Just Married Wedding Cake Topper

Many wedding couples  would want a traditional wedding cake with fancy decorations. This red velvet cake iced with the classic American  butter cream in rustic style  was graced with just a bunting cake topper. Unlike the old school wedding cakes, this one was simple but unique. Perfect for a couple who wants to make a  statement with their cake.

My boss handed  the "Just Married" cake topper to me still sealed in a box. I carefully inspected the materials used and thought I could make it the next time someone wanted something similar.  I can use cloth or paper that match with the wedding theme. I can even personalize it. Good eh?

All Things Chocolate? Not So!

I have been busy as a bee. The resort was at full occupancy the last several weeks. At times like this, working alone is physically draining and exhausting. In the midst of all the craziness at work, I still find pleasure making good stuff for the guests. Just like this chocolate mousse cake I made for a Spanish guest ( the inscription said it).

The idea was based from the Black Forest cake I learned at culinary school. I had two layers of cake. I frosted the bottom layer with chocolate mousse. To complement the rich and creamy chocolate mousse, I frosted the top layer with whipped cream. I used an open star tip to pipe roses on top. I put a chocolate chip on each rose and filled the middle with chocolate sauce. I didn't want to leave the sides uncovered so I garnished them with chocolate shavings. Talking about overload!

Wedding # 16 Outtakes

I took my only chance for some Kodak moments while the wedding venue was being decorated. The cake was all set. I still had time to walk around and see the development happening. What caught my attention as I examined the place was the photo booth. Wedding guests could snap their own wedding photos wearing props the couple had brought with them. They even created an account specifically for the occasion so guests could post the photos online. Brilliant. It would be awesome to have a huge collection of wedding images from different sources.

Gloria's Farewell Meal

A Chinese friend of mine left Thailand to pursue further education. Before she left, she and I went to Will Wait Restaurant in Chaweng for one last meal together. There was nothing fancy about the meal. I had just eaten lunch. Her flight to Bangkok was not even til 9 pm. We were in Chaweng too early so getting a light snack would be a great idea to pass the time. Some may wonder why went for Thai. Well, she was leaving and it might take a while before she could have Thai food once again.

Making My First Gluten-Free Bread

I would say my first attempt to make gluten-free bread went okay. I had never made one but there was a guest with gluten intolerance coming to stay with us for a few days so the chef wanted us to be ready in case she requested for a gluten-free bread. I was informed the last minute. I was lacking the right ingredients. I had to improvise with what I had. For the trial run, I used gluten-free all purpose flour.  Following the recipe from sheletthemeatcake.com, I substituted all the flours with Bob's Red Mill all-purpose flour. The flour is a blend of garbanzo bean flour, potato starch, whole grain white sorghum flour, tapioca flour and fava bean flour so I thought it would work.

As for the other ingredients, I made a modification here and there. I stirred in palm oil instead of sunflower oil. I substituted xanthan gum with agar agar powder. I used ground black sesame seed in place of flax seed. I didn't add the amount called for because sesame has got a strong flavor. The bread still came out with a subtle sesame flavor though. It was overpowering but tolerable.  I should have just omitted it. I reduced a quarter of flour but  put double amount of almond meal. Wrong move.  The recipe yielded a good but heavy and  dense bread. I am hundred percent sure it's the culprit. Oh well, I tried my best.

Simplicity

Remember the pink vanilla cake I made for a female regular guest at the resort a couple weeks back? Here's the blue version made for a male guest. It was simple. All I did was tint the Swiss meringue butter cream with blue and frosted the cake with it.  I was actually going to add more decorative piping on top, sides and base  but I was needed to oversee the dessert buffet at the cold room. People started flocking to  where the  salads, appetizers and desserts are.  Couldn't blame them. It's in the middle of the day and the temperature was soaring. The only place where they could get a little comfort was in the cold room.

I knew time was running out.The resort's hostess might be coming anytime to take the cake so I just couldn't  leave a cake half done. I  hurriedly finished with the icing. For the top, I ran a triangle pastry scraper with serrated edge. That made a little difference. I thought it was  boring with just  plain butter cream. Why not stick sliced almonds? I thought. It might help. And so I did.  I would say it gave the cake a better look.  I also  did the  inscription fast. Once done, I placed the cake on a square serving plate. I put the cake back to the fridge and ran to help the understaffed cold room.

Oatmeal In A Cookie

I like variety. I make sure I serve assortment of yummy treats each night to the resort's in-house guests. I don't want to bore them with the same thing. Just recently,  I did a repeat on cupcakes and served them alternately with cookies, cakes and chocolate. Here's the newest addition to my long list of turn down treats.

Oh Pink!

It was one of the busiest Sundays. A hundred fifty bookings, plus  walk-in customers who turned up for the resort's brunch. I had dessert buffet to set up, two birthday cakes to decorate, turndown service treats to bake and pastries to roll. Sigh! I wish I could split myself into two so I could do things faster. After arranging the desserts at the cold room respectively, I ran back to the bakery and started working with the cakes  - courtesy of the resort to the guests who celebrated their birthdays. One happened to be a regular customer.

My boss said any flavor would do. I had my hands full so I went for the one that was easy and quick to whip up.

Vanilla Cupcake Topped With Sliced Almonds

To begin  my cupcake adventure I went online to refresh my mind. Loads of flavors were available but I thought I would start with the easiest pantry ingredient I could find. For today's turn down service treat I made vanilla cupcake. This humble treat was quick and easy to make but it's oh so delicious.

There are many versions of vanilla cupcake you could get off the internet. I have tried many in the past. They were good but this one rocks. Based on the recipe of browneyedbaker, the original recipe called for sour cream. It would cost a lot if I stick to the original so I used the resort's homemade yoghurt as a substitute. I used cake flour in place of all-purpose flour to get a softer and lighter crumb. I skipped frosting for a low-calorie treat. I garnished the top with toasted sliced almonds. I made more than a hundred so imagine how much I had saved with this.