Delia's magazine #1

DELIA’S MAGAZINE

ISSUE #1

TM

September - November 2012

From delicacy to delight

Interview with Martha Swift, from the:

Primrose Bakery

A whole sweet universe in Barcelona Florentine Cupcakes & Cookies

The Revolution of the new Apron has arrived

Los Delantales Interview with Maica Malavé

Follow us on Facebook/Delia’s Bakery

deliasbakery.wordpress.com

CONTENTS

CONTENTS

6 | Smoothies 8 | El Rincón de Bea RECIPES

INTERVIEW WITH BEA ROQUE

10 |

The Revolution of the new Apron has arrived

14 | A prestigiousinAtelier Sitges LOS DELANTALES

CAKES HAUTE COUTURE

22 | Halloween

PUSH-UP POPS FROM DELIA’S BAKERY

2 | DELIA’S MAGAZINE

SUMARIO

26 |

A whole sweet universe in Barcelona

34 |

36 | Sweet 180º

INTERVIEW WITH GUILLERMO PASCUAL

FLORENTINE CUPCAKES & COOKIES

From learning to master a good decorative technique SWEETAMBS

37 | FAQs

38 | Ten roses for her 42 | Primrose Bakery GUMPASTE ROSES TUTORIAL FROM DELIA’S BAKERY

INTERVIEW WITH MARTHA SWIFT

Hope you enjoy reading and also cooking with us

DELIA’S MAGAZINE | 3

ABOUT US

DELIA’S MAGAZINE Delia’s Magazine, Irina Bautista Everything started with the creation of the blog named Delia’s Bakery where we decided to sare some of our recipes and basic techniques but we quickly realized we had to make something different. Delia’s Magazine is born from the desire of making something new: an international online magazine filled with lots of interviews, recipes and tutorials. In this project, carried out by the team of Delia’s which is formed by Irina Bautista and Xavier Viñals, we take care of contacting bakers from any part of the world but also we want to show you new techniques developed in Delia’s Bakery. All began with our blog, but we decided to distribute the cooking in a different way. And we decided to dedicate each season of the year one different issue.

FIND US: d e l i a s b a k e ry. wordpress.com

ia’s Ba

4 | DELIA’S MAGAZINE

Del

@delia’s bakery

ker y, X

avie r

Viñ al

s

FACEBOOK/delia’s bakery

ABOUT US NOSOTROS

COLLABORATORS

WE WANT TO THANK: amber spiegel, Is

the creator of SweetAmbs a blog dedicated to all kinds of decorated cookies where she shares tips, recipes and tutorials.

Sebastian Borgogno,

cofounder of Florentine Cupcakes & vast experience with catering companies.

PATRICIA ARRIBÁLZAGA,

Cookies..

renowned argentin cake designer formed in founder of cakes haute couture.

Maria Elisa Calcagno,

cofounder of

ANNA CRISTINA RUBIO, GUILLERMO PASCUAL, MARTHA SWIFT,

France

and in the

U.S.,

Florentine Cupcakes & Cookies.

180º.

cofounder of sweet cofounder of sweet

180º.

cofounder of the primrose bakery.

MAICA MALAVÉ, BEA ROQUE,

public relations, with

founder of los delantales.

creator of el rincón de bea.

DELIA’S MAGAZINE | 5

RECIPE

RECIPE

Smoothies Many years have passed since the first smoothies appeared in the culinary world and were presented as sophisticated shakes compared to the ones that were already famous. The name smoothie is related to the texture of this kind of milkshake, light and creamy. The smoothies became popular in 1960 when there was a resurgence of macrobiotic vegetarianism in the U.S. But those shakes differed significantly from what is nowadays known as a smoothie, since then were not made with ice cream or yogurt but with fruit, fruit juice and ice. It was in the 2000s when the smoothies started to be seen as sophisticated beverages recognized for their many health benefits. You can find the recipe for these smoothies and for many milkshakes in the book: 500 juices and smoothies by Christine Watson.

banana and raspberry smoothie

white chocolate and caramel smoothie

This one is a very rich and healthy smoothie that has This is a very refreshing smoothie for those warmer become a classic due to the perfect complementation evenings. The combination of white chocolate with of the flavors of banana and raspberry. caramel is spectacular but we can change the flavor by substituting caramel by a teaspoon of vanilla extract.

INGREDIENTS · 1 banana, peeled and cut into 4 pieces · 150g of raspberries, hulled · 120 ml of plain yogurt · 60ml of milk

· 300ml of white chocolate ice cream · 1 tablespoon caramel · 3 tablespoons milk

Enter all ingredients into a blender. Whisk for 1 minu- Enter all ingredients in blender and beat for 1 minute. te or until the mixture is smooth. Serve the smoothie Pour the smoothie into a glass and it’s ready to drink. and enjoy!

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SMOOTHIES

DELIA’S MAGAZINE | 7

IRINA BAUTISTA | TENERIFE Her passion for baking can be seen in her blog.For those who are used to search different recipes on the net she needs no introduction, as in the recent years she has made thousands of followers on her social networks and website. Bea, the creator of the blog “El Rincón de Bea”, is undoubtedly one of the benchmarks for pastry lovers who dream to ride a nice bakery someday. Her love for cooking has been going through different stages throughout her life, such as the one focused on making breads and muffins or when she did her best to learn how to make beautiful cupcakes, Bund cakes or decorated cookies; which nowadays seems to be her choice.

Our star of the interview of the month has opened the doors of hers kitchen giving us an exclusively interview for Delia’s Magazine about her great passion.

Delia’s Magazine: Where does your interest in baking came from?

