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clarabelle posted:So how do people deal with pricing when doing cakes for friends? In the market around here, that steampunk cake would be at least $100CDN+ (like £65 I guess?). Honestly, that's getting into the $150 range, I'm sure. Yes, they could get a cake for cheaper, but not like that. Not with that amount of work, customization. Sure, you can go to Cosco and pick up a making GBS threads vanilla and buttercream slab for $45, but that's obviously not what they're in the market for. For cakes, I usually charge based on supplies and time. Tally together the expensive bits (fondant, butter, flavouring, different sprinkles, colouring, etc) and then carefully estimate how much time it takes me. I mean, for a small round cake I can cover with fondant quickly and pipe, it would be about $45, because I can put it together in ~2 hours. Look at how many hours you usually work on a carved cake like that, and make sure you're making at least minimum wage  But then you've got to think - am I doing this for fun or as a business? For my buddies, I will only charge for supplies, not my time, because they usually let me have fun and experiment with recipes and designs. Even when I'm doing large events, the organizers usually let me have at 'er, so I don't charge as much (especially when I'm doing charity bake sales). If I am doing a cake specially for a customer - even if it's a friend - and I have little flexibility, then I'm for sure charging for time. If they don't like my quote, I send them to other bakeries/baking buddies of mine. No skin off my nose.
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Jan 28, 2013 04:39
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PezMaster posted:In the market around here, that steampunk cake would be at least $100CDN+ (like £65 I guess?). Honestly, that's getting into the $150 range, I'm sure. Yes, they could get a cake for cheaper, but not like that. Not with that amount of work, customization. Sure, you can go to Cosco and pick up a making GBS threads vanilla and buttercream slab for $45, but that's obviously not what they're in the market for. I suppose the issue for me is that the people I do cakes for would probably be just as happy with a much simpler cake, and it's my taking creative license and experimenting that makes it more costly in time and money. I'd get bored if I was just doing small rounds all the time. I know a fair few people who operate home cake decorating businesses, and they all have the problem of people acting like they're being charged through the nose. There's no understanding that home businesses often can't order in bulk, and start-ups can't always get trade discounts, so the costs are always going to be higher than a regular bakery. Right now, the money's in teaching. I think the biggest disparity between what a cake was worth and what I got was a really fancy cake I did for my brother's girlfriend. I replicated her favourite handbag in cake, made a gumpaste stiletto and iPhone, and had the board covered in quilted black fondant with gold dragees. My costs came to at least £50, I spent about 10 hours on it and that cake had to be worth upwards of £150. My cheapass brother said he'd pay my costs, and our mother forbade me from quoting costs higher than £20 (he's broke as all hell). In the end, I got £10. Ah family... He's likely to marry that girlfriend at some point, he'd better not expect me to do their wedding cake for free
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Jan 28, 2013 05:18
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flutterbyblue posted:That is truly the stuff of nightmares TheAbominableSnow. The rainbow cake came out great and looks tasty though. Did you use a pound cake recipe? Yeah, I had to use a fairly heavy batter for a pan like that. It was also whole wheat because I had nothing else on hand (it slightly offset the guilt of using so much butter). PezMaster posted:Also, that bear cake is amazingly Lovecraftian. Seriously getting a "Thing" vibe out of it. Did the frosting melt? What do you think happened? The cake wasn't cooled properly--it was one in the morning and I was REALLY PSYCHED to finish it and have a slice. It was worse because of the type of frosting (http://tastykitchen.com/recipes/desserts/thate28099s-the-best-frosting-ie28099ve-ever-had/). It's quick and delicious, but VERY heat sensitive. The best part is that the 'face' of the bear was on before the melting became chronic, so the whole thing slid off and crumpled like a fleshy nightmare mask. CleverHans posted:Why do you have the Ark of the Covenant in your kitchen and why did the bearcake not look away when you told it to? Thanks! I'm kind of amazed it turned out that nice, seeing as I've never made this before (the bear cake, the pound cake, OR the rainbow colors). I want to try making it again next weekend, except in layers and using cake flour instead of whole wheat. Gonna try for something super airy and tall. Maybe a meringue frosting and some flavored fillings, if I've got the time! Also, clarabelle, chiming in to say that your cake looks fantastic! The goggles are especially impressive.
