Sunday Sweets: World Traveler
November 6, 2011 "Come fly with me, let's fly, let's fly away!"
Ladies and gentlemen, prepare for takeoff! We are traveling the world today! Get your map and passport, and make sure all carry-on luggage is stowed in the overhead bins.
;)
Made by Christopher Garrens
Here we go!
Let's begin our journey at the golden pyramids of Egypt, where rulers were forever immortalized in effigies, hieroglyphics, and cake.
Maybe not cake.
;)
Submitted by Chantelle E. and made by Vanilla Bean Cakes
But if they had gleaming golden fondant back then, I bet they would have used that, too.
;)
Let's get an eye-ful of the Eiffel, and I'll have a plate-full too!
;)
If you look out of the right side of your window, you'll see some amazingly intricate frosting fretwork here.
Next, we'll jet over to Greece, where our hospitable host awaits us with gifts of fruit and olives and... is that a gyro, too? Oh, why not, you're on vacation!
;)
Submitted by Abbie and made by Tiney's Bakeshop
(Thankfully nothing was lost in translation here, because ordering a "Greece-inspired cake" over the phone could have gone badly in several ways.)
Now we're off to Rome! Haven't you always wanted to see the *Pantheon? Now's your chance!
;)
Submitted by Amy T-K and made by her friend, amateur baker Judy.
(And yes, congratulations indeed, John, for being the type of guy who warrants such a classy creation, instead of like, a sheet cake topped with beer cans and fake boobs. High five.)
Whew! I think we need a cupcake break!
;)
Awww, cuteness! Look at all the little baby clouds.
Onward weary traveler! Next stop: India!
No?
Russia?
No?
;)
Submitted by Jessica D. and made by Iced Gem Cakes
I'm sorry, it looks like my unculturedness is showing. This is actually the Royal Pavilion in the U.K. Stunning job. So much detail here, I'm getting neck cramps just looking at it!
Our world journey would not be complete without a visit to the Far East and the prettiest pink pagoda you've ever seen!
;)
I love the turquoise and pink with the gold accents! If this doesn't exist in real life, it should.
Back to France we go for a tour of the Hotel de Ville, and one beautifully ambitious cake.
;)
Submitted by Mimi and made by Vanille Patisserie
Can you see all the teensy statues and sculptures? I counted at least 20 of them!
If it's literary enlightenment you're craving, let's browse the stacks at the Radcliffe Camera, or Rad Cam, as all the cool kids call it, a reading room of the Bodleian Library at Oxford University.
;)
Submitted by Andrew R. and made by The Cake Shop
The balustrades! The pilasters! The pediments! The porticos! Ok, I'm just making stuff up now, but WOW. Palladian architecture AND cake? I dig.
And here we are at our final destination: The Sydney Opera House.
;)
Submitted by Peta L. and made by Planet Cake
Sorry if I didn't mention that this is a very high-brow world tour. No stops in Cancun for spring-break style shenanigans on this trip.
;)
This is so well done I actually forgot I was looking at cake! G'job mate!
Ladies and Gentlemen, on behalf of Cake Wrecks Air, thank you for flying with us today, and we look forward to seeing you on board again soon!
Have a Sweet to nominate? Then send it to Sunday Sweets [at] Cake Wrecks [dot] com.
HEY CHICAGO! We'll see you today at 2pm. WOOHOO!!!
* Here's some clarification on the Pantheon/Parthenon issue:
Here's a picture of the Parthenon, a temple on the Athenian Acropolis, Greece.
Now, here's a picture of the Pantheon, a building in Rome, Italy, commissioned as a temple to all the gods of Ancient Rome.
Reader Comments (43)
Wow - I had to take a look at the Christopher Garrens website. Oh my gosh. I think one of those babies would have cost more than my whole wedding. And then there's the additional concern of being upstaged by the wedding cake. :/
I've been watching reruns of Psych too much because I just got all excited spotting a hidden pineapple. *sigh* Thanks for reminding me there is a whole world outside of netflix to be seen :)
Those are all so amazing, but I <3 pyramids. Great job on every single cake :D
I'm lovin the colors on that pagoda, and it's hard to believe that first picture is really cake!
I would love to have an occasion that would justify the Oxford cake. The piping on the Eifel Tower is superb, too.
Lovely cakes. But how could you not even mention the man in the shiny blue unitard in the background of the sydney opera house cake pic??
Which to choose, the stack of luggage, the pagoda, Oxford, or the Sydney Opera House? They are all amazing. It's good to know not all cakes are wrecks!
Wow. These cakes are all amazing! I'd feel so guilty if I had a slice of them. :(
Notre Dame is just 2 hours from today's tour stop. If only I didn't have homework and laundry. :p Guess I'll just have to eat some cake instead!
Actually . . . Egypt geek mode on . . . Back when the Pyramids were a-building, Egyptian bakers used to bake bread in clay molds, often conical, and enrich it with things that are also found in traditional European holiday breads/cakes: butter, oil, eggs, honey, chopped fruit, etc. My amateur opinion is that actually eating a loaf of bread made to look like a Pyramid would have felt weird to people who knew that the Pyramids were intended to carry the Pharaohs to eternity undisturbed. However, covering bread with edible gold for offerings or tomb provisions or just to show off--they would have been all over that! Fancy bread baked in the shape of 3-D hieroglyphs, maybe the ones meaning "Life, Prosperity, Health," which is what you said whenever you talked about Pharaoh, and covered in gold, and then consumed: I think that would fit right into the culture./Egypt geek
how sad is it that I get "awesome" overload before I get "wrecked" overload? :D too much beauty from too many talented people. I feel like a hopeless slug.
