ohmyganache

Here's the problem as I understand it, and I'd like to get some discussion on the topic. We have guests that want cakes with copyrighted/trademarked/licensed characters on them... i.e Lightning McQueen, Little Mermaid, Yo Gabba Gabba etc. From what I understand, we can not create these characters ourselves out of fondant or cake, but are limited to either buying plastic toys to put on top or using software from Bake Deco (or other companies). What about sculpted cakes? I see pictures from other bakeries that do that... are they risking lawsuits? Or am I being paranoid? Does anybody license with Disney or sports teams? Anyone had experiences they'd like to share? Using those plastic toys or printable sheets takes all the fun out of cakes, so yeah... I don't know. Thing is, people WANT all their kids favorite characters ON the cake! What are your thoughts? And where is the line between using trademarked images as inspiration and infringement? I look forward to hearing from my fellow cake decorators!

Thinking about getting an oven, among other equipment from them. Has anybody used their ovens? How was the service? And input is welcome... Thanks!

So how would one go about making a 3-D fondant bow to stick onto the side of a cake? We can make them sitting on a cake, but not on the side. Is there a good demo out there for this? Thanks!

Moping twice would make sense, although it's hard enough at the end of the night to mop once!!! Thanks for the input. I think I need to get the floor professionally done again, it seems as though the protective coat that the guy puts on has worn off and so the floor just gets wicked dirty so fast!

I know that King Arthur flours are good for making bread. I'm really looking for organic flours, but let me know which flours you like to bake artisan bread with?

I know it's not the most exciting thread, but how does everyone clean the floor of your restaurant/bakery? I don't have professional experience cleaning... I use a concoction of simple green and a splash of bleach... but I really don't know if this is the best solution for the mop bucket... What product do you use that you like?

One page only, be concise about what info you're conveying. I do NOT want to see a multiple page resume... Change the settings in Word to increase the amount of space on the page you can write. Add work experience, education, and extra-curricular activities (volunteerism, etc.) Make sure your dates of employment are correct. Make sure you have phone and e-mail. Make your name BIG!

Thanks chefpeon, I think this is what the problem was. The gas inside in the air bubbles expanded as it warmed, pushing its way out of the buttercream layer!

Hey all! The wife and I are taking a road trip to a wedding in Dillon, South Carolina. What good bakeries are on the I-95 channel? I'd LOVE to visit some... please help me out with your favorite bakery from North Carolina to New Jersey!

The cakes are iced when they're cold. We chill the cake so that it's easier to handle (it's quite tender when room temp, which makes them really nice to eat!). I had thought that may have something to do with it... perhaps as the cake warms, the cold air present in the cake structure warms and expands. Does this sound reasonable? The cakes are getting mixed well enough... the baking powder is sifted into the flour before being added. And I don't think that I mentioned the cakes are standard yellow cake... butter, sugar, flour, eggs, milk, vanilla, BP, salt... creaming method, baked in full sheets and cut to size. We also crumb coat the cakes, chill them overnight in the fridge, and then put the final coat on. So there is a temperature difference there as well. I think we're onto something here... Pastrygirl... I haven't noticed that the filling makes a difference, but I'll take note when it happens again and see if there is some sort of pattern. I really hope it's not a fermentation issue! Ewwww! I can't imagine that would be the case...

Sorry, I missed a question... the cakes are not soaked in alcohol.

Okay... Fresh cakes only. Sometimes, minutes after putting the final coat of icing on. Italian buttercream. Italian meringue mounted with butter, salt, vanilla, and lemon juice. No shortening. I don't seem to notice a pattern on the cake itself, but I'll pay attention to which cakes the bubbles form. All the cakes are layer cakes, most three layer, but the one in the picture was a two layer tasting cake. Also on at least one large multi-tier cake. That one was red velvet actually, and we mostly do either chocolate or vanilla cake filled with ganache, pastry cream, or buttercream. What we're thinking is that there is a pocket between the crumb coat and the final coat, so we're been extra vigilant on making the crumb coat super-smooth (which kinda sucks, of course, because it takes more time...)

Anyone have an idea of why in the world this is happening? It doesn't happen often, but it does sometimes... and it drives us crazy!!! The bubbles just seem to form. We can deflate them, smooth it over, and then they're be back 20 minutes later? It's baffling... Help me figure out this problem! We certainly don't want this happening after the cake leaves the shop...

We make a lot of batters and doughs and freeze in 2 qt containers. Several muffins, scones, sticky buns, etc... Actually, quite a bit of our walk-in pastry. We make big batches and portion them into larger containers. Then we rotate into the fridge where the batter is used over the course of a few days or a week. When the fridge container gets low, out comes one from the freezer. It takes a bit of getting used to... getting a good routine going, but it works well.

Come on people! I still need your help! We've checked out Comtrex here in Jersey. I've heard that Silverware is a good one... It's mostly the future orders that is the problem. It seems like there's not much out there that can handle that.