That’s a Wrap! Cake Workshop: February Chocolate

Can I PLZ do a cake workshop every weekend? I just feel like I would be living my best life if I just had a cake party on the regular. Because, really, what’s a party without cake, and what’s a cake without a party?  A few weeks back I hosted my first cake decorating workshop at Tendue in Portland, Oregon and I’m here to tell you all about it.

Okay first, let’s just talk about this space shall we? It’s bright, welcoming, and the details are just stunning. Our friends Danielle and Jacob opened Tendue last fall, and it’s already taking off. And for good reason, they are incredible people with a stunning rental space. I highly recommend you take a look at this venue if you’re in the market. Just look…

My friend, Katie of Dear House Collective generously offered her support. She has a amazing eye for florals and helped me search for some fun flowers to pick from while we decorated our cakes! Her work is always stunning, and I couldn’t be happier that she was a part of this day!

 

If I may, I’d really like to talk about the amazing sponsors. What is my life without Tillamook butter? Or really, Tillamook anything!?! They provided all the butter for this event.  Let me tell you, it takes A LOT of butter to make 17 cakes. So much butter. I believe in their product, mission, and their company. So thankful for all their support. It really is dairy done right.

 

 

For the cake, I melted said butter with Stumptown’s nitro cold brew, and it made the chocolate cake richer than ever! The nitro cold brew is naturally sweet and less acidic. Perfect for baking! They also provided plenty of cans of their nitro cold brew for the attendees to sip while we talked about how best to freeze cake and listened to One Direction. Stumptown filled our gift bags with their Hair Bender blend that smells and tastes like absolute heaven. HEAVEN!

 

 

And really, what is a cake without that warm splash of vanilla? Rodelle was so incredibly generous with their gourmet vanilla. And when I say gourmet, I really mean it. This product is top notch. They also provided the best vanilla bean paste I’ve ever used for the buttercream frosting that just made my heart eyes come alive! And, while they are more well known for their vanilla, did you know they have premium baking cocoa powder too!?!?! Yep, their cocoa is what made the chocolate cake warm and chocolatey.

 

 

To fill the cakes, Bonne Maman sent us the most delicious French strawberry preserves that filled the many layers of chocolate cake. It was, kind of, a whole chocolate dipped strawberry thing going on. Their preserves are my absolute favorite, and I always reach for them when I’m in the jam aisle. It tastes like a strawberry straight from July.

 

 

You should know by now that I have to have all things salted when it comes to sweets. Jacobsen Salt Co. gave us their dessert trio (flaked sea salt, Stumptown coffee salt, and Guittard salt) to sprinkle generously around the decorative chocolate drip to make it go WOW. I want to put this salt on all the desserts. ATTN: All the desserts!

 

 

Townsend Tea and Brew Dr. were generous enough to send over a few cases of their tea/kombucha to sip on and to send home with my attendees! Each gift bag had a tin of Crème De Earl Grey which warms you to your soul! I chugged a bottle of Clear Mind Kombucha while the guests started piling in. It was a joy to be able to have two of my favorite tea companies join in on the fun!

 

 

Oh! We can’t forget the amazing raffle prizes! Silpat gave us two sets of nonstick cake rounds! PackIt gave us my favorite tote to giveaway! It’s freezable and keeps things unbelievably cool! So, naturally, I packed it up with some Tillamook ice cream for the lucky winner! I gave away a few sets of my favorite sprinkle mixes that I make myself.

 

I was very particular about who I wanted to work with, and all of these companies are top-notch. I cannot thank my sponsors enough for their generosity and love.

A big thank you to my Mom who helped a ton and made a crap ton of frosting! Thank you to my Aunt Geri and to my cousin Kendra for being the creative eye for me so I could have fun making cakes! (P.S. please check out her lifestyle blog. She is just too cute.)

And finally, thank you to all of my attendees! I had such a blast with you all! Thank you for letting me talk cake, jamming along with me to my favorite music, and getting down with your creative self! All of your cakes were BEAUTIFUL. Seriously, I’m amazed by all of you. I am so looking forward to my next workshop and being able to bring the fun back into cake decorating again! You won’t want to miss it!

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