cake angst
i'm just venting here... i spent this morning baking a cake for my neighbor across the hall, who has a birthday today. she's laid up with a broken leg and none of her friends would come uptown to see her. so i had a tiny little party with the neighbors in our building. as requested by the birthday girl, i made a beautiful yellow cake with swiss meringue buttercream. it contained six organic eggs, two tablespoons of penzey's vanilla, and five and a half sticks of butter, and i used my own homemade vanilla sugar in the cake and the frosting.
so... i'm just a wee bit put out, because one of the guests asked me if it was from a box!
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29 Comments:
Don't you hate that? I made one for my in-laws last week, and they told me the icing tasted just like the canned stuff! I just about cried! I do not see how Italian meringue tastes like the canned, but I try to blame crappy palates and lack of exposure to the good stuff! :D
I bet your cake was awesome, so don't sweat the folks who don't know homemade and tasty when they eat it!
sadiepix at 8:16PM on 07/27/08
I hate when someone says where did you get this as if you could never bake a damn cake.
My canned answer is aliens dropped it in Area 51. Scully and Mulder ran it to Fedex who delivered it to me this morning, where do you think it came from?
JerzeeTomato at 8:51PM on 07/27/08
From one who does not bake (not me, the people who say these things), such comments can in fact, to them, seem to be compliments.
Consider that what they really mean in is: my homemade cakes are like lumps of brick and this is so light and tender and delicious ... it *has* to be from a box? OR this is so good it must be a professional cake cuz an home baker like me could *never* make something this good.
So the annoying remarks are in fact high praise. Crappily put, but high praise!
kjgibson at 9:39PM on 07/27/08
I get the same sorts of comments about the bread and buns that I usually end up bringing somewhere or other. While no one has thought it was Wonder Bread, the comment is usually along the lines of, "where did you get these buns?" because of course no one but a crazy person makes their own bread.
dbcurrie at 9:50PM on 07/27/08
I always like to think that when someone asks if it's from a box, it's because they like it and want to replicate it, and is a bit better than asking directly what brand was used. I've found that some people really have "boxed in" tastebuds, where they can only identify with tastes from a box.
MoEats at 10:51PM on 07/27/08
I guess I'd like to think I've got more tact that to ask if it came from a box, I'd word it better, more along the lines of "oh my god, how did you make this?"
My mother in law would definitely ask that because she lacks tact..among other things...like flavor in her food. (oops did I say that?)
Southern_bella at 11:15PM on 07/27/08
It may be high praise indeed -- a lot of people prefer the texture of box cakes (my wife included). It took me a while to replicate that light and airy texture without the use of the designer chemicals that the box cake companies have at their disposal!
So feel free to hold your head up high :-)
Dominic
the zen kitchen
dvchurch at 11:16PM on 07/27/08
Yeah, I see it as the difference between homemade (messy, dry, imperfect) versus professionally constructed (neat, moist, perfect). I'd take it as a compliment.
Cassaendra at 11:30PM on 07/27/08
It could be also that so few people bake from scratch now, that most people assume it's from a box. The only homemade cake most people have ever had was the one-time experiment that flopped.
beth1 at 12:55AM on 07/28/08
It could be that somebody HOPED it was from a box, so they could buy that brand, because that's the most they're willing to do.
You never know what people's intentions are when they ask a question. And if you don't know their background, you don't know what they're basing the question on. To that person, maybe a box means it's home made, otherwise it's somthing you bought, because they don't know anyone besides a bakery that makes cakes.
dbcurrie at 1:04AM on 07/28/08
Agh! But it could also be that some people ONLY know cakes can come from a box--in my sugar-is-evil family, I didn't understand 'from scratch' until I was in my mid-20s. Seriously. They might think that cooking from scratch is an impossible feat that can only be performed on the Food Network :p
I would have loved a home-baked cake for my birthday and may make one myself, for myself!
HeartofGlass at 5:40AM on 07/28/08
cybercita, you did a lovely, generous thing for someone who I'm sure was touched. dont worry about what other people say or do. Everyone here is correct, very few people bake anymore and when they do, they have become a nation of aunt shmandy's. Take it as given if you ever want to make any of us a birthday cake, or any occasion cake, I doubt there will be a single person here who will object!
huneybumper at 7:37AM on 07/28/08
@sadiepix, if someone told me that my painstakingly crafted organic swiss buttercream tasted just like canned, {which tastes just like the contents of a chemistry set suspended in goo to me} i think i'd lay right down on the floor and cry!
thanks for letting me vent, everyone. and @dbcurrie, yes, whenever i bring my homemade currant cream scones anywhere, i invariably get asked for the name of the bakery.
cybercita at 9:21AM on 07/28/08
I feel everybodys pain I was asked to cook a swank dinner for my wifes family and I was searing filets when asking how they wanted their steak everybody wanted it welldone....told my wife I'll never cook for them heathens again.
Markbb at 9:29AM on 07/28/08
I once made my famous skirt steak for a dinner party (it's marinated in lime juice, garlic & dijon mustard...delish) and my friend put KETCHUP on it...I was horrified...I don't think there could have been a worse insult...
KateRuby at 9:37AM on 07/28/08
@Mark - about 10 years ago, my parents and grandparents were in Arizona (can't remember why) and my grandmother ordered her steak well done at one of those steakhouse chains and they brought her a charred boot on a plate, she was not amused, ended up complaining and got her meal free.
No sense of humor that one.
I'm with you though, well done request = get the hell out of my house, or bring your own piece of meat to ruin.
