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Icing Smear |
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The new ideas being shared in the pastry arts can't be ignored either. Even the Kentucky State Fair changed their rulebook to include the new techniques being shared. Since 1906, when Louisville was named the permanent site for the state fair, only buttercream and royal icing was allowed on cake entries. In 2009 the rules were changed to allow any technique used commercially for cake production. This allows fondant, gum paste, pastiage, and any other edible product to be utilized. And the effects of this rule change were immediately apparent. Just like dandelions in a grassy field, there sprouted little cakes breaking the conventional molds. A little sugar community of cakes inspired by watching some of the best cake artists in the world. |
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Ace of Cakes made a massive splash with the cake decorator in all of us because of its fresh approach to baking and decorating. Only two members of the Ace of Cakes crew attended culinary school. The rest of the bakery team is a mixed bag of nuts ranging from graphic design, art majors, and psychologists. They helped change the way we look at cakes by changing the idea that only bakers make cakes. They make their cakes like works of art and are always pushing the limits of what a cake can become. Duff the leader of Charm City Cakes said it best, “Provide you (the customer) with plenty of eye candy and feed the creative spirit in both kids and the kids inside us all”. |
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All this has not only changed our food service workers with their creativity but also millions of consumers. Orders at bakeries have gotten increasingly more elaborate and difficult to fill. Lisa Smith a bakery manager in Louisville Kentucky explained the increase in cake orders and high expectations for her department. “I’m not sure where they get these ideas for the cakes they order. But, each one seems more outrageous then the next” said Lisa. Years ago when she started working in bakeries she explained how almost all her orders were traditional cakes. She would make sheet cakes with shell borders, maybe some roses, and some writing. Now, she said, “They want 3D cartoon heads and scenes painted on their cakes”. The creativity shown by her customers is inspiring but difficult for her bakery workers. Her customers have seen the biggest and best cakes on television … but, Lisa’s crew can’t keep up with the demand and expectations. |
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Well-informed customers have left a sweet and sour taste the mouths of many food establishments. They enjoy the business but, many restaurants and bakeries are having a hard time living up to the professional images that the networks are giving to millions of American’s every night. |
