ranunculus

everytime i make a cake it becomes my new favourite.. yup... i think this one is my new favourite!

black and white

my peony and doily design is definitely my most popular, it is just the most perfectly sweet wedding cake- i think! i always enjoy making it in different colour combinations- i liked this black and white version- very classy!

the school is open! i will be teaching a kids school holiday class!

 

the school by megan morton is now open! i will be teaching a school holiday class for kids on the 17th of April- how fun!! one of my best memories from kindergarten was when i did a cooking lesson and we covered milk arrowroot biscuits with pink icing and smarties.... that and our excursion to the zoo to see the pandas fifi and xiao xiao ... i also used to love reading mums aww childrens cake book dreaming about the castle cake... anyway in hindsight i can see that i was destined to be a cake decorator... so hopefully this might give your children some confidence in the kitchen and teach them that your job can be something fun when you grow up!

for schedule and booking info see the school
for grown ups classes please see my current newcastle schedule here

a really sweet little wedding cake...

this sweet little 6" square cake was for a really sweet couple and their intimate wedding with 13 guests... sigh!

i made sweet peas for the first time, they turned out so, so .... sweet! they were just meant to be filler flowers but kind of ended up being the feature.

sorry for using the word 'sweet' 4 times in this post... now 5 ... but i think that is the only way to describe it all! ok 6 now that i've written the title.

newcastle!

 

newcastle baths

 

nobby's beach

 

estabar

 

sprocket

 

colliseum antique centre

 

 

betty mim

wow my classes are fast approaching! it is really great that so many people are making the trip to newcastle to attend- thanks so much!! i thought i would do a little blog post about how wonderful newcastle is so that you guys know what to do while you are here... and maybe to encourage a couple of more people to come aswell...?!  

newcastle is such a fantastic place to live, it is just so so beautiful and such a relaxing city. over the past few years there has been a really amazing change in newcastle, there has always been fantastic beaches and a relaxed cafe culture but with the renew newcastle project there has also been a real creative buzz growing.

to be honest, i dont want too many more people to know how fantastic newcastle is but it was kind of given away when it was listed by lonely planet as one of the top 10 cities in the world to visit in 2011... damn! but anyway, here is a little summary of my favourite things to do...!

relaxing

the best thing about newcastle is definitley the amazing beaches- a swim, jog or walk around the beach is just the best. and i always love a picnic! king edward park is my favourite place for a picnic or to just lay under a tree for the afternoon

coffee, coffee... more coffee...

there are so many really cute coffee shops with fantastic coffee, my absolute favourite is estabar- they have the most amazing coffee and simple, really delicious food. some of my other favourites are scotties, sproket, good brother, suspension

eat, eat...  eat

breakfast at estabar, sunday morning farmers market, fish and chips from scotties,  dinner on darby st, japanese at honeysuckle, fine dining at bacchus ...

cute little boutique shops and antique shops

darby st, betty mim, high tea with mrs woo, emma soup, the centenary centre, colliseum antiques...

day trips

the hunter valley vineyards and port stephens are both about an hours drive and a really lovely day out.

there is also heaps more to do, i found a really fantastic website- precinkt, with a great summary of things to do in newcastle here!

powder blue love...

*gasp* how beautiful is this lounge from lily and bramwell, it would be so amazing for wedding photos... *sigh*

 

chair hire available from lily and bramwell

photo by lily and bramwell

one cake, two other ways...

this week i had two wedding cakes based on my cute sugar lace + heart topper cake... i think they both turned out quite sweet!

CLASS DESCRIPTIONS!

below are my class descriptions to be held at the essential ingredient, newcastle. i will be announcing more dates shortly, please email me to register your interest in a class and to be added to a mailing list- contact@hellonaomi.com.au
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Cupcake Basics- buttercream and fondant

Baking
-bake your own cupcakes using my favourite vanilla bean cupcake recipe
- make buttercream icing

Decorating
-buttercream swirls
-working with food colours to dye fondant
-become confident working with fondant
-covering cupcakes with a smooth fondant finish
-making various sugar decorations
-perfect piping
- assembling

You will go home with 12 gorgeous (and delicious) cupcakes and skills to last a lifetime. The skills you learn in this class can be applied to decorating cupcakes, cookies and cakes. This class is suitable for all skill levels.

