I've been very interested in the question of wedding cakes as there has been a series of programmes on television about wedding cake companies all over America. The cakes ranged from the beautiful to the downright weird. One couple wanted a cake which was a life-sized, technically accurate copy of the bridegroom's DJ deck with battery-operated turntables!!
Over here the traditional wedding cake is a rich fruit one. Have American wedding cakes always been sponge cake or is this a recent fashion? Mind you, there are still brides here who want to get away from the traditional. I offered to do the cake for my cousin's daughter's wedding.... until I learned that she wanted a tower of 200 very elaborately decorated cupcakes on a stand! She threw a real bridezilla tantrum when I politely said I couldn't possible do it and threatened to forbid me entrance to the wedding reception! Her mother eventually calmed her down but it was a really spectacular paddy while it lasted.
Have you looked at any other Hershey recipe? They have several. Also look at any of the makers of chocolate. They all have test kitchens and a recipe file for you to peruse through. Ghiradelli, Bakers, etc. I am sure you are aware of others. You right about the Hershey one we all rave about. It certainly has a strong chocolate flavor, but it is not light. Very moist though.
Don't forget, we want a picture of the final result. We also want pics of the wedding. I feel so excited for you and your partner.
I am not sure how much you realize how grateful I am to have cheerleaders like you and others here on the forum, it makes a guy feel great!
There will definitely be pictures! Now that I think that I have the vanilla recipe perfected, now the fun part of eating a bunch of chocolate cake layers to find just the right one!
My criteria is that it has to be from scratch, easy to mix, without a long list of ingredients. Since I'll be doing this in my mom's kitchen and will have to buy every single ingredient (mom doesn't bake much anymore) and will be pressed for time it needs to be recipes that are as stress free and as easy to execute as possible.
It may sound too simple but, how about that black cake or wacky cake similar to one AndyM made recently.
It is easy, moist, dark and mighty tasty!
BakeChef! First how much chocolate cake are you planning? Second: sponge, genoise or chiffon texture. I have Shrek's old bakery book, the recipes make between 5 lb 12 oz to 6 lb 7 oz batches.
Strawberry Pie
Yesterday we spend the afternoon in the kitchen making some lovely lemon tarts, made our our lemon filling and of course also made our own sweet shortcrust pastry!
They are delicious
Can you share your recipe for the sweet shortcrust pastry? Thanks.
I am just doing a 9" tier with 3 layers about an inch thick each (going for 4" tier after filling). I prefer the creaming method sponge or something similar. I'm prepared to scale the recipe up or down if needed. And of course I use a scale for measuring.
I think fruit cake is supposed to be a symbol of fertility. The under-the-pillow-and-dream-of-future-husband thing used to be a tradition here as well but I think most people eat theirs.My Mother always made fruitcake for family weddings.
They were small pieces wrapped in tissue and tied with a satin ribbon. We always used to try and hide when it was time to wrap a couple hundred of those little suckers!
Single wedding guests were supposed to put them under their pillows and dream about the person they were going to marry.
I always ate mine!
Assuming that isn't "wacky" as in "wacky baccy" wink can the recipe for wacky cake be posted please?I'll put them on the list. It's been years since I made wacky cake, I remember it being delicious.
Hi, GQ, there seems to be a glut of strawbs at the moment. The greengrocer in the village was selling 2 very big punnets for a pound last week. abaout a lb in each punnet. Sadly I didn't have time or I'd have bought a load for jam.Strawberry flan today , English strawbs are so sweet in season am gobbling them like sweeties .
I think fruit cake is supposed to be a symbol of fertility. The under-the-pillow-and-dream-of-future-husband thing used to be a tradition here as well but I think most people eat theirs.
You can buy special little boxes to send cake to absent friends but there is a growing trend for making the boxes yourself, along with favour boxes, invitations, orders of service and place and menu cards, thank you cards, etc. Don't these brides and their mothers have enough to do? I find the hand-made stationery a bit of an anomaly as it is generally considered very "cheap" to make your own dress.