tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28974393143375813312024-02-18T21:28:29.826-08:00There's No Crying in PastryEmmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09604642461471490360noreply@blogger.comBlogger117125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2897439314337581331.post-15673500919052287462013-05-04T19:12:00.000-07:002013-05-04T19:12:41.662-07:00The Lone Wolf......or why to avoid a business partner at all costs.
Well, not always. Over-generalization can be a problem with me sometimes.
I can only offer four short pieces of advice on whether or not to take on a partner in your business.
1. Talk about ownership before you begin planning. You don't want to get so far into the planning and building stages that major damage can be done by splitting ways Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09604642461471490360noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2897439314337581331.post-60695684011602440042013-04-21T13:08:00.001-07:002013-04-21T13:08:57.661-07:00the case for base
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Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09604642461471490360noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2897439314337581331.post-5500367698834320832013-04-05T16:57:00.003-07:002013-04-05T16:58:13.617-07:00I'm LegalDrinking age, yes. But also as a business owner. My new ice cream business, Milk Sugar Love Creamery and Bakeshop is actually Milk Sugar Love, Inc., a corporation created in NJ and insured with liability coverage, working out of a health-department inspected commercial kitchen and licensed to sell in Jersey City.
As a consumer, this should be VERY important information for you because so many Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09604642461471490360noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2897439314337581331.post-63109155957928881952012-08-11T18:25:00.004-07:002012-08-11T18:26:20.726-07:00Au Revoir, for now.
I'm moving!
The new repository for my photos and witticisms will be on the official blog for Layers NYC, Anthony's and my cake business.
Please check out the new blog HERE and stay tuned as we whip up more confectionery delights and continue to move forward with plans for our future ice cream business. Don't forget now! Conquering the world with our frozen treats in 2013!Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09604642461471490360noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2897439314337581331.post-19619075161138619532012-06-30T08:57:00.000-07:002012-06-30T08:57:17.717-07:00here kitty, kitty
vanilla cake with vanilla buttercream and strawberry jam
A cake for a very "girly-girl", as her mom put it. This cake was for Elizabeth who is graduating today. Her mom cuts Chris's hair at Aire Salon here in Jersey City---a wonderful salon run by the enormously talented duo, Aiko and Racheal.
Aiko and I had a spirited discussion over the origins of Hello Kitty which led to Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09604642461471490360noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2897439314337581331.post-84735267391747025592012-06-24T16:07:00.000-07:002012-06-24T16:15:44.296-07:00pounds and pounds of butter
vanilla cake with chocolate buttercream
We don't get a lot of requests for chocolate buttercream so I haven't tasted it in a while. I'd forgotten how DELICIOUS something as simple as chocolate buttercream can be. I highly recommend it. We put in 3/4's of a pound of 55% chocolate in there so it was intensely chocolatey.
This cake was for Julianna's Christening. Her mother had a very special Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09604642461471490360noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2897439314337581331.post-47179120792001101722012-06-02T17:44:00.001-07:002012-06-02T17:44:29.108-07:00there's nothing like Australia
I would love to move to Sydney. It's just gorgeous---filled with parks and surrounded by water. The downtown area is all walkable and the outlying areas are connected by easy-to-navigate public transportation and a nifty ferry system.
The food was outstanding. I ate either seafood or Thai food every night (apparently Thai is the hot thing right now in Sydney) and drank at least two flat Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09604642461471490360noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2897439314337581331.post-39046314984362540012012-04-22T13:43:00.001-07:002012-04-22T13:45:47.134-07:00sea lion ahoy!
chocolate cake with vanilla bean buttercream
This Sea Lion cake and accompanying cupcakes were for Amelia's 8th birthday party at the Prospect Park Zoo. I can't remember what I did when I turned 8, but it certainly couldn't have been as cool as having your party at a zoo.
