[Sca-cooks] Victoria Sponge Cake--OOP entirely OT

[Lisbeth Herr-Gelatt]

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OOOOOOh. Very Very drool-worthy. Something for everyone. I like it. You're a man with a tremendous sense of humor. My apprentice Rowan of Ashbrooke makes a really incredible one (fruitcake) based on a 12th night cake with brandy-soaked dried cherries. Of course, she covers hers with fondant or sugar paste and then proceeds to make the entire affair look like a squashed-bug illuminated scroll, gilded six-inch borders and all, complete down to the calligraphy which is accomplished with a calligraphy pen and black or red gel food coloring, thinned. It's the bug and flower part that boggles--cast from molds in sugar plate and then hand-painted with food colors.

For those wondering, "squashed bug" is the sort of illumination that looks like the very wide borders of the scroll/page are crawling in insects, flowers, leaves, vines etc., all portrayed very life-like. If anyone went to Mistress Cori Gora's party celebrating her elevation to the Laurel last Pennsic, the cake was Rowan's work. Hand-illuminated  and calligraphed scrolls are the norm here in Aethelmearc, tho they may not be for every award in other kingdoms. Mistress Cori was elevated for C&I talents, thus the cake. Makes me wonder where I was when they were handing out talent.

Cheers

Aoife
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Lisbeth Herr-Gelatt (me, Aoife) wrote:

> >Adamantius (who remembers the faces of some >of his wedding guests when
> >the cake was cut open)
>
> OK, I'll bite. What was the big surprise?

Nothing too bizarre, but the top tier was a classic blonde Irish fruitcake (your basic Christmas cake, essentially a pound cake with whisky-soaked fruit, peel and almonds) covered with a layer of almond paste and then with Royal Icing. The rest was the more standard (in this part of the world) genoise, one orange layer and one coffee layer, I
believe. But it was fun to harass the fruitcakeophobes in the crowd.

Adamantius


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