The Dressing of a Sheep 09/19/2009
Dad wanted me to take photos along the way so that he could see the step-by-step process. I didn't do that, but here are a few while the sheep was being "dressed"... Step One: Start with the body Yes, that is a styrofoam base. You were alowed to use forms for this contest because no one was going to eat the cake. Besides, would YOU want to eat a cake after it has been sitting out in the open for 4 days? Yuck.  Step Two: Add the head and bodice.  Step Five hundred and thirty-four: You are done! Sorry I can't explain everything in between, but it's a trade secret. Plus I didn't take that many pictures because I was busy making it. :-)  Another Year, Another Fair 09/19/2009
The fair snuck up on me this year. Late August/early September is normally a busy time at work, but this year I helped my boyfriend move and settle into Moscow, plus there was the stress of dealing with a car accident (insurance matters are not fun, even when you are not at fault). So I didn't start working on the cake until the weekend before the Wednesday night that entries were due. I still was able to construct my sheep the way that I wanted, with a long dress and sash and royal icing tiara. I really like my sheep! Unfortunately, I must have raised the Latah County bar last year because I did not get best of class this year. :-( Oh well. Be sure to see Miss Sheep on my contests page! House Construction 08/30/2009
Less than 3 weeks until fair time, but I have not yet sketched out my idea. Fair planning was put on hold because I had a last minute custom order for an end of summer party! Because one of the reasons this family held the party was to celebrate their house's 100th birthday, I constructed the house and gave it a party hat and cake. I've never made a house before, so that was interesting to figure out the carving technique. Here are pictures of the house and the house. Yes, the chimney is supposed to be crooked to go along with the cartoon-y face.   Less than 3 months to fair time! 06/25/2009
I know, I'm a little crazy, but I'm already thinking about the county fair in September. This year's theme is "Fair with a flair," which makes me think of girls in white dresses with blue satin sashes... j/k, that's a Sound of Music clip. But I do have some ideas, and in the next few weeks I'll probably start sketching my thoughts and coming up with a game plan to avoid staying up to 1:30 in the morning on consecutive days prior to the fair. Not that I've *ever* stayed up to 1:30 a.m. working on a cake... nevvvvvvvvvvvver. Nope. Uh huh. Something borrowed, something blue... 06/24/2009
After a few months of no cake baking, I was itching to work on a project. Joel and Amy contacted me to see if I could do their wedding cake. They were technically married a few months ago, but since winter is not exactly the best time to throw a party they decided to celebrate it with friends and family last weekend. They went for a chocolate cake with raspberry buttercream filling: a 6-inch and an 8-inch tier as well as sheet cake to feed the remaining folks. They wanted something traditional with blue flowers. Happy Birthday to my bro 03/23/2009
A visit back east coincided with my brother's birthday, plus I was planning on visiting him anyway, so I decided to make him a special birthday cake. I consulted with his girlfriend on ideas, and she suggested giant mushrooms or something to do with their goat. I eventually made a huge mushroom out of rice crispy treats, covered it with fondant, made a fondant goat, and placed the goat on top of the mushroom eating a miniature version of the cake. Hee hee hee. It was cute!  Valentine's Day on the Horizon... 02/01/2009
Valentine's Day is a holiday of chocolate and sweets. However, as a baker in a long-distance relationship this holiday is particularly frustrating because I can't just whip up something and say "ta da! Here you go." :-( Last year my energies were spent working on my castle cake for the Wilton contest the entire month of February, but what to do this year? I mean, c'mon, there's so much chocolate in the world that's craving to be melted/whipped/grated/baked/stirred! Sigh. Not decorated, but still yummy 12/12/2008
I made a multi-layered banana cake for our membership holiday party in which all staff and board members brought desserts. I found the recipe in the cookbook "Birthday Cakes" by Kathryn Kleinman. It's a banana spice cake with custard and bananas as filling and loads of fresh whipped cream on top. It got quite the rave reviews at the party. :-)  The Mess 11/22/2008
This week I worked on Laura's b'earth'day cake. It took a long time, and as a result my kitchen was in fine form. Here are a couple pictures to show you how messy my kitchen gets when I'm in the middle of a project. Yikes!   Hee, hee, hee 10/18/2008
Maybe I've spent too much time with elementary kids, but there's something humorous about outhouses. My latest cake features a man (Tom, our executive director) dreaming about a composting toilet. Maybe I need to explain this a bit more... you see, there is only 1 bathroom with 1 toilet at my workplace, and due to the number of staff and volunteers, Tom has been talking about building a composting toilet so that our small septic system won't be overloaded. Hence there he is, dreaming about it on his birthday. Ha ha ha. | AuthorHello, it's Jenica here. Have a caketastic day! ArchivesAugust 2009 Categories |
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