Bottega Louie

I went to Los Angeles a few months ago and met up with a high school friend that I haven't seen in years!  We met at the ultimate sugar dreamland, Bottega Louie.  All the pastries looked picture perfect and tasted just as great.  It a huge space with seated dining in the back, but all I wanted to stare at were the desserts in the front :)  I had box of assorted French macarons and a key lime tart... yum!

Elephant topper cake

We recently created a 4 tier cake with an elephant cake topper!  The bride and groom requested a design with a hint of Indian influence and here's how it turned out.

Below is the finished cake.  I loved working with the beautiful flowers and the unique color combination of purple, green and pewter.

Brides Style Shop 2012 Cake

This Monday we participated again in the annual Brides Magazine Style Shop!  Here's the cake we created for the display table.  We also passed out tastings of our chocolate cake with hazelnut buttercream.

 

Here's a look at the table with all the other beautiful cakes!!

White Ruffle Cake

Ruffles!  For the Knot Fall 2012 issue, I was inspired by a bridesmaid dress to create a two tier cake with ruffles and a clean ribbon.

 
 
Here's another of our cakes that was featured again in this issue too.  

Here's another of our cakes that was featured again in this issue too.  

 

Modern Ombre cake

Ombre has really gotten a lot of attention recently...it's everywhere and it's completely understandable why.  It's so pretty, works with every color, and flows so naturally.  Here is my take on a modern version of the ombre design for Brides Magazine July 2012. 

 
 
 

Money Magazine

For the June 2012 issue of Money Magazine, I got a chance to make a cake covered in dollar signs. How fitting :) The cake gives off a retro feel, esp with the cherries sitting on top! Check out the issue on stands now and get some insight on low-risk "recipes" for investing. 

1st Birthday Train Cake

1st Birthday are the best...cute kids + cute cakes. 

Here's a train themed cake we made recently for a baby boy's 1st Birthday.  

 

Update from my last post.

I'm back in the States and had such an amazing experience in South Africa!  I ended up teaching 21 women how to bake muffins, cupcakes, cookies and bread.  They loved the baked goods so much and were thrilled to see how the various ingredients came together to form a delicious treat.  Enjoying the warm muffins and breads straight from the oven while tossing it from one hand to another to try to cool them as we were eating was such a fun memory.  My favorite session was when the women learned how to make cake frosting and pipped their names out.  They have never seen a piping bag or a pastry tip, so it was such an exciting thing to learn!

Between the 7 other workshop that were held by the team of professionals I went with, there were over 150 women who took various courses and received certificates of accomplishment.   Our "graduation" day was a such a beautiful time for celebration and it was such a proud moment in their lives.

The women I encountered were so eager to learn, hospitable, and joyful in the midst of their circumstances.  It was such a humbling experience to work with a non-profit like Zimele to bring skills training to Swayimane.   With this exposure to baking, some of the women were interested in getting further training in nearby towns and eventually develop their own small businesses. Hopefully this trip and the continued efforts by Zimele will lead towards the growing empowerment of the women in South Africa and act as a stepping stone towards working their way out of poverty.