Chocolate frosting from hell
So I worked at Maggie Moos last night from 5-8.
Gods, where to start.
I get there at 5, but Larry's stuck in traffic, so I decide to get started on the cakes I already know how to do.
The first cake I pull out is a round 8" chocolate heaven, all you have to do is frost with chocolate icing, comb the sides, put drop flowers around the top edge, bottom border, the plop hershy kisses evenly around the top. Simple right?
So the first time I make it, it turns out perfect.
Note the phrasing there. First time.
I bust the cake out, box it, and put it in the freezer, then start on the next cake, which is a 8" cotton candy carnaval, even easier. Just put white drop flowers around the top, bottom, fill the top with mallowmar stuff, sprinkle M&Ms on top of the drop flowers and thats it. So I bang that one out, then start on a pecan perfection, which, while I haven't made yet, I've made one that looks exactly like it except with crushed pecans on top.
So I frost, comb the sides, chocolate drips on the edges....and put it in the freezer so it doesn't melt on me.
Then I get an order for the 6" cotton candy to go out tonight, so I bang that one out, but they want writing on top, "Happy birthday Evan."
Lettering was never one of my strong points. So naturally I screwed it up. But it was an easy fix, and Larry did the writing.
Meanwhile I notice the chocolate heaven I placed in the front freezer earlier? the drop flowers and hershy kisses are sleufing off of the top. So I take it out, bring it back and start to fix it.
Larry comes in while I'm taking them off and asks how things are going. I explain what was happening, and he says its probably the chocolate frosting. See, the frosting from this batch was from the bottom of the bucket, and the frosting at the bottom is always melty-er than the stuff on the top. It has problems holding together.
Ah ha. So that makes sense. I clean up the top, re-do the flowers and replace the kisses, and return it to the front freezer.
Then I go back and pull out the pecan perfection...and see that the chocolate drips have dripped off. Great.
So I scrape off the fallen drips, re-frost, re-comb, re-drip, throw it back in the freezer.
Maybe "throw" is a word that hits too close, because as I go to put the cake in the freezer, I have to stack it on top of all of the panned cakes. Well apparently some of the panned cakes were stacked precariously, because it suddenly tips...and SPLAT.
Its one of those moments where you don't want to look.
But it wasn't terrible. Most of the cake hit the parchment papers on top of the other cakes. There was a big splat of frosting on the back of the freezer, but upon removing the cake, there was little damage to the cake itself. All I had to do was scrape off the frosting and try again.
So thats what I do, and while I'm scraping off the frosting, Larry comes in again to check on me, and again I explain what happened. He says not to worry about it, it happens, and tells me I can use another freezer thats pretty empty right now so I don't have to worry about stacking cakes.
So I re-frost again, re-comb again, re-drip again. Although this time, it becomes apparent that the drips are already sleuffing off again, so I ask Larry what I'm doing wrong. He points out the correct way to do it, but while he's doing it, HIS drips are sleufing off too! Its the cake from hell!
So we just agree to finish it up and "Kill the cake!" because its just annoying now. So I drop flower the top and bottom, puddle the chocolate syrup on top, sprinkle on the crushed pecans, freeze it,
So then I get started on a strawberry creamcheese, which, while I've never made, but is relatively easy to do.
Frost with white icing, comb the sides, pat grahm cracker crumbs on the combed sides, star drop the top and put strawberry compote on the top. Another cake that turns out alright (hmm, could it be because it doesn't have any CHOCOLATE FROSTING?!)
So with that I suggest that we call it a day, and Larry agrees thats probably the best we're going to get out of today.
So I'm scheduled to go back on thursday to do more. and GOD I am SO going to throw out that chocolate frosting!!
There were a couple of little things that went wrong too, but I'm too tired to remember what order they happened in.
Lets just say it was a bad day and leave it at that.
I hope Thursday goes better.
~Kia
Gods, where to start.
I get there at 5, but Larry's stuck in traffic, so I decide to get started on the cakes I already know how to do.
The first cake I pull out is a round 8" chocolate heaven, all you have to do is frost with chocolate icing, comb the sides, put drop flowers around the top edge, bottom border, the plop hershy kisses evenly around the top. Simple right?
So the first time I make it, it turns out perfect.
Note the phrasing there. First time.
I bust the cake out, box it, and put it in the freezer, then start on the next cake, which is a 8" cotton candy carnaval, even easier. Just put white drop flowers around the top, bottom, fill the top with mallowmar stuff, sprinkle M&Ms on top of the drop flowers and thats it. So I bang that one out, then start on a pecan perfection, which, while I haven't made yet, I've made one that looks exactly like it except with crushed pecans on top.
So I frost, comb the sides, chocolate drips on the edges....and put it in the freezer so it doesn't melt on me.
Then I get an order for the 6" cotton candy to go out tonight, so I bang that one out, but they want writing on top, "Happy birthday Evan."
Lettering was never one of my strong points. So naturally I screwed it up. But it was an easy fix, and Larry did the writing.
Meanwhile I notice the chocolate heaven I placed in the front freezer earlier? the drop flowers and hershy kisses are sleufing off of the top. So I take it out, bring it back and start to fix it.
Larry comes in while I'm taking them off and asks how things are going. I explain what was happening, and he says its probably the chocolate frosting. See, the frosting from this batch was from the bottom of the bucket, and the frosting at the bottom is always melty-er than the stuff on the top. It has problems holding together.
Ah ha. So that makes sense. I clean up the top, re-do the flowers and replace the kisses, and return it to the front freezer.
Then I go back and pull out the pecan perfection...and see that the chocolate drips have dripped off. Great.
So I scrape off the fallen drips, re-frost, re-comb, re-drip, throw it back in the freezer.
Maybe "throw" is a word that hits too close, because as I go to put the cake in the freezer, I have to stack it on top of all of the panned cakes. Well apparently some of the panned cakes were stacked precariously, because it suddenly tips...and SPLAT.
Its one of those moments where you don't want to look.
But it wasn't terrible. Most of the cake hit the parchment papers on top of the other cakes. There was a big splat of frosting on the back of the freezer, but upon removing the cake, there was little damage to the cake itself. All I had to do was scrape off the frosting and try again.
So thats what I do, and while I'm scraping off the frosting, Larry comes in again to check on me, and again I explain what happened. He says not to worry about it, it happens, and tells me I can use another freezer thats pretty empty right now so I don't have to worry about stacking cakes.
So I re-frost again, re-comb again, re-drip again. Although this time, it becomes apparent that the drips are already sleuffing off again, so I ask Larry what I'm doing wrong. He points out the correct way to do it, but while he's doing it, HIS drips are sleufing off too! Its the cake from hell!
So we just agree to finish it up and "Kill the cake!" because its just annoying now. So I drop flower the top and bottom, puddle the chocolate syrup on top, sprinkle on the crushed pecans, freeze it,
So then I get started on a strawberry creamcheese, which, while I've never made, but is relatively easy to do.
Frost with white icing, comb the sides, pat grahm cracker crumbs on the combed sides, star drop the top and put strawberry compote on the top. Another cake that turns out alright (hmm, could it be because it doesn't have any CHOCOLATE FROSTING?!)
So with that I suggest that we call it a day, and Larry agrees thats probably the best we're going to get out of today.
So I'm scheduled to go back on thursday to do more. and GOD I am SO going to throw out that chocolate frosting!!
There were a couple of little things that went wrong too, but I'm too tired to remember what order they happened in.
Lets just say it was a bad day and leave it at that.
I hope Thursday goes better.
~Kia