How do you define your passion for baking?

Bea: To be honest I have never felt any interest in baking, but my interest began just over five years when I bought a KitchenAid for my experiments. The subject fascinated me so much that I have not stopped since then and I am still investigating and testing flavors.

DM: How do you think that has been received the American phenomenon in Spain? Do you think that foreign pastries are more attractive that the ones in Spain, which has caught people’s eyes?

Bea: I think this phenomenon has been received in equal parts, both with great acceptance by some and with some reluctance by others. We are tired of the same cooking and the same des-

serts: donuts, “tocinillos”, “huesos de santo”,… same flavors, same smells, ultimately routine can also reach our eating habits. I think, for some time, we all have some kind of “hunger” for something new to change the routine and the Internet has opened a large window that makes us accessible to all these developments, and in this case the American pastry is very interesting and attractive.

“One of my favorites books I used when I started with my passion for baking was the Essentials of Baking by Williams Sonoma, since I found there concrete answers and clear explanations that had never found in another book.”

Bea

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“Three words that could define El Rincón de Bea are enthusiasm, passion and sugar!”

Bea Roque

DM: How many cookbooks do you have? Would you recommend any special book those who are new to the world of pastry?

Bea: The other day while I was reorganizing I counted them and specifically had 129 cookbooks.

Since then I have a couple more on the way and no doubt the collection will continue to grow. An average of 95% of my books are in English.

DM: What is the biggest challenge in the kitchen you have faced?

Bea: Actually every recipe I make is a challenge in itself. I can talk about the first cookies decorated with icing, the first bundt cake, the first layer cake or about the first buttercream. All have been different challenges at different stages of my life.

DM: Do you have any memories about a favorite cake as a kid?

Bea: When I was little I did not eat anything, and what I remember is that I ate lots of chocolate palms.

DM: Which are your secret or essential gadgets you use to make your desserts?

Bea: Without hesitation my KitchenAid, because as I said above without this robot I would not have started my passion for baking, I also use a good scale to weigh ingredients and a good thermometer to measure the temperature of the oven.

DM: What is the most important thing you have learned over the years in the kitchen? What is considered your favorite dessert?

Bea: This may sound like quite trite and I have learned that the kitchen must have patience, a virtue that I have when I am alone in the kitchen. As for my weakness, I am extremely fond of Angel food cakes, is like eating a piece of a cloud.

DM: Do you consider that your creations are similar to the sophisticated French or more equal to the American ones, more creative?

Bea: With no doubt I am saying that my creations have a great inspiration on American desserts, as it is a mixture of all the cultures that went there and settled there.

DM: We see on your page that

you do not make cookies or cakes covered with fondant, is there any reason why this is so?

Bea: I do have a recipe for cake with fondant, but the low number is not due to any particular reason, but to the lack of time I have to make these cakes, which are so laborious and delicate.

DM: Do you change or adapt your desserts depending on season of the year? If so, tell us some of the desserts you normally do in summer.

Bea: While trying to adapt the ingredients to the season of the year, summer is not one of the dates on which most usually do dessert, maybe some ice cream or sorbet, always something with fruit.

DM: Is there a goal that has been proposed to “El Rincón de Bea”?

What is the next goal to achieve?

Bea: I never got goals when I started the blog. It’s just a hobby that fills me and makes me learn.

If there is something I like to do is finish writing a book and due to the lack of time I am not able to finish.

My purpose is to finish it by the end of the year.

DELIA’S MAGAZINE | 9

LOS DELANTALES

The Revolution of the new Apron has arrived Interview with Maica Malavé XAVIER VIÑALS ; IRINA BAUTISTA| MADRID

PURPLE DREAMS

For many years the apron has been seen as a simple pledge lacking any luxury or detail but today the scenario has completely changed thanks to “Los Delantales”. Their designs have become a fashion icon for women who like to feel pretty in the kitchen. This reality has been possible thanks to the work of Maica Malavé, designer of the brand, bringing to the XXI century a fashion that seemed to have been forgotten in the 40’s. Maica Malavé’s creations can be found in the store with showroom in Madrid waiting to be worn by different women highlighting its most flirty and feminine side. To know some of her secrets have contact directly with Maica Malavé who has explained us the day by day of the brand that is becoming increasingly recognized by more people.

LOS DELANTALES

LOS DELANTALES™

LOS DELANTALES™

DELIA’S MAGAZINE | 11

LOS DELANTALES A dream to fulfill and a fabulous idea

Los Delantales www.losdelantales.com

The design and manufacture

Make a retro-chic apron is not something that arises from the overnight and many women, including Maica, did not like how the typical apron fit them due to they are often large and unfeminine. So, the founder of “Los Delantales” had one aim: to create a feminine apron that could show off in front of your guests. But Maica Malavé has achieved something more and has placed the apron in a luxury position, both in quality and in design.

“Thinking about fashion and not in clothes to work”, that’s the key to her magnificent designs as Maica Malavé explains.

The consortium between a good manufacture and a high quality materials allow her aprons to fit snugly to the body and make you feel good wearing them.

Although it has started to become a recognized brand in Spain, the productions are small, a fact that prevents them from editing their own cloth but Maica states The dream of owning her own that “hopefully in a not too disbusiness and her creative capaci- tant future we’ll use exclusive faty made possible the beginning of brics of our firm”. her project in the early 2008 when she started to present the designs No one better than “Los Deto different stores and slowly she lantales” know that experience was starting to be known by some is acquired with work and perpeople. Maica says that now, with fected over time. Her first cothe importance of the creative pas- llection took long until they got try is all much easier since there is what they wanted, models for all much more demand. tastes and all sizes, now preparing a new collection takes them relatively short time and the inspiration comes mostly from what their clients look for.

ÍO

OC ER

TL

LIT

12 | DELIA’S MAGAZINE

“Little Rocío” Collection. All items in this collection have a spring inspiration with lots of flowers perfectly combined with green and violet. Without any doubt it is a safe bet for those women wanting to give to their kitchen lots of vitality with their presence. Adding the sleeves and the hat of the collection, you can complete the apron and look fantastic. And we must not forget that good Chefs are those who are not as clean as a water stain due to they experiment with all kinds of ingredients, so, and because we all like to look pretty, “Los Delantales” is a safe bet.

LOS DELANTALES

Anyone who thinks that what are only going to find aprons in “Los Delantales” is everything but right. Maica Malavé’s team surprised us with hats and sleeves with the same design, away from everything related to the kitchen.

Many of her clients say the hat is really useful when cooking and so are the sleeves. All these elements complete the figure of the apron designed for long without them. It is essential to use the cooking hat when we are in the kitchen. No more stains on the

“

sleeves of the sweater with the sleeves of the apron set, no more excuses for those little accidents which make us lose so much time in the kitchen.

“In the Garden” Collection.

The mixture of bottle green colors combined with pale pink and white flowers contrast presented by this collection, makes you feel ready to take to receive your guests. Moreover, the model fits perfectly Dress your waist so that you will not hesitate to put it on any occasion.

When designing we think in fashion and not-to-work clothes so the manufacture and the materials must have a top quality.

Available in all apron designs (delantes), we can find different models of apron: baby, vintage or dress, to fit each of our styles.

Moreover, the sleeves and the cooking hats are also available in each of the designs.

The styling keeps the essence of each of the garments that “Los Delantales” make, but there is one thing they all have in common: they all keep an ancient tradition in its use, the guild connoisseurs know. “Surely we all remember our grandmothers or the lady of the grocery store with an apron, and were conceived not do their job without it,” says Maica Malavé. Currently for aprons, this piece to our culinary work, is much more than a garment, is part of your image, the image we give our diners and guests.

IN TH

“Black de Jouy” Collection.

These aprons are among all the most demanded by clients of “Los Delantales”. Perhaps it is one of the most popular models due to its elegant combination of black and white which makes it look very sophisticated and suitable for all occasions.

E GA RDEN

MAICA MALAVÉ

CAKES HAUTE COUTURE

CAKES HAUTE COUTURE

CAKES HAUTE COUTURE A prestigious Atelier in Sitges XAVIER VIÑALS ; IRINA BAUTISTA| SITGES

Among the streets of the summer city of Sitges you can find the prestigious Cake Design Atelier Cakes Haute Couture, born in 2002, founded by the renowned cake designer Patricia Arribálzaga. From then until now in her workshop she has developed all kinds of cakes and pastries with lots of glamor and creativity which surely can caught anybody’s eyes. The Atelier Cakes Haute Couture offers an excellent education in Sugarcraft with an important international projection, since it has formed students from around the world.

The image that is wanted to be given through all her creations borns from the consortium between pastry and high fashion.

Patricia Arribálzaga explains that her interest in baking started at a young age and was able to explore different pastries and sweet thanks to the variety of origins of his family. The amount of creativity that her work requires has been achieved by the combination of her studies in Fine Arts with the professional pastry.

Each of her products is an edible piece of art, not forgetting the importance of taste, which in her opinion “represents 80% of the excellence of artistic confection.”

When you have achieved a privileged position, it is interesting to analyze the path that you have followed trying to find out where lies the success of your career.

According to Patricia Arribálzaga the success of her career is due to not only to the gourmet flavors developed especially for cakes decorated but also in the interpretation of the client’s wishes regarding the issues they want to reflect on cakes, cupcakes or cookies making exclusive designs.

While the trajectory of the sugarcraft phenomenon here in Spain is short it has attracted great interest in people and has made an incredible progress.

This phenomenon has its origins in the United Kingdom and has travelled to the United States settling there until nowadays.

“

The limit of cake decoration is found in the creativity of the people and the style that each of them wants to develop with the client’s wishes PATRICIA ARRIBÁLZAGA

DELIA’S MAGAZINE | 15

CAKES HAUTE COUTURE MARCELO AQUILIO| MAYA HANSEN

MARCELO AQUILIO

Although anyone can introduce itself in this world following books at home, Patricia Arribálzaga recommends placing yourself first in front of a good book, which not necessarily means it to be advanced, and learn how to make a perfect cake to decorate it then, or getting tasty cookies and then moving to the decoration.

For those wanting to learn more advanced techniques or being more professional, her advice is to attend schools or professionals who have vast experience in baking and with extensive experience and reputation in the techniques of decoration.

A close view to the creative process

for the decoration she has always followed her intuition and has given to her products her own style.

In Haute Couture Cakes, the process starts with the idea that the client has and different proposals are made so they can develop a unique and surprising product. From this point, the secret is in making a good cake without an excess of sugar, with a sponge texture and flavored using natural ingredients. Once the cake is baked decorating it is something that depends on the decorator that is guided by its training and personal style.

The taste of the product is as important as the decoration of it as both elements are equally important to achieve excellence.

The English pastry is characterized by its elegancy and presentation, while the French could stand out for its sophistication and the one from the United States is recognized by its creativity.

