Sweet Escapes by Jenn

Archive for June, 2011

Pastry Chef Spotlight: Helene Dujardin

Thursday, June 30th, 2011

I treated myself to this sweet digitial photography and food styling book for my birthday last month. I’ve been following Tartelette’s blog ever since I discovered her macaron-making workshops and I was ECSTATIC to find this book written and photographed by her. I was so excited I clicked, “BUY NOW” without thinking twice. I gave up my entire birthday wish list that I’ve kept since the beginning of the year (which included a facial, massage, Cake Boss book and a few other things) for this book and it was WELL WORTH IT!

I always wanted to improve my photography/food styling skills but couldn’t find the proper resources to do so (without paying for it, of course!). I found a lot of “product photography” but never “food” photography. This book is absolutely amazing, beautifully photographed and a pleasure to read. Helene would give pointers on how to “style” your food using different ingredients taken at different stages of preparation (raw materials vs finished product) focusing on colours, textures and positioning. She would take different shots using multiple settings and explain the key differences and which design is best suited for each dessert.

I love this book!

If you love photography, want to learn a thing or two about food styling or just love looking at pretty pictures… I highly recommend this book! In the meantime, visit Helene’s blog.

French is her native language and you can tell by the way she writes. I still love it though… I think it’s quite endearing

I would like to take this time to thank myself for this birthday present and a quick apology to all the gifts that didn’t “make it” this year. Teeheee!

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Shades of Blue

Wednesday, June 29th, 2011

My favourite part of putting a cake together (besides baking, designing, masking, covering in fondant, stacking and assembling the small details) is PAINTING the cake. I love lustre and disco dusts. Especially GLITTER! These FDA approved edible powders make the cake come alive and give it depth. Straight-up coloured fondant is too flat for my liking HOWEVER, it works for bright cartoony cakes. Hmm.. go figure!

Another reason why I love painting a cake is that you cannot mess it up. Well, technically you CAN but it will take a lot to do so. AND the final reason is that painting is the LAST stage of cake decorating and that means the end is near. Hooray!

I am a make-up artist for cakes.

I bought a bunch of BLUE powders for a cherry blossom wedding cake I’ll be putting together in August and I figure my colour toolbox could use a bit of variety… it’s all PINK and SHINY!

I tend to gravitate towards girly colours if you haven’t noticed

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Canada Day Desserts

Tuesday, June 28th, 2011

The long weekend is in sight and I’m excited to host a Red & White BBQ. I know, so original I’ve never hosted a “themed” party before so this should be interesting. Today is TUESDAY and we already bought 80% of all the food we’re going to cook. The last thing I want to do is hit the stores last-minute. I absolutely HATE long line-ups and tonight was pretty bad as well. Maybe people are catching on and shopping early as well… darn it! Stole my idea!

We bought all the meats/grill foods and all the red and white foods are up to ME! They will be purchased over the weekend (our party’s on Sunday). I haven’t thought of what to do for dessert yet but here are some easy and yummy(looking) treats that I found. Click the titles for the link to the original website. Enjoy

Mini JELL-O Trifle Bites

via Kraft Canada

Banana Split Cheesecake Bars
(a great way to use up ripe bananas as well! Better in your tummies than sitting on the counter attracting fruit flies!

)

via Kraft Canada

Red Velvet Strawberry Trifle

via Taste & Tell Blog

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Angry Birds Cake II

Monday, June 27th, 2011

I think this Angry Birds phenomenon is really catching on. It’s not only popular among a certain age group either! My friend’s grandpa plays it, teenagers play it, apparently it’s really popular in Taiwan and like this weekend’s cake, even 5-year-olds know what it is. I didn’t know what it was until I was at a celebratory dinner at Takara Bune (aka my favourite and the best Japanese restaurant in Toronto) with family friends and beside the “adult” table, I was seated with 4 teenage boys. Each with an iTouch, each playing a different game. They sure made my game-less (fun-less) BlackBerry look boring! It was then I played my first Angry Birds game and I was horrible at it (I still am).

Making this cake was so much fun. I wanted to do something different with the name part so I built a little structure taking the design directly from the game. I wish I had more space because I would’ve added more of a “destructive” look with all the brown logs I had already made but luckily I didn’t because I would’ve gotten carried away and made it look too “messy”. I wouldn’t want it to prompt someone to ask, “Err.. what’s wrong with your cake?”

NEXT UP: I’m going to attempt a PLAYABLE Angry Birds cake… this should be interesting!

Related Post: Angry Birds Cake I

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Simply Chocolately, Simply “Banana-y”

Sunday, June 26th, 2011

What in the world is “Banana-y”? I really wish it was a word because it would perfectly describe my latest creation in the kitchen. WHAT do you do when you have 5 super ripe bananas sitting–staring/calling/teasing–you from your kitchen counter? You make banana bread!

I added the mini chocolate chips for texture, taste and because the relationship between chocolate and banana is a match made in pastry heaven. The recipe called for 1/4 cup of chocolate chips but I went a little crazy (I mean, they’re MINI chocolate chips! “Enough” is never enough!)… I added a 1/2 cup MORE. Let’s just say… don’t do that. Ha ha…

It was when I took the first bite that I remembered that I’m not a chocolate person. I also made a brown sugar cinnamon streusel for the top (not shown here) which wasn’t that great. I put too much butter in and the faulty ratio ruined the loaf. Luckily, I had backups!

