Class

Hello family and friends!  It is hard to believe that I have finished another class!!  Well, it's true =)  This class was a little bit different because we didn't actually bake anything... the point of the class was to work on fondant and gumpaste decorations for wedding and theme cakes and also buttercream piping.  We used styrofoam bases for our stacked cakes (we had to make 4 cakes in the 5 week class), but also did get to make a sculpted cake on the last day with real cake scraps (that was our fun day!!).  This was definitely the most tedious class so far and my feet actually hurt more from just standing and making flowers than running around the kitchen!  Anyway, let me show you what I made!!

The first week of class we practiced gumpaste roses...  I did know how to make these from my cake decorating classes I took at Michael's Craft Store back in 2006 (I couldn't believe it had been that long!!)

A rose starts with a base (the white tear drop in the background), then you add 3, then 5, then 7 petals for a completed rose (that's 15 petals per rose!!)  Here are a few I am in the process of making...

To make all flowers look more realistic, I add color dusts to them (there are a lot of colors to choose from, plus you can mix them together).  Can you tell the difference??  I used a LOT of color dust on the flowers and leaves for my cakes because they look so much better.  Hopefully you will be able to tell on my cakes =)

Okay, so THIS is real cake...  We were supposed to practice "draping"(on this cake that is the fondant in between the flowers).  It is actually pretty difficult to make draping look realistic and not too heavy.  By the way, a lot of people ask for draping on their wedding cakes... I don't think I like it very much, but tried to keep an open mind!

We also practiced gumpaste Christmas bows!

So, for Cake #1, we had to use draping (I couldn't get away from it!!) and make some kind of flower.  From my recent trip to CA visiting the conservatory in San Francisco, I was inspired by all of the amazing flowers I saw.  Plus, since I had learned many of the basic flowers in my previous class at Michael's, I felt that I had to challenge myself and try something new.  So, for my first cake I was inspired by this flower (these are real)...

I have no idea what it is (kinda orchid, lilly hybrid?)  but I loved the color contrast and the thin crumpled edges.

So, here I am holding one of the bases I made...

And here are some petal...  each individual petal has to be put on a wire, then twisted together to form the flower (the foil is used to give dimension to each petal so they don't dry flat since that wouldn't be natural!!)

After adding some purple color to the inside of the the bases and some engineering of each petal, this is how they turned out on the cake!

Here's another angle...A few more details about this one: the tiers are covered in gray fondant and then the bases of each tier are covered with a black band of fondant.  I really like the color contrast and you will notice that most of my cakes have a dark band (I think that will be one of my signature looks!!)  Then, the draping is also gray, and needs to be really thin so it looks like fabric, but then doesn't tear!

Cake #2: Theme Cake.  In coordination with my sister's baby showers, I chose to make a "tree cake" with owls (since that was her theme).  Many of you have seen or will see this cake at her 2 showers (I could save it because it isn't real cake!)  So, this cake is going to be traveling all over Ohio!!

So, this is what it looked like freshly made =)  Mama and baby owl..

The tree is made out of modeling chocolate (which is similar in texture to tootsie rolls), so it is very temperature sensitive!  I did add a few extras for the final product which I will have pictures of on my next blog post!

Cake #3: Wedding style cake with some kind of butter cream piping and different flowers.  This cake was also for us to practice components for our final cake.  Here is another flower I was inspired by from the conservatory called Foxglove...  I love the little dots inside!

 So, I made foxglove bunches and orchids for this cake.  I picked two different fondant colors (green and pale purple) to cover my cakes and of course the black band!!  I was also experimenting with dust colors to make the flowers and leaves look natural.  Finally, I drew a scroll pattern that I piped on 2 of the tiers. Here's how it turned out!

Another angle...

Cake #4: the FINAL cake!!  This was also supposed to be a wedding style cake.  It had to include buttercream piping and flowers.  My instructor was really looking for clean work and neutral colors.  I decided to make the foxgloves and orchids again, but change the colors. The cake is covered in ivory fondant with dark brown bands around each tier base.  The piping is with white royal icing and is a combination of extension work (the loops, which are only attached to the cake at the tops of each loop) and dots.  This was for all the marbles!!

 A better angle of the piping

A couple close up shots of the flowers...

I really did like the way this cake turned out!  But of course I have some critiques!!  The main one was I wanted the orchids to look more lime green so there was more contrast with the dark leaves.  I just couldn't get the right dust colors... Then, my brown base strips weren't completely even and got a little bit stretched out.  I know it isn't THAT bad, but these were the comments from my instructor which I take seriously and use to help improve myself.  Plus, you know from my previous posts that this program is all about being anal!!  I did end up with an A- in the class, so I am happy with that!

Fun, sculpted cake: A Pillow!!
So, I had seen on cake shows and in books cakes that look like pillows (complete with the tassels on the corners) and really wanted to try one!  So, for our fun day, that is what I made!  I was able to give it to Nena and her in-laws when they were at their cottage in Michigan, so it didn't go to waste (since it was made with real cake)!  Here is how it turned out!

