Fourth & Final of Graduation Cakes!

Summer has taken its toll on me, allowing me to have been BLISSFULLY unaware that I let an entire month fly by before posting pictures of the last two graduation cakes! I feel awful, but hey, its getting done. All in due time. 

These cakes represent what is my most productive weekend, cake-wise. The Strawberry three tier was made in a day and a half, started Friday morning at 8am and ended Saturday afternoon at around 2pm.  Getting home from that party, (I was invited to stay but did not, because of my embarrassment which will be explained) I started the next cake at around 5pm, and got everything made for it by midnight, then put it all together the next day (Sunday).  Busy weekend. 

Emma Cake: Congratulations Emma! (June 19th)

Emma's Cake is a three tier Gold cake, frosted and filled with fresh Strawberry Meringue Buttercream.  The tiers measure 6, 9, and 12 inches.  The embarrasement was because of the WEATHER! During transit, the heat started melting everything, and the cake started sliding around on the base. I hit a few bumps (many, actually) and it was just awful. Such a pretty cake and it was destroyed because of the hot sun. 

I heard later that the buttercream started sliding off the cake (the house was not air conditioned).  I was so crushed! But its over, and I have pictures of it in its glory. 

Amanda's Cake: Congrats Amanda! (June 20th)

This cake was a challenge from the beginning because I had never (ever) made marbled cake before.  The concept sounds simple, and in fact it is, but I was terrified from the start. As you can see from the pictures below, everything turned out completely great. 

(By the way, this was a 14-inch round cake, exactly 5 inches tall, Vanilla and Spiced Chocolate Marbled Cake with Chocolate Meringue Buttercream...and strawberries to garnish. I had a bunch left over.) 

The second challenge was the Chocolate Buttercream. It just would not set.  The house I live in is supposed to have Central Air, but apparently it doesn't half the time, only AC.  This was the explanation given to me when I exclaimed a week earlier, THANK GOODNESS I BAKE WITH CENTRAL AIR! So I believe that although the house was cool, (not extremely), it was the humidity that did the chocolate buttercream in and thus the quasi-disaster was born. 

Having the buttercream in such a state, I grabbed some leftover strawberries and went a little organic on the design, as the Emma Cake was also very organic. 

A note on cake style: Mostly I prefer cakes that have contrast to them, not made with colored fondant but details with buttercream, and subtle sparkle. With these two cakes, I experimented with the natural form, incorporating real strawberries and not sifting out the pulp, and chocolate buttercream that swirled and created an airy look. 

You can see them now: 

Graduation Cakes! Weeks 1, 2, and 3!

I have graduated and now am free! - From high school at least.  Of course, I could not leave without leaving a small cake impression.  Total orders: 5.

Week 1: Congratulations Lizzie! Class of 2010 (May 29th)

Liz ordered a 50 piece cupcake cake, red velvet with bright pink frosting and light green complimentary icing. Unfortunately, the cake slid off the board during transport and had to be reassembled with care when I got there. (And this is why the photo shoots are done BEFORE the cake leaves the safe counter top.)

Week 2: Congratulations Katie! Class of 2010 (June 5th)

This cake was a SURPRISE cake for a friend of mine.  Her sister and I secretly coordinated through email. She ordered a 14" Gold cake with traditional vanilla buttercream. A color scheme of green and white.  It was beautiful! Stood a royal 5" tall!

Week 3: Congratulations Anya! "Ten miles behind me, and ten thousand more to go." (June 13th)

I had the most fun with Anya's cake.  She ordered my Tiffany Chocolate cake with Mocha Buttercream and a dripped Ghiradelli chocolate ganache. I dropped it off earlier this morning, and I'm sure that by now it has attacked by a large knife and an army of white plastic forks.

This is the followup cake for the post before, where I made essentially the same cake - just smaller.  The ganache did not set as well on Anya's cake as it did on that practice cake.  Still good though!

And if I may say, writing with buttercream on freshly poured chocolate is a CHALLENGE!

This cake also stood 5" tall.

Two more cakes follow for Weeks 4 & 5. A three tier gold cake with strawberry buttercream, and a 14" marble cake with chocolate buttercream.

Chocolate Ganache and Cake!

This is a practice run-through of a graduation cake coming up shortly.  Tiffany Chocolate cake with Mocha Buttercream frosting/filling and spiked Chocolate Ganache to *literally* top it all off!

and Yes, I know birthday is spelled wrong... Can't fix mistakes made on a wet chocolate canvas.

A Sweet 16 & Sweet 1st with Fondant

It's been a LONG week - that much is for sure. More actually, much more. This week I FINALLY created a delicious strawberry buttercream, covered my first fondant cake (real fondant, i'm talking here) and achieved double-grounding myself, but no big deal. I brought enough cake home and three extra large slices of superhero sub that will hopefully appeal the management, I shall also have to clean *spotless* both my bedroom and the kitchen. That might do it. I also turned eighteen, which unfortunately I still cannot begin experimenting with liquor and cooking...


Order of events: Creating strawberry buttercream, compiling a cake, transporting, and eating. 


Strawberry buttercream is no different from any other Swiss Meringue Buttercream - its basically just fresh strawberries, washed clean and hulled, added into vanilla buttercream whisking in the mixer. There is no need to make a sweetened puree, no need to boil strawberries over the stove... 

And filling the cake:

Alas, delicious. AND LOOK AT THOSE LAYERS! So Even! 


I Love my job. 

Cheesecake and Pyrex

Took the AP English test yesterday - fell asleep at 5pm and slept through to 8pm. (missed church) Woke up with an insane ahhh! because i FORGOT ABOUT THE CHEESECAKE TOPPING!


So, I get up out of bed and throw my treasured L.L.Bean Wicked Good Slippers (the Mocs) (with the rubber soles) and head downstairs. I realize that it is too late to go to the store, and find a gallon of strawberries that I had frozen a year earlier in the freezer.  I pop them in a pyrex bowl to thaw them, and then put the pyrex bowl over a saucepan of boiling water.


Everything is fine for about 20 minutes. The strawberries and granulated sugar (and a pinch of salt) are sitting there maturating and all of a sudden POW!!!!!!!!


Naturally, the grandparents are sitting in the other room watching a documentary on the bombing of the UN building in Baghdad in 2003 (date?). Pops hears the pop of the pyrex splitting into tons of pieces and jumps up because he thinks it was a bomb.


(it was very loud)


So he comes rushing in (and he tells me later) expecting the POLICE! He couldn't figure out why they would be outside his house making such a noise.


Haha.


End of story: I spent another hour in the kitchen cleaning up shards of glass. Pops and I got talking about how this should never ever ever happen with pyrex. He hopped online and, lo and behold, Pyrex glass is no longer made out of the.. what was it... borosilicate glass. The article is here.


Yes, it exploded. Here is the carnage:

And here, the last slices of the naked new york cheesecake: