Happy New Year!

Photo courtesy of member Natalie Johnson, owner A World of Cakes.

The Leadership Team at NYC Cake Decorators Meetup would like to extend to our readers and fans our warmest wishes for a safe and Happy New Year!

Let it Snow!

Photo courtesy of member Chef Janet Ben Ami, owner Hey! Cookie.

The blizzard this past Sunday and Monday dumped almost two feet of snow in the New York City Area. Now that most of us New Yorkers have dug out and are about, I thought it would be sweet to showcase one of Chef Janet's amazing tiered cakes.

Chef Janet has Wowed members with her cake wizardry and her remarkable ability to teach others how to create their own great cakes.  Janet is scheduled to teach another series of classes in 2011.  For information contact Dina at nyccakedecorators@yahoo.com.  Hope to see you there!

2011 Garden State Cake Show & Competition!

2011 is going to start off with a bang with the 2011 Garden State Cake Show- New Jersey, February 4th and 5th!

Guest Presenters scheduled are Edna De La Cruz,  Toba Garret, Michelle Bommarito, Wayne Steinkopf, Charmaine Jones, Edna de La Cruz, Beth Lee Spinner, Kathy Farner. Learn or improve your gumpaste and fondant work and more! 

The Cake Show Theme is, "What I want to be when I Grow Up".  For additional information and to register, visit the 2011 Garden State Cake Show website. See you there!

Merry Christmas!

Photo courtesy of member Caridad.

The Leadership team at NYC Cake Decorators would like to extend to our readers, friends, and members our sincerest and warmest wishes for a very happy holiday!

2010 Best of the Best in NYC Cake Decorators Meetup!

This jaw-dropping cake was created by member Brian Smith. Yep, it's awesome! Brian is an active member of this Meetup and CakeCentral.

Thirsty anyone? This amazing cake was created by member Ines, owner Primo Cakes. Follow Ines on Facebook.

This yummy confection was made by Zakia, Assistant Organizer. Still can't believe it's not a doughnut! Follow Zakia on Twitter: @Avenuezdessert

Originally a computer programmer, graphic designer, Rosa eventually realized cake as her perfect medium. She loves WOWing people with her cakes, and this confection certainly "takes the cake!" Follow Rosa on Facebook.

Member Chef Janet Ben-Ami's cake is truly fabulous. Visit her website, Hello,Cookie! to check out more of her creative designs.

Kids' Cakes

Member Aldana is a passionate cake decorator with great attention to detail. She attributes a lot of her techniques to mastering Chef Toba Garrett's classes at the Institute of Culinary Education (ICE).
Member Jade-eye's fanciful 3D Cakes. Follow Jade-eye on Facebook!

Baby Cakes

Member Caridad's first birthday cake is so sweet and special. It makes you want to smile.

Member Jade-eye works magic with 2D and 3D figures. Follow her on Facebook!

Member Empressive Cakes LLC of Brooklyn creates another spectacular first birthday cake.

This cute tiered cake was made by member Iva, owner Iva's Sweet Creations.

Elegant Cupcakes Ideas

Member Annette Villaverde, LadybugLuggage, works magic with cupcakes and her designs are showcased in 1,000 Ideas for Decorating cupcakes, cookies and cakes.
This book is a great reference for anyone who appreciates fresh ideas and techniques in cupcake, cookie, and cake decoration, and would make a great stocking stuffer!

December 2010 Cake of the Month

This photo courtesy of member Sabrina.

This breathtaking cake was designed by member
Sabrina.

Sabrina joined NYC Cake Decorators in 2009 and has wowed members since then with her stunning tiered cakes. This cake would be perfect at any holiday celebration.

FREE Cupcakes and Comedy Tomorrow Night!

Photo courtesy of Quinton Bailey, FluffnStuff.

