WW: September Cakes

Here are a few of my favourite cakes from September. I won't list all of them, but if you'd like to see more of my work, you can visit my other site at www.DolcezzaCakes.com or on facebook at www.facebook.com/dolcezzacakes.

What's been coming out of your kitchen this past month? With October in full swing, do you make a baking schedule?

Party Weekend!

It's raining, it's pouring and Mr. Puss is snoring.

I missed posting yesterday, but I have a good excuse reason: I was still recovering from a super busy party weekend. (That usually works with your boss, right?)

My cousin celebrated a milestone birthday on Saturday night. There were about 60 guests. She and my aunt made their home into a "sports bar" to reflect my cousin's love of sports. Jerseys were hung from the ceiling with care, there was a beer tent in the back yard, amazing food and of course, a cake provided by yours truly:

Hockey Jersey Cake

We all came dressed in our favourite team jerseys or colours. Anyone who didn't come dressed appropriately was given a choice of several t-shirts from my cousin's collection. All in all, a very good time. 

Following that revelry, we had to wake up way too early on Sunday morning to set up for my father's birthday. Also a milestone: 60. He loves a good party, and this year he asked for a Roman/Gladiator-themed bash. Naturally, we obliged. If there's anything everyone knows about our family, it's that we love themes and dressing up. Come Halloween, we usually go nuts [this one notwithstanding]. So, my sister, my brother, my mother and I set the stage. We hand-delivered scroll invitations instructing guests to come in their finest Roman vestments for the celebratory Games and we were not disappointed:

Toga!

 We all wore gold leaves in our hair, and even the smallest baby was dressed in a mini toga. Golden [chocolate] coins were given to the victors of each of the games. A scale model of the roman Colosseum was built by my brother to hold a massive fruit bowl. [Yes, we do go that far.] We ordered a roasted pig, which was delicious, by the way, in addition to all the other food we brought along to the park. And, naturally, the cake. Because every birthday needs a cake:

Roman Temple Cake

Good times. Good times. Salve!

How To Fill Cupcakes

Filled cupcakes are, in my humble opinion, the best thing ever. The. Best. Just a little bit of cake to snuggle the creamy goodness all without having to lift a fork. Fantastic, right?

Here's the method I use to create filled cupcakes that look amazing when cut or bitten into, without the sides of your little cake bursting or having a "bubble" top. 

Step 1: Using a paring knife, cut a circle about 1/4" from the edge of the cupcake. Do not go all the way down to the bottom of the cake. Pull out the circle and a little flat-bottom cone will come out.

Step 2: Slice off the bottom of the "iceburg". Keep the top. Discard the bottom or use for cake balls.

Step 3: This is worth considering a step. Line up your tops with your cupcakes so you know where they are going later! Don't just throw them in a pile or your cupcakes won't have that finished look!

Step 4: Fill your cups 3/4 full with the filling of your choice. Here, I've used Strawberry Italian Meringue Buttercream with chunks of strawberries.

Step 5: Put the tops on. If you lined them up, the cuts will match exactly.

Step 6: Decorate as usual.

Step 7: Surprise! Enjoy.

What's your favourite filling for cupcakes?

Are there any other cake mysteries you'd like solved? Let me know and I'll put up a tutorial!

WW: November cakes at a glance

Two Things

I've heard say that there are really only two things that you need to know about any subject. Everything else just refers back to those two things or they are not that important.

I am a cake decorator. What two things truly matter?

1. Creativity is nothing without technique. You have to know how to make your vision a reality. 
2. A little bit of icing can fix almost anything.  [Except maybe this!] If it doesn't, it's just cake, move on. 

I think the exact same two things can apply to me as a mother. :) Not to mention these two things too:

I have a vision of how I want my kids to turn out. I'm doing my best to make it happen. All the little mistakes can usually be smoothed over with a bit of sweetness. When I mess up large, and I do, I know it's not the end of the world. I just have to work on the "moving on" bit. 

What are your two things? 

October Cake Review

It's not a secret. I am the owner of Dolcezza Custom Cakes. I'm also the head designer and chief dishwasher. Definitely keeps me on my toes. I love working with creative people and being a part of their celebration.

I can't show all of them, but here are some of my favourite cakes from October....

I'm partial to the LadyBird. :) Which one do you like best? What's your favourite cake flavour? Do you prefer buttercream or fondant? 

Wordless Wednesday : My Cake Disaster

This is what happens to a wedding cake when the delivery vehicle is rear-ended.

How to make an Elmo cake

This is a cake I made for a my friend's son's first birthday. And here is how you can make it too!*     

Step 1: Bake a round cake.
There were to be about 20 guests, so I made a single layer 10" cake.                                                                     

Step 2: Put it on your board and trim about 2.5cm/1" from the "top.
Make it a slightly rounded cut. 

Step 3: Torte the cake. [Cut in half horizontally.]
You'll notice it's a bit crumbly. For fewer crumbs, pop your cake in the freezer for an hour or so.

Step 4: Dam and fill the cake.
I made a raspberry Italian meringue buttercream for the filling. It's a bit denser than regular IMBC so I made a dam of icing around the perimetre of the cake to prevent any unsightly leaks.

Step 5: Using your trusty, clean, kitchen shears, trim off the sharp edges of the cake.

Step 6: Brush away any loose crumbs on and around your cake.

Step 7: Pile on a good amount of icing.
It may look like a lot - because it is a lot. But that is the secret to having no crumbs sneak into your icing while you're covering your cake. The fact it, more than half of that icing you see, ends up back in the bowl.

Step 8: Cover the sides of the cake, pushing the icing from the centre of the cake, removing most as you go. Use a palette knife or spatula. 

Step 9: Clean up the sides.
Here, I'm using a bench scraper that has never scraped a bench. :)
Handiest icing tool I own.

Step 10: Remove all excess icing. This does not have to be perfect. It's okay if you can see the cake in some parts, it will be covered by fondant. Pop the cake in the fridge now and let it rest there for at least 15-20 minutes.

Step 11: Completely clear your workspace of crumbs and icing. Then weigh out your fondant.
For a 10" cake, plus the board, I use about 1 kg. This will be more than enough. Technically, you can get away with using about 800g, but with a bit more, there is more room to play.

Step 12: Add your colour. RED. I'm using a good amount of Super Red gel paste colour.

Step 13: Start kneading. And kneading. And kneading....
This may take about 10 minutes.

You may want to use gloves. :)

Step 14:  Once the colour is mixed in, let it rest for about 15 minutes or so. This would be the perfect time to wash your hands. 

Step 15: Prepare for rolling out.
When I'm rolling out coloured fondant, I always use icing sugar instead of corn starch.
The icing sugar is absorbed into the fondant, whereas the corn starch will remain on the outside and will spoil some parts of the colour.

Step 16: Knead your fondant into a ball. Slightly flatten with your hand.

Step 17: Start rolling!
To get a near perfect circle: roll up and down twice....

....then twice to the left....

...then twice to the right....
and repeat until it is the size that you want.
Only roll out to about 1/8" thick.

Step 18: With your rolling pin near the top of the fondant, flip over about 1/4 - 1/2, then lift your fondant to rest.....

....over the cake.

Step 19: Smooth out the top of the cake with a smoother or your hand chasing out any air bubbles. Smooth out sides, and on to board.

Step 20: Cut excess fondant away from cake.

Ta-da!

Step 21: Using a blunt edge tool or cel stick, imprint the smile. 

Step 22: Using your shears, cut in the fur, trying not to cut all the way into the buttercream.

Step 23: Using a cel stick or other similar tool, lightly imprint the fur texture.

Almost done!
At this point I airbrushed the entire cake red to give the colour more depth, but this is not a necessary step.

Step 24: Take 4 crisp rice treats. I find that the store-bought variety are more conducive to molding than homemade.

Step 25: Scrunch them up into a ball.

Step 26: Using your shears, cut the ball in half.

Step 27: Form the nose using 3 crisp rice treats. 

Make sure they are the right size for your cake!

Step 28: Roll out a small amount of white fodant. 

Step 29: Cover the eyes.

Step 30: Cover the nose with a small amount of orange fondant. 

Step 31: Attach them to your cake with a small amount of icing. 

Step 32: Fill in the mouth and add the eye details with black icing.
I used royal icing.

Step 33: Stand back and look on in awe at your creation.
Try not to giggle maniacally.

So....what do you think? Did I leave out any steps? I'd love some feedback!

*[Please note that Elmo's image is protected under various laws and such and should not be sold in any way without rights. This cake was made for personal use.]






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