:P
Southern_bella at 9:42AM on 07/28/08
I made a cake for my mother in law's birthday - stayed up late on a Sunday night (after spending the whole weekend with them), left work early to go home and ice it and so on. Their reaction? A solid 'meh'. That was pretty much the last time I went out of my way to do anything extra for them ever again.
Yes, I'm still bitter. :)
Peasantwench at 10:17AM on 07/28/08
Non-cooks assume when they see perfection that no mere mortal is capable of producing it without chemical intervention.
Brava to you and keep the faith. Anything we make is better than powder mixed with oil and an egg.
chiff0nade at 10:55AM on 07/28/08
well all i gotta say is can we have the recipe??????????
jo anne tincher at 11:11AM on 07/28/08
I can see my MIL asking a question like this:-) But then, she probably wouldn't even take a bite, since "cake" is like a scary curse word to her.
But seriously, I don't even care to count how many times I've had a similar conversation with my in-laws about one thing or another - and it does, indeed, happen because they don't know any better. I don't think my MIL baked a cake from scratch in her life, ever, so yes, if she were to eat a bite of a cake (a hypothetical situation), liked it and wanted to be nice, she would ask what brand or whatever of boxed mix you used or where you bought it. So really, the question was not indicative of anything related to your cake, just of that person's background:-).
And now I want a piece of cake with Swiss meringue buttercream...
brooke29 at 2:17PM on 07/28/08
An entirely backhanded compliment! And depending on the person saying this, possibly entirely mean-spirited. My grandmother was the type of person who would say something like that, her intention being to remind you that "Young lady, modern technology has made it so we don't have to slave over an oven all damn day."
I once made a test batch of homemade cinnamon rolls the weekend before I was hosting Easter brunch. I brought the test batch to church and after getting a morning full of odd faces when I said I was testing the recipe, someone finally said "Oh, these aren't from the can?" Sheesh people, would I really test my ability to open a can? My word.
LizNYC at 2:46PM on 07/28/08
LOL cybercita! Truly too funny. It's all about perspective. I'm sure the guest was thinking that "it's the best cake ever and I must know if it's Pillsbury or Betty Crocker!" LOL.
As I was buying Valrhona chocolate to bake a cake for my husband's birthday, I couldn't help but notice that the price of the chocolate was close to seven times the price of a boxed cake mix. I was torn for a millisecond and went with the Valrhona. Later, as I tried to position myself in front of the breeze coming from my Kitchen Aid mixer in my steamy kitchen and wondering why the buttercream was so soft, I wished momentarily that I had just bought a cake. In the end though, when the table was set with a white table cloth, polished silver and our nice wine glasses, I knew that it just wouldn't do to serve anything that I didn't make myself that night.
Here's to us and our labors of love...and doing it because in the end, nothing else will do.
wookie at 4:05PM on 07/28/08
@wookie--Cheers!
When I first met them I am sure my now in-laws meant the "It tastes just like the box/can/shop" as a compliment as that is their idea of yummy. Now though they do it as a nasty poke, as they know I do pastry for a living and like to make folks who can do things they can't feel a bit bad. (Not just with food, they pick at their son (DH) for his grad school work and on and on.)
@cybercita--I second everyone else...we would all take a big slice and love it! I would love some cake I did not have to make for a change!! :)
sadiepix at 4:56PM on 07/28/08
I am blushing inside, because if this post hadn't warned me, I might have made this mistake. I try to make cakes, but no matter what I do, I get bricks (perhaps I should start another post, asking for advice).
. . . I'd like the recipe for your cake, too, though, so I can at least attempt it.
Skythe at 9:53AM on 07/29/08
Could it be that for them their reference is grocery store cakes which are so vile that anything delicious must be from a box, because the concept of baking from scratch is outside their known universe?
chari at 10:29AM on 07/29/08
cybercita - Don't be too put out - lots of people think baking is too hard to consider without the help of a box mix. I'm sure they were all impressed and amazed that you made a delicious cake from scratch!
butterface at 10:52AM on 07/29/08
Don't you wish all of us loyal food fans and bakers and chefs and pros could all get together whenever one of us cooks? That way, we all know that our work will be fully appreciated. We all know what goes into making a homemade, beautiful cake. Our souls, people, our souls!
littlesalsi at 6:57PM on 07/29/08
I have started making english muffins from scratch on weekly basis and try to do a loaf of sandwich bread as well, my husband laughed at first "you know you can buy those in the store don't you?" but he than realized how good they are. The few others I have mentioned this to do laugh and/or look at me like I am crazy. Most family and friends now expect all desserts to be homemade but other baked goods are still such a surprise. I don't know why, I love to bake, the end product is usually way better than store bought and the baked bread and english muffins are economical (makes up for the desserts with a ton of nice chocolate and butter and cream...).So many people don't really cook from scratch at all...that is fine for them but don't make fun of me because I like to! Sorry for the rant, maybe a bit off topic but something I find frustrating at times.
mrsmoosie at 10:11PM on 07/29/08
i got the recipes for the cake and the frosting from nick malgieri's excellent book, perfect cakes. they are both fairly involved, but i'll be happy to type them up and post them if people are really interested. i checked and there is a recipe for swiss meringue that looks quite similar to his on epicurious. basically what you do is stir egg whites and sugar together over a double boiler until the mixture is quite hot, remove it from the heat, then whip it until it's completely cold. then you beat in a pound of softened butter a little at a time, then add flavoring. there are many variations possible.
i think that the secret to not baking bricks is to measure the flour very carefully, {for really good consistent results, it's best to weigh it} sift the dry ingredients together, and to make sure not to overbake. as soon as the top springs back, it's done! i also like using magicake strips, which ensure that the tops don't dome and the cake bakes straight across, which makes it much easier to layer it.
cybercita at 11:55AM on 07/30/08