I'd heard about Canada's Baking and Sweets Show through Facebook, but really wasn't interested until it was announced that Duff Goldman, from Food Networks' "Ace of Cakes" was going to be there. It wasn't him so much that I liked about the show, but his team of cake decorators, and how each of them had their own specialty. *Mary Smith has the ability to pipe the most intricate designs with a steady hand that I could not have even if I quit drinking coffee.
I watched Ben Turner create structure after structure so cakes would not fall over.
*Katherine Hill, whose hair I always wanted to push out of her face, created the best hotdogs and hamburgers out of fondant :)
*And Geof Manthorne, the man who replicates buildings, guitars, cars, etc. had the impeccable ability to make anything out of cake, and not look like cake.
They made painted cakes, sculpted cakes, tiered cakes and famous peoples' cakes. I sat with my sketchbook in front of me and scribbled down every cake I saw, wrote every tip they said, and tried almost every medium they used.
I remember in my first year of cake decorating, a customer asked for a buffalo. I wanted it to stand on all four legs but my husband and I weren't sure how to do it. Low and behold, that Sunday we saw the Charm City Cakes team make a turtle character stand on it's hind legs, and fall over. As they worked through finding a better structure system, we wrote down everything we saw, and made a perfect four legged stand for our amazing buffalo.
Things I learned from watching Duff's show:
- don't let the cake tell you what to do
- everything that could wrong sometimes will
- the clock is your worst enemy
- there is always a solution
- you can't do it alone
- no one sees the mistakes that you see
- no one sleeps on a Friday night
So, Nicole and I went to the baking and sweets show, and as she went off to learn about modelling chocolate, I sat and watched Duff present himself in traditional Duff style, and got my Ace of Cakes book signed. With huge, nasty bodyguards around, and Nicole disobediently snapping pictures, I smiled at the owner of Charm City Cakes, spelled my name for him and willed him to know I was a huge fan.
I think he knows :)*Several photos by Adrienne Helitzer/for Charm City Cakes©
The show itself was fantastic and I will be posting about it over the next few weeks. Between the classes I took and the booths I visited, I was overwhelmed with inspiration.
Talk soon,
Erin
Except, at the last minute, like the total adult you are, you swirl in marshmallow fluff and a handful of crushed graham crackers.
I think we can agree... s'mores need no reason. Especially s'mores in the form of thick, fudgy brownies full of chocolate chunks, dark chocolate chips, swirls of marshmallow dreams, subtle, crunchy bits of graham crackers... and a crackly graham cracker top.
Pour into baking dish and spread evenly. Bake for 35-45 minutes, or until done and a toothpick inserted into the center of brownies comes out clean. 
Well, this is that recipe... hunkered down for fall.
Printable Recipe 
