It's been a while...

Wow, practically a YEAR since I updated my blog! I need to figure out a new name for my blog because, hmm... I'm not in Culinary School anymore! 

Well, these last two weeks have been a boring time in my life. I had emergency gall bladder removal surgery. So, basically, for the past two weeks of been sitting on my butt doing nothing except watch TV, YouTube, movies, sleep and browse the internet. I'm getting a lot better now and I'm so excited to get back to my office job this Tuesday and back to the bakery on Saturday. Really, I'm just excited to bake again! 

Since I was watching so much TV this past week, I watched several episodes of "The Pioneer Woman" on The FoodNetwork. She did an episode showing, more or less, how she blogs. It really inspired me, in a way, to continue with my blog. What I really want to do is experiment with different recipes, as most food bloggers do, and blog abut my experiences. I recently got the new Bouchon Bakery Cookbook so that will be a solid base to start from! 

In the meantime, I've compiled various photos from this past year of different things I've baked and outlined them below with a few "milestones" along the way. 

All of the items were made for my family or friends. 

This is Jeffy's Birthday Cake! Chocolate Cake with Nutella Buttercream. 

My little brother's Minecraft Cake.

Agent Pete Decorated Red Velvets

Valentine's Cupcakes. Vanilla Cupcakes with Cream Cheese frosting, some with toasted coconut. 

Ladybug and Daisy Decorated Red Velvets

Giant's Cupcakes!

These are some cookies that I donated to Cat Tales Rescue (my mom is their Vide President) for their Spaghetti Feed.

I officially graduted. The commencement ceremony was in May. 

Jordan Cupcakes

Hello Kitty and Dora

These beach themed cupcakes were Chocolate with Vanilla Buttercream. Vanilla with Dulce De Leche Buttercream, Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting and Chocolate with Peanut Butter Buttercream. 

I love making Fruit Tarts

Doggie Treats

Twix Bars via my Pinterest addiction.

Decorated Short Bread

Brown Sugar Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

Hummingbird Minis

Have a fabulous evening everyone!

With Love,

Adriana

Coleman Wedding

Last weekend I had the very special honor of ,not only, completing my very FIRST wedding order and set up but doing this special order for a very special friend.

I have known Miss Stephanie since high school. She was a friend of my brothers and soon became a friend of our family. My whole family completely adores her as she is such a friendly and kind person. Stephanie contacted me last November in hopes that I would be able to assist her in putting together some sort of cake/cupcakes for her wedding. Of course I was totally willing to do it but I was about to embark on my journey through Culinary School so I wasn't able to commit to such a big project, not knowing what I'd be doing at the time of her wedding. 

This past October, Stephanie had contacted me saying that her and her fiancé, Steven, were dying to try some cupcakes from the bakery I am working at. We came up with a time to meet up and I put together some mini cupcakes for them. To be honest, Stephanie probably doesn't know this, but I thought they just wanted to try the cupcakes from where I work. I thought that they had already found a person to do their wedding cake. When Stephanie and Steven walked into the Starbucks where we met up, we sat down, chatted and Steven pointed out their Wedding Binder. Then they "popped" the question. "Would you be able to do 220 cupcakes?". I was so surprised but kept my cool. Haha! I was so flattered that they trusted me to do their wedding cupcakes and I even did a small 6-inch Red Velvet cake for them to cut into on their big day. 

Needless to say, I was very happy with the outcome of my work. I was very nervous because I was attending the wedding and thought I'd have a panic attack sitting in a room full of 200+ people consuming something that I had made with my own  two hands. Luckily, I have this really great boyfriend who calmed me down constantly and kept reassuring me that everything would be a hit. Not to mention a really great "pep talk" from my dad before he left for work early the morning of the wedding. 

I couldn't be happier for Stephanie and Steven. They make a beautiful couple and I am so happy that Stephanie has found her lifelong happiness. 

I was so nervous transporting the cupcakes to the venue. I had the help of a van that we borrowed from my boyfriends dad. We spread them out on a bed that is in the back of the van. 

I'm really sad that with all my frenzie the morning of the wedding that I forget to take a good picture of the cupcakes individually. I had some left over cupcakes and decorations and was able to take this shot:

Since I had taken Stephanie and Steven cupcakes from my place of employment, the flavors they chose for their wedding were inspired from the cupcakes they ate. The flavors they choose were Red Velvet, Punpkin Spice, Carrot Cake, Banana with Caramel Filling and Peanut Butter Milk Chocolate. In the photo above are Red Velvet, Pumpkin Spice and Carrot Cake. 

The wedding was so beautiful. The bridesmaids where in gorgeous chocolate brown gowns and there were autumn leaves lining the aisle. It was so crisp and fresh looking. Stephanie told me that she'd like leaves incorporated into the cupcakes. As you see in the photo above, I was able to achieve that with fondant. I used mint leaves to imprint veins onto the leaves and gold luster dust to add some dimension to the leaves. Each cupcake flavor had a different style leaf. I figured that it would be a great way to distinguish between the different cupcakes so I came up with this menu below for guests to choose the cupcake they wanted. 

