We choose holiday cakes not so rarely. Birthdays, anniversaries, family holidays... I want it to be delicious and beautiful. But there are special dates when a cake is no longer just a cake, but a key element of the celebration, a self-sufficient unit, an expected and meticulously discussed part of the event. Can you guess what we're talking about? Of course, about marriage.
Confectioners are especially busy during the wedding season - newlyweds want to see real sweet masterpieces at their celebration. Mothers of babies celebrating their first birthdays are not far behind them - cake is almost of paramount importance here. Today we are talking about how to choose this important dessert for different occasions so as to get a wow effect.
Product size
The size of the birthday cake is determined by the number of people who are offered dessert. No matter how tasty, beautiful and appetizing the delicacy may seem, if there is not enough for everyone, the gala evening will be ruined. And the birthday boy’s mood too. To avoid such trouble, you need to clearly know in advance the number of guests invited to the birthday party. And take this criterion into account when choosing a cake. Let a small amount of dessert remain after the holiday, but the owners will not find themselves in an awkward position.
Appearance
Next, you need to evaluate the appearance of the cake itself. The main thing is that there are no drops of moisture, smudges, dents or cracks on the surface. All this indicates violations of transportation conditions. If the dessert contains meringue, its surface should be matte. A shine means the meringue is damp. Too bright colors indicate the presence of dyes in the composition. Additionally, you can decorate the cake by preparing an “Eskimo” cake; it is very easy to prepare - https://sdelaytortik.ru/recepty/recepty-pirozhnyh/mussovoe-pirozhnoe-eskimo/
Flavor and Fillings
When choosing a cake for a relative, friend, significant other or child, you need to take into account the personal preferences of the birthday person. But what to do if the hero of the occasion is a stranger? In this situation, it is better to opt for classic options. These include:
- Vanilla taste.
- Chocolate filling.
- Dessert “Red Velvet”.
- Strawberry filling.
- Carrot filler.
- Lemon flavored dessert.
Drawings on cakes using cream and gel dyes
As you know, baking can also be a work of art. So the cake can serve as a canvas for a drawing or image. The level of complexity is not limited, ranging from images of flowers to portraits of famous people and landscapes, and depends only on the professionalism of the pastry chef. Decorating cakes with fruits and chocolate does not lose its relevance. However, lately there has been some restraint when decorating cakes. Lush, numerous decorations are not in trend now. They are gradually being replaced by minimalism. Our novice confectioners also try to realize and develop their creative potential through educational and industrial practice. And for beginners, they do it well. (More details on the “confectionery courses” page)
After all, the most important thing when training to become a confectioner is to master the basic technologies for preparing confectionery and chocolate products. And true mastery, your own unique style and recognition will certainly come to you in the course of your future professional activities, if you are guided by the desire to bring genuine pleasure from eating your dessert to a restaurant guest or your loved ones.
Rubric “Advice from a teacher on confectionery at the ROST Training Center”
Cream and glaze
Today there are many different options for such supplements. When choosing them, it is also necessary to take into account the personal preferences of the birthday person. Don't forget about such win-win options as buttercream, jam, chocolate or butter icing.
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Mistake #8: Believing marketing promises
Labels such as “low-calorie,” “lean,” “diet,” “no unhealthy fats,” and so on often attract people. Especially if you are choosing a cake for a lady who is watching her figure. But what do such promises mean? Most often - that the composition will not contain natural butter with a fat content of 82% and a calorie content - oh horror - more than 700 kcal per 100 g. But there will be vegetable oils, whose calorie content exceeds 800 kcal in most cases. Read the composition carefully, there is a lot of interesting stuff there.
Decor
A birthday cake should look festive.
You can use berries, fruits, whipped cream, chocolate syrup or caramel sauce, jams, edible flowers or cream patterns as decoration. When choosing decorations for a cake, you should take into account the personal preferences of the birthday person and his age. For example, if the dessert is intended for a children's party, you can purchase a delicacy with decorations in the form of animals or cartoon characters. This dessert will delight the little birthday boy and guests of the celebration.
Mistake No. 10. Mastic
Nowadays, gift cakes with original shapes or with interesting figures on top are very popular. The cake can represent anything: a soccer ball, a musical instrument, a zoo with trees. It often looks very impressive. Just keep in mind that all the beauty is made from confectionery mastic, which is nothing more than just colored sugar. It's cloying and tasteless. And there is a lot of it. Mastic will account for 30 percent of the total weight of the cake. It's a shame to waste money on useless jewelry.
Diet or allergic reactions
This criterion should also be taken into account when choosing a birthday treat. It is necessary to clearly know whether any of the guests have health problems and what restrictions they need to adhere to. Luckily, there are now quite a wide range of animal product-free, gluten-free and sugar-free cakes to choose from. In addition, you should consider whether any of the guests are allergic to nuts or certain types of fruits and berries. In this case, you need to buy a dessert that does not contain ingredients hazardous to human health.