Patricia Arribálzaga admits that her style from the point of view of taste is influenced by France since as baker she has been specialized in French pastry, and as 16 | DELIA’S MAGAZINE

“

PATRICIA ARRIBÁLZAGA

Haute Couture Lace Because of its impact and recognition at an international level, this design was the cover of the British magazine “Wedding Cakes, A design source.” Its design, tells the founder of Cakes

| MAYA HANSEN

The product depends on the process. If we were speaking of wine, we could distinguish the quality of the product depending on where it has been developed.

This point is very important to some companies that make pastry or cake design.

Haute Couture, it took nearly a week of work. Knowing how to make cakes with different floors is not an easy technique and requires lots of practice specially if talking of big cakes as this one.

Another thing that often draw attention is the color of the cake and the perfection of the white that covers it. To work with white fondant also needs lots of practice but the most important thing is to wear white cotton clothing and to work on a very clean surface. In the cake decorating courses and in the ones dealing with wedding cakes that can be made Cakes Haute Couture, Patricia Arribálzaga teaches all the techniques to get the best results in fondant-covered cake so that the surface does not present a wrinkled appearance or less stable and always look perfect.

CAKES HAUTE COUTURE

HAUTE COUTURE LACE DELIA’S MAGAZINE | 17

CAKES HAUTE COUTURE

TIFFANY & CO. 18 | DELIA’S MAGAZINE

CAKES HAUTE COUTURE

MARCELO AQUILIO

Many times, a question that strikes into our heads when decorating with fondant in your Atelier or at home is the thickness the coat must have to obtain a perfect and not to cloying cake.

The argentinean cake designer tells us that we must first make a good ganaching coat or a marzipan coat, and then we should cover it with a fondant coat of 6 mm.

| MAYA HANSEN

About the Courses Cakes Hautre Couture offers courses that are aimed at both amateurs and those who already have experience and professionals who want to hone their techniques. The school has been making courses for seven years and she has trained students from all around the world who travel especially to attend her courses.

The demand is constant and its growing due to the excellent reputation she has made in developing unique methods of teaching to ensure a very good result optimizing the time. For its international demand Cakes Haute Couture also makes courses in English.

MARCELO AQUILIO| MAYA HANSEN

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Supreme, exquisite and sophisticated pies. An exclusive box of sugar that hides exquisite flavors

The most sophisticated cakes. Fantastic cakes, perfect cupcakes and glamorous cookies.

COSMOPOLITAN

VOGUE

DELIA’S MAGAZINE | 19

CAKES HAUTE COUTURE

“

All courses are very professional, the teaching method is unique, you really learn everything you have to know in this world and all thanks to the generosity and professionalism of Patricia.

FILIPPA - PORTUGAL

MARCELO AQUILIO| MAYA HANSEN

“

Patricia thank you very much for sharing with us your domain in this art, because it really is.

However, as in other courses, the one of wedding cakes has been really helpful, I hope to continue enjoying your lessons!

CRISTINA - BARCELONA

“ “

XIMENA - SUIZA

It’s amazing how much you learn and the ability to make an enjoyable class of Patricia is admirable! I love the fact she shares lots of her secrets with us.

JOAQUINA - HOLANDA

www.cakeshautecouture.com info@cakeshautecouture.com 20 | DELIA’S MAGAZINE

MARCELO AQUILIO| MAYA HANSEN

The courses are all very good and really professional, thanks to the great experience of Patricia, the course organization and the method of learning is amazing, wonderful work and good manage to make a real comprehensive training.

CAKES HAUTE COUTURE

TOILE DE JOUY DELIA’S

MAGAZINE

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21

n e e ow

HALLOWEEN

l l a H

RECIPE

Halloween is a time of “tricks, treats and sweets.”

On the night of October 31 ghosts, witches and fantastic creatures seem to be more active than ever.

We have prepared a product that portrays this event and we have done it in the best way: push-up pops.

Push-up pops have appeared out of nowhere and as days go by we hear of more frequently but, what are they really? Push-up pops are a new concept of presenting a cake or a cupcake.

One of their parts is a container that is attached to a slider system which can push the content and letting us eat the cake like a lollipop. Curious, isn’t it? It is the perfect way to make desserts because you make individualized portable doses which also can decorate any kind of tables for any occasion.

We accompanied our push-up pops with toppers with different Halloween motifs which can be downloaded in www.littlebeehive. com.au. Want to see how we do the push-up pops?

Continue reading!

DELIA’S BAKERY™

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HALLOWEEN

DELIA’S BAKERY™

With the open end of the container of our push-up pop we cut circles of the cake we have made and we set them aside.

DELIA’S BAKERY™

We proceed to elaborate our push-up pops by joining the base of the container with the slider attachment introducing it by the open end of the container.

It’s time to fill in the push-up pops. To do this, slip one of the cake disks previously prepared into the base of the container.

Then we alternate a layer of buttercream or frosting with another disc of cake until we fill the entire container. Easy, right?

DELIA’S BAKERY™

DELIA’S MAGAZINE | 23

n e e ow

HALLOWEEN

l l a H

DELIA’S BAKERY™

We have made two types of push-up pops for our up pops seek to establish themselves as the pastry latable to dress it for the occasion. Green and black are test in fashion for the next month but you, what sweet perfectly combined in our push-up pop of brownie are you going to elaborate for Halloween? and white chocolate frosting tinted with green food coloring gel from the Squires Kitchen brand. The final touch is given by a small candy coated with yellow COMENT IT ON chocolate. Moreover, the red-black combination is obdelia’s bakery tained via combining red velvet cake discs with white chocolate frosting. To keep the push-up pops easily, #DELIA’S_hALLOween the kit comes with lids to help us not only with the conservation but also when transporting them. Push24 | DELIA’S MAGAZINE

FLORENTINE CUPCAKES & COOKIES

HOPE

Considering all the ingredients that a cake must have, there is one that can never be lacking: hope. Florentine Cupcakes was born with the aim of making everyone to fall in love with their cupcakes, which certainly has achieved. Among the streets of the Born district of Barcelona, in 2010, opened its doors to the public this small but cozy pastry introducing their creations and their bets by the perfect mix flavors.