Ann A, that's exactly what I was thinking!
Why is there a member of the Fantastic Four behind the Sydney Opera House cake?
Bostonian here - I think the 'Pantheon' may actually be the dome at MIT, which would fit in perfectly for congratulating a coming/recent graduate of that institution. I could be wrong here, however.
Wonderful execution on all of these, though - I think the first one with all the trunks and wonderful details may be the best!
Yay a Brighton cake! Go Jen!
What, no deer on the Hotel de Ville?
When I look at the last pic, for some reason I keep trying to see Marvin the Martian on the left.
Uh, yeah, great... where are my peanuts?
sorry mr. bostonian, that is definitely the pantheon (art history nut here). the dome and facade are unmistakable :)
http://gemmagarnham.com/imprints-pantheon-and-its-optical-correction/
here is the dome at mit
http://alumweb.mit.edu/classes/1989/BrowseWeb.do?webSiteId=SI001321&webPageId=P001
as you can see, the dome's colonnade is much broader and it is not topped with the triangular pediment of the pantheon. it would also appear to be a rectilinear building whereas the pantheon (like the cake) is round.
just confirming this for you. :)
I took a picture of that same Bodleian Library cake a couple of years ago. Such an awesome cake and such and awesome cake shop. http://www.flickr.com/photos/sally_monster/3382537909/
Breathtaking. Simply breathtaking. <Does the "I'm Not Worthy" bow.>
Regarding Pantheon/Parthenon, my art history teacher taught us to remember that there's "a hole in your pants," same as there's a hole in the dome of the PANTheon. It's not glamorous, but hey, I've never forgotten it!
Wow! I wan to have a tasting now of that trip. Sunday sweets always leaves me with my jaw on e floor...stunning!
I just have to point out one bit of annoyance with the Greek cake. This is something I see very often (even in the movies - think "My Big Fat Greek Wedding") - people think they're using a Greek "E" and how cool is that, right? What they apparently don't know is that that is the Greek letter sigma, or "S". The Greek "E", epsilon, actually looks very much like our capital "E".
/end geek rant
Some time ago my mum and I spent a week at Oxford, living in Brasenose College. My mum's room looked out on the Radcliffe Camera, so I can say with certainty that it looks EXACTLY like that! Oh, that I had the funds to get us that cake (or the talent to make that cake) to go with a little tea and reminiscing. I would also be willing to accept the sweet pagoda cake or those seriously adorable cupcakes, in lieu of the Camera . . .
Having just spent nine hours travelling from the UK to Norway (not counting an ovenight stay in Edinburgh) I appreciate this post in particular! It gave me cause to smile at the end of a *very* long day :)
The Greek cake is nice, but it's incomplete. Where are the rioting protesters? I have not seen a reference to the Bodleian Library since I was in grad school! Very high brow indeed!
Okay, enough culturifying. Let's get back to the beer and boobs cakes (which is what John actually wanted).
Love the Eiffel tower cake. Wow is it ever gorgeous. I also wish to have that pretty pagoda cake. Mmmm just stares at the pictures lol.
I can't stop staring at the Sydney Opera House - all the cakes are awesome but this one just blew my mind. Unbelievable.
I spent many, many happy hours in the Radcliffe doing research. I heart that cake so much! The others are beautiful and well-done, but a replica of the most famous library in the world....takes the cake!
Isn't the Radcliffe Camera the building they used where they had the dragon coming out of Gringotts in the final Harry Potter movie?
Another Oxford grad here... Love the Rad Cam cake and actually saw it in person a few months ago in their shop window. It's such a pity though that it was made by "The Cake Shop" - their cakes are visually ok a lot of the time, but don't taste all that good...
Just thought I'd add another pantheon to the mix. There's a pantheon in Paris, France that is a memorial dedicated to their national heroes. A picture can be found here: http://www.planetware.com/picture/paris-pantheon-f-fp106.htm :)
Just wanted to say (publicly) what a wreck-tastic time I had at the Book Stall in "Chicago-ish" yesterday. Renewed my love for the website 1000-fold! Please, please, WRECK ON!
Those cakes are amazing! I love Egypt the Egyptian cakes were beautiful! I have one correction for you though, its hieroglyphs NOT hieroglyphics!!
Hello! Thank you for featuring BITO's cuppies! xoxo Sheryl
I mean this is not cooking, this is making art. I am really impressed by all of these wanderful works! Great job!
Wow, the are all beautiful but, dont I just love the hotel de ville cake
Isn't The Pink Pagoda a fictional brothel in M.A.S.H.? Love it just the same!
I think "Amateur baker Judy" needs to become "Professional baker Judy." Just sayin'.
I really love those French cakes! I've been to Paris, France, and the cakes look pretty similar to the Palace of Versille and the Eiffel Tower.Did you know that 10 or 15 minutes after the hour in the evening, there's a light show? I wholeheartedly recomend watching it.
OMG, It's Greek to Me is a restaurant in the same town where my parents live... I used to eat there all the time when I lived at home... awesome cake, they nailed the logo! lol
I'd just like to take a moment to point out that "Happy bday" is ALWAYS pronounced "Happy Bidet" in my mind...to varying degrees of discomfort.
Yep - the UK Brighton Pavilion cake is all kinds of fabulous.....but take a look at this bakers website....she did a replica "West Pier" (do they call them Boardwalks in the States?) for Lord Attenboroughs 80th birthday "do"...........Just so clever and talented!