Choosing a birthday cake, especially when it comes to a party with a large number of guests, is quite a difficult task. But now there is a wide selection of desserts that makes it much easier. When buying a treat, you just need to pay attention to a few important criteria. Then the choice will be made correctly, and the holiday will leave pleasant impressions.
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How to choose a cake?
An important component of any celebration, including a holiday in a narrow family circle, a large-scale corporate celebration or an outdoor wedding ceremony, is an appetizing, exquisite and necessarily delicious cake. We all remember ourselves in childhood, when at the beginning of the holiday we were waiting for its finale in order to get a piece of the festive dessert. Years go by, but we all remain children... And so we order a multi-tiered wedding cake, a funny cake for a child’s birthday, or buy a delicious homemade cake for a visit. But how to choose a cake that will become part of the holiday, and will not turn out to be an unpleasant surprise with an expired expiration date? Today we will talk about this in our “sweet” article. Types of cakes Cake is one of the most favorite desserts of all times. The word “cake” comes from the Latin words “torta”, which translates as “round bread”. Cakes come in a wide variety, ranging from simple jam-soaked cakes to multi-layered “towers” with fresh fruit and marzipan on top. Of course, every self-respecting housewife has her own unique recipes for sweets, but, nevertheless, all cakes can be divided into several general groups. • Whole cake . This group includes cakes, or rather pies, baked entirely in one layer using yeast dough. Typically, such a cake is decorated with jam/preserves or crushed nuts on top. A whole cake is an easy, everyday option that is quick to prepare and will delight the family at dinner. • Italian style cake . Cakes belonging to this type consist of several parts, which are baked separately and then put together, filled with cream or other tasty filling, and decorated with complex elements. • Yogurt cake . A very popular type of cake among lovers of proper nutrition and a healthy lifestyle. This cake is prepared on the basis of yogurt or soufflé, due to which it is “light” and low in calories. Decorated with fresh fruits and berries. • Assembled cake . A prefabricated cake consists of several cake layers of different types (baked from different doughs), soaked in different layers (cream, jam, caramel, marmalade, etc.), and the top cake layer is decorated with a variety of complex elements. This group, in turn, is divided into subgroups: French cake. When preparing French cakes, sponge cakes are baked and soaked in syrup (rum or cognac). Almond, nut, and chocolate cream are applied to the cakes. Sometimes, to prepare a French cake, puff pastry is baked, the layers of which are coated with a thinner cream. After soaking, the cake is usually sent to the refrigerator for a couple of hours. Viennese cake. The cooking method is similar to that used when baking French cakes. To bake a Viennese cake, Viennese yeast dough is used, as well as a special milk-chocolate (or milk-coffee) impregnation. Sand cake. After baking shortbread cake layers, they are not soaked (which is why these cakes may seem a little dry), but a fruit, berry or marmalade layer is used. Waffle cake. Waffle cake layers - ready-made or home-baked waffles. They are often soaked in condensed milk, chocolate or coffee mixture. Cheese cake. Curd cake is prepared by beating the curd mass with flour in a mixer or blender. Protein glaze is often used as a layer. Liquid cake. Liquid cake is a quick and delicious solution. Sponge dough is placed in a container, and any filling (pieces of cookies, marmalade, crushed chocolate) is placed on top of the dough, which is covered with a layer of butter cream or syrup. The top of the cake is covered with another layer. The cake “arrives” in the refrigerator (usually within 24 hours). High-quality cake and its shelf life According to many people, cake is a rather harmful product that should not be included in a healthy diet. Considering that careless manufacturers are always trying to save money by adding harmful substitutes for natural ingredients to the product, you should very carefully study the composition of the treat before purchasing. In the process of making confectionery products, vegetable cream is often used, which is an alternative to natural yogurt and cottage cheese. The composition of vegetable cream includes mixtures of vegetable fats, for example, soy, coconut, palm, a mixture of sugar, acidity regulators, emulsifiers, flavorings. In order to save on natural ingredients, such a replacement is quite justified, but the downside of using such components in confectionery is harm to health. Saturated acids contained in vegetable cream increase cholesterol levels in the blood, and in addition, unlike natural cream, they contain practically no vitamins. Special additives that help preserve the “freshness” of fruits and berries in the cake are familiar components with the designation E. For color fastness, artificial dyes E100 - E180 are used, to prevent rapid spoilage of the sweet product, preservatives E200 - E297 are used, and for the “lushness” of cakes stabilizers and emulsifiers E400 - E496 are actively added. These components may be present in products in very small quantities, but, nevertheless, you should not give preference to artificial additives when there is a natural alternative. When studying the composition of a confectionery product, pay attention to the fact that the cake contains eggs (and not artificial egg powder), natural yogurt (and not its artificial