Smitha's Cake (and other fun projects)

Nearly two months have gone by... which included an entire summer semester (finished, as of today. Woot.) and some fun projects at work. I mentioned briefly in my last entry of my chef asking me to do another cake. Well, my friends (and more importantly, my mom) here is what the final product looked like.

Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Icing, garnished with gold dusted chocolate covered croquants and modern chocolate garnish 

Birthday Plaque  - Happy Birthday Smitha!

(.... Smitha?! No folks, that is not misspelled...)

A side sheet cake that is decorated similarly - For those who aren't aware, in many situations there is a presentation cake (in this case, the 8" round cake that is served to Smitha) and there is a side cake that is the one that is actually served to the guests. There were about 45 guests for this party - a full sheet sheet cake was a tad excessive, but I was just fulfilling the request!

In context... the smaller cake, next to the larger one.

In all honesty, I felt pretty good about this cake. I was able to maintain my style and adapt to what was expected from hotel standards and what my pastry chefs style was; I went home that night feeling pretty good about the final product. 

The next day, I came in to this:

WTF?! What's with the fruit? Who put the damn starfruit on the cake? A green candle?!! None of it seemed to mesh with the overall theme of a chocolate cake or the color pattern (white, gold, brown). I was upset until I realized that it was my chef that put the extras on the cake... Ugh. This situation was all too familiar from my Marriott days with one Ms. Mothra.

Here's another pic of the cake with a plate-up that was served to the guests. 

(Seriously... Starfruit?!?!)

I'm still trying to find a way to breathe through these type of experiences without feeling offended or upset. I take my work a little too personally, I suppose. But that is what passion is all about, right?

(((**Deep Breath, Pugmire...**)))

Exhale... 

and...

continuing on...

At any rate, here are some more pics of some work that has happened recently...

 Trio of desserts for a banquet - Strawberry Panna Cotta, Chocolate Lava Cake, Apple Cobbler

 There were 400+ of these desserts... I can't lie, there is nothing I love more than looking down the row and seeing this. Ahhhh.... the uniformity.... it is truly bliss.

A plate I decorated for guests having their first trip to Chicago... (I ended up putting our S'more dessert on it, but didn't grab a pic of it before the server snatched it up) For all of you non-Chicagoans, it is a play on Chicago's flag.

New plates and cake style design for celebration cakes... Modern, yet classy. I love it.

My first stab at an ammenity for a DePual Allumni. The DuPaul logo is on a piece of sugar and all of the garnishes behind it are also sugar pieces that I was made. Sugarwork, as fascinating as it is, is time-consuming and definitely a work in progress. 

This next project is pretty unique - it is a painters palette with a collection of seasonal sorbets:

Clockwise, the sorbets are: Yellow Watermelon, Watermelon, Cantaloupe, and Honeydew. All of those are on top of a 'palette' that is an edible cookie (similar to a fortune cookie), with a 'brush' made of chocolate and sugar and a mixture of sauces (peach and raspberry).

The final touches included some cubed watermelon (both varieties)

Ah... Lemon-Basil Sorbet. Nothing too special here; just delicious summer goodness.

Red Velvet Birthday Cupcakes!

 ...and finally, small tart cherries. Fun fact of my life is that I have never had them before. I saw them in the walk-in and I literally squealed "They look just like the video game cherries!"... Sad. I had no ideas that cherries could look like this. And they are delicious (this coming from a man who puts tart fruits at the very top of the favorites list). I would say I've made myself sick from eating them, but I have eaten more than I should and I am still loving every bite. This summer has been filled with stone fruit goodness and I have been loving every minute of it.

Aside from those adventures, there are more items coming up in the future. There will be a menu change (long overdue... we still have rhubarb as an element in one of the desserts... **blushes**... How embarrassing...) and I will be doing a wedding cake for a coworker. All this will be happening in the next few weeks, so updates are sure to be had. In the meantime, enjoy those summer fruits and we will be in touch soon.

*Tschüss!*