Take Your Blog to Work Day

I've been a little quiet lately because work has been hectic. This past weekend we had a 100-person wedding (tiered cake, groom's cake cupcakes, and mini cookie wedding favors) and a 300-person dessert catering event, in addition to our usual daily orders. And have I mentioned that we are currently a two-woman operation? Fortunately, we are more like two superwomen, so everything turned out well. But to apologize for the lack of posts, I have some pictures from work to tempt your taste buds.

The catering event was for a clothing company, hosted at an upscale department store. We did three mini desserts: chocolate-raspberry verrines, chocolate cupcake cones, and strawberry shortcakes. The verrines were layers of cream cheese mousse, chocolate mousse, and raspberry jam, served in a glass the size of a shot glass, and topped with a bit of champagne-pop rocks chocolate. (Yes, really. And yes, it's as gross as it sounds, and no, it was not our choice.)


Plated and ready to be passed:Sure, they look adorable, until you realize that to serve 300 people, you have to make approximately a bajillion verinnes composed of a kablillion fiddly little layers, each layer carefully applied so that it's even and smooth, and each application requiring an extensive chilling period before the next layer could be added. I think I am done with verrines for a long, long time.
The cupcake cones were probably the most popular item. Miniature ice cream cones were filled with chocolate cake and topped with buttercream and sprinkles to resemble ice cream cones. They were a perfect two-bite dessert, and really appealed to both adults and children.
We had special trays constructed for passing, since they wouldn't balance on regular trays. The best part is, they can double as ping-pong paddles after the event!
This server graciously agreed to model for me to show the scale of the cones. He pretended reluctance, but he's probably an aspiring actor so I suspect he was secretly pleased. Also, notice the clothing racks in the back? That's because we were set up in, like, the alterations room of the store. You may be asking, is an alterations room equipped for catering? NO, no it is not. But who needs counters and running water and space when catering? Not us!Strawberry shortcakes. Kind of awkward to pass, but it's what the client wanted. Homey desserts are big, and who can argue with fresh strawberries and cream?

This was the wedding cake. My boss actually made it, and while I would love to take credit for it, and under most circumstances I would, she might be reading this, so...hi boss! You do good work! *innocent whistling* This was taken before fresh flowers and other finishing touches were added.
Each layer was a different flavor. The bottom was vanilla sponge with vanilla buttercream and four types of fresh berries. The middle was chocolate cake with oreos, and the top was chocolate cake with caramel sauce and chopped Twix bars. It kind of makes me want to get married again, just for the cake!
These are the wedding favors. Each guest got a package of two miniature black and white cookies. I am beginning to suspect black and white cookies might be the next red velvet cupcakes. Mark my words: in a year we'll be surrounded by black and white cookie specialty shops, and all the cupcakeries will be out of business.