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Jan 28, 2013 05:42
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Made 160 mini cupcakes for my work party yesterday. Red Velvet with cream cheese icing, Pina Colada with spiced rum icing, and Chocolate Candy Cane. I don't think I'll be doing that again anytime soon, though.
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Jan 29, 2013 04:45
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I made a cake:   I was experimenting with flavours and tried a honey-jasmine cake. It didn't really taste like either, unfortunately, but it was still a good cake! My writing sucks though.
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Feb 8, 2013 02:52
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PezMaster posted:Speaking of new recipes, this is the vanilla cake recipe that is my go-to: http://www.cupcakeproject.com/2011/09/ultimate-vanilla-cupcake-test-baked-by.html - it is a cupcake recipe, but works just fine as a cake recipe. Just have to watch the baking time, of course. I've switched the yogurt for buttermilk and have had great results. I tried this recipe for another baby shower cake and it is amazing. Super moist, and an awesome vanilla flavor. Thanks for this! 
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Feb 9, 2013 02:11
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Can someone recommend a good strawberry or raspberry-based icing that uses actual fruit? I'm trying to find something for my Valentine cupcakes.
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Feb 10, 2013 08:25
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Swiss buttercream + stewed berries = delicious. http://smittenkitchen.com/blog/2008/07/project-wedding-cake-swiss-buttercream/ When you're adding the berries, do it while your mixer is on. It might look a little liquidy, or like it's separating, but it'll come together in the end.
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Feb 11, 2013 22:37
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I like this one. I made it for a huge bbq event a couple of summers ago. Almost everyone hated the cupcakes (they were super dry and evil) but took a couple anyway because they wanted to lick the frosting off. http://tastykitchen.com/recipes/desserts/strawberry-cream-cheese-frosting/
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Feb 12, 2013 16:28
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I had some butter and eggs to use up over the weekend, so I baked a sponge cake on Saturday night. Since I'm planning to enter threadcakes again this year, I decided to use it for that. I did very intricate buttercream decorations, but it took so long that I'm only now finished taking photos of the final result. Do you reckon it'd still be fresh enough to give people to eat? I don't like wasting cake, but I'd rather not give people soggy/stale sponge
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Feb 13, 2013 18:48
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I have a question for US goons. Is red velvet cake supposed to taste chocolatey? It's not a popular cake over here, and the one time I made it from scratch, the only red food colouring I had was made from beetroot extract, so that was the only thing I could taste in the cake. I picked up a Betty Crocker mix of the stuff out of curiosity (I needed a quick cake for decorating practice purposes), but when I tasted the off-cuts, they didn't really taste of anything, certainly not chocolate. So what is red velvet supposed to taste like?
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Feb 24, 2013 20:46
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It's supposed to be a bit chocolatey. Usually there's some cocoa powder in the cake along with the ungodly amount of red food coloring so that it's got a not quite chocolate cake taste, but a definite overtone of chocolate. And most of the velvet cake mixes I've used look like a light chocolate cake mix until I add water and activate the dye involved, though the chocolate taste isn't as strong as with the homemade stuff.
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Feb 24, 2013 20:54
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clarabelle posted:I have a question for US goons. Is red velvet cake supposed to taste chocolatey? It's not a popular cake over here, and the one time I made it from scratch, the only red food colouring I had was made from beetroot extract, so that was the only thing I could taste in the cake. I picked up a Betty Crocker mix of the stuff out of curiosity (I needed a quick cake for decorating practice purposes), but when I tasted the off-cuts, they didn't really taste of anything, certainly not chocolate. Original North American velvet cake (The original Canadian one sold in Eaton's, then the American one in Waldorf-Astoria) used cocoa powder to cause the red colour. When the vinegar hit the alkaline cocoa powder, you got your red colour. A lot of cakes take out the cocoa nowadays because it can no longer create the distinct colour on it's own. Food colouring is used instead. To me, a good velvet has a good tang because of the vinegar, buttermilk, and large amount of baking soda. It's got a nice moist crumb to it too. In the contemporary cakes you get around here, you won't taste the chocolate because it's chock full of food colouring instead. If you go old school, you'll get the cocoa and a bit of a deeper flavour.
