Jenn + Scott = Love at The Condor's Nest

Oh how I love weddings. What I love most about weddings, aside from the special union celebrated between two people in love, are the details. The flowers, the china, the wreaths and ribbons, the dress, and even the favors are all meticulously coordinated by the artistry and imagination of the little girl who spent her childhood dancing around in mom's white sheets only to grow up and live her dream of becoming the bride. The bride of this particular wedding is my friend Jenn to her beau of 4 years Scott. They we're married at the Condor's Nest out in the middle of no where California. If you'd like to catch a glimpse of the wedding, check out Jenn and Scott's wedding video clip by the amazing 618 Studios.

The cake turned out just as I had wanted after much hard work, deliberation, and a few tears. The inside was a light and tasty white pound with strawberry mousse filling and a vanilla cream crumb coat. Each layer was festooned with strips of barely colored fondant mimicking the fabric of Jenn's wedding gown. And before you think I came up with the idea myself I was inspired by the work of two artists- a sculptor named Elizabeth Turk and my cake infatuation Maggie Austen. The succulents, roses, jasmine, peony, and leaves were all made of gumpaste.

Some of you who follow me on Facebook may have seen a few late night, or I should say very early morning comments of over-tiredness and discouragement. In my recent decision to launch KM cakery I made the move to start working in a commercial kitchen. I used this wedding cake as an opportunity to do so and my first time was a little harder than I had anticipated. Working in a commercial kitchen has its advantages; commercial equipment, multiple sinks, lots of counter space, however it does come with a few downfalls such as having to work in a new kitchen, not knowing where anything is, and being capped for time. In the process of making this cake I managed to melt, crack, and massacre the entire bottom tier of the cake working well until 2:00am re-baking and re-making it again. A general rule of thumb and by far the smartest thing I did was to make a lot of extra cake batter.

Driving the cake to the site also posed a big challenge as the hills and curves of the country road near the nest doesn't make for ample driving with a 50 lb. three tier cake in the backseat of one's automobile. But after clenched teeth and sweaty palms the cake arrived safely in just enough time to arrange the flowers on and make it to the ceremony in time. I would say the greatest joy received from embarking on such an endeavor was the look on the bride and groom's face when they saw the cake for the first time as well as the approving comments made by the guests from taking that first bite.

Special thanks to Maggie Yurachek Photography for these great photos: