Real Baking with Rose Levy Beranbaum

here is the continuation of Elaine's wonderful wedding, and the support of you wonderful bloggers:

http://www.realbakingwithrose.com/2008/09/hectors_7_cake_wedding.html

Reply to this      Posted by: Hector | October 2, 2008 5:53 PM #

a full day packing stuff to send back, and here the wonderful crusts of the many Golden Genoise. Reheated or gently toasted it makes wonderful toppings and fillings for coffee cakes and bear claws!

http://www.hectorwong.com/roselevy/GoldenGenoiseCrusts.html

Reply to this      Posted by: hector | September 15, 2008 8:17 PM #

a full day packing stuff to send back, and here the wonderful crusts of the many Golden Genoise. Reheated or gently toasted it makes wonderful toppings and fillings for coffee cakes and bear claws!

Reply to this      Posted by: hector | September 15, 2008 8:16 PM #

thanks Gia!

although I had a 20 page work sheet with every step listed, down to the minute detail on equipment and prep inventory, I behaved like a mad chef towards the 11 hour. I think most guests did not notice since when they arrived I switched to all fake smiles face. But surely, my helpers and the wedding coordinator will remember my true colors.

The worksheet inventory each item to bring. We took 3 days to transport everything to the location, plus doing the needed prep ahead, like thawing the turkeys, marinades, and slowly bring to room temperature the frozen cakes.

I started on the 9 tier pistachio wedding cake on Thursday. I misswrote my worksheet and initialy made up a 20" tall cake. I knew it didn't look right. On Friday morning, I fixed it to 15" and compared my recipes, was correct now!

I was piping roses on it by Friday nigt, at the same time going thru inventory of hot foods. Everything was organized and delivered in boxes. On Saturday, we stacked all the boxes on one corner of the dining room, and the plan was to use everything in the boxes. It worked, the zillion items were put to use as needed.

I did forget to use my miniature silicone spatula to help serving milk froth from my aeroccino for the full coffee service we provided; that plus the bb swan cake were my wedding gift.

I also forgot to use the raspberry sauce for the charlotte, but no problem since that stores for years.

My staff wants to do this again, but with good pay as I truly think they deserve it.

Catering at a private home is always challenging, I still have pictures on my mind of the people living there while waking up and trying to reach the kitchen for breakfast. We were there since 5 am, just NO other way to finish cooking for the 11 am reception!

Reply to this      Posted by: hector | September 15, 2008 4:18 PM #

Congratulations Hector! It looks amazing and I can only imagine how good it all tasted. Any lessons learned from this one? I can't imagine from how great it looks that anything went wrong!

Reply to this      Posted by: Gia | September 15, 2008 2:14 PM #

Jeannette, thanks very much. In fact, Elaine kept asking her guest to visit this blog, and indeed they did and for months. They showed at the wedding with so many expectations, and I hope they felt delivered!

I am more of a baker than a cake decorator. My decorations are more "baker" style. I like the down to earth, natural look.

Reply to this      Posted by: hector | September 15, 2008 2:02 PM #

kids get so happy when handed a piping bag which is what I did with Arthur (30 y.o. wedding party member). He finished the copper topper and mocha cakes since I ran out of time!

Reply to this      Posted by: hector | September 15, 2008 2:00 PM #

Julie, the blueberry lake cupcakes sounds the way to go. How old is your daughter? Kids get so happy

Reply to this      Posted by: hector | September 15, 2008 12:44 PM #

Julie, the blueberry lake cupcakes sounds the way to go. How old is your daughter? Kids get so happy

Reply to this      Posted by: hector | September 15, 2008 12:44 PM #

Hector, what a spectacular spread! I think I need lessons from you on decorating cakes, yours are beautiful. And so are the bridal couple, pass on my good wishes for their happiness please.

Reply to this      Posted by: Jeannette | September 15, 2008 10:22 AM #

Hector, congratulations!! Not only is each cake a beautiful masterpiece, but together they are a stunning achievement. Matt and Elaine are a beautiful and lucky couple.

I hope you're now off for some well-deserved R&R! Keep those photos coming, they are so inspiring, really an admirable feat. Can't wait to see the pistachio!