PASSION

Their passion for baking makes all their products especial and with the perfect flavor every time.

TASTE

Their passion for innovation allows seasonal changes of their products to match every time of the year. The store is a faithful reproduction of their products: perfect, nice and tastefully decorated. If you want to know some of the secrets of Florentine Cupcakes & Cookies, continue reading and fall in love with them!

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FLORENTINE CUPCAKES & COOKIES

Calders, 3 08003 Barcelona www.florentinecupcakes.com

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FLORENTINE CUPCAKES & COOKIES

A whole sweet universe in Barcelona

Florentine Cupcakes & Cookies XAVIER VIÑALS ; IRINA BAUTISTA| BARCELONA

T

he “‘cupcake phenomenon” has spread throughout the world but has appeared in Spain recently and undoubtedly has come to stay indefinitely. This type of pastry comes from the United States, pioneers in the development of cakes covered with fondant, macaroons, decorated cookies with icing and sparkles or cupcakes with frostings of all kinds of flavors and colors. Ideal to surprise the most demanding guests and accompany special occasions, Florentine Cupcakes & Cookies has been created with the aim of surprising all kind of public.

PATRICIA GELABERT

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When Elisa Calcagno decided to start Florentine Cupcakes & Cookies in 2009, little was known about this sector in Spain and she was one pioneer in selling these products online. To develop her project, Elisa, he thought about the relationship between the American and the English pastry and mixed them together. Furthermore, Elisa remembers spending great moments of his childhood with his brothers in her mother’s kitchen; “So Florentine arises from the desire to reinvent Grandma’s bakery not only through a handmade pathway but also with the sentimental value that is added in its colors, textures and smells.” For this reason and for the taste of all his creations, Florentine has positioned itself to a referential point and has caught the eye of many specialists in the sector due to it has developed all their recipes reaching all kind of people, regardless of age, preferences and tastes.

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FLORENTINE CUPCAKES & COOKIES

Winter matches with the taste of salted caramel, spring with chocolate and strawberry, lime for the summer and autumn with apple, cinnamon and nuts. ELISA CALCAGNO

PATRICIA GELABERT

Too sweet to be good Frostings covering the surface of the cupcakes often contain high amounts of sugar and butter. The combination of these two ingredients can be too sweet and cloying to many unaccustomed palates to that kind of taste.

Florentine is in favor to adapt the recipe for this coat and has reduced the sugar quantity and thus balance the sweetness: “the public here do not tolerate very sugary products such as the typical American cupcakes.”

A cupcake for each season Our palate is very selective, and we do not like certain tastes throughout the year, as many recipes should be used just as the summer clothes for summer and other clothes during the winter and cooler seasons. In Florentine Cupcakes & Cookies also follow this kind of policy is that the more acidic flavor cupcakes that are made during the spring and summer months are not as acceptable as calorie flavors sold in autumn and the colder months.

But while we keep the pieces of clothing in the closet and we do not see them again until the season changes, there are always some pieces that you keep it to wear it on special occasions throughout the year because you love it. The same happens to Florentine Cupcakes & Cookies, due to they can never stop making their acclaimed carrot cake and marshmallow cupcakes dipped in chocolate, apple and cinnamon cupcakes and the decorations in fondant paste.

DELIA’S MAGAZINE | 29

FLORENTINE CUPCAKES & COOKIES

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The carrot cake with oranges, nuts and spices creates a complexity of flavors much more interesting when combined..

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HELENA GÓMEZ

Just have a spectacular taste LUÍS CUENCA

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Perfect presentation of each product, with vintage and English touches

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Yummy, the kids adore them!

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LAURA PÉREZ

ADRIANA ROMERO

mmm, delicious!

SANDRA FRÍAS

FLORENTINE CUPCAKES & COOKIES

After being at Florentine Cupcakes & Cookies and having analyzed all their flavours we have made our choice. Delia’s choice: the apple and cinnamon cupcake to sweeten the coldest winter, blueberries and white chocolate cupcake for a rainy spring day, the lime cupcake for a hot summer afternoon accompanied with a cold tea and the chocolate cookie cupcake for a sunny autumn day with a cappuccino.

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PATRICIA GELABERT

Each cupcake evokes a sensation and aroused feelings to each of us that have made us fall in love with them.

Go and tr y the wide selection of f lavors offered Florentine Cupcakes & C ookies!

DELIA’S MAGAZINE

Cupcake: The Beginning Cupcakes. So sweet and delicate, right? Its elaborate decoration makes them difficult to eat due to they look so pretty. This elegant dessert came from the originality and good taste of bakers and may be responsible of one of the happiest moments of the day. But, from where did these small kitchen wonders came from? What makes them so special? In Delia’s Bakery we ask these questions daily to find the secret ingredient of these charming protagonists of our article this month: Florentine Cupcakes & Cookies.

En la cocina. igual que las costuIn the kitchen, as happens in other areas, habits and customs change. If we were on a usual American cuisine we will probably use spoons and cups to elaborate all

kind of pastries. Because of these tools the cupcakes are named these way, due to they not require more than one cup of flour in its preparation. In 1796, the cupcakes are first mentioned in the cookbook of the American pastry chef Amelia Simms, American Cookery. Since that moment until now, the cupcake has evolved through years having converted itself into what we like to call a culinary fantasy.

