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Spoken For – a new Portland bridal show
The above 90 degree days of late really make me grateful for the cool, clear relief provided by Fall in Oregon. (Butter cream doesn’t like hot weather.) This year there’s a new bridal show in town that gives us another reason to love Fall in Portland — Spoken For . This is the event for the Oregon bride who dreads the annual industrial strength wedding shows. The Spoken For event epitomizes ...
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Ode to the Egg
I have a client on the GAPS diet. I am by no means an expert, but as near as I can figure out one of the main proscriptions of this diet is starch. Pretty straight forward for savory cooking, but I wondered what I was going to do when she asked for a birthday cake. Luckily, she gave me a recipe from the book that came with her Excaliber dehydrator. ...
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Too lemonny?
A friend asked me to make a cake for her husband’s birthday. My only instruction was that he liked lemon. I kept it simple: a nice buttery yellow cake with a lemon mousseline frosting and filling and lemon curd filling. I was a guest at the party and couldn’t wait to cut it open and check out my layers and taste it. The three kids at the party were itching ...
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Mise en Place
I had to put together a few samples recently and wanted something really special. I knew chocolate would figure in the menu so I ended up at Cacao , a terrific Portland store, where I sampled several chocolates. I was looking for a white chocolate that didn’t make my teeth start vibrating from the sweetness. I’m not a big fan of white chocolate (can you tell?) but sometimes a cake design demands the ...
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The Wedding Cake in History
I’ve always thought that the use of “dummy” wedding cakes at receptions was a modern adaptation of the cost conscious bride. Recently,though, I came across a tight little history of wedding cake in an old issue of Gastronomica called “Wedding Cake: A Slice of History” , by Carol Wilson, indicating that it is a very old tradition. She writes ”The wedding cake that commemorated the marriage of Queen Victoria’s eldest daughter, Vicky, ...
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Inaugural post
I love the creativity, imagination, and variety expressed in the modern wedding. More than ever, the personal style of the couple shines through the deep traditions involved in getting married — including the wedding cake. The 21st century has blown the lid off the traditional reception dessert in concept and design and MRobin Cakes is proud to be a part of it. Welcome to the blog. I’ll share my process ...
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Why did I buy this?
Portland, Oregon is famous for its’ estate sales (at least with me) and friends know that I am an avid saler. “Why Did I Buy this?” is a general title I’m giving to posts that highlight some of the things I bring home in the name of cake. These little vessels are an obvious choice for me. Yes, they are a cake decoration, but more than that they are inspiring. ...
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Spongeworthy
One of the reasons I love entremets so much is for the unexpected look of the exterior sponge. Even in person, sometimes it is hard to tell what you are looking at and the potential for bold graphics is unlimited. I can’t always predict how a design will “read” on a cake, so a big part of what I do is testing to see whether a design is truly spongeworthy. ...