I was really bad at taking photos. I really don't know why I hesitated to take photos. I've learned my lesson! Next time, take more photos Adriana! Here is a photo of my completed "creation". They rented the cupcake stand from a nearby cupcake bakery in town.

Their cupcake topper is adorable. Steven had ordered one but it didn't come in on time for the wedding. i was so bummed for them. I told my mom of the situation. My mom volunteers at a Cat Adoption with a friend of Stephanie's mom. Kris was at cat adoptions the day of the wedding, when my mom got there she told Kris the situation and Kris drove to a Christian Store and got this beautiful cake topper. I was so thankful for her that she was able to do that for Stephanie and Steven. The cake topper is called "The Promise". They'll be able to display it in their home to cherish and remember their special day. 

I couldn't manuever through the crowd to get a good photo of the couple slicing into the cake but here's one. It's a great photo of Steph's gorgeous dress though! :) 

Here's a photo of the couple feeding each other some cake. 

So, aside from the cupcakes, my boyfriend and I finally had our official first slow dance! Aside from him "serenading" me in the kitchen, this was our first slow dance and se dance to "My Girl". I loved it! We've been together almost 6 years and we've been to a handful of weddings and events that have music and dancing and we waited this long. I'm sure we will have many more slow dances. :) 

And lastly, here is a great shot of my brother dancing with the beautiful bride during the "Money Dance". I know that he is so happy for her and who wouldn't be? Look at how happy she looks! 

The couple is enjoying a honeymoon is Antigua right now. Hopefully they will have a chance to check this out when they wind down. I hope they know how thankful I am for the opportunity they gave me to my first wedding. This event gave me the confidence to take on orders in the future. Thanks guys for trusting me and I hope that I was able to make your night memorable. 

With Love,

Adriana 

I'm Done!!!

I am finally done with classes at Le Cordon Bleu! Well... we are on a six week externship class right now, but for the most part... I'M DONE! I am so ecstatic! 

Let me update you with my last cakes. 

First is my wedding cake. So, originally (I'm going to laugh if Chef reads this!) my classmate, Cindy, and I wanted to make wedding cakes for each other. Cindy wanted a beach themed wedding cake with Beach Chairs on top and Sea Shells around the cake. Well, when we had our "consultation" with Chef Adrian, she went with my idea but she had me add waves and fish. Flowers on the cake somewhere were a requirement. I wanted a simple cake so I wasn't too excited about the waves and the fish, but I had to please my client. Here is what the finished cake looked like: 

Wedding Cake 

I'm happy with the way it turned out. Simple and clean is what I am all about and I was pleased to be complimented on how simple and clean it looked. It lets me know that people see what I am aiming for. I had fun playing engineer with the beach chairs. Here is a close up of them: 

Beach Chairs

It was funny, Chef Adriana told me that the groom's initial was a "J" because my boyfriend's initial is "J" as well.  Everyone thought I was doing it for me and him. It was funny :) Also, we had a cake decorator from a Bakery in Sacramento observing our class the day we put our Wedding Cakes together, and she advised me to add the Brown Sugar Sand. I thought it was a nice touch. Without the sand, I think that chairs would have looked a little out of place. I decided to add the flip flops last minute.

Carving a cake was something I was very nervous about. Turned out, it's not so bad! I was really looking forward to the Pumpkin Cake because I adore Autumn and Halloween! Here is my pumpkin cake that we covered with modeling chocolate: 

I feel like our class really did a great job with this cake. It was great to see the diversity in the pumpkins. Some looked so incredibly real and some looked so whimsical and enchanting. I just loved seeing everyone's work! Here is a look our classes pumpkin patch:

FINALLY...

The purse cake. I have been looking forward to this cake since the first term of culinary school. I was always thinking about what purse I was going to attempt. In term three I came across this adorable Minnie Mousse inspired Seatbelt Purse. I knew I had to do because I am such a huge Disney fan and I knew that I could easily use this design to pay tribute to two people who really inspired and encouraged me through my Culinary Journey. 

Here is my final cake! 

Purse Cake 

My mom and I love Disneyland just the same. We dream of Disneyland, we desire to go to Disneyland even when we've just been there and are hearts leap from our chests when we ARE there. Let's face it, my mom taught me how to bake. If it weren't for her making those delicious sugar cookies every Christmas I would have never grown to love baking. If it weren't for her love of baking, I wouldn't be where I am today. Therefore, the entire theme of the cake is dedicated to her. 

The Mickey Bar you see on the side is dedicated to my boyfriend, Jeff. As I have said before, Jeff is a true support to me. He never doubts me or asks questions of dreams. He supports everything I want to do and is so proud of everything I accomplish. He supports me when I fail and congratulates me when I succeed. I couldn't ask for a better boyfriend so the Mickey Bar (which is his absolute favorite Disneyland treat) is dedicated to him. 

