Sunday Sweets Special Feature: The "Mirror Cakes" of Olga Noskova
May 29, 2016 The shiny "mirror cakes" of Olga Noskova have been going viral the past few weeks, and today I am jumping on that shiny, shiny bandwagon, you guys, because LOOKIE:
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When I first saw this cake my jaw literally dropped. And that's coming from someone whose JOB is to look at the world's most beautiful cakes.
I thought I'd seen it all.
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I WAS WRONG.
Check out this marbling:
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And this funky-cool fluting:
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Incredibly, Noskova's cakes even look as beautiful inside as they do out:
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So how does she do it?
Here's a short video from Noskova's brand new Youtube channel to illustrate:
The "mirror glaze" is a poured on gelatin mixture, and is apparently an old French technique that just isn't used very often. (Although I bet it's about to get a LOT more popular. Ha!)
And while everyone is focusing on that incredible shine, it turns out Nokova has perfected another incredible cake texture:
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A velvety matte speckle, which she achieves with a powered sprayer.
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Both of her signature textures together:
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This is cake art in every sense of the word, but as John pointed out to me, it's cake art that you still want to eat. Somehow Noskova has managed to make her cakes look as delicious as they are beautiful - and we all know that's no small task in the modern cake world.
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Head over to Olga's Instagram for sooo much more (it wasn't easy to narrow down my favs!), and then watch her new Youtube channel for hopefully more instructional vids to come.
Happy Sunday, everyone!
*****
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Reader Comments (43)
"Instructional vids"? UHHHHHHHHH.......... oh......
I've seen the first one everywhere, but the others are new to me, and Jen, I am IN LOVE. Thank you for the post and the link--I'm off to get lost now. :)
Terrific stuff!
And whole new ways for wreckerators to create masterful wrecks!
Wow -- this is so much fun and such artistry! Love it!
I do wonder how those cakes taste. Anyone had a piece?
I've seen and love these beautiful cakes like everyone! I'm glad to see some of her cakes I've never seen before! Thanks
These are absolutely beautiful! Can't believe they're cake!
By the way, hope you're enjoying the Con!
Mother of all cake decorators, this is beyond beautiful. I wonder how long it took her to perfect this technique. Stunning doesn't begin to cover it.
Pastry chefs do that all the time, saw it on every show during the season of this, not sure if youll be able to see it over there.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0763y12
Ismail Patiss is another fantastic pastry chef who does the Mirror Glace cakes:
https://youtu.be/6YTMKF9Jlkc
https://youtu.be/A6jOOIaTUTE
I NEED THEM.
OK these are massively beautiful! As a bead artist I am in heaven. They remind me of Cabochons and I had no choice but to share in my bead groups! LOL Thanks so much for showing us this
John's comment is spot on. My reaction to the cut pieces was, "oh wow. Those look YUMMY."
The pouring-over technique is used to make petite fours, except instead of gelatin, it's warm fondant. Probably you all knew. :) I imagine, though, that many of them are made in a mold, which is why, to me, they look a lot like gelatin molds, for which there is aways room, rather than shiny "mirror" cakes. The others remind me of stucco, which is my least fave architectural structure (er, house) finish. Also, the internals of the yellow cake (the thick beige layers on top) make me anxiously curious, re. what the halibut is that stuff? So while inventive, unusual, and exceedingly well-crafted, neither stye calls to me. They are clearly cakes for robots in the future. Give me an amethyst geode any day!
I have been following her on Instagram for awhile, and my only complaint is that it is not written in a language I can read! Her cakes are stunning. I want to know how she gets the INSIDE looking like that!
Fabulous cakes Jen! Thanks.
:)
But you should put a noise warning in for anyone tempted to click on the 'powered sprayer' link!
Gorgeous!!! Simply amazing - works of art, each and every one of them.
Am I the only one who can't wait to see how some wreckerator is going to try replicating these designs??? (evil laugh and eyebrow wiggle)
The mirror-finish cakes are works of art. "Beautiful" doesn't come close to describing them. "Stunning" and "jaw-dropping" come closer. But I've never loved the taste of gelatin so I'm not sure I'd want to eat the icing.
The velvet matte speckle, on the other hand… I want all of them (including the ones on her Instagram that you didn't have room for here) delivered to me RIGHT NOW! Sure, I'd go into a sugar coma and die but what a way to go.