Cookie Basics- Easter Cookies

In this class you will learn how to bake and decorate my popular easter design. These make the sweetest handmade gift and the skills that you learn in this class can be applied to any shaped cookie for any occasion.

Baking
- my favourite sugar cookie recipe
- rolling and cutting out perfectly neat shapes

Decorating
-working with food colours to achieve the perfect shade for each part of your design
-become confident working with fondant
-perfect piping

Presentation
-packaging

You will go home with 12 super sweet cookies and skills to last a lifetime. The skills you learn in this class can be applied to decorating cupcakes, cookies and cakes. This class is suitable for all skill levels.

Baking Basics- buttercream cupcakes and cake pops!

 

Baking

-bake your own cupcakes using my favourite vanilla bean cupcake recipe

- make buttercream icing

Decorating

-buttercream swirls

-making little sugar decorations

- technique for making cake pops and decorating

You will go home with 6 cupcakes 8 cake pops and skills to last a lifetime. The skills you learn in this class can be used to bake delicious and beautiful sweets for friends and family. This class is suitable for all skill levels and perfect for beginner bakers.

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The following classes are not scheduled yet but may run later in the year, please email me to register your interest- contact@hellonaomi.com.au

extended tier wedding cake

the extended 8’’+ 6’’ 2 tier cake is my most popular wedding design style. Decorated with a sweet piped design on the side and a delicate feature flower it makes the dream cake for modern brides.

It is also perfect for learning the basic skills for wedding cake designs- preparing a cake with ganache, structuring a tiered cake, covering with fondant, professional finish and edges, perfect piping on the side of a cake and creating delicate sugar flowers. The skills that you learn in this class will take you to a professional level and increase the value that you can charge for your wedding cakes.

With the right technique ganaching creates a perfectly smooth and even base and allows for a perfectly smooth fondant cover, sharp professional edges and strong and even structuring. It can be a time consuming process but essential for the neatness of your cake. In this class you will learn the methods to achieve perfect results.

Preparing the Cake

-measuring and torting the cakes

-the secrets to a perfectly smooth and level ganached base

-structuring and assembling a 2 tier cake

Decorating

-scheduling

-colouring fondant with food colours to achieve the perfect shade for your design

-covering an extended tier cake with fondant

-achieving professional edges and finish

-preparing flower paste

-making delicate wired flowers

-making a template for your piped design

-perfect piping techniques for the side of a cake.

Presentation

-covering a cake board

You will go home with a professionally decorated wedding cake valued at over $600. The skills that you learn in this class can be applied to all of your future cake endeavours including smaller and larger cakes. basic knowledge of working with fondant is required for this class. The new techniques that you will learn in this class will help you gain confidence in achieving consistent, professional, perfect results.

** you will need to bring 3x 8’’ + 2x 6’’ mud cakes** recipe will be provided

Cupcakes 2- garden cupcakes

 

Cookie Basics- tea party cookies

 

Beginners Cake Decorating- cake with cherry on top!

 

Advanced Decorating- bouquet of sugar flowers

some new wedding designs!!

here are some new designs that i worked on recently, this time it is all about the flowers!! i love *trying* to replicate my favourite flowers with sugar, they take alot of time and patience and a very delicate hand... after 4 years of decorating i am still working on these things!

bridal fair!

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last weekend i was lucky enough to be asked by the lovely catherine and nhan from lily and bramwell to be a part of their stand at the newcastle city hall bridal expo! it was my first expo and it was alot of fun, our stand was very cute and we had an amazing response! thanks so much to everyone that came by and thanks so much to catherine and nhan for inviting me!! (how cute is that pic of them?!)

unfortunately the lighting wasnt great so i didnt get any good pics of their fantastic stuff but be sure to check out their website to see their amazing event hire range...

*photos by lily and bramwell