bake club 3: it's all about cake
with big feelings on hittin' the big three OH this month
HI hi hello!
happy November!! Okay I do not know how October managed to whizz by so quickly! (I feel like I’m going to be spending the rest of my days commenting on how quickly the months go by) I was only able to sneak in one round of donuts for last months prompt. very unlike me- especially since I had so many ideas cooked up- oh well. Not like I can’t make donuts outside of bake club LOL. Everyone did so great- A lot of first time donut makers and we even have some donut haters reformed into donut enthusiasts- which honestly is the real goal
I feel like October was extra quick to zip by as it was my last full month in my 20s. Fuck. fuck fuckf uck fuckkk. FUck. I know everyone says your 30s are great- and that they’re the new 20s, but with money. But, damn I spent the last month in extreme nostalgia, and moving back to my hometown has not helped. Driving by my old high school on the way to the meat market- mentally reliving the days that got me into baking. Reliving the days where I could hike to the water tower during P.E and not have every bone in my body ache. Gone are the days of waking up at 5:30 to get to school by 7, sitting in 8 hours of classes, fitting in soccer practice and games, choir and drama rehearsals (yeah, I’m a theatre kid if that wasn’t obvious), homework and a jam packed social life. Now, I’m lucky if I have the energy to get to a coffee shop for my bean made energy. I don’t want my 30’s to be the new 20s- I want it to be my teenage years all over again. Idk man- I know that life only moves forward- but sometimes I wish it could do back for just a second.
I’ve been thinking a lot about all the things I’ve done in my twenties, everything I’ve gained and all the people I lost. I went from working at Seaworld for four years, and honestly feeling so content there and thinking I could work there until I retire (YUCK). I lost my abuela- rather suddenly, which honestly changed the entire trajectory of my life. After losing her I thought of everything she sacrificed to give my mom a better life and ultimately give me every opportunity I could ever dream for. And here I was… wasting it at fucking Seaworld, making pizzas from a box and frying mozzarella sticks to order. As hard as it feels to admit- she left at the right time. Losing her in my early 20s is what pushed me into getting my first bakery job in 2016. Deciding 2 years later I want even more out of life and moving to San Francisco on A WHIM to work at Mr. Holmes. Which, is something I only could have done in my early 20s because now the thought of moving even down the street stresses me out. A year into working at Mr.Holmes they literally pulled a job title out of thin air for me, as the recipe and flavor developer- when girl a little over 2 years ago you were working at a theme park, it was crazy I had no clue what I was doing. But, girl, ride the wave- say YES even when you’re so scared you want to say no. That job is what brought me to LA. I wasn’t in LA long before I lost my job to covid. Before I lost my great-aunt, my great grandpa and before losing my grammy, a very crappy cherry to a very crappy span of two very crappy months.
After I lost my job, I didn’t know what to do. I also, was so scared to tell my parents I lost my job, in a totally not my fault circumstance, but still I felt like a failure. So, the first person I told was my Grammy. We sat on her couch and talked about her dream of starting an edible company and how now that I was unemployed I could help her to make edibles. She died a few weeks later, while ordering weed online- iconic move if you ask me. While I didn’t go on to start an edibles company (but, imagine if this was the hard launch of that? giiiirl) I did start making and selling cakes from my tiny studio apartment. Mostly, to survive, but also for her. Selling those cakes, turned into sharing videos and little recipes. Which has turned into most of my job? Yeah, try explaining all of this to 21 year old Kassie. She’d literally look up at you from the Mama Stella’s register and call you crazy.
Idk just thinking about the last ten years, and the ten before that and I’d say the ten before that but I barely remember those, it’s kinda crazy to think about how much life can change in a year- let alone ten. I look forward to the next ten and whatever crazy twists and turns they bring.
All of that to really say- I spent a good chunk of my twenties, which is crazy to think about, running that small cake business out of a studio apartment. Which- safe to say most of you have found your way to my socials via cake. I also know y’all… only want me for my cakes. I get it though. So this month, it’s all about cake. Which is also fitting for birthday month.