On the sweet side Cada vez que nos ponemos delaEvery time we place ourselves in front of a cupcake’s recipe for the first time, lots of doubts strike into our heads and fears can let to make everything but a perfect cupcake.

Many times we do have fear when decorating it because we think we are incapable of making those

perfect swirls we have seen many times on bakeries or we are just afraid when we use great amounts of sugar. The cupcakes are known for their distinctive flavor: sweet.

When preparing a frosting or a buttercream we don’t really need to use large amounts of sugar to obtain an optimal outcome: the fact of adding more sugar won’t make it better to the taste. There are many alternatives to get a proper frosting without using sugar in excess. The cream cheese or sour cream and butter are a good alternative for our frostings and by using them properly sure we will stop hearing from people that our cupcakes are “too cloying”. Florentine Cupcakes & Cookies have found out a perfect solution to this problem and all their frostings are more than delicious.

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FLORENTINE CUPCAKES & COOKIES

Florentine Cupcakes & Cookies elaborate personalized cakes to celebrate any kind of occasion !

PATRICIA GELABERT

PATRICIA GELABERT

PATRICIA GELABERT

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FLORENTINE CUPCAKES & COOKIES

PATRICIA GELABERT

PATRICIA GELABERT

Moreover, you can find in their bakery a huge variety of useful cooking products

PATRICIA GELABERT

DELIA’S MAGAZINE | 33

SWEETAMBS

SweetAmbs

From learning to master a good decorative technique IRINA BAUTISTA | Nueva York Her unique style, grace and perseverance have always been traveling companions of Amber Spiegel. After graduating from Ithaca College, where she finished Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, Amber found a fork in the road that led her to change her place of employment. So she gave vent to what soon would be her true passion: baking. For a while she enrolled several pastry courses, including a program of The Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York, that was when she realized she had found her place, she knew that baking was her real passion that wanted to do during all her live. In 2008 she won a prize in a competition In 2008, Amber decorated her first set of cookies thanks to her mother, who convinced her to sell them, and she started a small personal business through Etsy.com platform. Since then, her work has evolved technically every day, but always holding the flame of her unique style. Many of us who wonder where the inspiration comes from and how all her original creations have evolved from their original look to the actual one. “I find 4 | | DELIA’S 34 DELIA’S MAGAZINE MAGAZINE

organized by a recognized and prestigious brand, Wilton, and then went to work in said company. But it was not until April 2011 when Amber decided to return to her home state of New York, to continue fighting for her dream and turn the cookie-making business part time, SweetAmbs, in a full-time business.

“It is often difficult to make a place in an area where there is much competition” Amber Spiegel also confesses in an exclusive interview for Delia’s Magazine that: “The Internet is a great place to gather ideas, but you have to be able to put your own special touch on your art in order to make it unique”.

of my inspiration from items in antique stores and vintage shops”, says Amber Spiegel who also reveals that one set of cookies found inspiration in a small porcelain tea set she had as a child. Despite having improved some decorating techniques some of them always require more attention than others. Amber Spiegel tells us that those decorations where you have to replicate a slogan or a logo of a company are the most difficult

ones, since these must represent a true copy of the slogan of the company and therefore you have to work under more pressure as usually which makes it more difficult.

Imagination and decoration Attending many courses when you are a beginner in the world of cookie decorating is a piece of advice of the founder of SweetAmbs we should not overlook. It’s in courses where you can learn the basic techniques for decorating our creations, from there everything is practice: “It may be frustrating in the beginning to get things right,

SWEETAMBS such as getting the correct icing consistency or using the right amount of pressure on a decorating bag, but just keep practicing and practicing”, says Amber Spiegel.

During her period of initiation into the wonderful world of baking, she also had occasional difficulty in the beginning: “The thing that I had the most trouble with in the begin-

“

ning was getting my cookie recipe to be just right. It’s difficult to make a cookie that does not spread too much, but also stays soft. It’s taken me a few years of trial and error to achieve the recipe that I use now”, says. But once acquired the basic notions about cookie decorating is time to experiment and look for ideas in different places.

One of the books that inspired our hero when she was a beginner was Cakewalk by Margaret Braun, but explains that Martha Stewart’s Cookie Decorating is a good starting point due to it is full of tricks, AMBER SPIEGEL techniques and good ideas.

When I started decorating cookies in 2008 I realized I had found my place.

Amber Spiegel teaches us that, although experience is not on our side, with a little patience and determination we can achieve amazing results. From simplicity to amazing results: she makes decorations using simple cookie decorating techniques but the results are absolutely amazing and anyone who proposed can make them following her tutorials. No doubt we are left with a glimpse of the essence of SweetAmbs, which names the result of her dedication for years to achieve his dream.

Some of her creations

Bridal Show at the Lazy Swan These cookies were inspired by Marie Antoinette. She used Pinterest to gather inspiration for colours and textures and sketched her design on paper before decorating the cookies. Each cookie took about 10-15 minutes to decorate.

Spring Hats The spring hat cookies were meant as a Mother’s Day design, but they were popular for Easter, as well. She was introduced to the basket weave technique during her training at The Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park. The technique is simple, but it takes practice to get the lines to be straight and evenly spaced.

“

Starting my business and being able to focus all my attention on decorating cookies has made me love it much more than I did when it was a side job.

AMBER SPIEGEL

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SWEET 180º

In this first issue of Delia’s Magazine we give special importance to people, bakeries or confectioner institutions that have been created believing in their dreams and have made a great effort in order to achieve their dream. So we could not forget Sweet 180º, a great little project that sure it acquires worldwide importance. Moreover, we have talked with its creators and which have provided this sweet and charming interview.