The Minnie Mouse Cupcake is dedicated to ME! haha! I replicated this Cupcake from a very cute antenna topper that I purchased in Disneyland when I was there with, you guessed it, my mom in May. It looks exactly like the cupcake you see next to my purse. I purchased the antenna topper because I felt like it was a great representation of things that I love- cupcakes/desserts and Disney! So I put it on my cake because not only does it represent my self, but it also marks my first career in the industry- making cupcakes at Kara's Cupcakes. 

And that's all folks! Now to focus on my career and see where it leads me. 

This is not the end of my blog posts, you will continue to see updates on my culinary journey's and what not.

Ta ta for now!

-Adriana 

Cake Class

Cake Class was a class that I had mixed feelings about. I was excited for the challenge yet nervous for the challenge at the same time. 

The class is definately a challenge for me. I am learning what I am good at and what I need improvement on. I have still remained that I am a very simplistic and clean cut "artist".

Here are the cakes that I have done so far! 

This is my Children's Birthday Cake. I don't really like my figurine. It was supposed to be Arielle from "The Little Mermaid". It was our first cake and I think I spent too much time on the figurine. I should have put more detail elsewhere on the cake. 

Children's Birthday Cake 

Marzipan Figurine 

Swags and Shell Border 

I am really proud of my Baby Shower cake. We were given a mock scenario that our couple did not want to know the sex of their baby and they wanted pastel colors. I feel like I incorporated their wishes pretty accurately. I am in love with my baby blocks on top. I took the time to make sure they came out clean looking and I am proud of the way they came out. 

Baby Shower Cake 

Our Sweet Sixteen Sheet Cake was a lot of fun and it went by really quick! We only had two days to complete it. We were given the them of "Glee" which is perfectly suiting for me. I had a lot of fun doing this with my partners Martina and Buck. Go team "No Names"!

Sweet Sixteen Sheet Cake 

The Cupcake Buffet in class was so fun! We had the required cupcake flavor that we had to make which was the Brown Spice with Praline Buttercream but we also had a creative flavor we got to do. I did Strawberry Cupcakes with Champagne frosting. It was delicious. I made gum paste strawberries to adorn the tops and sprinkled them with edible silver glitter. 

Brown Spice Cupcakes with Praline Buttercream 

Strawberry Cupcakes with Champagne Buttercream 

Will update next week after I finish my LAST week of school! It's been a long but quick journey! I'm so excited! Until then, working on a Pumpkin Cake and a Purse Cake. We finished our Wedding Cake in class today! Photos to come on the next bloggy blog!

With love,

Adriana 

Last Weeks of Plated Desserts

I haven't updated my blog in so long! 

So it's going to be short and simple :) 

These are my products from my last few weeks of Plated Desserts class. 

Trio of Doghnuts

This doughnuts were a lot of fun to make. I chose to plate them family style so that I could vary a few flavors. On the left are plain doughnuts drizzled with Chocolate Sauce. In the middle are Doughnuts rolled in powdered sugar and almonds and laid on top of blueberry sauce. On the right are cinnamon sugar donuts drizzled with a flat icing. 

Chocolate Mousse Cup 

I love this dessert! I was a little weary with it because I am not a fan of tempering chocolate. I wanted to chose something that would be easy to do but could be played up with nice flavors. I used a silicone mold to mold the chocolate cup. The cup is filled with chocolate mousse, drizzled with Raspberry sauce and topped with candied hazelnuts. 

Chocolate Box

This is my chocolate box filled with Fleur De Sel Caramels, Espresso Truffles and Peanut Butter Cups. 

Coconut Cream Tapioca Pudding Cup with Mango Curd 

We had a day in class where we didn't have anything on the syllabus. Well, we got off track, I think, so Chef had us make either Tapioca Pudding or rice Pudding and plate them. Just for fun! The above photo is Coconut Cream Tapioca with a Mango Curd that my partner made and topped with toasted coconut. The photo below is Coconut Cream Tapioca with Passion Fruit Caramel, toasted Macadamia Nuts and the rim is Toasted Cocunut. This day was a lot of fun and I have always wanted to make tapioca pudding. 

Coconut Cream Tapioca Pudding with Passion Fruit Caramel Sauce

The following photos are my products from my final practical which I scored 100% on! Woo hoo!!!

Chocolate Box

Espresso Creme Brulee with Chocolate Almond Biscotti and Chocolate Sauce 

"Taron" with Strawberry Cream Cheese Mousse

Lemon Bombe on Graham Cracker Crust served with Raspberry Sauce 

I had a really good time in Plated Desserts Class. I didn't think I was going to but I ended up really liking it. I was sad to see it go but I was also excited to start our Cakes Class! 

With Love, 

Adriana