All You Need is Love

 

 

Make Valentine's Day special with a chocolate "I love u" heart puzzle, perfect for someone special in your life. Celebrate the day of love and affection the right way !

Happy Valentines Everyone

Super Bowl Caramel Corn Football

Every year I make a football treat to take to a super bowl Party. My son loves caramel corn so I decided to shape it like a football. It is easy and it looks really cute & super tasty.

 

Recipe 

• 8quarts popped popcorn
• 2cups of brown sugar
• 1cup of karo, light or dark corn syrup
• 1cup (2sticks) of butter or margarine
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 1 teaspoon of baking soda
• 2 teaspoon spice islands, pure vanilla extract

 

Spread popcorn on a leet pan lined with silpat.

 

Mix brown sugar, corn syrup, butter and salt in a heavy  saucepan. Stirring constantly, bring to a boil over medium heat.

 

 

Boil for 5 minutes without stirring. Remove from heat. Stir in baking soda and vanilla.

Pour syrup mixture over warm popcorn, stirring to coat evenly.Push into a greased football shape pan. Unmold & use fondant vanilla or buttercream lines to decorate .

 

And this is you final result

Enjoy!

#superbowl, #superbowltreats, #caramelcorn,  #nycakeacademy, #LisaMansour, #nycake.com

 

I was invited  to be one of the judges at The Culinary Institute of America for a competition of the CIA students.

 

  These are the 5 cakes. The theme was Winter Wonderland, which one do you think won?

                            

 

And the winner is...

 

 

 

 

Winter Wonderland 

Cake Pops and 

Chocolate Pops Center Piece

  Create this Winter Wonderland Center Piece by making Cake pops and Chocolate lollipops with a snow flake theme. 

   The cake pops are decorated with fondant cut out snow flakes. I also used sugar pearls and silver and pearl sugar to sprinkle on top  of the cake pops to give  the  pops  a shimmery effect.

The snow flakes chocolate pops uses a chocolate mold with a snow flake on  it.

The items needed to create this beautiful center piece can be found at http://www.nycake.com

                                     

                                  

                   Snow Flakes Cutter                                            Disco Dust                           

                  Part Number:NY722                                            Part Number:11390       

                                                                                  

                                               

                   Cake Pops Molds                                                  Pearl Sugar      
                   Part Number:1550 



                                                         
                                                                            Fondant

You can also visit the Retail Store In Chelsea

N.Y. Cake & Baking Dist.

56 West 22nd street

New York, NY 10010 

Tel. 212-675-CAKE(2253)

                               

 

                                   

Peppermint Bark

1 1/2 lb. Dark chocolate

1 1/2 lb. White chocolate

Peppermint oil

Crushed peppermint candy

 

• Melt Chocolate in microwave until it's smooth.
• Add 3 drops of peppermint oil to the dark chocolate & stir.
• Pour onto a cookie sheet lined with silpat acetate or parchment paper.
• Allow the chocolate to setup at room temperature.
• Pour white chocolate on top dark chocoalte and sprinkle the crushed peppermint candy & let it dry.
• Break up into pieces & enjoy!

 

Happy Holidays!! 

 



 Check out my interview by Kathryn, Jessie and Jeff at their blog http://foodstartuphelp.blogspot.com/

 

Interview with Lisa Mansour of NY Cake and Baking

 Interview with Lisa Mansour

Co-Owner NY Cake & Baking

www.nycake.com

Interview by Kathryn Gordon and Jessie Riley

Kathryn:  Hi Lisa!  We’ve spoken before about your grandmother who was a chocolatier in Salt Lake City, and your mother who was a pioneer in NYC cake decorating.  Your parents use to run the business.   Now it’s more being run by you and your siblings, right?  How did that all evolve?

Lisa:  I grew up learning about cake from my mother.  In fact, I started this location (on West 22^nd Street, NYC) with my mother in 1989.  At that point there was no store of its kind at all and most people didn’t know what “cake decorating” was at that point.  In fact, originally we were further down the street and the landlord said:  "You won’t even last a year!"  We have the same landlord in this larger location almost 25 years later and now he understands more about cake! 

Kathryn:  So do people watching TV!  I imagine the cake craze has helped your business boom?