If you like comedy and LOVE eating cupcakes, check out Cupcake Comedy at the Laugh Lounge on Essex Street tomorrow from 8:00pm-11:00pm. Member Quinton Bailey, owner FluffnStuff, will be providing FREE CUPCAKES at tomorrow's event. The headliner is Comedy Central's Gina Brillon. Tickets are $10.00 or $5.00 with student ID. Check out additional details for New York City's first cupcake comedy on Quinton's Facebook page!

Designer Bag & Bubbly Cake Stocking Stuffer!

This new Designer Bag, Bon Bons, and Champagne Bottle DVD by Sharon Zambito looks like a great stocking stuffer. If you purchase the DVD, let us know what you think! Here is sneak preview.




For all of you who are dying to make a topsy-turvy cake, here is a great video by Janellscakes.

T'is the Season

Cupcake Vineyard Winery

Now this is the season to be merry with a decadent cupcake and a nice class of wine.

Cupcake Vineyard, located in Monterey, California, creates award winning wines which can be paired with cupcake flavors like chipotle chocolate, curried chocolate, fig walnut, lemon rosemary and more. Scrumptious cupcake recipes and more can be freely downloaded on the Cupcake Vineyard blog.

Cupcakes and wine, what more can a girl ask for?

HAPPY THANKSGIVING DAY!

This amazing 3D turkey was designed by our member Chef Janet Ben-Ami. Janet is scheduled to teach 3D cake designs in 2011. Got Cake?

Chef Janet Ben-Ami's Topsy Turvy Class was simply "awesome" according to the lucky members who managed to acquire a coveted seat in her class.

Janet is the owner of Hey, Cookie! in Long Island and her 3D cake classes fill up in a flash! NYC Cake Decorators is so very fortunate to have her as our lead instructor.

Kids Talk Turkey.......Cupcakes!

A kids cupcake decorating class held in Staten Island. Aren't these kids the cutest cupcakers you've ever seen?

November 2010 Cake of The Month

This fabulous cake was designed by member Lindsey Stansfield.

Happy Halloween!!!

This cake was designed by member Dianna Lopez.
Diana is a self-taught hobby cake decorator who has a passion for being creative with sugar. Dianna is currently an intern at Carlos Bakery in Hoboken.

Break out the Bubbly!

Member with her Champagne Bottle Cake.

Members created awesome Champagne Bottle cakes with instructor Chef Janet Ben-Ami.

MAKE YOUR CAKES GIVEAWAY -What's UR FF?

This photo is courtesy of Make Your Cakes.

As a preferred blogger, Make Your Cakes, is giving away 5 of their fabulous sugar art tutorials to one of our lucky readers. What a special treat, long after Halloween has ended!

To enter the giveaway, visit Make Your Cakes website and then tell me your 5 favorite sugar art designs. [Your favorite five "FF" must be in stock].

Include your email address in your comment. One lucky reader will receive 5 sugar art tutorials directly from Make Your Cakes. Giveaway ends Sunday, November 17, 2010 at 11:59AM EST. Winner will be chosen by Random.org

THIS GIVEAWAY HAS ENDED. GISELA IS OUR WINNER!! CONGRATULATIONS GISELA!! THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO PARTICIPATED!

Doll Cake

This enchanting doll cake was designed by member Rosa.

Rosa is a passionate self taught cake artist. Originally a Computer Programmer/Graphic Designer, her need to express myself artistically evolved into using cake as a medium. Rosa loves creating edible works of art & WOWing people with her cakes.

Bewitched!

This bewitching cake was designed by member Iva. Perfect for that grown-up Halloween party.

CSN Stores Giveaway!

CSN Stores is the icing on the cake! As a proud preferred blogger, I am totally excited by their selection of quality products from kitchen and dining sets to health and fitness--you want it, they got it--in over 200 online stores!

