The Baptism

Why, yes, the cake was for a girl. How did you know?

So my friend S.'s baby was baptized last Saturday. If you've ever been to a Catholic baptism, you know it's a pretty dark ceremony, what with all that talk of Original Sin, crucifixion and going to hell. I sat through a whole year of Catholic liturgies when I lived in California (I went to a Catholic private school and it was mandatory) and while I remember a lot of "Stand up - Sit down", a baptism is an entirely different experience.

I don't mind entering churches, even though many Jews believe you shouldn't. I like to admire the architecture and I think it would be stupid to miss out on such a big part of European culture just because it happens to be found in churches.

Anway, I hope there won't be anymore Catholic baptisms. I thought it was scary and it made me feel uneasy. No offense, Catholics.

I guess you could argue that other people's religions aren't really any of my business, so I'll jump right ahead and tell you about the thing that really pissed me off.

The cake.

Excuse the even-crappier-than-usual picture. I forgot my camera at home and had to use my phone.

I spent days making that cake. I made 2 trial cakes before this final version and seriously? In the end it felt like it was trying to mock me. Nothing worked out right at first. Not the flavors, not the fondant, nothing. I'll spare you the details, but suffice it to say that I won't be making this kind of multi-layered affair again any time soon.

No recipes today because I can't stand talking about this cake anymore, but if you're looking for a great tutorial on making fondant bows, look here.

To end this on a happier note, I can say that I value the experience I gained from making this cake. I'm glad that I got to work with fondant and who knows what being able to make a two-tiered cake could come in handy one day.