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Feb 24, 2013 21:01
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Now I really need to try a real red velvet  . And thanks for the history lesson! (To my shame, my only scratch red velvet were red velvet brownies which were actually pretty good.) Would you happen to have a recipe you like?
flutterbyblue fucked around with this message at 21:51 on Feb 24, 2013 |
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Feb 24, 2013 21:47
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This is a contemporary velvet cake that is my go-to: http://www.cccakery.com/2010/06/rainbow-velvet-cupcake.html - I have been using full buttermilk instead of the yogurt/milk combo, though. This recipe is more in tune with what old fashioned red velvet would look and taste like: http://www.cccakery.com/2011/10/old-fashioned-vegan-velvet-cupcakes.html - that one is adapted to be vegan, though. Use light buttermilk instead of the soy, and use white vinegar instead of the apple. This is sort of an experimented version, though. I'm sure there are better recipes out there. For frosting, a lot of people do cream cheese. But, if you want to eat it like the old fashioned Eaton's variety, use a flour based icing. It's amazing.
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Feb 24, 2013 21:58
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I tried out the old fashioned vegan recipe, though I switched the soy for buttermilk and the apple cider vinegar for regular vinegar like you suggested. I doubled the recipe and baked in in my super deep 8 inch cake pans. And I did the flour based icing as well. It came out amazing! Definitely a keeper for sure. Super moist cake and a frosting that wasn't killer sweet. I wish I would have snapped a picture because I did a huge butterscotch butterfly to decorate the top just because I could.
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Mar 16, 2013 18:39
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flutterbyblue posted:I tried out the old fashioned vegan recipe, though I switched the soy for buttermilk and the apple cider vinegar for regular vinegar like you suggested. I doubled the recipe and baked in in my super deep 8 inch cake pans. And I did the flour based icing as well. It came out amazing! Definitely a keeper for sure. Super moist cake and a frosting that wasn't killer sweet. I wish I would have snapped a picture because I did a huge butterscotch butterfly to decorate the top just because I could. I'm super glad that it came out for you! If I remember correctly, I adapted that recipe from non-vegan to vegan a while back. I'm actually relieved that it can be non-veganized. Did you use butter in the frosting, or keep the shortening? Speaking of velvet, I made green velvet cupcakes last week. Seriously the first thing that's popped out of my oven in six months. Oddly enough, these weren't for any St. Patrick's Day themed parties. Recipe is here if anyone is interested. 
PezMaster fucked around with this message at 19:30 on Mar 24, 2013 |
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Mar 17, 2013 03:17
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I actually used all butter since I don't tend to keep shortening on hand. It came out super awesome. And I ended up using full fat buttermilk and whole milk in the frosting because I forgot that light would have been acceptable.
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Mar 17, 2013 07:42
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flutterbyblue posted:I actually used all butter since I don't tend to keep shortening on hand. It came out super awesome. And I ended up using full fat buttermilk and whole milk in the frosting because I forgot that light would have been acceptable. Oh good! I only use veg shortening in the vegan baked goods. Butter is by far superior!
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Mar 17, 2013 16:38
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 Made some petit fours. Took waaaayyy too long. First time trying. White ones are frangipane cake, raspberry cream, and vanilla glaze. Dark ones are chocolate cake, raspberry cream, and chocolate ganache.
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Mar 19, 2013 23:59
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I apologize for the pictures, my camera isn't that great. I also haven't done cakes in a few years nor do I really have the tools for it, but my sister-in=law asked me if I could make a cake for my nephew. He loves Mario Galaxy, so I decided to make a Mario-themed cake:  Everything but the Mario and the small mushroom are eatable. The cake itself is double chocolate cake with raspberry filling, covered in buttercream and marshmallow fondant. I find the marshmallow fondant harder to work with, but since this was mostly for a kid's party, I wanted them to eat and like it so I went with that instead of the traditional fondant. The stars on the cake are made with poprocks, I made Mario's flames with hard candy, and used the leftover created when I made it to put as my base for the planet. The planet itself is made rice-krispie marshmallow.  A view from the back. It's definitely not perfect, but the kids loved it and my nephew refused to let anyone cut into the planet.