CSN Stores is offering one lucky reader from NYC Cake Decorators blog a chance to win a $40.00 gift certificate.  Just visit CSN Stores and leave a comment on this post on or before October 17, 2010,
11:59 pm EST, telling me what you would buy with your gift certificate. Be sure to leave your email address because the winner will be contacted by email (so double check your Inbox), and your $40.00 gift certificate will be mailed directly to you by CSN Stores. [There may be international shipping charges in the case of Canadian addresses].  Open to our U.S.A. and Canada readers.

THIS GIVEAWAY ENDED. CONGRATULATIONS, LAUREN!!!!!! Thank you to everyone who participated.


[Winner selected by Random.org]

Al Roker Entertainment Casting Call for Cake Designers!

Photo courtesy of cake designer and member Bernadette Hansen

Cake Designers, get your pastry bags ready!!!! Al Roker Entertainment is in the process of casting a pilot and his production company is looking for an unpaid part-time intern who has a BIG, ENTHUSIASTIC, BRIGHT personality with a PASSION for baking and cake design. The casting call is for a potential TV pilot in suburban New York City and could mean camera time and a lot of exposure for an up and coming cake designer.

Are you ready to shine? Include your resume, a small write up about yourself, a photo of yourself and any photos/videos of your work. Anything that gives the production company a sense of who you are! Don't delay! Email your resume and supporting documents to: casting429@gmail.com. Good Luck!

Spook-Ta-cu-lar Halloween Cookies!

These cool howl-o-ween sugar cookies are easy enough for beginner cakers, and busy moms and their kids to make. Sharing a "cookie moment" is sure to bring smiles and giggles to the entire family. We used a basic roll-out sugar cookie recipe. Any basic roll-out cookie recipe is fine. For those who want to go the extra mile, we suggest Elisa Strauss' sugar cookie recipe in her first book, Confetti Cakes. Even novice bakers can whip up a batch of cookie dough, roll, cut, and bake in a snap!

Both cookies were covered in Satin-Ice Fondant [which is Pareve]. Once the cookies are baked and cooled, the fun part comes--decorating!

You will need a small 2lb container of white and black vanilla flavored fondant
rolling pin
plastic mat to roll out the fondant
round cookie cutter
witches hat cookie cutter
small rectangle cutter or template
yellow and blue food gel colors
art brush
small pizza cutter
a small amount of water or clear corn syrup

Witch's Hat Cookie
Roll out the black fondant until about 1/8 inch thick. Cut with the witches hat cookie cutter.
Apply a small amount of water or clear corn syrup to the cookie and affix the fondant on the cookie.
Color a small amount of white fondant yellow. Roll out until about 1/8 inch thick and cut a small strip with the pizza cutter. Apply a small amount of water or clear corn syrup to the cookie and affix the yellow "hat band". Finally, color a small amount of white fondant blue and roll out a little thick. Cut a small rectangle buckle with a rectangle cutter or template. Apply a small amount of water or corn syrup and apply to the hat. You can continue to embellish the hat with tiny candy decors, edible glitter and such.

Mummy Cookie
Roll out the black fondant until about 1/8 inch thick. Cut with the round cookie cutter. Apply a small amount of water or clear corn syrup to the cookie and affix the black fondant on the cookie.
Take a small amount of white fondant and divide into two balls [for the eyes]. Put a small amount of water on the cookie and affix the balls. Then take a small amount of black fondant and divide into 3 balls. The first two affix to the eyeballs, the third flatten slightly and hallow to serve as the mummy's mouth.
To make the wrappings, roll an amount of white fondant until almost see-through. Cut strips using the pizza cutter. Brush the cookie with a damp art brush dipped in water, and crisscross the strips.

Enjoy!

Baking for a Good Cause - Iron Cupcake Challenge

Photo courtesy of Kati Angelini

It's October and the holidays will be here in a flash! So much focus in the media and television has been about cake competitions and reality shows that I thought it was high time that we feature a post on baking for charities and good causes.

During the month of October, NYC Cake Decorators blog will publish several posts highlighting wonderful cakers who bake for a cause and cake related charitable organizations. Please visit their websites and see what they are about.

