Revealed: Project Ziggurat

I hear you out there.  Yes, I know you've been checking in to see if I've published the pictures of Project Ziggurat. 

Well, your faithfulness is now rewarded.  I present to you, with no small amount of pride, Project Ziggurat (or: The Cake that Ate a Blog).

Aside from a little cardboard and a few wooden dowels, this thing is completely edible.  It took 60 cups of rice cereal...8 bags of marshmallows...5 pounds of fondant...2 chocolate cakes...an entire batch of buttercream icing...a vat of royal icing...and a great deal of supporting infrastructure. 

The top tier, as well as the bottom two tiers, are made entirely out of cereal treat.  He wanted an epic cake, but was only feeding a handful.  So, we went the fake-cake route, and only the 8" and 6" tiers are delicious chocolate cake with vanilla buttercream.
I had ordered a brick texture mat to make the fondant work easier.  But, alas, the mail was slow, so all those bricks are done by hand.

Then the piping...oh my goodness...the piping.  Let's hope I ge this right...

First we have Arabic:

Then Hebrew:

Next is Paleo-Hebrew or Proto-Canaanite:

Then Middle Egyptian (which was almost tossed for a few choice words Amy had to describe just what she thought of near eastern languages as her hand was cramping up in protest):

And finally, Akkadian or Neo-Assyrian Cuneiform:

And what does it all say? 

Josh is 33. 

Actually, the part I've shown you here probably just says "Josh is..." The text wraps around the three sides not bearing the stairs.  Needless to say, I'm happy to write in modern English, without the need to draw birds, triangles or other pictures to get my point across.  Heaven help me if we are ever forced to learn Chinese. 

But, truly, my brother Josh is celebrating 33 years, and this was his choice for his party this year.  I hope it makes the trip up to Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in one piece, where it can be enjoyed by his Biblical Archaelological and Near-Eastern Linguist type friends.  Yes, he really is that smart:).

Happy Birthday, Josh!  I love you dearly, as you can tell by the herculean effort I made for your cake.  I hope you and your friends enjoy it as much as I enjoyed the challenge of making it!

Almond Bliss

I love naming things.  I've always named my cars, instruments...and children too I suppose:).  But I hit a roadblock with my almond cake. 

So I went to the internet, made an appeal to my facebook friends (WHAT?  You haven't found Bake Lore on facebook yet?  Ok, go HERE, now.  Once again, I will wait.)

And thanks to their helpful suggestions, I've decided to call it Almond Bliss.  I love almond flavored confections, especially around the holidays, but a hint of almond also makes for a perfect bridal taste.

I made this cake last night.  It was ordered for flavor not beauty, so I thought I'd try to find a good every day cake look for it.  Yes, I added some sugar flowers, but this is me.  I can hardly move without making a sugar flower or two. 

Almond Bliss has already graced the table of at least one wedding reception.  I'm struggling to remember how many I've made - but this summer it will be back in action, making wedding guests happy and hopefully sending them back here for more.

New Rose

I am sorely tempted to sit around my house, dwelling on my disappointment.  I'm missing a bridal show I had hoped to do today. 

I find it difficult to mope, however, when I am having so much fun. 

Besides the peacock feathers I showed you yesterday, which improve with every new attempt, I thought I'd try some new gum paste cutters I got some time ago and see if they lent themselves well to making a peony.

I failed in that endeavor. 

However, in place of the peony I expected, a gorgeous rose appeared!  It's not the usual tight little bloom I'm used to producing.  This is some other wild variety, but I love it.  It's big, it's full and it bears those peacock colors beautifully.

There's so much more you can do to add color and life to a sugar flower with a paintbrush.  Most often, I add the color to the gum paste and work it in well before I start forming petals, but this time, I left it white, and added layers of purple, blue and green as it dried.  The result is like holding a water color painting in your hand.  I love the effect. 

Usually, my roses look like this:

But the new rose I stumbled upon is somehow messier and less formal, like a medieval maiden.  I like them both, and they'll each serve to make a totally different kind of cake just what it should be. 

Peacock Prototype

I have an exciting project for this summer: a steam punk wedding cake.  This is a cultural phenomenon that has produced some really elaborate, detailed art - from fashion to food. 

I'm excited to get a taste for this eclectic mix of Victorian garb and old-timey machinery.

I'm also excited to try my hand at some totally new techniques and create a truly unique cake for this couple.  So, even though it's months away, I have been experimenting. 

Gum paste flowers are one of my specialties, and I love making them.  Gum paste feathers, however, are much more of a challenge.  They aren't just thin, they're whispy, ephemeral.  That makes them a lot harder to mimick with sugar, which makes them a lot more FUN to try!

My first prototype looked a little...emaciated...and, well, just not right.  But I stand by my concept.  The form is there, the execution, not so much.

Is it a gaseous flame?  Is it the skeletal remains of a Star Trek alien?

