Sunday, September 07, 2008
Food, Wine, Beer & Spirits, "Dish", Recipes

Take the cake

Amidst the glam garb, baubles and bling...

Ben Rose
Isaac Mizrahi dress by Karen Portaleo of Highland Bakery

By Kirsten Ott

Amidst the glam garb, baubles and bling at Jeffrey Kalinsky’s Fashion Cares at 55 Allen Plaza on Aug. 25, one delicious dress took the cake. The gown, an actual cake created by Karen Portaleo, towered above the crowd, reaching three and a half feet high from the table it rested on. Portaleo, the sugar artist for Highland Bakery in the Old Fourth Ward, baked a cake fashioned after a couture dress from Isaac Mizrahi’s 2007 Ready to Wear collection in his Frozen Spring line. 

The formal frock was a multi-layered treat. The bottom layers were yellow cake soaked in Frangelico with chocolate buttercream, next was lemon cake and the top was a chocolate ganache; the entire dessert was covered with buttercream frosting. The actual dress was made of fondant, and, from the cinched waist and up, Portaleo used her trick of substituting something more substantial, but still edible, for the cake batter. “For a lot of my cakes,” she says, “if there are small parts that need some stability to them, I’ll use Rice Krispies.” 

Socialites, benefactors and fashionistas oohed and aahed over the sugary attraction, but only one person had the heart to cut into it. And a very impressed former Lt. Gov. Mark Taylor was seen shuffling people over to the cake to brag that he was friends with the artist. Back at Highland Bakery, Portaleo makes hundreds of specialty custom cakes in every shape and size imaginable. For more information, visit www.highlandbakery.com.

FALL IN LOVE WITH COCKTAILS … AGAIN
Autumn is just around the corner, and what goes best with gold and red leaves, football games and Thanksgiving? Why, alcohol, of course. GranGala, an orange liqueur, has introduced an autumnal-appropriate cocktail recipe: the Galana (see below). The concoction, created by mixologist Leo Ramirez, offers spicy vanilla notes of rum, a snap of ripe cranberries and a juicy burst of orange zest—a perfect blend of sweet and tart.

SMACK ON THIS
Caffeine junkies feening for their next fix will likely be excited to learn that they don’t have to put so much pressure on their bladder with the diuretic drink known as coffee. A new-on-the-scene product, VE2 Energy Gum is a convenient way to get your “get up and go” kick. The chewable boost is packed with key energy-sustaining ingredients, including vitamins B6, B12, niacin, ginseng, guarana and caffeine. The proprietary sugar-free formula has a unique appeal. 

Because caffeine is quickly absorbed by the oral membrane, VE2 Energy Gum delivers energy, alertness and endurance in as little as five minutes without the typical energy-drink crash afterward. Two pieces of VE2 Energy Gum are equal to an 8-ounce cup of coffee or an energy drink, and at $1.79 for a 10-piece pack, VE2 is ushering in a new alternative to energy drinks that is more portable, less expensive and doesn’t require an immediate bathroom break as soon as it is consumed. It’s currently available at Fry’s Electronics. www.ve2energy.com. SP

When she’s not checking out restaurants, interviewing chefs or nodding off after her fifth glass of wine, Life, Food & Style Editor Kirsten Ott dishes culinary and cocktail insights. E-mail her at kirstenott@sundaypaper.com.

GALANA

Ingredients:

2 ounces Imported GranGala Triple Orange Liqueur
1 ounce Flor de Cana rum
1 ounce cranberry syrup*
2 pieces of fresh ruby red grapefruit (peel, no skin or white)
Dash of orange bitters
Drunken cranberries**

Instructions:

In a Boston glass, add grapefruit and cranberry syrup. Muddle, add 1 ice scoop, then GranGala, rum and bitters. Shake well, and pour into a young wine glass. Garnish with drunken cranberries.

*To make the cranberry syrup, you need 2 cups sugar, 1 cup water and 2 cups of cranberries (rinsed and destemmed). Add ingredients to a saucepan, adjust heat to medium-high. Allow to boil and then reduce to a simmer. The mixture is ready once the sugar has dissolved, and the syrup is slightly thickened and has taken on the color and aroma of the berries (this takes about 5 minutes).

**To make the drunken cranberries, you need 2 cups of sugar, 1 cup dark rum and 1 cup fresh cranberries (rinsed and destemmed). Follow the cranberry syrup directions, and pull out the cranberries to use for garnish.