Kati Angelini, owner Kati's Kupcakes and Gourmet Desserts, is the bubbly and charismatic Organizer of the Iron Cupcake Challenge Moorestown. The Iron Cupcake Challenge is a fun way to get local baking enthusiasts together to vie for the title of Iron Cupcake Champion!! Each month a flavor/ingredient is disclosed and participants must bake their best cupcake based on the given flavor (like Food Networks' Iron Chef Challenge). Prizes are given and judges choose their favorite cupcake based on style, presentation, creativity, and of course FLAVOR. Best of all a portion of the proceeds are donated to local charities!!

Bake your scariest and tastiest cupcake to impress the judges and public at this month's October Iron Cupcake Challenge. The secret ingredient is PUMPKIN! Ruth Drennan, owner of Ruth Drennan Cakes will be a guest judge at this event! The Friends of Fullerton Park is the worthy organization that will benefit this month. Cupcakes+Charities=Perfect Together!! For more information about entering the contest or attending and tasting, contact Kati via the Iron Cupcake Challenge -Moorestown Meetup webpage or call 609-332-2172.

Bride of Frankenstein Doll Cake!

Our annual Howl-o-ween favorite, how to create a Bride of Frankenstein Doll Cake, from member and film photographer Lisa Stock. Enjoy!

Fantasy Wedding Cake

This fantasy wedding cake is not a cake at all but a fantasy hair creation that I stumbled onto at a blog called Kind of Gross and Amazing.

I think this "cake" is rather amazing: Non-edible imitating an edible. Just like we cakers make 3D edibles that look non-edible.

October 2010 Cake of The Month

This cute cake was designed by member Maria Esquijarosa.

Maria is crazy about cake decorating and took several classes with Elisa Strauss, Confetti Cakes. This cake was inspired by one of Elisa's gift box cake designs.

Member Meets Cake Boss at AM Casting Call!

It started out as a cold, dark, extremely early morning for member Annette Villaverde and her family but by the time the sun came up it was absolutely sweet. Annette and company responded to a casting call for shoppers at Carlos Bakery as part of the upcoming competition "The Next Great Baker", a spin-off of the successful TLC "Cake Boss". The icing on the cake was a write-up in New Jersey media which featured Annette. Annette is the owner of Ladybugluggage and is an instructor for NYC Cake Decorators Meetup.

I Dream of Cupcakes!

Photo courtesy of Danielle Moore, owner Annie Mae Cheesecakes

Cupcake fans, learn how to make couture cupcakes featuring a woman's second best friend--why her shoes of course! Chef Danielle Moore, founder of NYC Cake Decorators and owner of Annie Mae Cheesecakes in Harlem, will conduct a fashionista cupcake class this November. Class size is limited so don't miss out! For more information, contact Dina, Organizer, NYC Cake Decorators.

Designer Bag Class is the Icing on the Cake!

This photo is courtesy of member Brian.

Who says that men can't appreciate a good fashionable bag? This fabulous cake was designed by member Brian, in our latest Designer Bag Cake class held on Saturday, September 18, 2010. Chef Janet Ben-Ami was the instructor of the class.

Brian is a member of Cake Central and joined NYC Cake Decorators to network and improve his skills. Amazing cake isn't it?

Let's Talk About Shoes!

This cake was designed by member/instructor Chef Janet Ben-Ami

Chef Janet Ben-Ami fans, Janet will be teaching a Shoe Box and High Heeled Shoe Cake Workshop
on Saturday, September 25, 2010 at NY Cake Distributors located on West 22nd Street between 5th and 6th.

Each student will create a shoe box cake with edible tissue paper and a gumpaste shoe.

Chef Janet has been the most requested instructor at NYC Cake Decorators Meetup. She is scheduled to teach at NYS Chapter of ICES WOS in October and the shoe box cake class will be her debut with our retail Sponsor NY Cake Distributors. Chef Janet is the owner of Hey! Cookie in Long Island, NY. To register call: 212-675-2253.

