Flavor of Love

Not too many years ago tradition dictated that a wedding
cake should imitate the bride’s white wedding gown: white cake with
white frosting. But no more. Like so many Emily Post dictates that have
gone by the wayside, today’s couples are choosing cakes that feature a
variety of flavors and fillings. Since more and more couples are paying
for their weddings, instead of relying on their parents to do so, it
only follows that they have the last say as to what their cake will
taste like.

To assist brides-to-be in choosing their ideal
combination of textures and flavors encased within an ornate display of
tiers and decorations, the pastry-making team of Maria Giacona and
Nicole Hebert from Pascale Bake House Café (500 S. Warren St., in the
Hotel Syracuse; 415-9413) have created an extensive list of cake
flavors, along with mousse and jam fillings plus buttercream and other
icings. Working with them is Wendy Arledge, who has been with the
Pascale companies for 18 years, since it began as a trendy restaurant
on Hawley Avenue frequented by the beautiful people.

Armed with a degree from the Scottsdale
Culinary Institute in Scottsdale, Ariz., Hebert, 25, has been with
Pascale for three years. She started with brothers Chuck and Neal’s
emporium as a chef when the bakehouse was on Hawley. She was
subsequently assigned to the pastry department when the operation moved
to the hotel in February 2007. “I was really trained in savories but
this has given me the opportunity to round out my culinary experience,”
she says.

Sweet dreams: Pascale bakers,
Maria Giacona and Nicole Hebert, show off two of their creations, a
banana cake with layers of marscapone cream and dolce de leche and a
chocolate mint mousse cake.

Giacona, 23, has been with Pascale for almost a year. She
created her own major which consisted of studio art and
three-dimensional design at Cayuga Community College, although she did
not graduate. Working in the culinary field was not in the cards, or so
she thought, even though she had dabbled in cooking at home from the
time she was 5 years old. Somewhere along the line her interests turned
and she took a pastry course at the Culinary Institute of America in
Hyde Park. Giacona’s training in the arts, coupled with her CIA
studies, have blended perfectly for designing and executing elegantly
elaborate wedding cakes.  

Giacona and Hebert work as a team,
Giacona, primarily on the decorative end, and Hebert on the
ingredients, although their work interlaces at times. Their combined
talents, plus moving to the current location from Hawley Avenue, has
resulted in the doubling of Pascale’s pastry sales, according to
co-owner Neal Pascale. “We average seven wedding cakes per week,” says
Pascale. The duo also services Pascale Wine Bar & Restaurant, 204
W. Fayette St.; Justin’s Grille, part of the Pascale operation at 6400
Yorktown Circle; and Pascale’s catering. The bakehouse features
pastries and lunch items, and the operation also services venues like
all four Freedom of Espresso locations and Drive-Thru Joe’s in Auburn.   

Carrot is one of Pascale’s most popular wedding cake
flavors, a combination of the vegetable plus pineapple and coconut.
Many brides choose it for its complex blend of flavors and textures,
and its ingredients are specially geared to vegans. “People bring in
their ideas for what they want and we work around it,” says Giacona.
“For instance, one bride brought in a family decorative dish that had
particular meaning for her. I just copied the motif and incorporated it
into the cake design.”

Pascale offers 20 different cake flavors. The most
popular choice is one alternating layers of chocolate and vanilla. Nut
flavors, such as almond, hazelnut, pistachio and rum, and pecan, plus
red velvet, are priced higher than carrot, chocolate chiffon, chocolate
butter, cinnamon spice chiffon, cornmeal pound cake, coconut, lemon
butter, lemon chiffon, mocha, pumpkin, vanilla butter and vanilla
chiffon.

Mousse fillings, 12 in all, add
creaminess between layers. They include caramel, chocolate hazelnut,
cinnamon, coconut, dark chocolate, lemon cream, peanut butter, milk
chocolate raspberry and white chocolate; cannoli cream and mascarpone
carry an extra charge. Other fillings, like apricot or raspberry jam,
chocolate fudge, cream cheese, lemon curd, chocolate fudge, strawberry
compote, vanilla bean custard or fresh berries, not only add a nice
taste surprise, but create visual interest when cutting that
all-important first slice.

Giacona likes working with fondant, a sugar paste that
retains a glossy finish and is a little chewy to the bite, but agrees
that buttercream frostings hold up the best. She does emphasize that
all cakes and frostings are made from scratch, using the finest
ingredients. Whipped cream frostings do not hold up well, she says, so
the Bake House doesn’t bother with them. She also cautions customers
not to order a ganache cake in the summer, because of high melting
possibilities. 

Instead of creating a large cake for everyone, brides
often request a ceremonial cake for show and small tarts and other
pastries are offered to guests.

The pair admits to just about sleeping at the bakery in
the summer, due to the high volume of wedding cake orders. A typical
day for Hebert starts at 5:30 a.m. when she begins mixing scone
ingredients, and usually winds up about 8 p.m. “When I come in, I walk
around the building in the dark, trying to find my way around,” she
jokes. When Giacona comes in a bit later, the list of things to be done
never stops. Graduations, anniversaries, Mother’s Day, Easter,
Christmas and business meetings populate the ongoing agenda. “I can’t
imagine doing anything else in my life,” says Giacona. 

Hebert’s interests still lie in the
cooking area, but she is happy to be involved in pastry-making to round
out her culinary experience. It seems unbelievable that these two
artists, alone, handle all the desserts, from wedding cakes to
pastries. To assist in their output, they have just moved into a huge,
state-of-the-art kitchen on the main floor, adjacent to the Bake House
Café. 

Pascale’s pricing for wedding cakes starts at $4 per
person. An 8-inch round cake is $35; 10-inch round, $45; 12-inch round,
$65; 14-inch round, $85. A half-sheet is $75; full sheet is $125.  

On March 7, a bridal trade show will be held at Justin’s,
and will include not only wedding cakes and pastries, but other bridal
items. For information, call Heather, 437-1461.

A raspberry
Bavarian pistachio cake with raspberry gelee. MICHAEL DAVIS PHOTOS