bakingbuyer - August 2011 - (Page 28)

DESIGN OF THE TIMES Cake Life As the popularity of cake on TV continues, the consumer demand for realistic sculpted cake continues on the same trajectory. These days, people want to see everything replicated in cake. It could be an exact replica of a childhood stuffed animal, a scaled down version of an automobile or a replica of a hunting knife…scaled up in size to feed an army, that is. “I remember piping on a buttercream rose and a border, and they’d like it so much they’d want to write a letter,” says Bronwen Weber, owner of Frosted Art in Dallas, TX. “Now if I were to pipe flowers on a cake, they’d probably be disappointed because nothing blew up.” Weber is becoming best known for her outrageous—and often winning—creations on Food Network Challenge. Jennifer Atwood, of Atwood’s Bakery in Alexandria, LA, knows a little something about these sculpted cakes, which she refers to as “realism cakes.” Atwood has created some cakes, including an exact replica of a kid’s juice-box drink, that have made some wonder, “Is it real, or is it cake?” But realism cakes can encompass a few categories, Atwood says. First, there are the exact replicas, such Atwood uses items from around the bakery to mock up a 3D cake. 28 · BAKING BUYER · AUGUST 11 IMITATING as the juice-box cake. And she can also do a scaled-up or scaled-down version of a real object (you may have seen the Atwood’s “monster truck” cake on TLC’s Ultimate Cake Off). And then there are cakes—or elements of a cake—that must be scaled to all the other parts. For example, if you’re creating a purse cake with a wallet accent piece, and the purse cake needs to feed 200 people, you have to remember that the wallet needs to be realistic, relative to its cake counterpart. cake, she searched with words such as “memorabilia” and “collections” with “World of Warcraft.” Another trick she uses is in her prep work. Realistic cakes require a more tangible approach than just a sketch. After she sketches out a 3D cake, Atwood will use items of a similar size and shape to make sure she is utilizing the space on the board in the best possible way. JOANIE SPENCER REALISM RESEARCH Sculpting a realism cake requires a certain amount of research that you might not otherwise encounter. Atwood relies heavily on Google Images searches, narrowing down as many appropriate keywords as she can. For a recent “World of Warcraft”

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of bakingbuyer - August 2011

bakingbuyer - August 2011
EDITOR’S NOTE - Consumers Cut Portions
CONTENTS
INDUSTRY NEWS - All Things Baking Educational Program
INDUSTRY NEWS - Caravan Announces Staff Changes
INDUSTRY NEWS - Symrise Offers Tropical Fruit Flavors
INDUSTRY NEWS - Dancing Deer Unveils 100% Whole Grain Line
INDUSTRY NEWS - Allergen Free Spray Addresses Market Need
BREADWINNERS - The Whole Truth About Whole Grains: Installment Two
BREADWINNERS - Food Shoppers Shift Attention to Fiber, Whole Grains
BREADWINNERS - Team USA Profile
DESIGN OF THE TIMES - Cake imatating Life
DESIGN OF THE TIMES - Be a Flavor MAD Scientiast
BAKERY BIZ TIPS - Invest in Retention
FOODSERVICE INNOVATIONS - Lunch is in bag
CONSUMER PURCHASING - Parents Push for Nutrition
Cake Couture
Inventive Hospitality
Honey Sweetens the Deal
EQUIPMENT TECHNOLOGY - Portion Control
FEATURED PRODUCTS
LIQUID ASSETS - tea: The Wonder Drink
SMALL TOWN BAKER - ADIEU FROM CANDO
PRODUCT SHOWCASE
MARKETPLACE NETWORK
AD INDEX
BAKER’S DOZEN

bakingbuyer - August 2011