Lisa: I came back to work in the business full time in the past 3-4 years.  Before then it was run mostly by my mom, dad and brother. Fundamentally, this is a cookie cutter and sprinkle business.  And it’s very seasonal.

Now my sister and her husband also work in the business.  My sister Jenny primarily works up in our warehouse in Westchester and is responsible for the website and all internet orders.  I am now in charge of the NYC store from A-Z.  My mom is in charge of the books.  My dad, well, he bosses everyone around! 

Kathryn:  Things have “shifted” here since I first visited you 2 years ago.  And I don’t just mean where items are located in the store…

Lisa:  Our emphasis is on introducing new cake ideas to refresh the company and to provide better customer service.  You can say that the “girls in the family” definitely have personality!  I’m really excited to get in there as an adviser to people, to help them make whatever cake they want to make. 

Jessie:  You’re launching a new line of tools this month under your own line?

Lisa:  Yes!  I decided to design tools to make it easier for people to make the cake they want to make.  These days, everyone is short on time and they have to juggle so many things in their lives.  Whether they make a cake for their family, or to sell – tools help them execute it the most efficiently.  We had the resources to help pull together a line of tools.  

My brother-in-law is responsible for manufacturing most of our tools. Because of this, I am able to introduce a line of “Couture Molds” in silicon that will work with a variety of cake decorating materials:  modeling chocolate, gum paste, fondant, pulled sugar and tempered chocolate.Basically, whatever the cake decorator wants to do!

                                                       Jessie:  What else is in the works for your line, Lisa?

Lisa:  In January, I expect to introduce a gluten-free cake mix with natural flavorings. There is such demand now for great tasting, gluten free products. I hear it all day in the store as customers come in looking for product.  I am right in the middle of the store so I get to hear all day what my customers want.

I would also like to have a school.  I love teaching now through our NY Cake Academy and I have lots of ideas.  I am teaching a class at ICE (Institute of Culinary Education) in 2 weeks, and next year will teach a class at ICE in 2013 under the CAPS program.

Kathryn:  Can you run a school here, in the store?  I remember taking my first Wilton cake decorating piping series with your mother years ago, in a location down the street.

Lisa:  Rents in Manhattan are so high but we’re looking into our options.  We will be starting to do free in-store cake demonstrations after the holidays.  I want to bring in guest chefs, and foster a sense of community in the store like we used to have when the cake business was in its infancy. 

Kathryn:  What’s the best thing about the NY store?

Lisa:  Employee loyalty.  We all work 6 days a week, including me.  I’m lucky that most of our employees have been with us a long time.

Jessie:  What’s the most current cake trend you’re seeing now?

Lisa:  The demand is still for bling!  More and more bling, in fact. 

Jessie:  What doesn’t “move anymore” in the world of cakes?

Lisa:  Cake separators and columns. Right now you can’t give them away.

Jessie:  Before we finish up, what drives you, Lisa?

Lisa:  I want to be a trend setter, and never a “copier”.  I don’t even look at what other people are doing with their cakes or cake classes.  I focus on myself, not other decorators.   Some people consider me a threat – which I think is sad.  I need to do my own thing, and I have my hands full with my own projects.

Jessie: Thanks Lisa!


Want to Learn More About Our Expanded Services? Visit  Us At Food Start Up Help

Posted 13 hours ago by Andre

Labels: cake decorating chef jeff yoskowitz tools ice culinary lisa mansour sprinkles jessie riley ny cake and baking cakes nyc ICE bling foodstartuphelp CAPS program

Happy Hanukkah

Happy Hanukkah!

Here are some quick and easy decorating ideas for the holidays.

Don't have time to bake? No, problem!

Just buy  the ready cookie dough in squares.

 Dip the squares in colored sugar and bake.

 Arrange on a plate.

 

 Try Making Edible Driedels Yourself or with the kids       

Things You Need

Pretzel Sticks

Marshmallows

Chocolate Kisses

   Melt some chocolate in the microwave and use as glue to attach the kiss to the marshmallow. stick in  the pretzel on opposite end. You can leave it as its or take it a step further and dip in chocolate.

 You could stop here or be daring and put chocolate in a pastry bag and pint the letters in Hebrew.

For something simple you can drizzle chocolate or sprinkles.

Happy decorating!

Lisa Mansour