Re: your recommendation to make the blueberry swan lake- I made a kids' version over the summer. White chocolate whisper cupcakes with a cone-shaped cutout from the top (cook's dividend) to fill with Rose's summer blueberry topping, and lemon neoclassic buttercream rosettes or stars around the edge of the blueberries, leaving them visible. My daughter was able to pipe some of the stars herself and was so proud!

Reply to this      Posted by: Julie | September 15, 2008 10:03 AM #

Elaine and Matt as beautiful as the Blueberry Swan Lake. You do need to make this cake, swans optional.

http://www.hectorwong.com/roselevy/ElaineAndMatt4.html

Reply to this      Posted by: Hector | September 14, 2008 11:25 PM #

Hi Rozanne, glad you liked.

The mob prevented me to take a picture of the 7th cake, the official wedding cake =)

Glad all cakes stud up, weather was 50oC when I arrived at 5 am and took them out from the fridge. The charlotte remained in the fridge until 11 am, when the lunch started.

The wedding cake was transported completelly assembled on Saturday. I finished it on Friday night and kept it in the fridge at 42oF; any colder would have produced condensation in my conditions. It made the 1 hour car travel as a miracle. Cake was 9" round and 12" tall, plus a little 5" as the topper. I brought a plastic rod with me and planned to stab the cake from the top shall the cake tipped during the ride. Had my IR thermometer and often checked the temperature as the mousseline is very solid bellow 50oC and perfect for the ride

I am desperatelly and unusually waiting for more pictures by the photographer. He took zillions of photos since Wednesday night.

Reply to this      Posted by: hector | September 14, 2008 9:54 PM #

Absolutely gorgeous presentation and cakes. I can't wait to see the other pictures. Very smart of you to take time off after the wedding for some much needed rest. You must be exhausted. By the way, I thought you were doing 7 cakes, I see only 6.

Reply to this      Posted by: Rozanne | September 14, 2008 7:03 PM #

Hi Patrincia, on vacation till the 20th!

Blueberry Lake cake was the favorite! Also the Triple Chocolate one.

Just had Luca's wonderfull pizza for breakfast: a plain mushroom one and a taleggio-prosciutto one, both w/o tomatoe sauce. Bread bible recipe. By the way, Luca was very happy with the tomatoe pizza sauce I provided: a blend of Rose's oven dried grape tomatoes and organic jar pasta sauce! Cutting the zillions little tomatoes was a chore I did 3 months ago!

MORE pics later =)

Reply to this      Posted by: hector | September 14, 2008 2:35 PM #

Absolutely stunning Hector!!! Bravo!!!!!!!!
Hope you get some well deserved rest soon!

Reply to this      Posted by: Patrincia | September 14, 2008 1:23 PM #

hi amy, I can't even walk today! my brother Miguel, catering server friend Wendy, wedding guest Arthur, and Luca, were put to work Mission Impossible style. We delivered on time at 11:00 am, frowning all morning because it would be much more relaxed if it was a late afternoon lunch or diner.

Elaine was very responsive and provided everything I asked that I felt anyone can do, like utensils, drinks, water, and milk.

Starting 4 months ago, when the menu was been developed, Elaine asked her guests to read my website and the very many blog comments. I feel blessed for such responsive and well prepared diners!

I feel for diabetics, I truly wish you could find a balance and be able to try cake. I am borderline diabetic and always have only a forkfull piece of cake or a fingertip dash of frosting. Baking with Rose is so exact that I don't end up with extra things to lick! When I watch my diners eat, I truly feel I am eating too. Helps on my waist line, can you imagine if I really 'eat' al I bake?

Plenty menu items on Elaine's wedding that you could have eaten. I can wait to see the photographer and video work, they slept in the wedding venue 2 days prior, so not to miss one step of my work. Someone said I will be featured on Food Network, must be a mix up!

Reply to this      Posted by: hector | September 14, 2008 12:40 PM #

Hector, you are truly inspiring. I am diabetic and shouldn't even be looking at Cake and any sweets recipes. But seeing your work got me to buy the cake bible, testing out recipes, etc. I just wished I'd found these blogs when I was healthier. I want so very much to try my hand on the cakes that's in the cake bible. They look so pretty and yummy.

Anyway, exercising a some self-control and spacing out the baking periods, I hope to try more cake baking.

Guess after this wedding you'd be taking some rest? You've done all the prep work well so I'm sure Elaine, her husband and guests will be well served.

Reply to this      Posted by: amy | September 14, 2008 8:40 AM #

good night everyone

http://www.hectorwong.com/roselevy/ElaineAndMatt3.html

Reply to this      Posted by: Hector | September 14, 2008 2:34 AM #

Hector, good luck! Take lots of pictures so we can all see your triumph!

Reply to this      Posted by: Julie | September 10, 2008 7:58 AM #

Hi everyone, countdown time, I think I got everything but just very nervous I may forget to pack something with me!

The smell on my kitchen today of freshly peeled and toasted hazelnuts is uplifting.

See you all in a week.

http://www.hectorwong.com/roselevy/ElaineAndMatt2.html

Reply to this      Posted by: Hector | September 9, 2008 9:14 PM #

Thanks Patrincia. Specs are 7.75", 5.75", and 3.75" x 3" tall. I am using lychee instead of pears for the bavarian cream. The topper will be longan (dragon eyes). Doesn't the bavarian cream look perfectly emulsified? I am so proud of Rose's recipe.

Rozanne, yes I will stack. After I lay the longan, I will insert straws just a pinch taller than the tallest longan. Each tier is on a cardboard round wrapped with foil. I still haven't figured out how to avoid showing the cardboards; I may pipe a border but honestly feel that the stripes look much better alone. The color theme of the wedding is silver, so there you have it: aluminum foil silver! For some reason, the things I do look better on a home made aluminum foil cake board, than on those commercial gold ones.

My execution is getting better, I am particularly concerned that the raspberry stripes shouldn't be smudged thru the biscuit. When I made my first Charlotte, Rose told me it gets easier after the second time, and I am glad I listened!

I put these on my freezer last night, covered with wrap. Tonight I will vacuum pack them, but first I will attempt to saw off a little bit of the tops, thus more perfect.

Reply to this      Posted by: Hector | August 27, 2008 1:50 PM #

Hector, that looks so good and perfect. Are you planning on stacking them and how?

Reply to this      Posted by: Rozanne | August 27, 2008 8:36 AM #

Absolutely scrumptious looking - such lucky guests!

Reply to this      Posted by: Patrincia | August 27, 2008 7:34 AM #

Cakes are getting ethereal...

In my opinion Rose's bavarian cream is superbly delicate, flavorful, balanced, and long to execute! Poaching the fruit is the part that takes longer, suggested to do the day ahead and let the fruit sit on the poached juices overnight for maximum flavor. Buying canned fruit is a shortcut, but what a metal taste it comes with.

http://www.hectorwong.com/roselevy/EtherealDragonEyesAndLycheeCharlotte.html

Reply to this      Posted by: Hector | August 27, 2008 3:15 AM #

Cakes are getting ethereal...

In my opinion Rose's bavarian cream is superbly delicate, flavorful, balanced, and long to execute! Poaching the fruit is the part that takes longer, suggested to do the day ahead and let the fruit sit on the poached juices overnight for maximum flavor. Buying canned fruit is a shortcut, but what a metal taste it comes with.

http://www.hectorwong.com/roselevy/EtherealDragonEyesAndLycheeCharlotte.html

Reply to this      Posted by: Hector | August 27, 2008 3:12 AM #

Spaghetti with red sauce is a pasta dish most everyone in the world recognizes. Little does the world know that for good pasta, you need good pasta!

Garofalo, from Italy, is now widely available in the USA. My friends from Italy claim this brand is better than Barilla or De Cecco. Dare to make your favorite spaghetti recipe with this brand and I promise you will notice a difference! (by the way, Barilla in the USA is made in the USA, and although looks exactly the same, the taste isn't, so don't get too exited when it goes on sale for $1).

Here is a picture of the baker's pasta dinner: a carbonara made with red bell pepper pure and egg 'waste' (broken yolks, fat on the whites, from separating dozens of eggs for Elaine's wedding!)

http://www.hectorwong.com/roselevy/savory/Garofalo.htm

Reply to this      Posted by: Hector | August 22, 2008 1:15 AM #

Lu Ann, I have made the Moist Chocolate Genoise on shaped pans, and works just fine.

Update picture on my "wild" tomato plants. The ones that just grew themselves this year. I recognize San Marzano, Cherry, and Grape. The San Marzano is from seeds I planted last year, the Cherry or Grapes must come from birds or from picnis.

http://www.hectorwong.com/roselevy/tomato.html

Reply to this      Posted by: Hector | August 21, 2008 7:29 PM #

Rose, I love The Cake Bible. I made the classic genoise for my daughter's first birthday and it is still talked about today (she just turned 7).

