Carving a Fondant Pumpkin

Everyday clients come to me with new ideas about a cake and why the design or idea means something to them. This past weekend Tom and I created a cake shaped like a pumpkin with a sentiment carved into it as you would a real pumpkin at Halloween. Why? Because a wonderful friend of a newly engaged girl came to me stating that she wanted to recreate a pumpkin out of fondant and cake that would represent the way her friend became engaged.

We stacked and doweled the cake like a wedding cake and pressed in the lines of the pumpkin by hand. The stem was made by rolling and twisting fondant. Although the picture doesn't show how large this pumpkin was, it was the size of a beach ball and very heavy. Carving the words in to the pumpkin was most challenging because I had to use the same font that was used on the real pumpkin. When it was finished it was truly a pumpkin.

Fun cake and fun way to congratulate a friend. Best wishes to all.

Vintage Suitcase Cake for the Bob Hope Memorial Library

One of the most exciting moments of my career happened recently. We were chosen to make a vintage suitcase cake for the Bob Hope family for the dedication ceremony of the Bob Hope Memorial Library at Ellis Island. I was invited to attend the ceremony and luncheon as their guest. My father served during the Vietnam War when Bob Hope visited his base in Thailand. Being able to give back to a family whose father gave so much to the soliders was an honor I will never forget.

I found vintage stickers from countries that Mr. Hope visited, made books out of fondant that he wrote and copied his actual passport on to edible paper. The result was so well received that someone actually leaned on the back end of the cake thinking it was one of the many real vintage suitcases at Ellis Island.