Trayectoria Delia’s Magazine: Why and how did you start this project? What direction will take over the next years?

Sweet 180º: Desde que comenzamos, a partSince we started, from the creation of the blog in 2010, everything has arisen naturally; ideas that become small challenges and we carried out some of them little by little until we see all them materialized.

Our product is the result of Ana’s obsession with Cake Stands and our professional background as event organizers. For this reason we have invited many artists to work with us.

The pastry line began, like many businesses, because we started hearing little of creative pastry and suddenly we put 36 | DELIA’S MAGAZINE

it seriously and see that there was a good chance to succeed. In the coming years we hope this project continues to grow and offer different products, keeping learning and finding our place in the market to settle down.

Vida profesional DM: ¿Have you always worked in the baking world? Where did your interest came from?

S180º: No, we are a museologist and an art historian, and had always worked in coordinating festivals, or in the production of works by contemporary artists. But as life is not a straight way, a hobby erupted under the name of Sweet 180º. Actually what we like is to make the two worlds coexist making events but now also with our sweet creations.

Diseño

DM: What story lies behind the masks that appear in your designs?

S180º: The designs are made by an illustrator who works with us for the porcelain stands, Nuria Marquès. The mask is an item she uses a lot in all of our designs and we liked it, because it gives an air of mystery, superhero, super cake!

Seguidores DM: : Are you a fan of any special Cake Designer?

S180º: We like many, we would say Peggy Porschen to name one of them. But the truth is that in Spain we already have great professionals who increasingly are favoring spectacular projects as “Sucre i Vanilla” by Viviana Zerneri.

DM: ¿Where do you seek inspiration for your pastry creations?

S180º: From everywhere, anything can become edible.

Visit their shop at:

http://www.sweet180grados.com/tienda/es/

FAQs

This space is dedicated exclusively to our readers, who send us your questions through our mail adress deliamagazine.contact @ gmail.com. Each issue will answer some of the questions we receive, but the rest of them will be answered in a special space located in our blog that will be reviewed frequently. This space is a meeting point for everyone through which we can all learn more things each day.

I have lots of cake molds ans pands but I want to know if there is just one type through which I could obtain a clean and perfect result, Âżhave any advice?

PME molds are molds made from high quality aluminum to ensure a perfect bake. To prevent the dough from sticking during cooking, it is advisable to grease the pan with butter or with nonstick spray. The fact that it is just a one-piece mold with straight edges makes it ideal for cakes which will subsequently be covered with fondant or decorated with buttercream.

I am introducing myself into the Sugarcraft world and I would like to know what is the best material for floral decorations.

To start, we recommend using rolled fondant (what in England is called sugarpaste) because it is a very malleable and easy to work with it. Once you gain practice, you can move to gumpaste (equivalent to what is called flower paste in England) that requires a little more patience but has the advantage of being able to stretch to a minimum thickness (which can not be achieved with fondant). The gumpaste, when dried adopts a texture resembling porcelain in hardness and therefore is used to make decorations which will not be eaten. In-between, we can find modeling chocolate, which can be stretched very well and once dry, despite being hard, you can eat it.

Is there any difference between the cream of tartar and cream stabilizers?

They are two totally different things. Cream of tartar (or potassium bitartrate) is used to stabilize the egg whites in meringues preparations and increases the volume of the mixture significantly. Cream stabilizers are used stabilize whipping cream. None of the two elements is interchangeable with the other.

Can molasses be substituted by honey in a cookie recipe?

The molasses is obtained from the sugar cane and has a similar texture to honey but is more dense (because of its low water content). Its color is almost black and has a sweet taste with bitter points. In most recipes it can be substituted by honey considering that the taste can be modified. If we had no honey, it could be replaced with golden syrup or with dark corn syrup.

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TUTORIAL

TUTORIAL

Ten roses for her

TUTORIAL FROM DELIA’S BAKERY No need to wait for spring to have roses at home. These small pieces of art made from gum paste can be used both to decorate a cake or our home, the only thing you need is imagination. In Delia’s Bakery we are designing a new concept of creative and original cakes. In this tutorial, we will focus on modelling gum paste also known as flower paste, characterized by its modelling simplicity. Gum paste modelling opens us the door to a new world of decorating possibilities.

INGREDIENTES ·Gum Paste ·Potato Starch ·Water

TA

TE O N KE

TOOLS ·PME rose cutter ·Dogbone tool ·Toothpick or a wire ·Teaspoons

1. Make an oval with gum paste and let it dry. To work best, it is advisable to work with the oval attached to a toothpick or to a wire.

Always bearing in mind that the use of wires is advisable if you want to join it after to a dummie or to a structure that will not be eaten later.

3. Cut 3 petals with a cutter which has a larger size than the oval. To paste the petals, use water as glue.

Use one of them to wrap the oval and the other two to wrap the first.

The two last ones are added one overlapping the other, before the whole petal is glued, leave a free edge to insert the other one. With the help of a toothpick or by hand shape petals. Allow to dry.

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2. Before molding the different petals, the gum paste has been cut with PME rose cutters and the edges have been curved with a dogbone tool. To prevent the gum paste to stick to our hands or to our tools, you must dust the gum paste with potato starch which will give a special shine to our petals once dried.

TEN ROSES FOR HER 4. Add 4 more petals with the overlapping technique around the two ones we have shaping the edges with the hands.