equivalent), butter (and not its analogue - margarine). If your eye is caught by a tall, fluffy cake, most likely the dough takes up most of it, so the cake will be quite high in calories. A healthier option would be a cake with a thin sponge crust and mostly berry mousse or a smooth yoghurt filling. To decorate a healthy cake, natural fruits and berries, pieces of crushed chocolate, and various nuts should be used. Elements that are too bright, curls, “roses,” beads, etc., indicate that artificial ingredients were used in the process of their preparation. If the cake is "slightly warped", it is made from low quality ingredients. As for shelf life , cakes can be divided into two categories - perishable and long-lasting. Perishable cakes are cakes with natural ingredients and virtually no artificial additives. Please note that if the permissible shelf life is more than three days (which exceeds GOST standards), it means that the cake is “stuffed” with artificial preservatives and stabilizers. Natural cake can be stored for about two to three days. If you see a cake that states that the shelf life expires the next day, it is better to refrain from purchasing it. A quality cake smells fresh and sweet, without any sour smell. When choosing a cake in a supermarket, pay attention specifically to the manufacturer’s label , since supermarkets often stick their own “false” labels on the packaging with the date of “packaging”, but not the date of production. Try not to buy cakes that are cut into pieces and packaged individually. Often such a move is the result of an attempt to sell an expired product. Also, avoid buying cakes that are sold outdoors without packaging. A similar “marketing ploy” can be found on sea beaches, where the flow of tourists is as great as the temptation to enjoy a piece of delicious homemade cake. When exposed to the open sun, the cake deteriorates much faster than if it were stored in the correct conditions. Wedding cake A wedding cake is not just part of a festive banquet, it is a special “guest” at the wedding, whose grand entrance is long and impatiently awaited. It just so happens that at a wedding not everyone has the strength to finish dessert, however, everyone will admire and admire the wedding cake. Any couple definitely attaches as much importance to the choice of cake as to the choice of the bride’s wedding dress or the groom’s suit. A little history In many cultures, there is a wedding custom for newlyweds to break bread together, which signifies their friendship, unity and the conclusion of an alliance. It was bread that became the prototype of modern wedding loaves and cakes. Different peoples baked loaves and cakes from different types of flour, used fillings, or simply decorated the top of the cake - in any case, a wedding cake meant the beginning of a sweet family life. In the history of Ancient Rus', the role of a wedding cake was played by a loaf, which is still present at most Slavic weddings. The round loaf represents the sun and, accordingly, a bright and rich family life. The more magnificent and tastier the loaf, the happier and more prosperous the married couple will be. That is why, according to ancient custom, the loaf should be magnificent, pompous and, undoubtedly, tasty. These days, the loaf of bread is still present in the traditional wedding ceremony, but in most cases it is replaced by a wedding cake, which is served at the end of the evening. The important task of a wedding delicacy is to delight the guests and please everyone with a piece of delicious sweetness. Also, do not forget about the tradition of the newlyweds cutting the cake, which symbolizes the beginning of family unity and harmony. Form and decor The most popular and, of course, pompous form of a wedding cake is a multi-tiered work of confectionery art. A wedding cake consisting of tiers will undoubtedly delight guests, and, moreover, will be able to satisfy any confectionery preferences - for this purpose, you can order a separate type of cake or filling for each tier. Such a cake can be decorated in a rather unusual way - flowing branches of plants and flowers arranged on tiers, butterflies fluttering from one tier to another, a pair of doves on the “top” of the cake and their little chicks on the lower tiers, sweet figurines of newlyweds on the top of the cake and angels at the bottom. ... In this case, fantasy has room to run wild. If you prefer the classics and choose a “single-tier” round or rectangular cake, try to choose a special decor for it so that it is no less attractive. Modern confectioners offer another very “convenient” option for a wedding cake. It is a multi-tiered decorated or decorated stand on which small packaged cakes are placed. By ordering such a cake, you save the newlyweds from having to cut the cake into pieces and divide it equally among the guests. By calculating the number of beautiful and delicious cakes for all guests (with a margin), you will invite everyone to an unusual, modern and practical dessert. As for decoration, it all depends on the imagination of the pastry chef and your wishes. Modern chefs use a fairly large selection of products with which they create real wedding masterpieces. These are mainly creams, jellies, glazes, fruits and berries, marzipan mass (a mixture of powdered sugar and almonds), mastic (a mixture based on powdered sugar). With the help of marzipan mass and mastic, craftsmen can create incredible masterpieces in the form of outlandish flowers, figurines, doves, angels, etc. Nuances of choice When choosing a bakery to order a cake, consult with your friends. Often, it is through recommendations that the best culinary master is found, ready to take on the realization of your “delicious” fantasies. Before ordering a cake, be sure to talk with the cake master and discuss the following details of the order: • Weight calculation . Both the size and price of the cake will depend on this parameter. If you clearly calculate the volume of the cake for the number of guests, then do it at an approximate rate of 100 - 200 grams per guest. A large cake (3-5 kg) is often arranged in tiers, and tiers of especially large cakes (6 or more kg) are placed on stands, thus making up a dessert composition. • Type of cake and filling . When choosing a cake, keep in mind that the more varied and interesting the filling, or rather the layers, are, the more memorable the impression of it will be. Please note that some ingredients may be out of place, such as runny buttercream or crumbly meringue. A good option would be a sponge cake base - a light cake will be a pleasant addition to a “hearty” evening, and not an additional burden on a tired stomach. Try not to use large amounts of dyes, so as not to provoke an allergic reaction in one of the guests. • Design and decoration . An important, and most likely the main factor is the appearance of the cake and its design. If you are familiar with the works of the chef you have chosen, you can give preference to ready-made options, unless you can add your own wishes for decoration to the cake. If you want to order a cake based on your own sketch or a picture from the Internet, keep in mind that in this case you will have to discuss many nuances with the pastry chef. • Color spectrum . We advise you to choose not just a white cake, but a cake with a color twist, for example, to match the decor of the hall or match the bride’s bouquet. The decorations on the cake should also be laconic and match the main decorations and accessories of the celebration, and it is best if they are made in the same style. • Delivery . We definitely do not recommend you save on delivery. It will be much more reliable if the cake is delivered to you for the celebration itself in a special container. An attempt to transport a large multi-tiered cake on your own is fraught with disaster - one sudden movement and the sweet part of the holiday is ruined. Don't skimp on stands and knives - a fully equipped cake with kitchen utensils will fully justify itself with pleasant emotions. When cutting the first piece of cake, do not forget about the wedding auction, where the newlyweds can “sell” the first piece or exchange it for the fulfillment of a wish from any guest. Children's cake Children's cake is not just a delicacy bought to pamper your beloved child. If you want to surprise your child on his best day of the year - his birthday - be sure to order a custom-made children's cake, thereby making an unexpected surprise for your pet. Choosing a children's cake combines many nuances, which we have already discussed earlier in our article. Undoubtedly, a children's cake should surprise, shock and evoke a lot of positive emotions in the child. An original custom-made cake is sure to become the most long-awaited and desired birthday gift. Here are some important points that you should pay attention to when choosing and ordering a children's cake: • Originality . Use all your imagination and that of the confectioner to create an unusual children's culinary masterpiece. Let it be a cake with your favorite cartoon characters, fairy-tale characters, photographs... Or maybe a cake in the shape of a car or a butterfly? Don’t be afraid to overdo it, because children really love to look at details, so don’t doubt that every decorative element will be studied with interest. • Quality . Order a cake only from trusted confectioners whose products you can be sure of the quality. It is best to ask satisfied parents you know. Please note that you can order a cake for a pre-planned event, and bake and deliver it to the festive table on the eve. To avoid unpleasant moments, ask the parents of the invited children if they are allergic to any ingredients in the cake. • Safety . Please note that when making a cake, inedible elements may be used, such as a frame or parts on which decorative elements are held. You should definitely talk about this with the pastry chef and remember to take this nuance into account when serving and eating the cake. • Stuffing . Of course, all children love sweet cream and unusual sweet layers. Choose butter, yoghurt, sour cream cake, the cake layers of which will be well soaked. If the cake contains nuts, raisins, prunes, dried apricots, this will add interest to “eating” it. And, of course, do not forget that alcoholic impregnations for a children's cake are taboo. • Submission . Of course, an original cake needs to be presented in an original way. Create suspense with hints about what your baby will see at the end of the holiday party. When the time comes to serve the cake, do it unexpectedly - for example, turn off the lights and bring the cake with lighted candles into the room to the applause of the little guests and the hero of the occasion. In all other respects, the same rules apply when choosing a children’s cake as when choosing a traditional cake “for adults.” Don’t forget to calculate the weight so that all little guests remain full and happy, consider the type of cake and its filling, think about the design and decor, and don’t forget about the correct delivery and serving. And one last important point. Any holiday or event, be it a child's birthday, a wedding or just a celebration with the family, should remain in the memory for a long time and evoke only pleasant memories. Do not be too lazy to connect your imagination and make every effort to choose the most unexpected, most original and most delicious festive cake!
We wish you a good choice!
Author: Alena Tolstova
