5 + 5 = Awesome :)

Besides the fact that I feel like a hungry hungry hippo, it has been another awesome day in the cake lab. I have (finally) gotten my first burn... it was bound to happen at some point! Note to self... don't test the temperature of a metal palette knife you've been holding over an open flame on your ARM. Oops. At least my super-hot palette knife made for a very smooth surface for my birthday cake!

I was thinking at some point today that my grandmother (both of them actually! but I was specifically thinking of Garmi for those of you who knew her) would have loved hearing about and seeing the kinds of things we're doing in this class. The mechanics behind everything, the attention to detail, the beautiful script... this would definitely have been her "thing" too. "Millie", an artist as well, would also have loved the imagination and creativity brought to every cake. It's amazing how regardless of the fact that we all are making the same cake, each one is unique in color, style of design, and handwriting.

We assembled our birthday cakes today... and I got my first 5/5! :) Here's where practicing all those chocolate "happy birthday"s and decor roses came in handy.

After lunch, the chef cut up her demo cake, inviting us all to have a slice. Now, as a side-note, about a month ago I figured out I have a dairy intolerance... (yes, it is a huge bummer, but it's also nice to finally have figured it out).. so basically I can't eat ANYTHING we make in class. True story. Anyway, I happened to be slicing a miniscule piece (more like a pinch) of cake to try, and didn't notice the chef was watching me. "Um, wow! That's a really little, ah, slice, you have there!" She said to me. Laughing it off as I explained the dairy thing, I took my bite of deliciousness back to my work table... enjoying every tiny crumb. :) 

My second cake of the day was a hazelnut chiffon cake, sliced into 3 layers, with coffee sugar syrup and mocha-flavored Swiss buttercream sandwiched between each layer. I also got to practice more rosettes, make a really fun abstract chocolate "cage" to garnish the outside of the cake, and use yummy dark chocolate espresso beans to mark each slice. 

Outside of the lab... I happen to be training for a half marathon (maybe that explains the hungry hungry hippo thing... I ran 8 miles yesterday!) and I'm super excited to be traveling up to Alaska this summer to run it! Woohooo! :) Second note to self... stretching after long runs is key... especially when the following day will leave me standing for 12 hours.