For the tassels, I used an extruder, which presses fondant out into a variety of shapes depending on the tip you have attached.  This one had many tiny holes, so it came out looking like spaghetti!

Then, I really wanted to paint with the gold dust (a 1 gram jar cost $120 because it is ground up 23K gold!!)

So, I am done with labs until the fall, but will be busy with Nena's showers and making desserts for a co-worker's wedding reception.  I will have more pictures from all of those events soon!!  I hope everyone is having a great summer!!

Bonnaroo and eating my way through California!

So, even though I am back into my school and work routine, I can't forget to share my amazing trip to Bonnaroo and California over my last break!  Bonnaroo is a 4 day outdoor music festival in Manchester, TN where you camp by your car and watch music all day and night at multiple stages.  Besides almost dying in the heat, it was a pretty unique experience and a great time!  Here are some pictures...

Here's our "campsite".  Note the sleeping girl right next to us... that's how closely packed in you are!

This is the entrance to all of the stages

Just a couple of thousand people baking in the sun listening to some good music!

 This was the majority of our dietary intake over the 4 days: turkey dogs cooked in Coor's light!

Being foodies, we did find really good food, including this food truck that served a variety of meatballs prepared a bunch of cool ways and some amazing popsicles (like lemon basil, peach, and chocolate sea salt)

So, then we drove back to Columbus before flying out to Cali.  We were really excited to have a delicious meal (as great as turkey dogs are...) and got to eat at Cameron's one of the nights.

I got this delicious salmon

And of course, we had to try a few desserts!  Here's the strawberry shortcake...

And, this lemon ricotta cake with a crispy cookie (which I can totally make!)

The California trip was SO amazing!  It's hard to believe that I haven't been out there in 2 years and even though I had seen a lot of the area before, it was great to experience it with someone new that is such great company!  First stop was Monterey to stay visit my dad and check out the new house which is coming along really great!

Here is the chalet!

Here are a few beautiful coast shots (ahhhh....)

Driving down Highway 1, we had to stop at Nepenthe which has always been a must-stop for their famous Ambrosia burger (pictured below with coleslaw) and the amazing view!

We also tried this $16 turkey sandwich with Havarti cheese and cranberry relish which was also delicious!

 We also checkout out a really good French bakery in Monterey called Parker Lusseau which has truly amazing pastries and the best croissants ever!  This was my old boss's favorite place, so it was so great to be back to check out selection!  It is crazy for me to say this, but I can make almost everything in this case-wow!

There are those croissants in the middle...

I was also really excited to go to my favorite sushi place, Crystal Fish, which is this totally unassuming place in a strip of other small shops and restaurants.

We got an amazing tempura roll (on the right) and a veggie roll topped with grilled baby portabella mushrooms

We also got this delicious pork which was breaded and fried, served on a stick, with 2 sauces.

Next stop was San Francisco for a great concert and dinner at Absinthe.  The service was kind of lousy, but we had some good food, including...

This cheese plate with Camembert cheese, pears, candied walnuts, nutty bread and a fig chutney

I had this potato crusted arctic char (a mild white fish)

And this is the pork loin served with pork belly (like a fat strip of bacon) and some carrots, which makes it healthy, of course!

Then it was off to Napa Valley for some wine tasting and the culinary highlight of the trip: dinner at Bouchon, a Thomas Keller restaurant.  He is best known for The French Laundry which is one of the best restaurants in the country, but this place was seriously good!

Crusty French bread with butter and a white bean spread

Brisket rillette, which is like a chunky pate, but this is made with brisket.  There were cherries on top and it was served with toasts.  This was the first time I tried rillette and it was amazing!

This is the beet salad with pickled rhubarb, hazelnuts and shaved cheese

Roasted half chicken, classic and delicious!

This is dover sole wrapped and stuffed with mouseline, served with mussels, mini lobster tails and fennel

For dessert, brownie bouchon (bouchon means cork in French) topped with strawberry sorbet, crumbled macarons, and fresh strawberries.  Didn't really get the white chocolate decor, but it was tasty!!

Here is where we stayed in Napa, can you tell??

Here are a few pictures of the wineries we went to...

Aging barrels at Nichelini, the oldest continuously operating family owned winery in Napa.  We totally just stumbled upon this place and it was really cool!

View from the Mumm's winery patio

They specialize is sparkling wine

Final stop: Artesa winery which had this sweet tasting room built into a hill

They had amazing views and fountains everywhere!

Before heading back to reality, we visited the Monterey Aquarium (for free, thanks to my old co-worker!!) and saw the otter feeding and other amazing sea life...

The big tank with the sun shining through

One of the many jelly fish

Overall, even though we packed a lot to do in a short week, the trip was fun and relaxing.  Can't wait to go back!!

My next post with be of my latest class (nicknamed "The Wedding Cake Class" and other fun stuff I've been doing this summer in Michigan!

(P.S.: any words in light purple are links to check out a website!)