One thing that aspiring chefs or pastry chefs can do to get their names out into the world is to enter magazine baking and cooking contests. Last year, I did just that and entered a cake I created into a Taste of Home Party Cakes Decorating Contest.
I had no intentions of entering the contest, but a neighbor had contacted me with a special request for her granddaughter’s birthday cake. We decided on a cute donut theme! I looked on the internet to see if any cake contests were taking place, and Taste of Home was having one while I was already making the cake. I decided to go out on a limb and enter, and I ended up winning as a runner-up, winning a $250 prize.
Cartoon-style cakes had just become very popular then, and I wanted to do a variation on one using my style. I chose a seven-layer white cake with Italian meringue buttercream and homemade strawberry jam filling. There were four layers of cake with three layers of strawberry jam filling. I decorated it by covering it in white fondant with multi-colored polka dots, a red top outlined in black, and adorable mini donuts!
I’m glad I decided to challenge myself. Aside from the cake, I had to submit an entire video of me making it from start to finish and all the recipes I used.
Here is a link to the full article in Taste of Home.
Innovative Leadership and Entrepreneurship: A Graduate Student's Perspective 