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Mar 20, 2013 04:25
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Get me some hi-res versions of those pictures stat or I'll come and get them by force myself
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Mar 20, 2013 14:27
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Made a cake for a Unibroue beer dinner. I was paired with Trois Pistoles, so I made a chocolate mousse cake full of dried cherries soaked in sherry. It tastes glorious, now I'm just awaiting feedback!
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Mar 20, 2013 14:47
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That is awesome Pixle! Did it take a ton of time to do all the little details?
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Mar 21, 2013 03:43
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Someday I will make a topsy turvy cake that doesn't look like poo poo. Today is not that day. Fondant cracked like a motherfucker, and it looks lumpy as hell
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Mar 24, 2013 22:15
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 First attempt at a big ol' mess of icing flowers. The execution was a little wonky, further tests are required!  The carrot cake hidden under all that icing was kind of disappointing though. Dense as hell, and I discovered I'm not really a fan of wholemeal flour. Husband was all  THIS CAKE TASTES HEALTHY I WON'T EAT IT. And despite the huge amount of icing sitting on top, each individual slice felt like it needed more icing.
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Mar 25, 2013 06:04
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Is there a good "yellow" cake recipe that anyone reccomends? I've only ever had cake from out of a box or pre-made and thought it would be cool to try making my own. What about Frosting also? Thanks.
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Mar 25, 2013 22:16
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Tenchrono posted:Is there a good "yellow" cake recipe that anyone reccomends? I've only ever had cake from out of a box or pre-made and thought it would be cool to try making my own. What about Frosting also? Thanks. I don't know what 'yellow cake' is, but a Victoria sponge is a pretty foolproof cake to make and is super simple and delicious: http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/1997/ Home-made cake is the best!
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Mar 25, 2013 22:26
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Bollock Monkey posted:I don't know what 'yellow cake' is, but a Victoria sponge is a pretty foolproof cake to make and is super simple and delicious: http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/1997/ When I hear "yellow cake", I think Brasseye Seconding Victoria Sponge, it never fails
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Mar 25, 2013 23:08
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Maybe pound cake? Delicious delicious pound cake, mmm. Equal parts by weight softened salted butter, sifted flour, eggs and sugar. I think the Breton recipe ("Quatre-quarts", lit. "four-fourths") is best. Separate eggs (check YouTube). Whip egg whites until stiff, add a few tablespoons of sugar as it whisks and keep beating until smooth and rich. Cream (whisk with electric mixer until fluffy and light) egg yolks with half remaining sugar. Cream soft butter the rest of sugar. Stir flour into butter compound, add egg yolk compound, and finally fold in (check on YouTube) egg whites. Greased and flour-dusted ring mold, 170C for about an hour for 1/2 lb of butter. Best next morning with a huge class of cold milk. Grated lemon zest or vanilla for variety.
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Mar 27, 2013 20:25
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I have a challenge. I want to make some cupcakes or muffins (Can muffins play here?) but they have to be: Dairy-free, gluten-free and nut free. I was thinking a vanilla muffin with vegan frosting and apple and cinnamon puree injected into the centre. Thoughts? This isn't for right now, I have a while before I need them, so I can try out a variety of suggestions.
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Mar 28, 2013 14:06
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syntaxfunction posted:I have a challenge. I want to make some cupcakes or muffins (Can muffins play here?) but they have to be: Dairy-free, gluten-free and nut free. I was thinking a vanilla muffin with vegan frosting and apple and cinnamon puree injected into the centre. Thoughts? This isn't for right now, I have a while before I need them, so I can try out a variety of suggestions. Someone suggested these Vanilla Freedom Cupcakes to me, but I haven't tried them yet. They're vegan and gluten-free. It calls for 1/4 tsp of almond extract, but you could easily sub in more vanilla. If you're really ambitious, you can make vegan butter to use in buttercream icing. (I've had no problems just using margarine and all-veg shortening, though.) Edit: if you want chocolate cupcakes, these are amazing gluten-free ones. It calls for milk, but I've used soy milk before. I've never tried their "chocolate hummus" frosting, though. Carbon Thief fucked around with this message at 21:35 on Mar 28, 2013 |
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Mar 28, 2013 21:32
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Hello cake thread! My boyfriend and I are going to his parent's house for Easter on Sunday. They are very sweet Pennsylvania Dutch folks and are therefore pretty flummoxed about me being vegan. I want to bring a nice dessert for us all to share and Easter cake is a thing, right? I grew up Buddhist so I have no idea what is traditional. I also have no cake decorating experience. I can veganize pretty much anything and bake a lot (just not cake) so I can figure out recipes myself, but what kinds of cakes might be good for an Easter dinner?
