JOIN USQu’ils mangent de la brioche. Let them eat cake. But instead of pelting allusions at the bourgeoisie, we can just eat cake, it is ‘Cake Day’ after all!
Whether it is a simple and fluffy sponge cake from your local Iyengar Bakery or a detailed, multi-layered fondant offering, take a pick and mollycoddle your tastebuds. In celebration of the popular and enticing dessert, chefs, home bakers and cake lovers trace its evolution and attempt to describe their love for it.
Katherene Deborah, a passionate baker and owner of ‘Ms.K.Cupcakes’, is all for the phrase ‘old is gold’. “I like cakes without the frosting and detailing. In my grandmother’s time, cakes were placed in the earth and baked by placing a layer of coal on top. And the fluffier the cake, the better it tasted. When I was young, there were ovens but they were small.
These days, people have become fussier about looks — they want flat cakes with multiple tiers and thorough detailing,” she says. This frustrates her a bit as she is all for a simplistic homemade cake. “Although I earn from living from baking detailed cakes, I prefer how they were before. I prefer making a banana walnut cake with wholewheat or oats. Even butter cream, which is considered old-fashioned and has been replaced by fondant, is pretty new,” she explains.
With this evolution comes increased knowledge and a variety of options to choose from. Chef Bhuvan Ravishankar, Pastry Chef at The Oberoi, says that people have become a lot more aware of flavours now. “It is always fun to play with different textures and layers in a cake. With the advancement of technology one can have their photo imprinted on a cake with a personalised message, 3D cakes or even thematic ones. Moving with today’s times, people have different preferences like vegan cakes, cakes for those who are lactose and gluten intolerant, sugar free cakes and more.” In the end, it comes down to individual preferences.
These days, each cake has its own personality and its connotations are numerous. Baking a cake is no longer just mixing together flour, eggs and sugar but it is an art that includes external elements like presentation and decorations. Chef Bhuvan elaborates on how a simple black forest cake has changed. “The components may include white chocolate and morello cherry ice cream, dark chocolate creameaux and a decadent chocolate soil to add to the crunch. Another example is the tiramisu, which may include an espresso-khalua ice cream, micro sponge, savoiardi sponge fingers and cocoa brittle. This adds a little bit of drama to the plate and invites customers to combine various elements and savour this infusion,” he says.
Ruchi Mahajan, Head Designer, Chokola, has her bit to say, “Cakes used to be quite simple because the actual cake was the star of the show and not the decorations on it. Taste was the key and it was usually easy to identify the flavours in a simple butter cream cake. Now, we have glazes, cream, washes as well as an assortment of icing. Basically, if you can dream it, it can be done!”
Even the shape of cakes has taken on different avatars. “Back in the day, there were round cakes. Now, they can be hexagonal, heart shaped, rectangular and even sculpted into realistic objects. There can be multi-tiered cakes that look like oceans or snow covered hills, and are separated by plastic fluted columns topped with edible decoration,” adds Ruchi.
In honour of the day, Chef Bhuvan tells us about the best cake he has ever made. “It is a dark bitter chocolate and raspberry cake for Valentine’s Day with loads of roses.” Ruchi adds, “My best one was a towering, 10-feet high, cake made for a wedding. It had a cascade of flowers which were artistic and creative. The colours were enriching and it had a glossy touch.”
And when it comes to favourites, Chef Bhuvan mentions that his favourite is an alphonso mango vanilla creameaux gateaux. “I love balancing the sweet flavour of a cake with the citrus flavours of berries or fruits.” Although these bakers can whip up anything is the blink of an eye, they all have their likes and dislikes. Katherene says, “Me and my family can’t stand chocolate because I’m baking all the time and the house smells of it.” And along with fruits and berries, Chef Bhuvan uses ingredients that give the cake a crunch, like biscotti and crushed cookies. Ruchi, on the other hand, likes using fondant.
But irrespective of the taste, flavour, presentation, shape and decoration, people love (always have and always will) indulging their sweet tooth with a slice of cake!