5. Add 6 re petals with the above procedure. Allow to dry. At this stage, our rose can be considered finished or we can keep adding the next type of petals. We use the term “hand petals” to refer to these petals whose edges are shaped using our hands.

6. Peak petals. After using the dogbone tool and using a tothpick, we curve the edges of the petal as shown in the pictures. Repeat this step for a total of six petals. Once done, flip the petals and use the dogbone tool and press from the straight edge to the larger one. Gradually add to the rose petals one by one curving them a little bit when sticking them to the rose. You can add one crown of petals in peak or, if you want a more open rose, add up to 2 crowns of peak petals letting it dry before adding the second round.

7. For the last crown of petals used a third technique. For this we need as many spoons as petals we have to do, seven in our case.

DELIA’S BAKERY™

8. We mold the petal with the dogbone tool and we leave them over teaspoons so that the width edge of the petal protrudes from the spoon. Then, with the index finger and the thumb we can bend it and add before too stiff. Let it dry.

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TEN ROSES FOR HER

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TEN ROSES FOR HER

TIP

for success For more realistic floral results, it is always advised to work with gum paste. The color of the rose will be closely linked to the capsule we use for cupcakes or to the frosting or buttercream we have used.

In Delia’s Bakery were prepared bouquets of roses made from purple fondant from the Regalice brand. The biggest roses have a total of sixteen petals, an ideal number to give roses an open and stately look. The other roses are made with a total of ten petal rose and look little and more discrete closed but equally beautiful. The purpose of these roses is to decorate cupcakes so the size is limited to the diameter of our cupcake. For those who do not like the fondant, chocolate plastique can be used to make this roses, yielding a result similar to the one we obtain by using fondant and will taste like chocolate.

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INTERVIEW

PrimroseBakery From delicacy to delight Interview with Martha Swift, cofunder of the Primrose Bakery

IRINA BAUTISTA | LONDRES “Delicious, pretty and affordable” - so described Primrose Bakery which opens its doors exclusively to Delia’s Magazine to share with us all the secrets that make it stand out in London. Primrose Bakery opened the first store in London in 2004 and so far from then has charmed thousands of people with their cupcakes and Layer Cakes.

Because of the possibilities offered by the American pastry they decided to transport the phenomenon that was sweeping other continents to England. According to Martha Swift, cofounder of Primrose Bakery, they had one single goal: “to create cupcakes that have a good taste and impeccable presentation.”

Delia’s Magazine: Where does the name of Primerose Bakery come from?

Primrose Bakery: Primrose comes from the colour primrose yellow and also the fact that we began our business in primrose hill in North London. Today they have opened a second store in Covent Garden, also in London..

then the staff and chefs all try it and when deciding the flavour? give their feedback. Then we might PB: It is possible to try many try seling a small amount of them many different flavours of cupand see how they are received. cakes – most work and some don’t.

DM: What is your vision of this type of pastry??

PB: The new phenomenon of cupcakes has caused a sensation in many cuisines and pastries which have adopted these recipes to their most exclusive desserts, but to the rest of the world cupcakes and fondant cakes, are very exploited products.

DM: Do you change up the buttercreams to match the seasons?

PB: Yes, we change the flavours of some of our cupcakes depending on which fruit is in season and the time of the year. Eg, we make strawberry and raspberry cupcakes in the summer months, and ginger cupcakes in the autumn and christmas.

Vainilla and “chocolate will

always be the most popular.

DM: Frostings and icings are characterized by their sweetness and some people can not stand it. Are there any tricks to avoid the amount of sugar or butter in that kind of creams?

DM: The income of flavours is DM: When you decide to create a new product for Primrose Bakery, astonishing nowadays. Do you do you follow a special process? consider that exist some rules that must be followed Chocolate sponge PB: Yes, we test the recipe and 42 | DELIA’S MAGAZINE

PRIMROSE BAKERY

Strawberry Layer Cake

PB: Not really – something like a cream cheese icing that we use on our carrot cupcakes is less sweet.

But buttercream icing is sweet.

DM: How is it working in a pastry shop daily?

PB: The pastry is always an art to us as it gives us the satisfaction that the kitchen is transmitted to our customers every time they buy a product from our store. . *** For those of you who feel devotion to baking, do not hesitate to visit Primrose Bakery in London and do not forget that you can buy all their books, where you will find the secrets of their best recipes.

Tienda Primrose Bakery. Primrose Hill: 69 Gloucester Avenue

Cover from the book by Martha Swift and Lisa Thomas The Primrose Bakery Book

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E

ZIN

at’s h W

S IA’ L DE n to x e n

GA A M

Chocolate t reat s

Strawberry Layer Cake

DM: Uno de los principales problemas que suelen tener los buttercreams es su elevado contenido en azúcar y mucha gente no tolera este intenso sabor. ¿Existe alguna alternativa para las personas poco azucareras?

PB: Por norma general los buttercreams hechos con azúcar conllevan el riesgo de ser excesivamente dulces para algunos paladares, pero siempre podemos optar por el buttercream de crema de queso.

DM: ¿Cómo vivís el día a día de vuestra profesión?

PB: La repostería es siempre un arte para nosotros, ya que la satisfacción que nos proporciona la cocina se transmite a nuestros clientes cada vez que compran un producto de nuestra tienda. *** Para todos aquellos que sintáis devoción por la repostería, no dudéis Follow us onen visitar Pri- Tienda Primrose Bakery. Primrose Hill: mrose Bakery enBakery Londres y no 69 Gloucester Avenue Facebook/Delia’s

olvidéis que podéis adquirir todos sus libros donde encontraréis los secretos de sus mejores recetas.

Portada del libro The Primrose Bakery Book

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