Am about to embark on a cake for my sis-in-law's bridal shower and have selected your Moist Chocolate Genoise and have two questions for which I was unable to find answers in a search of the blog. So, if I may...

1. Shaped pans (hearts of course) are not listed on the page and I wonder if that's just because you hadn't yet tried the recipe in a shaped pan, or if you recommend against such a choice.

2. Bride requested chocolate cake and cream cheese frosting. Is this an odd taste combo to you? The bride's preference is what I will make, and it seemed tasty to me, but if my husband's expression was typical, well, I had better brace myself and perhaps have a second choice available!

Thanks so much for your time.

Reply to this      Posted by: Lu Ann | August 21, 2008 12:37 PM #

Let me try again, and attempt to motivate you to bake meringue swans. They are utterly delicious, light and airy, and not so sweet. Good eaten alone, or filled with whipped cream, fresh berries, or your favorite dessert. Meringue swans are a classic elegant 'old fashion' edible vessel to present desserts.

I tried several piping methods, and could never get the perfect swans as pictured on TCB. What I would recommend, is to follow your own instinct and pulse, and pipe each line of the template as a continuous stroke. DON'T stop to think if it should look a certain way or not. I am particularly happy on how the pointy wing ends look on my swans, and also the little pointed beak and bumpy nose. I am not very happy of the bumps elsewhere because these happened when I stopped to think!

Rose's template is perfect, but I think you can use a different piping tip, maybe use your favorite tip or the one you use most. There can't be anything wrong shall you decide to pipe the wings with a star tip, for example.

It is baking magic to make 'living' creatures out of batter! I sure hope you get started as I have just done. You all that have started piping roses, making genoise or biscuit, or enjoying caramel copper topper silk meringue cakes because of what I reported, please DO start making swans.

Reply to this      Posted by: Hector | August 18, 2008 4:42 PM #

The Swans:

http://www.hectorwong.com/roselevy/BlueberrySwanLake3.html

Reply to this      Posted by: Hector | August 16, 2008 2:48 AM #

Thanks Patrincia, I am so zombie some days from long nights that I do feel I am in heaven!

Amy, no pictures on the 8-8-8 15-cake weekend. I used the camera from the bakery and it is their proprietary information. Sometimes I quickly steal a photo with my cell phone, but believe me... I was so tired I did not. Cakes were nice, but not as loving as if you do everything yourself.

My favorite is the Triple Chocolate Cake, exactly as it is done on TCB.

Reply to this      Posted by: Hector | August 14, 2008 5:00 PM #

Did you post a picture of the 15 cake wedding cakes yet? Would really love to see them.

Hector, you know I am not a "cake baking" person at all. I go for the pies because I seem to have more success with it.

But, darn! Your cakes got me salivating and I am just gonna have to try some of Rose's cakes. I'm going to try one of her chocolate cakes. Which one would you suggest is the bestest (I can only bake 1 cake for the next 2-3 mos - diabetes you know!).

Reply to this      Posted by: amy | August 14, 2008 4:51 PM #

Looks heavenly Hector.

Reply to this      Posted by: Patrincia | August 14, 2008 4:28 PM #

Thanks Jeannette.

Emily (who made my birthday's roulade cheese cake) hosted lovely dinner last night. I showed up with 'quick' blueberry swan lake:

http://www.hectorwong.com/roselevy/BlueberrySwanLake2.html

I 'stole' one cake layer away from Elaine's blueberry swan lake. Slapped some caramel silk meringue buttercream. And, quickly made the blueberry toping (it is easy). And there you have it. I am glad I did, because I actually never tasted the white chocolate whisper cake yet. It is now in my approval!

Reply to this      Posted by: Hector | August 14, 2008 3:56 PM #

You are a MARVEL, Hector! I don't know how you do all that you do, what would your friends do without you?

Reply to this      Posted by: Jeannette | August 13, 2008 3:22 AM #

Just say no Hector - you can do it :).

Reply to this      Posted by: Patrincia | August 12, 2008 5:28 PM #

you can tell where is my mind!!!

did survive 8-8-08, wasn't that bad, had a lot of help.

one thing for sure, I have my hands full, and lets just hope no more lands on me.

Reply to this      Posted by: Hector |