I carved the sea lion's body out of cake, but his head was Krispies. I did a test run with this fellow because I've Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09604642461471490360noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2897439314337581331.post-20439120545288266452012-02-26T14:39:00.006-08:002012-02-26T15:11:10.856-08:00southern exposurecoconut layer cake and lemon layer cakeThis month's Saveur magazine had a stellar article and set of recipes from Ben Mims about Southern layer cakes. The photos were spectacular---I bought the magazine in the first place because of the giant wedge of red velvet cake on the cover. I intend to bake each of the five recipes, so I started this weekend with the two that looked most intriguing to me.IEmmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09604642461471490360noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2897439314337581331.post-38460857418962726292012-02-19T14:43:00.000-08:002012-02-19T18:08:00.705-08:00what you'll be eating in 2013chocolate almond ice cream cakeSo this is your sneak peak into what I'm working on for my business! There are layers of coconut cake, chocolate ice cream and roasted almond ice cream. And those are shimmery, crunchy golden sprinkles on the top.I am in the middle of writing a business plan right now and will be finished by mid-May. And then the real fun begins. First off, I'll need to find Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09604642461471490360noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2897439314337581331.post-3586819395425757022012-01-29T05:01:00.000-08:002012-01-29T05:14:42.917-08:00bears, bunnies, bottlesred velvet cake and cupcakesSo Anthony and I finally got to do a cupcake tower. You would think that we would get more requests for them because they CRAZY popular right now, but we haven't. The tower was for a baby shower and we completed it with a 6" cake on the top.We made little sugar paste toppers in the shapes of bottles, bears and bunnies to go on top of the cupcakes. I loved the color Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09604642461471490360noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2897439314337581331.post-80277697781941243902012-01-15T12:49:00.000-08:002012-01-15T14:33:29.095-08:00ice cream education2012 ice cream short course, penn state universityI spent the past week in total ice cream immersion at the nation's oldest and best-known educational program dealing with the science and technology of ice cream. My brain is still overwhelmed with knowledge and my stomach overfilled with ice cream samples.The most important thing I learned was that consistent ice cream quality depends on having aEmmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09604642461471490360noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2897439314337581331.post-6332421117153188612011-12-26T16:55:00.000-08:002011-12-26T17:14:15.843-08:00Christmas cake and Christmas pupChristmas cake: chocolate cake with vanilla buttercreamFor Christmas, I got to make a baby's first Christmas cake for a very special baby, Sydney Mae. I decided to make another giant red bow because I'm really loving how my bows are looking lately. I like to make them hugely puffy (a quality, in truth, that's only desirable in a bow).I added candy canes, which I made out of fondant, and a few Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09604642461471490360noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2897439314337581331.post-30004193666817110512011-12-17T13:09:00.000-08:002011-12-17T14:55:44.826-08:00two-tiered holiday cheerfirst birthday cake with vanilla cake and nutella buttercreamThis holiday cookie-themed cake was for Xavier John who turns a year old today. The cake was for his birthday but also for a cookie baking competition and party that his mother, Erika, holds every year during the holidays.Anthony and I decided that since this cake was for the cookie party as well as a Christmas birthday, we would make Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09604642461471490360noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2897439314337581331.post-19446443449029418712011-12-04T16:30:00.000-08:002011-12-04T17:14:53.201-08:00the bent spoonthe bent spoonThe weather was so lovely this weekend, Chris and I trekked down to Princeton, NJ to listen to some choral music at the university, eat an amazing brunch at Elements and try ice cream from a business I've admired from afar for a long time now.The Bent Spoon offers a selection of 16 flavors of ice cream which they display in gelato pans. The girl at the counter said that they spin Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09604642461471490360noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2897439314337581331.post-26588368855111126962011-11-28T18:46:00.001-08:002011-11-28T19:36:51.522-08:00two weeks in picturesI didn't make this beauty. Anthony made it for a dinner party and I forgot to post my shots. It's a Bûche de Noël with mascarpone mousse, pecan dacquoise, gingerbread cake and chocolate glaze.I made four batches of macs and these pics are from round one. I filled these with peanut butter ganache from a recipe given to me by a friend and former coworker (thanks Cassie!). The ganache was