Cake Day

[poliphilo]

I know the rule is "i before e except after c", but it never looks right does it? The word niece for example, what a monster that is.

Anyway, that's just the preamble. The thing is our niece Nicola is getting married and my sister-in-law, in a moment of madness, volunteered herself and Ailz to make the cake. 

Do you know what it costs to get one of those things made by a professional?  £600-£700.

Mind you, this won't be your conventional cake. Nic has a very specific vision. Firstly it's going to be chocolate, secondly it's going to have four tiers, thirdly the tiers aren't going to be supported on nice, little neoclassical columns, but will rest on one another- like it was the step pyramid of Sakkara,  fourthly the whole, huge monument is going to to be coated- evenly- in white chocolate, fifthly it's going to be decorated with chocolate curls (whatever they are) and have real roses on top. 

Do Ruth and Ailz have experience of making enormous cakes?

Erm..........

But they have picked up some useful tips. Apparently all the professionals use Betty Crocker cake mixes. Yes, really. 

Well, the wedding is less than a month away now and today is Cake Day.  Ailz is going to bake a trial cake and so is Ruth and then they're getting together to learn from their mistakes. 

I'm glad I'm just an innocent bystander.

Comments

[sculptruth.livejournal.com]

Wow, I was a chef/pastry chef for years and I never heard of any of my colleagues using cake mix. However, I have to say for a novice, it's probably the safest route because with everything else going on the last thing she wants to worry about is the actual cake itself.

How will she transport it? Others have already suggested cardboard and dowels, which are a *must* for structure-- but her safest bet is pack the pre-decorated sections in flat cake boxes (bakeries will usually have them) and assemble it there. Also, the white chocolate coating might be the trickiest part--- a long narrow offset spatula and a tall container of boiling hot water are going to be her best friends for spreading that around evenly.

I wish her good luck-- but you have the fun job of test-tasting! :P

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

They're talking about assembling it at home- but they're aware they could have trouble transporting it. The problem with putting it together on site is that the venue is a hotel and it's questionable whether they'll be allowed to use the kitchen. Still, no harm in asking.

Thanks for all the suggestions. I'll pass them on.