SK On Elderberry: A Summer Cake

A Summer Cake

Summer Heather’ cake was a three-month production from start to finish. I actually was trying re-invent the wheel with this eye-popping cake.

Summer had drawn and re-drawn her cake for four years. These are Summer's original drawings. I'm sure glad she was my last child and this was the last wedding to plan and implement.

: Daughters Darcy and Summer have a firm belief I can do ANYTHING…Hmmmm….They have no idea I look to them for inspiration...So I start by making Summer draw her intricate designs to scale.

The sheets of chocolate designs of Summer's drawings were on clear Mylar which were sent to us and then the real work began.

We designed a mold which could be adjusted to different lengths. Lay the chocolate transfer sheet chocolate side up of course. Tape it securely. I then taped the metal stainless steel flat rods to the length that I wanted the finished product. Our biggest was 4″x16″ by 1/4″ deep. I double broiler melted pure white chocolate till very smooth. The poured it into the readied mold. I used a stainless steel scraper to pull the melted chocolate over the mold. Not overworking. Then scraped the excess chocolate over the edge to re-use again.

.The Cheap Transfer Sheet Company

Each mold configuration was made to match the cakes layers. I made 8 sets for each cake layer. which there were 4 layers soooo…that makes a total, ahhh, 32, 1/4″ deep by 4″ tall and 5″,7″,16″,18″.

When the chocolate has cooled and hardened, I slipped a cake decorator spatula under the mold, wax paper and hardened chocolate. Very gently lifting up. I then used a warm knife to cut around the edges of the mold to loosen the chocolate from the mold.Turning it over you can see the transfer sheet with Summer's dark chocolate drawings. Peel the transfer sheet off very carefully and the design stays on the white chocolate. Some hits and misses can be expected so I made an extra 10 just for that last second emergency. Which I am so glad we had on hand. In transit some of the “sidewalls” came loose from the actual cake and shattered. We were able put up new walls when we got to the venue. ( I learned from the best, Ron, my hubby is a custom general contractor). New walls? No problem. I kept all the finished pieces cool and dry till ready to use.

The chocolate walls were “glued” to the crumb coat frosted cake (which by the way is just a first coat of frosting decorators use to control cake crumbs from getting into the final frosting coat.) We used white royal icing to “glue” the walls to each side of the cake layers. We all know there isn’t a cake out there that is actually square, plumb or level. We had to adjust the walls by filling in behind areas with royal icing. using a metal square to keep an eye on the level, plumb and square issues. What a pain. I actually used ribbon to tie the walls to rhe cake till they were dry and sealed.

When each layer was set, Darcy (http://myartisticventures.blogspot.com/) started her piping which ran around the base, corners and edges of each layer. She used black butter cream icing. When this task was completed I set about the next phase: Flowers.

Oh by the way the bottom layer of cake is a plywood box with holes drilled in the top and dry ice inside to protect the three upper layers of cake from the heat. I just decorated it to look as if it were cake. Try cutting into that layer with a cake knife…