This prompt is really just an excuse to make cake- so I don’t have just one base recipe for you, I have PLENTY. I want you to get creative and mix match and flavor the shared cake components I have shared over the years :) Use ingredients or techniques I’ve hopefully done a good enough job at teaching you how to use to bring new flavor and life to these recipes! Or just bake through one of the cake recipes thats already paired and mixed for ya, Ispahan, the Marcus (god tier chocolate) and Passion fruit cheesecake cake are fan favorites- so no going wrong there. Play around with it though- I just want you to have fun and be creative this month. But, also, make whatever cake you want- no pressure to only use my base recipes lol, have your own favorite vanilla buttermilk cake recipe? Use one of the flavoring techniques I’ve previously mentioned to switch it up and flavor it a new way!
You can also replicate my yearly “birthday dream cake” that was a staple on the November menu for as long as I ran my business. Layers of funfetti cake, passion fruit curd, fruity pebbles pastry cream and finished with pistachio French buttercream. Which brings me to another bit of my late teens and early 20s, I “hated” funfetti. Now, it’s a reminder of childhood and everything I love about cake. I just wanted so badly to be a moody pastry cook who only used used fancy pantsy ingredients and flavors. “Funfetti isn’t a flavor, it’s just vanilla is sprinkles” lmfao bitch shut up, that doesn’t make it any less good. So the latter half of my 20s and the rest of my life is dedicated to finding joy in the flavors and foods I enjoyed in my youth while tying it into the ingredients and flavors I love now. Except for red velvet- my feelings on that will never change.
Start by making a two times batch of the yolkless funfetti cake recipe, if you want to make an 8” cake that is. Bake the layers and cut them in half horizontally once cooled. Make a batch of my vanilla pastry cream recipe, infused with fruity pebbles. You’ll need a little extra liquid so use 450 grams of milk and 250 grams of heavy cream. Heat the milk and cream of the recipe ever so slightly and add maybe 85-100 grams of fruit pebbles to infuse. Strain the flavored milk and reweigh- top off with more milk if needed to reach the original 455 of liquid weight before making the pastry cream as usual. Layer the chilled pastry cream between the cake with a batch of passion fruit curd. Enrobe the entire thing in a batch of salted pistachio buttercream. and, enjoy!
Some other flavor pairings that I think could be fun and set you off with some creative direction should ya need it:
Riff on the malted hot cocoa cake and sub the malted cremeux with peanut butter honey pastry cream
Bake the turmeric carrot cake into 2 layers instead of one thick boy- ditch the cream cheese mousse and fill with cajeta pastry cream and finish it off with torched swiss buttercream
Brown butter buttermilk cake with with caramel pastry cream but of course infuse the milk with a little pyschocandy tea and a little more of that torched swiss buttercream
actually, my birthday dream cake is anything ANYTHING Hannah Ziskin makes- like my bday cake circa 2021
While I’m a huge fan of the idea of everyone baking up intricate layer cakes- I’m also a believer in any cake served on your birthday is a birthday cake (same goes for weddings!). What ever a birthday looks like to you- bake it baby! I also want this month to affirm you in the fact that you don’t need any reason to celebrate to eat an elaborate cake. Life’s too short to wait for a reason to eat cake!
I can’t wait to see everything y’all bake up this month! Go out and find some flavor inspo- maybe from your favorite perfume? Heck get inspired by the scent of a candle! I just want y’all to have fun this month and be creative! Be sure to pop into the group chat to share your cakes & look for some flavor inspiration!
thank you, thank you, thank you for spending time with me on this sugar filled corner of the internet!
The take away for me today is how when you got knocked down, you didn't get up you JUMPED up. Truly inspirational.
I'm crying too, thank you for your honesty and don't worry 30s are just as wild as 20s but in a different way