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Mar 29, 2013 13:14
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Carrot cake seems like it would fit in pretty well with the easter theme and I'm sure there are good vegan carrot cake recipes out there.
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Mar 29, 2013 22:54
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Kitten Kisses posted:Carrot cake seems like it would fit in pretty well with the easter theme and I'm sure there are good vegan carrot cake recipes out there. Funny you said that, because after getting no replies here before I had to go to the grocery store, I came to the same conclusion! I'll let you guys know how it turns out!
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Mar 29, 2013 22:56
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Okay, PezMaster. I've been a slacker, but I used your rainbow velvet recipe two weeks ago for a friend's birthday cake. You didn't tell me I was making cake snot! It was the weirdest cake batter I've ever made, but it turned out delicious.  My son helped me so one of the layers was a little Jackson Pollock, but we had lots of fun and laughs making a huge mess getting it in the pan.  This was for her 30th birthday and she's as big a bookworm as I am with the added benefit of her birthday being on Pi Day. Sooo, this seemed a logical choice for decorating.  We managed to keep it a secret from her, so the above was all she saw until I cut it. Then this greeted her:  This was my first foray into working with fondant. I will say now that I am not a fan. Not without a poo poo ton more time and practice and still... I don't think so. It definitely wasn't perfect, but I'm not feeling too bad about the results. Under the fondant there was a generous layer of homemade chocolate swiss buttercream. It was definitely a hit, so thanks for the recipe! I would have been lost without it as I had 1 day to do this and was at a loss for a really good idea. Undead Waterfowl fucked around with this message at 05:28 on Mar 30, 2013 |
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Mar 30, 2013 05:21
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Undead Waterfowl posted:Okay, PezMaster. I've been a slacker, but I used your rainbow velvet recipe two weeks ago for a friend's birthday cake. You didn't tell me I was making cake snot! It was the weirdest cake batter I've ever made, but it turned out delicious. It is sorta cake snot, isn't it? I'm glad it came out for you, though (I love the batter splatter you did in the cake pans!). Because of the velvet talk we had here not too long ago, I actually just updated my coloured velvet recipe (this one is green, but you can do it multi-coloured as well) - which is here. I think I'm going to re-tackle my old fashioned velvet soon too. This weekend, however, belongs to Game of Thrones themed cookies. (Too bad we don't have a cookies thread  )
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Mar 30, 2013 07:52
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PezMaster posted:It is sorta cake snot, isn't it? I'm glad it came out for you, though (I love the batter splatter you did in the cake pans!). Start a cookies thread! I'd LOVE to see what game of thrones cookies look like!
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Mar 30, 2013 13:35
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Plus_Infinity posted:Start a cookies thread! I'd LOVE to see what game of thrones cookies look like! I tried to start one once, but it faded pretty quickly. I guess people just don't like cookies as much as they like cake? Maybe, when the cake thread gets too big, we should all get together and start a general baked goods thread? (The cookies are really awesome and chocolatey, by the way - I won't put up a picture because they're not cake, but here's a link if you're interested) I'm really loving this nerdy baked good kick I've been on recently - I think I'm going to try my hand at Catan Cupcakes. I want to fool around with a classic pound or angel food cake for their base, but I'm not sure how they'll work in cupcake form. Has anyone found that the texture and crumb of those sort of cakes make it too dense for a cupcake?
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Apr 1, 2013 02:24
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PezMaster posted:I tried to start one once, but it faded pretty quickly. I guess people just don't like cookies as much as they like cake? Maybe, when the cake thread gets too big, we should all get together and start a general baked goods thread? An overall baking thread sounds like a good idea too. I make lots of stuff that isn't cake. Those cookies are an amazing idea! So my vegan carrot cake was a big hit! The icing was so amateur I won't post a photo, but I piped little carrots on the top and everyone thought it was cute and it tasted good. I'll probably try to make another cake for the next family gathering, whenever that is!
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Apr 1, 2013 02:56
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