Spring Day of Sharing

Yesterday was the Tennessee ICES chapter Day of Sharing. I went to one of these things years ago while I was still working in a bakery. Then motherhood happened, and I let my ICES membership lapse. When I started teaching more cake decorating classes I rejoined ICES, and since I don't teach Wilton classes on Sunday afternoons anymore, now I'm free to attend these types of functions. Susan Carberry was there to demonstrate some advanced cake decorating skills, and she actually taught several classes leading up to the Day of Sharing, but sadly none of them worked with my schedule.

However, I got to see the cake from her Garden Critters class, as it was on display. Pretty cool!

For the demonstration on Sunday, she built this Easter-themed stacked chick cake, and to go along with it she made a rabbit in a motorized carrot car.

To construct a cake like this, you need to get supplies and materials from the hardware and/or pet supply store. The stand is made from PVC pipes. That's how the whole thing is supported. Water squirts out of the bottom chick's mouth, and to make that happen she used a fish tank pump and plastic tubing. The top chick rocks back and forth, and it was built on the insides of a kid's toy.

The bunny is modeled from rolled fondant, and his car is a large carrot shape made from rice cereal treats on top of what was once a remote-controlled jeep toy. And no, none of that is real cake. She used styrofoam (much of it she had to hand carve to get the right shape) to make anything that isn't rice krispies treats. But you could conceivably make this with real cake, if you're up for a project.

So if you're not already a member, join ICES and participate in events organized by your local chapter because there's always more to learn.