But, round two has proven to be much more rewarding.  I think this is starting to look pretty cool!  And from a distance, the effect is much more convincing. 

Oh my gosh!  It's a peacock feather! 
I got that the first time.  I really did.  Promise.

This is basically a whole lot of thin, white floral wire, twisted and snipped into shape, and the center is of course gumpaste.  I used a leaf cutter, trimmed and shaped it and then added lots more wire to the top.  the color is all painted on, a mixutre of a little gel food color and a tiny splash of rum.  Yes, cake decorators paint with liquor - but don't worry, it's not enough to enjoy:). 

I'm going to keep working on this, but I wanted to share my progress.  What fun!

Project Ziggurat

UPDATE:  See Project Ziggurat Revealed HERE!

Ever wonder what the Tower of Babel looked like?  Ever wonder what the Tower of Babel was?  Ever wonder why blogs about cake are posting links to the Old Testament? 

Wonder no longer!

Hello cake fans and welcome to Project Ziggurat! 

Thanks to my MENSA-pre-qualified brother, who is studying Biblical Archaeology and Near Eastern Languages at TEDS up yonder in Chigago, I am now working on a blueprint for a ziggurat cake.

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This one will be worth the wait, cake fans.  Keep checking in for progress reports!

Never Gonna Give You Up...

Disappointment has been a common theme for my long, hard slug to official businessdom. 

Every time it seems I'm on the cusp of seeing a real explosion in customers and opportunities, we're dealt a low blow that keeps me back. 

I had plans to create a table for my first ever bridal show this month.  Sadly, it ain't gonna happen.  I don't really want to bore my cake and business lovers with common tales of woe from my life, so suffice to say, the many elements required to pull it off were just not there.

But I hear my sister-in-law in my head, telling me to endure - be patient - tough it out - and I think, ok, that's what I'm going to do. 

I'm not trying to be a flash in the pan.  I'm trying to build a reputation, the foundation of a long-lived business.  Apparently, that means one cake, one wedding at a time and years of slow but sure progress. 

Maybe the explosion is just around the corner.  Maybe it's five years out, or maybe 20. 

I love baking, and I love decorating.  Those two things have endured the test of time, more than a passing interest or hobby.  So I'll let them cook a while until they're done in the middle.

When you need a cake, you know who to call.  I won't be the pretty display at the next bridal blowout, but I will be quietly waiting for brides who are doing thier homework and looking for a really, truly unique cake for their big day.   

And to my business, my beautiful, small, infant business, I can only repeat what the immortal Rick Astley once said...

Elements of a Cake Tasting, III

Welcome to the third and final post in my mini-series on cake tasting.  When January rolls around, bridal shows start popping up, and bakers have cake tasting on the brain.  Hopefully, you're taking advantage of this slow season in the biz and booking cake tastings for you and your hunk of groomliness. 

We've talked about trusting your baker.  We've talked about being prepared.  Now, let's talk about the not-so-fun part: the budget.

If you want a cake like this:

Yes, that is William and Kate's wedding cake.  Drool.
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You should be expecting a price tag fit for this:

Yes, that is the Queen. 
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But let's be honest, are you inviting Eugenie and Bea to your wedding along with their nine million club-hopping gal pals?  Probably not.

The first key to setting your budget is buying your dad a nice big steak, batting your eyes at him and reminding him that you'll always be his little princess.  Aha...

Actually, the first thing you have to do is finalize your guest list.  Once you know how many people you're inviting, you'll know how many servings you'll need and whether you can go for crazy, high-end flavors and decorations or need to stick to a delicious but more basic choice.

I also recommend getting a little more cake than you think you'll need.  So, for a wedding with 50 guests, I suggest a cake with 70 servings.  This gives you enough wiggle room for sweet-toothed guests to venture back for a second slice.  That's a lovely three tiered cake (10", 8" and 6") that would make any wedding reception proud.  At Bake Lore, we start our cake servings at $2.00 each for a 1x2x4" serving. (I've noticed a lot of cake sites won't quote you a base price, and I find that pretty aggravating.)  So, if you're doing the math, that makes the base price $140.00 - wow! - a great cake for a decent price!

You'll be upping that price if you go with flavors that require additional ingredients - raspberry butter cream, for example, has real raspberries in it, and you'll see an increase there.  You'll also have additional costs incurred with elaborate decorations. 

It's all up to you (and whoever is cutting the checks!), but the bottom line is that you can feed a small crowd really good cake for a decent price.  (That means no grocery stores, fake icing or freezer burned flavor.)

So what have you learned, dear bride?
1) Trust your baker and try new flavors.
2) Come prepared with design ideas.
3) Know your budget.

Do those three things, and your cake tasting should be a raging success. 

When you schedule a Bake Lore tasting, you will get a full consultation and either leave with your estimate or recieve it within a few days.

So, when will we be talking about YOUR cake?