I opened a brand new bag of chocolate chips to “style” the photo and I stupidly wasn’t paying attention and spilled most of the bag on the floor! SO clumsy, SO “me”. Grrrrrrrr!!! What a waste! Next time, I’ll be more careful… or I’ll fold chocolate chips out of origami paper… hmm.. yah, I’ll do that instead

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Mickey & Minnie in 3D

Saturday, June 25th, 2011

I made these a few weeks ago for a Mickey and Minnie Mouse themed birthday party. I am thankful for my circle punch that cut the yellow buttons for Mickey’s pants. Imagine I had to cut those freehand?! Oh my. They will not be circular, I can guarantee you that! I have circle punches in every size (2″, 1″, 1/2″ etc… ) so the next time you need tags done, let me know! Hoarding and my weakness for scrapbooking toys wins this round!

Aren’t they adorable?

I also have an obsession with edible glitter (ie. on Minnie’s bow). They add life to the cupcake. Imagine it was plain ol’ boring pink? Yikes. Maybe Mickey was attracted to Minnie because of her shiny bow. Oh! And her long eyelashes and the fact that she looks like him wearing a dress… teehee! I guess we’ll never know!

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Strawberry Hulling MAGIC!

Friday, June 24th, 2011

I got my dad this Strawberry Huller from Williams Sonoma for Father’s Day and he LOVED it! Who says you can’t say, “I love you” for under $10

via Williams Sonoma

It’s super easy to use and it takes the core out while leaving the flesh untouched. Ta-DA! He used it for the first time today and said that he LOVES it (that’s what he’s suppose to say anyways!). It’s weird seeing a perfectly cut hole in the strawberry as opposed to a flat-top like I’m used to! Teehee!

The downside to this useful and fun gadget is that I forsee it rusting quickly if proper care is not in order. I washed it thoroughly and dried it right away. I can’t risk leaving even a drop of water hidden somewhere in the “claw” because I (I mean… my dad….

) want to use it for a long, long time! (okay, I secretly bought it for him so I can use it too… shhh!!!)

If you want one, visit the Williams Sonoma @ the Eaton Centre… they have a bunch in stock but they’re flying off the shelves quickly since strawberries are in season and this gadget is so darn cute! The location @ Bay/Bloor is SOLD OUT. Happy Hulling!

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HERE Fishy Fishy!

Thursday, June 23rd, 2011

Have you ever seen Mario (the plumber) fish before? I guess that’s what he does on his spare time when he’s not eating mushrooms and collecting coins by jumping+hitting his head on boxes with question marks on them!

Here’s a closer look! Does he look bored? Relaxed? Frustrated?

I piped “crashing waves” designs along the border of the cake to give it some depth.

I am addicted to ‘QUILTING’ cakes and for this one, I added a “starburst” effect each time the lines intersected and a blue pearl to finish it off.

I used the placement of the clownfishes (aka NEMO) to create movement so your eyes would follow them swim around and chase each other down the cake!

Happy Fishing!

Posted in Cakes, Tiered Cakes | No Comments »

Sweet Words

Tuesday, June 21st, 2011

Thanks so much for your hard work on the cupcakes and the cake! Many guests told me that they loved the cupcakes, and some asked if the cake on top was real – they thought it was fabric!

Thanks again for your hard work and the spare cupcakes! They turned out beautifully and there were only 4 or 5 cupcakes left over which were quickly eaten by one of my bridesmaids the next morning.
- The Bride

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Rocketships, Robots + 1950s Ray Guns

Tuesday, June 21st, 2011

Hi everyone! Sorry I’ve been MIA for the past week. It was another crazy busy one, indeed! Lots of birthdays and events happening around the city and I got to be a part of it!

Yesterday, we attended the 1000 Tastes of Toronto event hosted by Luminato. Celebrity chefs had set up booths along John Street (in between Queen and King) and had food available for $5 a piece. My top two were Kobe Beef Burger from EDO and a Cheeseburger Springroll from Susur Lee! They were simply, to die for! Dufflet had a strawberry rhubarb tart and a brownie on display and the best part was that DUFFLET, the queen of pastry, was there as well! I was too star-struck to ask to take a picture with her *blush*

Other foods included: gourmet pizza, frozen custard, XXL poutine (we couldn’t even finish it!), freshly shucked oysters, lobster sandwich (my bro did not like this), pulled pork wrap, fish and chips, jerk shrimp, cookie ice cream sandwiches, sausage sandwich… lots and lots of food! Pictures will come later (my friend took them and haven’t uploaded them yet). It was a fun day, indeed! I can’t wait until next years’ festival!

Here’s some cupcakes I made this weekend for Francis’ 8th birthday.

His mom sent me some pictures of the mylar balloons and decorative plates she bought for the party and I made those designs on the cupcakes. He wanted rocketships, aliens, 1950s ray guns and robots as his birthday theme.

Aren’t they cute?

Ray guns. These two were my favourite ones!

Robots! They’re so boxy

Rocketships!

I met Francis and his mom when I delivered the cupcakes and I asked Francis what he thought of them. His face LIT UP and his eyes had a little twinkle in them as he gave me two thumbs up and a big smile. It melted my heart! It reaffirms my passion and why I do what I do!

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