Monday, June 30, 2008

Wine Crate Cake


We recently made this sculpted 50th birthday cake for a wine enthusiast. All parts are edible including the "crate", "tissue paper", "bottles" and "confetti".





Sunday, June 29, 2008

Favorite Cake- Manolo


People often ask me about my favorite cakes. I'm fickle. One day it's the 5 foot tall STAR WARS wedding cake, the next it's the psychadelic 3-tiered confection with a live fish swimming between the tiers. But there is one cake that I never cease loving, my Manolo Blahnik cake. Created for a local charity event to support Fort Worth's Lena Pope Home, this cake is topped with a completely edible sugarpaste replica of a Manolo stiletto from the Spring '08 line.

Sublime Pastry Case


Above is a photo of our Sublime Bakery pastry case. For the average person this is just another peice of equipment in our bakery. But for me the case is an object of great affection. You probably think I'm kidding. I spent weeks during the construction of my shop searching for the perfect pastry case. Many were ugly, most were boring, none caught my eye. Until this one. She is glossy black with gold trim. Mirrored and lighted inside to show off all our goodies. She is half dry and half cold. She is perfect. She is Sublime.
Now, I should probably explain for the unitiated, that this is the single most expensive piece of equipment in the bakery. More than the 20 quart commercial mixer. More than the 6 door refrigerator. Pastry cases are a significant investment. So it was with great care and caution that I endeavored to find just the right pastry case for our space. I found this one in Ohio. My bakery is in Texas. I was not deterred. She made the trip safely in a customized crate and awaited the completion of construction to be put in place. We built our retail space around her to show off her best features. We clean her glass window several times a day, washing away the finger and face prints left behind by the many children who press up against the glass to pick their favorite sweets. We dust her and buff her and give her great care and attention. In return she shows off our cupcakes, croissants, scones, brownies, cakes and tarts with great pride. Or so I imagine.

Sous Chef Cade

Since my bakery opened in March, I've been working 60 to 90 hours a week. Par for the course for a new business. I don't have a full time nanny (I hired one but she became my bakery manager instead!!) so, since school let out my son, Cade, is spending a lot of time with me at Sublime. He's a good sport, never complains, and helps out whenever we'll let him (especially with taste-testing, yum!). His favorite way to pass the time is to play with fondant. Here he is experimenting with fondant color palettes using leftover bits of custom colored fondant.


www.sublimebakery.com