I don't want to eat these cakes, I want to touch them. Preferably without ruining the textures.
"Diane in los angeles", you are sooooo right!! I can see it now: "Jell-O will work just as well, right? *pours* Hmmm. Oh well, no one will care."
These look amazing, but goddamn is there any way to get the beautiful shininess without making cakes out of bounds for vegetarians?
You're right--these are mouth-watering as well as beautiful. I can't figure out how it is possible to perfect "shiny" without the "slimy" or "greasy" effect we've seen on so MANY wrecks. These are flawless. I want a slice of each, please!
O...M...G :O :O how?!?!?!?!
Stunning!!! The Wedgewood-style wedding cake is my favorite.
That said, LET THE WRECKERATOR (cracked!) MIRROR CAKES.... COMMENCE!
P.S. Hope you've had fun at the Con; looking forward to pics.
P.P.S. angelica, Isn't there a vegetarian substitute for gelatin?
Angelica, maybe agar agar instead of gelatin? More expensive but completely vegetarian. Might be worth a shot.
Hm, maybe maybe, thanks. I think the only time I tried to do veg-gelatine went wrong, and I've heard mixed things, but likely just needs some work...
I can just see someone deciding to bake a cake with a jelly preggy belly in it, compete with plastic baby, and try to do it up like the shiny gelatin what's seen here.
Que Sara Lee - Hurk! How perfectly wrecky!
Thank you SO much for this. These cakes are truly works of art. It's INSANE how beautiful yet tasty they are. If I had millions, she'd be my personal pastry chef! LOL
Mandy
When mastery like this goes viral, it can only mean one thing. Job security for the Cake Wrecks crew!
You find very similar cakes in Chinese bakeries. They're beautiful to look st, so appetizing. But, the cake is also delicious. Whipped cream fillings and rice flour cake with a lot of fresh fruit. They're delicious and usually really light. Not like the buttercream and heavy cakes were used to in America.
Oooooh, so shiny. I think I want one of these!
Shiny!
So beautiful! But what kind of cakes are those? They look like ice cream or cheese cake? Pretty sure that's not any type of sponge cake... I want to know how they taste! :D
Mommy Russia you made it again. I Can't eat those cakes is a Sin are too Beautiful.
"Am I the only one who can't wait to see how some wreckerator is going to try replicating these designs??? (evil laugh and eyebrow wiggle)"
May 29, 2016 | Nutmeg
You absolutely, positively, unequivically are NOT ALONE.
Amazeballs! But, golly - If someone plonked any of these down in front of me on my birthday (Which is coming up in 2 weeks, BTW!), I fear I would start shooting indiscriminately at anyone who tried to cut a slice out of it! Too gorgeous for words!
NOTE: Yes, I just realized that if I only shoot at people who try to cut it open, that is not really "indiscriminate" - but, then, I don't really have a gun, so I decided to leave it!
That texture looks like the stuff popcorn ceilings are made of.
Her cakes are very beautiful. I have seen that mirror finish or something similar on some custom cakes from Norman Love in Fort Myers.
The word “awesome” is insanely overused these days, but I am seriously in awe of these cakes. Especially the purple one with the undulations. I have the same problem with these as I do with many of the Sunday Sweets, “too pretty to eat.” Works of art, all of them.
Beautiful work!!
But it is nothing really new, it is a very traditional french way of pastry making, named Entremets.
You can find it in one way or the other in every Pastry Shop in France.
Entremets is made of mousse with layers of fruit puree, genoise and often made with several different layers for the very sophisticated ones. The Entremets is covered with a mirror glaze for the shiny or flocage for the velvety look which is sprayed on.
Thank you, Titi! That is exactly the information I've been waiting for! Off to Google!!
I have a mirror glaze wreck of my own to share and hopefully a success to share this weekend. It's not as easy as the videos make it look. Her work is just flawless.
Can I order my wedding cake? I live in Austin Texas. Where are you?
Wow, awesome pics!! Will post mine, as well :-) ... Someone asked how to do it: Pretty simple. I'm working with a airless, heated chocolate sprayer (KREA Swiss; but got it here in the US; see link) to get this velvet effect. Basically its spraying, atomizing warm chocolate onto the cold, frozen cake .... done!! .. and yummy!
No need for compressed air. For more info contact the US distributor: https://www.professional-equipment.com/