amazing.I Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09604642461471490360noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2897439314337581331.post-53540700659638446732011-11-13T11:26:00.000-08:002011-11-13T11:50:30.596-08:00chocolate hazelnut sponge cakeThis recipe was created by Elizabeth Faulkner for the October issue of Bon Appetit. I didn't finish it with the decorations because I was mainly curious about the techniques she used in the components. The cake was a traditional sponge cake which called for whole eggs and yolks beaten until light and fluffy, egg whites with granulated sugar and corn syrup beaten until frothy and cocoa powder andEmmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09604642461471490360noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2897439314337581331.post-59239397702815927442011-11-05T17:09:00.000-07:002011-11-05T17:50:56.614-07:00Charlotte PatisserieI can't believe it's been almost 2 years now since I graduated from the French Culinary Industry. After graduation, only a few of my classmates went on to work in the culinary industry and no one yet has opened their own store front. That is until two weeks ago. Mike Lechowicz is the first person from my pastry class to open his own place. He named his French-inspired pastry and coffee shop Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09604642461471490360noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2897439314337581331.post-91828461701814854052011-10-30T14:03:00.001-07:002011-10-30T14:13:26.432-07:00it's freezing out so I made ice creamtarte tatin ice creamrich vanilla bean ice cream base+salted caramel sauce+crunchy puff pastry nuggets+brown sugar-glazed apples=frozen heavenEmmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09604642461471490360noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2897439314337581331.post-28554915282478800802011-10-22T12:05:00.000-07:002011-10-22T12:36:30.555-07:00let's play ballchocolate cake with vanilla bean buttercreamThis was a birthday cake for the two-year-old son of a terrific friend and sous chef, Roger. Roger is an amazing pastry chef and an incredible chocolatier. You can check out his cakes and candies on his Playroom Dessert Company facebook page.Roger contacted me this week and asked if I had time to make his son's birthday cake. The only specifications he Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09604642461471490360noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2897439314337581331.post-12915535328044346692011-10-16T15:35:00.001-07:002011-10-16T15:59:17.221-07:00mac practicemacarons with salted caramel fillingI'm a little out of practice with macs since I've been in a cubicle for the past five weeks, so I decided to break out the piping bag this weekend. I've shown the stages above: piped, baked, filled and, of course, eaten.I want to make these again so that next time I can hide a tiny nugget of green apple pâte de fruit (fruit jelly coated in sugar---like those Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09604642461471490360noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2897439314337581331.post-35494923445576859352011-10-08T15:55:00.000-07:002011-10-08T17:38:11.859-07:00picture timevanilla cake with nutella buttercreamThis darling ladybug-on-a-leaf cake was for a first birthday party. I snapped pictures as the cake came together so I could do a play-by-play for you.So let's get started.We built the ladybug's body using 3 ten inch cake layers, 2 six inch cake layers and lots of Nutella buttercream. After the cake chilled, I carved it into a round mound that Anthony thinly Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09604642461471490360noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2897439314337581331.post-58545424568171952702011-10-02T14:28:00.000-07:002011-10-02T14:45:49.892-07:00short and sweet. and frozen. tres leches ice creamCreamy coconut ice cream. Crispy coconut and vanilla bean meringues. Squares of buttery cake soaked in coconut milk.Chris's favorite cake also makes a stellar ice cream.Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09604642461471490360noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2897439314337581331.post-59110412007366032092011-09-25T08:05:00.000-07:002011-09-25T10:55:33.436-07:00savory and sweetzucchini, potato and leek crostataI was baking last week but not blogging. Chris and I went to a funeral on Saturday and I was feeling very introspective.I made the tart, or crostata, pictured above, last weekend. Lovely, right? Chris kept driving me nuts by calling it a pizza. This is not a pizza. It is a savory crostata---a medley of vegetables baked inside a buttery pie crust. CROSTATA.ricottaEmmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09604642461471490360noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2897439314337581331.post-24237042073150033632011-09-11T09:53:00.000-07:002011-09-11T10:27:07.350-07:00double deliveriesred velvet cake with cream cheese frostingAnthony and I had two cakes this weekend and I thought this wedding cake would be the easier of the two. Boy was I wrong. It assembled easily enough, but because of a communication issue regarding the venue, we nearly had a cake wreck on our hands. The reception was outside.OUTSIDE. IN THE ELEMENTS. HUMIDITY. BLAZING HEAT.Cream cheese frosting is not Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09604642461471490360noreply@blogger.com1