Pillow Talk!

This cake was designed by a member at our First Day of Sharing. Irene Likokas was the guest instructor.

Let's give it to Wilton! Who else would spot a trend in cake decorating and then make a set of pans to fill that need? Wilton's Pillow Cake Pan Set takes the guess work out of carving your cake! Ok, cakers designing a high volume of cakes would probably see mastering the skill of cake carving more cost effective and satisfying over the long run, but for hobbyists and beginner cakers, the pillow cake pan set may be the perfect way to make your pillow cake and eat it too! Here's how to use the pan.

Kids Luv Cake!

Even kids love cake decorating!
This cute lil' turtle mini-cake was the finale cake decorated by an 9 yr. old aspiring pastry chef.

Pretty good, huh?

Crazy About Cupcakes?

Graphic Courtesy of Kati Angelini, Organizer, Iron Cupcake Challenge-Moorestown. Baking Cupcakes for a Cause.

Amy, owner of The Sugar Flower Cake Shop, will conduct a Cupcake Biz Roundtable on October 24, 2010, that's a must for anyone crazy about baking, decorating, eating, and selling cupcakes in New York. She will touch on issues of importance to any start-up Cupcake and Cake Business and will also address specific matters of concern for New York City start-ups. For more information, please contact Dina, Organizer, at nyccakedecorators@yahoo.com or you can RSVP and pay online at NYC Cake Decorators Registration Page for non-members.

The Sugar Flower Cake Shop has received much recent buzz, which includes but is not limited to, Weddings, The Knot, WEtv, Brides New York, and Wedding Wire. Amy is also a recipient of 2010 Brides Choice Award and her sugar designs are featured in the Fall 2010 issue of Martha Stewart's Weddings. The Sugar Flower Cake Shop was featured by the STYLE Network as part of the "Art of Cakes II" wedding cake special, the Martha Stewart Show, and a culinary presenter at Macy's Flower Show.

Additionally, we are working with Danielle Moore, founder of NYC Cake Decorators Meetup, to offer a Fashionista Cupcake Decorating Workshop in November 2010. For further information, contact Dina at nyccakedecorators@yahoo.com.

Happy Labor Day!

This photo courtesy of cake designer/member Chef Janet Ben-Ami, Hey! Cookie

Members are gearing up for a Hamburger & Fries Cake Workshop in October with our extraordinarily talented member/instructor Chef Janet Ben-Ami. Follow Janet on Facebook or visit her website, Hey!Cookie to check out her amazing cakes! Janet Ben-Ami fans, let FoodNetwork know that we want to see Janet on a Cake Challenge.

Say, "CAKE"!

Members say, "Cake"! as they pose with Sponsor, Chef Ruth Drennan, Ruth Drennan Cakes, at our Day of Sharing.

Celebrate Sugar Art - Our 3rd Annual Day of Sharing

Our 3rd Day of Sharing was held at So. Oxford Space which is located in the Fort Greene section of Brooklyn.

Julie Bashore, School of Cake Decorating and Confectionary Arts, and winner of TLC's Ultimate Cake Off, conducted a fantastic SugarVeil Class. Members are still raving about it and we certainly hope that Julie will conduct other workshops for us in the near future.

Sample of bows created with SugarVeil.

We were fortunate to have Chef Ruth Drennan, Ruth Drennan Cakes as a presenter this year. Ruth is well known for her gorgeous sugar flowers so we just had to have her instruct a Gumpaste Peony class for us.

Natalie Johnson, A World of Cakes, taught a Stenciling class. The cake shown was decorated by one of her students Lynn Carbone.

Connie DiTomasso's Shoebox Cake and gumpaste shoe class was a real hit.

Ximena Sempertegui, Cakes by Ximena, taught members how to create lifelike fondant babies in a crib.

Oasis Supply (cake decorating supplies and equipment) was the Major Sponsor for our 3rd Annual Day of Sharing.